Forbes or bust in the 1953 Wolseley 4/44

How it all started -
I first met Kevin Haynes in September 94 while getting some parts made for my Anglia Tourer to go to the '94 Gold Coast Autorama Rally. I had a casual look at the car collection in the front yard and saw the 4/44. It didn't look altogether well after years of outdoor living. The reason the 4/44 struck me was that I had ambitions to own an MG Magnet of this vintage and the 4/44 was near enough to the same from the outside. Kevin offered that if I was interested he would send it to a good home - the fleet must be reduced or else.

With each visit and more bits for the Anglia, came the reminders that the car was there and that a special rally was on in September '95 - 100 cars for 100 years of Wolseley at Forbes. Why not take the car and have a go at getting it to Forbes? After all there was a whole year to work on it.

We struck a deal and the 4/44 was home for Christmas. It looked a sorry sight outside but inside were some dark secrets - rats had built nests in the lining and Kevin had been told a possum had expired in there at some stage.

4/44 as delivered - Christmas 1994

Year of manufacture: 1953
Body number: 3402
Engine Number: 26919

By now I knew a little of the cars past. Bill Martin had rescued the 4/44 and 2 other cars from near Toowoomba. It was a case of collect them or they were to be used as land fill. Bill brought the cars home and expelled the rats and removed the expired possum. By all accounts - didn't help the smell at all. Kevin eventually moved it from Bill's front yard to the Haynes front yard. As near as can be guessed, the car had been out of action since 1973 (the last rego sticker). All thing considered, the body was in good condition with only rust in the boot floor, a little in the drivers side floor sections and the rear passenger door where water had entered by a broken window glass. Of course the leather seats, roof lining and other fabric bits were too far gone to be of any use.

I can remember Kevin telling me "get the engine going first and you have something to work with." Well, doing anything was out of the question. Family holiday out of Brisbane and then straight back to work took care of the first month. Now might be the time to tell you I work full time as well as run a part time business. Not a lot of time left to play cars.

Brief bursts of activity failed to convince the engine to run. There was a black gunge in the fuel lines, very rotten smelling fuel in the SU fuel bowl and the pump would stick. The motor turned easily by crank (a little too well in fact) and I could get a spark. Changed the oil and filled up the water. Spun it over and nothing happened. Ran a compression test. Not much in any cylinder. Squirted oil into each pot and tried again. 1, 2 and 3 looked better, but 4 was low. Time to lift the lid and see what was not going on inside.

It was not a pretty sight. The inlet valves had the same black goop on them that looks like plastic resin and piston 4 had a piece out of the first ring land. Nothing for it but to strip it down for a better look. A couple of exhaust valves had been replaced at some stage but I did note with some satisfaction that the pistons were standard bore size. Stripped the block down - number 4 had 3 broken rings and a bad case of blow by. Bearings are all good and I can still see the hone marks in the bores. Except for the awful colour the motor has been painted and the problem with number 4, the motor looks good.

At the Toowoomba Swap I picked up a set of Hepolite 4 ring 20 over MG TF pistons for $260 from Spares Galore - great price by any measure. The 4/44 runs a detuned XPAW version of the MG TC / TD 1250cc XPAG motor. Also picked up a Moss Motors price list from Maintaining the Breed on the Gold Coast. They specialise in the T Series sports cars. Between these 2 suppliers, I now had no problems with engine parts.

Decided to rebuild the motor to the MG TF specification but still run a single SU. Exhaust valves are stellite faced so I can run unleaded if necessary. Parts all arrived very quickly so time to get the machine work started. The head was done first. It looked great when I collected it. Those new double sprung valves are huge, the combustion chambers are all equal, polished and matched inlet ports, bronze inserts in the cast iron guides and face surface ground. They had so much fun doing something interesting for a change. Block was next. In the hot tub to clean it, rebore the block and resize the rods, assemble the pistons and regrind the cam to fix the pit marks. 2 days and I had it back. Very carefully put it all back together. Ran it up on the starter motor to make sure everything turns OK. Painted the motor - not the correct shade of green, but I like it.

Got the Mobile Rust Cutter in to fix the tin worms. Made all the repair section out of steel and Mig'ed them in. Not much plastic will be required. Gutted the interior. 5 rat nests and numerous mouse houses later the inside is clear. I had previously acquired a spares car from Richard Keylock. This car will donate the seats and door trims and by the time the car is on the road, countless other bits and pieces.

Work stopped for a while. Of all time to get busy with work - for near 2 months straight there was little time to look at the car. September is approaching at an alarming rate. I can only get in 1 day each weekend and I calculate that at this rate with 9 weeks left, 9 days work is not enough time to do much at all. I will keep going, but it does not look good. I am spending a few extra hours per week during the evenings but have to be careful not to make any noise. Kevin is busy changing jobs and for me is fitting in making parts, a hub puller and all the bushes for the suspension, not to mention lots of encouragement to keep me going even when it all looks so hopeless. The count down is on.

I am constantly beset by problems that slow progress. It would seem that the harder I work, the further behind I am getting. The goal is now operational and registered by 1st September. That will get me 1 week shake down and testing time before we leave. Restoration will have to wait. Have arranged for leave from the 4th to the 8th. 1 solid week to finish off and test and I will need every minute.

It is 3 weeks to departure and the motor is still not back in the car. The body work is moving along and have finally got the front and back hubs off. All the wheel cylinders and the master cylinder are resized. It takes near 2 weeks part time work to get them off the backing plates. Lots of trips to the donor car to pick up parts, clean them, and then see if they are any better than what I already have.

Friday! Holidays start - that means 7 days to go. By 9pm the motor and gear box are in the engine bay. Won't fit on the new mounts. Fits easily when the mounts are old and jelly like but not when new mounts put everything where it should be.

Saturday - Neighbors are away for 2 weeks. (what a stroke of luck) Picked up a brand new Jap Hitachi SU. This will be better than trying to fix the old one. Finally persuade motor on to the mounts. Over to Kevin to make an adapter for the carby. Looks good and fits up nicely to the manifold. Clean fuel pumps and assemble 1 from the best of what I have in stock. We should be able to test fire the motor tomorrow. Work on the dash-board, clean instrument panel and fit the windscreen. Try to do the back one but just won't work when you are on your own.

Sunday - Remove fuel tank to clean inside. There is something very heavy in here and rust flakes fall out the filler. Didn't survive the tap test along the bottom - punched a hole in it. Dump this one and over to the donor to see how good it's tank is. This one is very clean inside and will go straight into my car as is. Replaced the fuel line from the tank to the pump as it is blocked solid. 10 liter's of fuel in the tank, primed the fuel pump OK. Next is priming the oil pump, filter and oil lines by filling through special plugs on the oil pump. Spinning on the starter gets oil up to the rocker gear. Spark plugs in, recheck the timing and lets see what happens. I will work the choke manually and start using the remote starter in the engine bay. Roars into life on the first hit - gave me such a start I let the choke go. Without an exhaust makes more than a little noise. Over the shock that it actually went first time so give it another go. This time keep the revs up and bring the oil pressure up. Run the revs up and down a bit and warm it up for about 10 minutes. If the neighbor didn't know I was working on a car before this, they sure do now. Can't believe how well it responds to the throttle. Check for oil and water leaks. Finished stripping out the wheel cylinders and start fixing the wiring harness before knocking off for the day.

Monday - Drop wheel cylinders off to Thompons for new selves and rubber kits. Will be ready Tuesday along with new rear shocks, brake pipes and a H4 head light sealed beam conversion . Spend most of the day finishing off the suspension overhaul. Alex from Atlantic Tyres collects the rims to fit 5 new radial tyres. This leaves the car on body stands at the front and 2 flat tyres at the back. Ring Bill Martin to get age Stat. Declaration for consessional registration.

Tuesday - Collect wheel cylinders and new brake pipes to start fitting out the braking system. Looks an easy job but seems to take forever to fit the cylinders and bleed the system using a one man bleeder, but there is no "feel" to the clutch or brake peddle. Adjusted the pushrod for clutch and brake to get some feel back. It is all the little things that slow you down when you work on your own.

Wednesday - Ripped out the roof lining to get rid of the last rat nest. Started fixing rat chewed wires and surface rust patches. I am sure rats pass pure acid. Lots of small parts and trim bits are going back on now. It starting to look like a car again. Pity most of this will have to come back off when I get back from the rally. (That is confidence for you - the car hasn't even driven up the driveway yet.) Checked on getting RWC for registration. Very bad news - I need a full trim set inside the car and anything installed on the car must function. A few items just became optional extras and "were never fitted to this car from new". Will concentrate on all safety items. It's late but take her for a run up and down driveway. I will have problems getting to an exhaust shop without getting stopped for undue noise. I only have 3rd and 4th gear and I can't make any sense of the linkage adjustments.

Thursday - 6:30 start over at Kevin's place to get all the trim from the donor car. At least the door trims match the seats. Pull all gearbox levers and links off as well. Get all the seats in and door trims on. If you view the car in the dark with one eye closed - doesn't look half bad. Only a half day today - Karen takes me to lunch for our Wedding Anniversary and also have to do a computer repair that can't wait.

Friday - RWC today followed by a visit to Main Roads for rego. I am going to make the start tomorrow. Sorted out the wires down the steering column and found the harness connections for them. Cleaned and fitted trafficators and horn. Surprised they actually work. Still can't get 1st and 2nd gear every time. The exhaust shop I had approached to do the system couldn't fit me in on such short notice. Made a couple of calls and Cleveland Exhaust will help me out. Arranged for mobile glass fitter to see the car at the exhaust shop to put in rear window. The RWC station is about 15 minutes from here. Time is against me. I have to get the window in, exhaust on, RWC passed and to MRD by 3:30. Fortune must have been looking on me - John Williams Mechanical is in the same complex. John is into old cars and advertises in the BVRC Club magazine. I explain why I am trying to get to registration and John agrees to look at the beast to see if I even have a chance of passing. This saves me one trip but the car has to be on the hoist by 3:00 and pass first time if I am to get to MRD before 3:30.

Failed - the glass fitter took 2 hours and ripped the seal getting the glass in. I am not impressed with the seal damage and the time taken as exhaust didn't get started until 3:00. The exhaust boys did a great job though. A sight quieter than when I drove in and the price was lower than the first place had quoted. Over to the RWC station. John has a good look at the suspension and brake work I have done. Headlights are Quartz H4 beams and everything else looked OK - even had 1st and 2nd gear. It is very disappointing to fail by just one hour. I now have to wait in Brisbane till Monday. On the way home a rear wheel bearing decides to make noises. Not sure what to do about this.

Call Bill Martin to find out how to adjust the gear linkages. Call Kevin to tell him not to wait for me. I will see everyone in Forbes Tuesday evening.

Saturday - Might as well double check the car and see what is wrong with the back wheel bearing. Gary, a mate of mine who likes Mini Cooper Bricks, comes over to keep me company and make sure I don't get too depressed. Bleed the brakes again. It is easier with two people. Pull all four hubs off again to check the bearings. Fronts seem quite enough but can't tell what is making noise at the back. Decide to replace the rubber isolators on the diff to spring mounts as they are not very good. Not the problem of course but one more job out of the way. Give up for a while and work on the instruments. Wire in some additional power to run the car phone and video camera battery charger. Replaced the hand brake cables with better spare cables. Finally work out why the manual says the front bearings should stay on the stub when the front hubs are withdrawn. If they stay in the hub the bearing centers are too lose and can spin on the axle - and they do. Will have to pull front hubs and diff. off the donor and hope they are better than mine. Have to go and help fix the garden watering system at the church. Might as well - not getting much done here and a break will do me good.

Sunday - Another depressing day. Every one else will be a few hours out of Forbes taking an easy run to the start. Start work again after lunch. Decide if the car is not to my satisfaction by lunch time Monday will abandon it and go in the Suzi Van. This is a very hard decision to make. Kevin calls to tell me they have arrived - in the Toyota!! The 24/80 did the unthinkable and died before they even left Brisbane. This concerns me as Kevin had prepared the car well in advance and put in some long road miles to be sure everything was in order. I still have only driven less than 5 miles in the 4/44. The risk of failure is very high. This is probably a stupid thing to keep trying to take the 4/44. Go over to the donor and strip off the front hubs and complete rear axle assembly.

Work late into the night to clean, and reassemble the best selection of front bearings to hubs. These bearings are very different to those I removed. They are a press fit on the stub axle. Stripped the rear wheel cylinders, shoes, brake lines and then pulled the diff out. Put the spare diff in and reassembled everything. Finished about 2 am. Still have to put the front hubs back on and fix those rotten gear linkages.

Monday - First day of rally in Forbes. I either go 4/44 or modern, but today I leave. Assemble the front hubs and go for a lap round the block. As usual, misplace 1st and 2nd gear but there isn't any protesting noises. Spend ages trying to figure out how these gear linkages work. Karen keeps changing gears while I watch everything underneath the car. Eventually adjust the links and column to the point where they seem to work. There are four positions and the gate seems to work. Test run - I can get 3 in two positions and the same for 4th. Karen is staying well clear of the garage now but brings out lunch to distract me for a while. The agreed time has arrived but I delay making the final choice yet. Rig up a mirror so I can see under the car and change gears and watch what happens. Finally sort out the adjustments. No test drive - straight to MRD. Karen follows in the backup car just in case. Arrive at MRD at 2:30. It is 3:00 before I reach to front of the queue only to be told I have to fill out more forms. At this point I really run into problems as I can not prove ownership. Another Stat Declaration (it helped having got the car from a Wolseley Car Club member). A check of the body and engine numbers, pay the money and I have papers to say we are HS3087. No plates of course, as they will be mailed out. Check it is OK to travel to NSW without plates and we are out of there. Took the long way back home to pick up spare oil to take with me. I will need to do the first service somewhere on the first day. Engine starts to make a knocking noise. Thinking the worst possible things I drop in to see David Stone at Continental Cars. I know David through my vintage bikes. He has a look and listen and tries to reassure me it is not bad and can't be crank, rods or cam related. The knock is the wrong speed to be any these. Suggests I go home and drop the fan belt to see if I can locate the noise. He is right - no fan belt no noise. The pulley on the generator is lose and the noise is carried down into the timing case. Loctite the nut so that won't happen again. Do 15 miles testing up and down the main road. It is now 10 hours past my deadline and way too late to think about going today but I feel it is worth trying to go in the 4/44. Throw half the workshop into the boot. You never know what will be required on a trip like this.

Tuesday - Throw some clothes, phone and video camera in the car. Say goodbye to Karen, Nicole and Shana. Will keep in phone contact with Karen so they can follow progress.

7:00 and I am on my way on to probably my biggest adventure yet. I still have doubts that this is a sane thing to do - 1000 kilometer to the rally in a car that has been reassembled and test driven 15 miles.

Karen makes contact with me first. I am over the range near Warwick and going well. Decide to stop, have a rest and change the oil. There is oil leaking from the front and back seals on the crankshaft. Looks worse than it really is. Dip stick shows very little lose. With a 5.1 liter sump you have to lose a lot to make any difference to the depth. Only problem is that the oil drops down onto the exhaust header pipe and goes up in a cloud of smoke out the back. Double check water, oil and gearbox oil levels. Push on and keep the speed down to 50 -55 mph. Stop every hour to check the oil and water levels. During the mid-day heat the water temperature moves up and oil pressure comes down a few points but stays steady. Stop at Inglewood for a drink and a rest. I am 7 hours out of Brisbane and starting to show fatigue. Let the engine bay cool down to tighten the exhaust header pipe nuts. They keep working lose and warm up the floor a lot and make the cabin uncomfortable. Leave town and phone on to my sister at Goondiwindi to say I am a couple of hours away now and going well. Get passed by a Subaru wagon. A couple of minute later I see it again totally demolished against an embankment. It had gone over the side of a culvert at high speed and come to a very sudden stop nose first in the bank. Truckies are already there helping the walking wounded. They have called the Police and Ambulance. Someone says the elderly driver dosed off and lost it. Can't do anything more to help so continue on my way. Will be far more careful to keep my fluid levels up and take my rest brakes from here on.

Fuel pump has decided it has had enough. Keeps on stopping. A sharp flick gets it going again but it stops 5 times in the next 2 hours. Will see if I can get one from the wreckers before I go on.

Have a coffee with my sister and she tells me the wrecker has closed down so it will have to be a new fuel pump. The local auto spares shop has everything I need. Fit it up and keep on going. I am told not to risk travelling at night as the kangaroos are bad south of here. I make Narrabri 12 hours after leaving home. Book in to a caravan park and call home to say I am tired but travelling OK. I have surprised myself with the trip so far.

Wednesday - Top up the oil and leave town at 6:30 as nobody is open yet to serve breakfast. Phone message from Kevin to Karen to me to say the rally cars will be back around 5pm. It will be an easy run from here as I have all day to get there. Stop for breakfast and again for lunch and fuel. Can do 260 miles on 9 gallons without running out of fuel. Gauge seems to work fine and I calculate the consumption at 35 mpg so far. Exhaust shows she is running lean. Still making a mess with oil whenever I stop but the loss is about the same. Stop in Dubbo to get a movie film for the camera. There is a dark green 4/44 parked in the main street so park beside it - looked a bit like Jekel and Hyde. Driver doesn't return in the short time I am there. Hit the road south again to Parkes. I want to visit the Radio Telescope. Stay for the movie and a good rest before pushing on to Forbes.

Meet Kevin at the caravan park, 722 mile from home and 3 days late - but here none the less - in one piece and under my own steam!

Thursday - The details of the Centenary Rally I will leave for someone else to tell although I will tell you I received an award at the Rally Presentation Dinner for Best Effort (should have been the Screw Loose Award) as well as picking up a raffle prize.

Friday - Big Breakfast in the Park before we break camp and say goodbye to those leaving the Rally to head back home. Some of us (the slow moving ones) head North toward the Lightning Ridge Rally early to beat the rush to our overnight stop at Walget. I follow Arthur and one of the Kiwi's in the loan car. Kept a safe distance as the Kiwi car is not known for stopping when told to do so. A few of the faster motors pass us but we are not causing any traffic problems as we snail our way North. Arthur pulled off before Dubbo when the 4/50 was showing signs of heat stress. Met up with Kevin and Heather in Dubbo to enjoy a Cappuccino before heading out again. Was really a very quite run with the only excitement coming from being followed by the NSW Highway Patrol for a while (remember this 4/44 is running without number plates) until they got bored and passed me.

Arrived in Walget and had a quick look round town before heading the 7 kilometers out of town to the overnight stop. I am sharing with Kevin and Heather so book in and then have coffee and a chat with the Haynes and Bouchers on the fly screened veranda. Sky is overcast and we have a couple of light showers during the evening. A couple of late arrivals tell us they have been through very heavy rain just South of us. A couple of drinks, a sit down Dinner and then hit the sack to round out a good day.

Saturday - A light breakfast, book out and into town for sightseeing before we attend an Official Opening function in honor of Banjo Patterson. The Governor of NSW performs the necessary speeches, whips the cover off the dedication and then get down to some serious looking and playing with a couple of the cars. There were a couple of anxious moments for the Governor's Aide when Governor Peter took wife Shirely for a couple of laps round the park and then went for an extended drive up the side of the air strip in Bill Martins Hornet. Looked for a while like they were having so much fun they may not come back. We then enjoyed a B-B-Q lunch before moving on to Lightning Ridge for the Centenary of British Motoring.

Arrived Lightning Ridge early afternoon so took a short trip over to see the Motoring display. Other car clubs have cars on display as well as stationary engines chuffing away. Retire to the Bowls Club for a while before going to visit an underground Opal mine. Looks like the rain has followed us as a storm starts to gather.
A big night for the Motoring Community with a Dinner in our honor at the Bowls Club. After a big feed and entertainment, it was time for an early night. I plan on leaving for Goondoowindi after the procession tomorrow on the last leg of the trip.

Sunday - Poured rain during the night - the seals don't stop the water so have a car full of water. Mop it out, and pack up ready to leave. We are having breakfast at the Show Grounds. It is raining again and there is mud everywhere - the Show Grounds are a mess. All the cars are parked on the road outside the grounds so people can get a look at them without getting stuck in the mud. There are some interesting vehicles - an as found 1916 International truck that could be left running all day without getting hot, a Lotus, two very big Daimler Limo's and an assortment of other cars of all ages. As Kevin is not in the procession he pushes off early to be back home for dinner tonight. I decide to film the procession and then slip out and be on my way.

About 15 minutes out of town, I spotted a male emu with a cluster of chicks and decided to do a little video. Pulled off the road and sank to the floorpan. After the rain last night, the road sides are very soft. Took quite a while to extract the car by which time the emu had long gone. Decided not to stop for any more natures delights. Made good time to the first petrol stop at a small petrol station / roadhouse. George in a 4/50 was already there enjoying a coffee. Took a photo of my car beside a 3 level high and 3 trailer long cattle road-train. The size has to be seen - my car was not as long as one axle set coupling 2 of the trailers together. While we are there, the local law dropped by - my first rego check since leaving home. Leave George as he is going further North before turning East while I am taking a more direct line to Goondiwindi to overnight with my sister again. According to the map, there is a small section of single lane bitumen. That 'bit' turned out to be 50 miles of low grade dirt track. When I finally left the dirt I had a short stop to see what had fallen off in the shaking the car had received over the last two and a half hours. Surprised that I don't seem to have lost anything. It is going to be a push to get to Goondiwindi before dark. I am still loath to be travelling past sunset and into the early evening when the kangaroos are most active. The engine now has about 1400 miles and one oil change so I push the cruising speed up to 70 mph to try to beat sunset.

Sunset arrived and I am still about 30 miles out, so back off the speed and use high beam a lot - those H4 lights really light the sides and throw a long way in front. Finally arrive in Goondiwindi, tired but extremely pleased with the car and trip so far. Had dinner, a hot shower and straight to bed.

Monday - Day 9 of the rally - 6:00am. Say goodbye to Karen (sister) and head for the only petrol station open at this hour. Fill up with petrol, check oil, water, tyres and head for Warwick and breakfast. On the home leg now. Stopped at the Warwick Golden Arches (McDonalds) for pancakes, refueled the car, a short rest and back on the road.

Arrived back home in time for lunch - after 6 and a half days and 1670 miles on a trip I never really expected to complete. Although I did not complete much of the formal 100 Years of Wolseley Rally, I completed the trip to the rally and home again under my own steam - much of the time travelling on my own in a totally untried car that I rebuilt myself. I will always look back at this story and wonder about my sanity.

Postscript:
It is now May 2001 - time for the 2001 Wolseley National Rally. This will be the first time since 1995 some members will have seen the 4/44.

I am converting this story to HTML to publish it on the Wolseley Car Club Web Site. In the intervening years, I have painted the car and had all the interior work completed. The car now looks nothing like the 'dead but won't lie down' car that took me to Forbes and back in 1995. There is still lots of work to do to finally complete the restoration (like chrome bumper bars) but it has been registered and on the road most of the time. As a gesture to great Wolseley Cars, the most famous of which was the 1000 mile Wolseley Rally car registered OWL-707, still on display in the UK - I have been able to acquire the same number for the now second most famous (or is that infamous?) 1000 mile Wolseley Rally car. To this day, I remain amazed at my trip to the 100 Years of Wolseley Rally.

February 2002.
Well - sad but true - the 4/44 is dead. While out on a run not too far from home, number 4 conrod let go and has punched a hole in the block. Looks like the rod bolt broke - these were the only parts that I didn't purchase myself. All other parts were bought directly from known MG parts suppliers. The bolts were supplied by the engine machine shop as genuine MG parts from a local supplier. Maybe they were or maybe not - I will never know. The engine had only travelled 4,900 miles since '95. 1670 miles to Forbes in '95, 1000 odd to the Toowoomba National in 2001 and the rest as short rally runs. Not much work and most of it on long runs. The 4/44 will have to stay in the shed under covers for some time as the rebuild will be very expensive and beyond the budget I now have to operate the fleet. I have a spare block and crank to start the rebuild when funds become available.

1953 4/44 - restoration continues

Forbes or bust in the 1953 Wolseley 4/44 (extracts from my build diary)