Some City-El fixing photos

Own the fantastic City El trike ?
This is an area for you to hang out in.
anachrocomputer
Posts: 120
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 9:17 pm
Location: Bristol, UK
Contact:

Some City-El fixing photos

Postby anachrocomputer » Wed Jul 11, 2007 12:33 pm

As some of you will know, I've had a spot of bother with my City-El (to be pedantic, mine's a Mini-El, due to its age). I've had to replace the rear leaf springs due to incidents with Bristol pot-holes. And while I had the batteries out, I replaced the rubber bushes that form part of the motor mounting -- they were really badly misshapen.

Photos of the leaf springs:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anachrocomputer/sets/72157600744519116/

Photos of the motor mount:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anachrocomputer/sets/72157600744818079/

Not quite like a Haynes manual, but at least I avoided the old saying "reassembly is the reverse of disassembly"!
1994 Suzuki Cappuccino
1992 Mini-El electric bubblecar

User avatar
booboo
Posts: 429
Joined: Fri May 25, 2007 8:08 am
Location: Creepy Crawley,West Sussex
Contact:

Postby booboo » Wed Jul 11, 2007 1:10 pm

odd , my shocks were mounted the other way up with the "bump stop" uppermost .....wonder if it makes any difference ? :wink:

I can't fit the new shocks as yet, they are wider than the originals so the mounting bolts now need to be longer.
London to Brighton on a Sinclair C5 - 6/5/07 - what a trip !
Ford Explorer 4.0 v6 petrol for everyday abuse - thank God for LPG
Sinclair C5's (Plus "c5alive.co.uk" ) as a hobby

anachrocomputer
Posts: 120
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 9:17 pm
Location: Bristol, UK
Contact:

Postby anachrocomputer » Mon Aug 06, 2007 3:06 pm

Some more photos, of the front brake drum this time:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anachrocomputer/sets/72157601191190042/

Hope to get if all reassembled tonight, and refilled with brake fluid (special silicone type) and then it'll be back on the road.
1994 Suzuki Cappuccino

1992 Mini-El electric bubblecar

User avatar
booboo
Posts: 429
Joined: Fri May 25, 2007 8:08 am
Location: Creepy Crawley,West Sussex
Contact:

Postby booboo » Mon Aug 06, 2007 9:25 pm

Hiya matie,

What caused the damage to the drum in pictures six and seven ?
:shock:

Karl
London to Brighton on a Sinclair C5 - 6/5/07 - what a trip !
Ford Explorer 4.0 v6 petrol for everyday abuse - thank God for LPG
Sinclair C5's (Plus "c5alive.co.uk" ) as a hobby

User avatar
aminorjourney
Posts: 1084
Joined: Thu Sep 14, 2006 5:24 am
Location: Bristol
Contact:

Postby aminorjourney » Mon Aug 06, 2007 9:29 pm

... some idiot (a previous owner) fitted the spring holding the brake shoes on incorrectly.
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

EVangelist and Media Relations Coordinator, www.ZeroCarbonWorld.org
Host, www.transportevolved.com

http://about.me/aminorjourney/bio

anachrocomputer
Posts: 120
Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 9:17 pm
Location: Bristol, UK
Contact:

Postby anachrocomputer » Tue Aug 07, 2007 3:49 pm

booboo wrote:What caused the damage to the drum in pictures six and seven ?


I really don't know, but I assume, as Nikki says, that a previous owner knackered it. There are two spacers on the axle, one of 9.5mm and another of about 4mm. If you assemble the thing with these in the wrong positions, the drum will be 5mm too close to the backplate. But, I don't see how the drum would even turn like that! So maybe something else has happened, like a loose bit of metal in there?

Bit of a mystery.

But in addition to that, the brake release spring (C-shaped) was installed the wrong way round and was rubbing on the ribs inside the drum (noisily). That's fixed now.
1994 Suzuki Cappuccino

1992 Mini-El electric bubblecar


Return to “City El”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 23 guests