smart142

Over a hundred years ago the Ford Model T was introduced to the world. It became ''the car of the 20th century!''. Henry Ford said, ''"I will build a car for the great multitude. It will be large enough for the family, but small enough for the individual to run and care for. It will be constructed of the best materials, by the best men to be hired, after the simplest designs that modern engineering can devise. But it will be so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one – and enjoy with his family the blessing of hours of pleasure in God's great open spaces." It quickly became prized for its low cost, durability, versatility, and ease of maintenance. More than 15 million Model Ts were built. A month ago I had the pleasure of visiting the Ford museum and Greenfield village in Dearborn Michigan. While there I had the pleasure of driving in a Model T. That cost me $5 but it was well worth it. Riding in a piece of history that transformed the world!!!! I did some reading and was impressed even more. The model T internet clubs are very active and info about them is astonishing! Parts are still availible and running cars can still be bought. And of course Jay Leno owns one....click here I was also pleased to discover that over 750,000 model T's were built in Walkerville Ontario. So, with the blessing of Liz, I have begun my search for a Canadian made Model T touring. Wish me luck. ps. the Ontario chapter of the Model T club is meeting in Niagara this Sunday.click here. We'll be there to check it out

On the 17th of February I had the T appraised - $20,000. A bit generous as similar T's seem to be going for around 12 - 15,000. Of course that's when things turned for the worst. Right after the appraisal I tried and tried to get her started and nothing worked. I checked the compression, with the help of my friend, and found the problem. Compression on # 1 and 4 was 50psi which is normal #2 was 25 and #3 was ZERO! That would explain why the difficulty to start and idle. So I ordered a new head gasket ($35) and removed the 15 head bolts - all came out with no damage. The cylinder head was in good shape (has huge combustion chambers). The pistons and cylinders looked to be in good shape. The problem looked to be the exhaust valves for the #2 and 3 cylinders. The seats and the valves were pitted and carboned up. Decided to try to clean them up, and lap the valves to try to get some compression. Did all that and had the head planed ($100). Put her back together and guess what - no improvement - in fact the #2 now had no compression. Oh well, it was worth a try because the next logical step would be to take the engine to a machine shop for a rebuild. My friend worked for 35 years at the Ford St. Thomas assembly plant and for the last 15 years there he was a repairman who swapped out engines and transmissions. So it was relatively easy for the two of us to get the engine and transmission out - about 4 hours total. The machine shop that I use is very busy and didn't even have the room to store the engine. They also said it would be easier for them to just have the engine. So last Wednesday we removed the tranny cover and pedals. The lower pan is shared by the engine and tranny - a lot of bolts to remove that, and then just 4 holding the flywheel and the tranny was off. That only took 2 hours. With the tranny off the machine shop was able to take the engine. I'm hoping they will be able to examine it this week so I can get the parts ordered. Unfortunately for me the machine shop is at least a month behind. As I stated earlier the combustion chamber is huge and could easily accommodate the new domed high compression pistons that give more power. Prices again I think are reasonable - the pistons, rings, and valves would come to about us$500 I'm also considering an improved clutch. A bit of a set back but once she's all back together I should be able to get years and years of service from her.

Maybe the fuel pump failing?

They also take larger tires than the stock rims.

So on the 15th of Dec my friend and I tried to start ''Lizzie''. She turned over but wouldn't fire. When the ignition was turned on you should normally hear a ''buzzing'' sound this was absent. Decided to call in a ''T'' expert - Diesel Dave. He was kind enough to drive down to help over the holidays. We determined that there was power going to the front circuit board but none to the coils. ''Hotwired'' and now we heard the coils buzzing! That meant the ignition switch was defective. We tried starting and heard a few sputters, remember the carb had been rebuilt so it needed to be adjusted correctly. We tried for a few minutes to get her going and then another problem - the bendix drive let go. Probably our fault for using the starter too long. Dave said that was a relatively easy repair. Turns out the ignition switch was $95 with 2 new keys and a new bendix was $75. Ordered the parts and they arrived 5 days later. IMHO very reasonable. The ignition switch was easy to replace. Only 9 wires to transfer. The bendix drive was also easy to replace. It had 4 screws holding the cover. Awkward but doable, When the cover was removed you could see that the spring had broken. That would have been only $8 to replace. With those repairs done we were now ready to try starting her again - and voila after a few minutes she fired up and ran!!!!! That put a smile on my face!!! She did run a little rough so I decided to replace the spark plugs ($14 per) While I was waiting for those, ''Lizzie'' was put up on the hoist and I cleaned up the underside. Then I applied a paint over rust primer and 2 top coats. The same was done for the steel rims. Last Wed my friend and I worked on fitting the Rocky Mountain brakes. We finished that but the final step was to weld a rod onto the brake lever. That was removed and my friends son volunteered to do the welding as he is a machinist. So yesterday we finished the install. We did the best we could adjusting the brakes but we will need to do a road test for the final adjust. That won't happen till the snow is gone and the roads are clear. Now I'm really looking forward to the warmer weather

try this..... Evilution - Smart Car Encyclopaedia

(1) Thinking of Buying a Smart ForTwo 451 (2008-2015)? - YouTube

Selling for a friend of my sisters. I've serviced the car for 1 1/2 yrs. They are selling because of illness. In very good condition Heated leather seats JVC radio Located in London Asking $4700 Contact Glenn 519-933-6513

Did you check the fuses? Evilution - Smart Car Encyclopaedia To remove the front marker lights, electrical tape wrapped on the edge will give you a better grip.

It is a gasser 450. I believe G&K only imported the gas models.

I Finally Sold My Forgotten SMART - YouTube

Welcome to the club!

My neighbour has had her smart for over 3 years and 85,000kms. In December she had a check engine light come on.I used a scan gauge to record the number.It was a PO303- injector #3 misfire. I cleared the code and then added some injector cleaner and everything was OK.Up till yesterday that is. The check engine light came back and it was the same code. But this time the engine was running rougher. Luckily I had 3 used injectors so I tackled the job. 1. there is a return line that needs to be removed that is on the end of the injectors. Held on by a small clip that is pulled off, see 1st picture 2. the return line can now be pulled from the injector and pushed to the side, see picture 2 3. the electrical connection is a simple push and pull type for removal 4. a 14mm open wrench is needed to loosen and remove the fuel line from the common rail 5. a T40 is needed to remove the large screw that holds the claw clamp to the injector, see picture 3 6. after the claw clamp is removed the injector itself can be removed by twisting it back and forth and pulling. They advise not to use tools of any kind to remove the injectors. 7. a small amount of grease is placed on the replacement injector. 8. a new copper seal washer is placed on the tip end. 9. injector reinserted, claw clamp attached, and then seated with 7nm of torque + 180 degree turn. Fuel line attached and then the return line with the clips. Engine can now be started and the lines, injector checked for leaks. I spent about 2 hours doing the job. Lots of pre cleaning, carefull dissasembly and taking pictures. I was lucky that the used injector I obtained was very clean and is functioning perfectly

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5ZFOxN256I

That's news to me! Where did you hear that rumour?

I've been a diesel lover since the early 70's after owning a 1955 AC WD45 diesel tractor. You begin to respect the durability, reliability,and efficiency of the diesel. I next bought a 1983(brand new)Mazda B2200 diesel that lasted 19years. My next purchase was a 1986 Toyota Landcruiser 4l diesel in 1989 that I still own and has 460,000km. In 1997 I bought a 1982 MB SD300 Turbo diesel that I have enjoyed restoring. It was easy to recognize the quality that Mercedes puts into their products. That was when I became interested in the Mercedes Benz A class and followed the development of the smart. I never beleived that the smart would be brought to North America where the big is beautiful philosophy rules. On Nov.1 2002 I was literally stopped in my tracks when I spotted a smart parked in front of the MB dealer in London. I was all over that car and even talked the manager into giving me a ride and the next day a short test drive.That convinced me so I put down a $500 deposit even though the car was not scheduled to be brought to Canada. I went through two salesman and still no news of the smart coming so the dealer refunded my deposit in Jan 2004. The salesman told me that if the smart wasn't going to the USA it would never come to Canada because we're such a small market. So off I go on a trip with the boys and I get a phone call from my wife because the MB President of Canada had announced that the smart would be coming to Canada and I was put back on the list to receive the smart. I placed my order for my custom car in Jun2004 and she was delivered on the 13th of Dec.2004. I am still thrilled with the smart and find it to be an engineering marvel that meets and exceeds all my needs and expectations. It is indeed a passion and her name is Gina. I now have 11,500kms on my baby and she continues to get a nightly bath. Did I mention that the smart can change your lifestyle. Anyways that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Luckily I've found a few other smartaholics in London that share the passion so I know I'm not alone in the way I think. Hope to see you on the road. Glenn.smart142.

It's been over 16 years since my smart journey started. My daily driver is still G65! I will continue to have smarts as long as humanly possible! Last year I continued to maintain my own smart and assisted many clubsmartcar members! 2020 was to say the least a very different year, The London members did not have any monthly meets starting in March! I really miss those meets! 2021 looks to be even different! The owner of the warehouse where my shop is located told me that would like to see me vacate by the spring as he has found new tenants. So I have a lot of parts to get rid of in the next 3 months! I've parted out at least 6 450's and 2 451's. If you need anything smart related feel free to contact me as prices will be more that reasonable. Looks to be a transitional year for me!

Here's hoping for peace and good health in 2021 to all the smarties out there!!!

'' The design is inspired by the European bubble cars of the 50’s except those were three wheelers whereas this one is a four wheeler '' BMW Isetta

Have you thought of visiting Niagara Falls and South West Ontario? There are many smart enthusiasts here who I'm sure would offer to show you some of the sights.

Merry Christmas to all the smart enthusiasts out there! Peace and happiness in 2021!

Those headlights are from the smart roadster. Best to look in Europe for them. You could try www.edsmartparts.com He specializes in the roadsters and is the Netherlands.

WOW!!! I can't believe its been 5 years since I posted about the T. As has been stated before, the brakes on the T are horrible .I had the misfortune of rear ending a truck in rush hour traffic a month after buying the car. Only dented his tail gate and no damage to the T. So I bought the upgraded Rocky Mountain brakes. Started the install but then wondered about the condition of the wood spokes. Thought it would be prudent to change those. Found a Mennonite shop that said they make them but they had to age the wood. - 6 months later I had the spokes but they were all different sizes and I knew they were not adequate for a ''motor driven carriage.'' I was lucky enough to find a gentleman who had been taught to work on T's by his father. Now I have fresh hickory spoked wheels that are superb!! That process added another year. Then the poor T sat at the back of the repair line up till last Wed. I've decided to designate Wednesdays at the Model T restoration day! I want to have her ready for the road by the spring in time for her 100th birthday! In the past few years I did refurbish the carb and had the rad restored. And am happy to say that they were installed last week. Bought a new 6y battery so tomorrow I'll flush the tank, change the oil, and then see if she will fire up! Keeping my fingers crossed!!!!

Fair enough! I feel the same way removing and installing glow plugs!

According to the ''star'' the correct torque is 7nm then 180 degrees. I've done this many times with no issues.