Tech Torque: Get yourself home at all costs!
Out on your Lambretta miles from anywhere and it breaks down. How do you get yourself home if you don’t have the spares required? Old-school ‘quick fixes’ might save the day!
Out on your Lambretta miles from anywhere and it breaks down. How do you get yourself home if you don’t have the spares required? Old- school ‘ quick fixes’ might save the day!
We’ve all been on the way to a rally or just on a ride-out when a breakdown occurs. It can be so frustrating, being stuck because you don’t have the spares to fix the problem. Maybe you have breakdown cover but even then, it can take hours for recovery, especially on a bank holiday. Over time I’ve had plenty of these occurrences and I’m not afraid to admit it. Some happened to others when we were travelling in groups. Though some of the repairs or solutions were rather unorthodox, at the time they did work. Many could be described as bodges and perhaps in a way they were. If the end result meant getting home, then it was worth the effort. It must be remembered these were solutions carried out when there were no other options available. They were not perfect answers to the problem and some carried risks of failing. Also, in today’s world of strict health and safety, some may be regarded as dangerous. They are not here to tell you what to do, more of how we thought our way out of situations, possibly giving you ideas of how to think around a problem. Therefore, no responsibility is taken if a roadside repair you undertake fails.
Snapped throttle cable
A real pain but unfortunately quite common on a Lambretta and, because it only happens when in use, usually that means when out on the road. Most times the cable snaps at the pulley end
therefore most of its length remains intact. The solution was to pull the broken inner out from the outer and then feed it through the engine area out on to the floorboards. This would depend on where there was an access point, such as the air scoop hole, certainly if side panels were fitted. Once on the footboards, a loop was made on the end to allow it to go over the end of your left boot. By getting the length exactly right it was possible to rest your foot on the footboards and control the opening of the throttle that way. The downside was possible scratches to the paint around the air scoop area and having to keep your left foot on the legshields at all times to keep control of the throttle.
Split carburettor rubber
Not one for the faint-hearted and a real problem if the split is too bad. A spare should be carried but if that is not the case then some sort of emergency repair is required. If a car spares shop is close by then possibly a radiator hose of similar diameter would do the trick. If that isn’t an option then a true bodge is the only answer. The solution is to first take a cigarette packet, open it up and cut it to the same length as the rubber. This acts as the insulator to prevent air from getting in. Then the next step is to take a drinks can and cut it open, again making sure it is the same length as the hose. Care needs to be taken not to get cut on the sharp edges. Folding the ends over prevents this from happening. You are then left with a piece of cardboard that wraps around the split rubber followed by the piece from the tin, which acts as the support and prevents the card from ripping. Securing this with the two jubilee mounting clips was often sufficient to get home.
Flat tyre
When a puncture occurs usually there is a spare to hand but not everyone carries one because of space, certainly when carrying luggage. One answer is to carry an inner tube but if the puncture occurred miles from a petrol station then it would not be possible to fit the new inner tube and blow it up. The answer this time is to simply pack the tyre out. We’ve done this with pieces of turf pulled up from the roadside. By compacting in as much as possible and then putting the wheel back on, it was possible to continue the journey. For safety this should be done at 25 to 30mph but as soon as a petrol station is reached it would be possible to fit the inner tube and inflate the tyre correctly. A bit of a pain having to clear all the soil out of the tyre but at least you’re not stranded in the middle of nowhere.
Holed piston
The absolute nightmare of all breakdowns and back in the days of proper leaded petrol, far less common than it is today. Usually, with a breakdown like this, it would be time to admit defeat. However, determined to get home, we found a radical solution. With the piston removed and cleaned up, it is possible to put a countersunk screw into the head and secure it with a nut on the inside. Things that could cause a problem were the bolt being too long so it would need to be cut as short as possible; also sticking out too far on the piston surface and so not having clearance with the head. It is a difficult one to get right, certainly with the tools to hand. The other risk was the nut
coming loose, which could cause all kinds of damage. Not one for the faint-hearted but it has worked on several occasions.
Dropped piston ring
A dropped piston ring or circlip failure would mean an instant loss of compression, with the engine stopping immediately. This is not to be confused with a blown head gasket which, though showing the same symptoms, has a different outcome. Believe it or not, though there is no compression, if the engine can get up to enough revs it will fire up and run on the momentum of the piston alone. The problem is turning the engine over enough to do so. This happened once 50 miles from home, luckily near a petrol station. By filling the tank up to the top, the Lambretta now had a range of around 60 miles. With two of us present a tow rope was bought, tied between the two Lambrettas, then towed up to about 30mph in third gear with the clutch held in. It was then released, allowing the engine to fire up. Once it was running we pulled over to undo the rope.
To keep the engine running it needed to stay at more than 2000rpm but once out on the road, it was possible to drive okay at around 40mph. Challenges come from having to stop at traffic lights, for instance, or at a junction where the only solution is to keep the revs up and selecting first gear can be a bit clunky, to say the least. On two separate occasions, it was possible to get home using this method; once on a standard 150cc Lambretta, doing 70 miles technically with no compression. Remember the piston is scrap and the cylinder will need reboring, so no extra damage is being done.
Rear hub studs
The rear hub studs should always be checked for tightness, especially if you have a powerful engine or are going on a long journey. However, if on a long stint on the motorway, for instance, and they have started to come loose then usually the first thing you know about it is when you get a clicking sound as the rim starts to cut through the studs. This happened on a couple of occasions and there are two stages to getting it sorted. Firstly the hub needs to be removed and the studs extracted, the reason being the loose rim will have almost cut through them. The problem was not having any spare studs. The answer was some 8mm bolts which, being a bit long, needed to be cut down. Though not a perfect fit, with the thread done up tight enough they held as long as the power was fed in gradually, rather than hard acceleration.
The other problem was the rim itself. During the process where it was cutting through the studs, the four stud holes on the rim became elongated. By using the same rim the problem will reappear in a short space of time. If a spare wheel is present then fine, as that can be used. If not then the solution is to swap it over with the one on the front instead.
Though not ideal, the load on the front is only under braking and would be okay to get home. The rear hub now has a rim with perfect holes for the 8mm bolts and good enough to hold. It would be a process of limping home but as long as the throttle was not used too excessively the hub should hold out.
Lever pins
Another thing you may think won’t happen – but if the nut holding a lever pin comes undone then the pin itself can pop off. You may be able to find it down the road but if not, it stops you from operating that lever. If it’s the clutch then you are in trouble. When this happened to me the fix was done by taking the one from the front brake and putting it on the clutch side so it worked correctly. Then a side case stud was removed from the top
of the casing and two 6mm nuts, this not doing any harm. The stud was then fitted through where the front brake lever pin was removed and both nuts fitted either end to stop it falling out. You may ask why was the stud put on the brake lever side, which is to do with its diameter been a bit too small. If fitted on the clutch side the free play may not allow the clutch to engage fully, whereas fitted to the front brake lever the slack can be taken up by adjusting the thumb wheel, giving adequate enough operation.
Exhaust studs
Lambretta exhaust fixings were never the best design. If using a standard exhaust then a stud on the tailpipe can come loose and fall out, the other problem being that the sealing of the side case is now not as efficient and may leak oil. The simple solution is to pinch a stud from the top of the casing and fit it where the tailpipe one has popped out. In extreme cases, the two 8mm studs that hold the main bracket may have fallen out. This is a big problem as this is the main support bracket for the exhaust. While strapping a bungee cord around the exhaust will help, there is a way to secure the bracket with it. By bending the hook end outwards slightly it is possible to fit it into the stud hole.
The cable can then be fed around the frame tube and the other end fixed back into the same hole. If the cable is too long then it can be shortened by being tied in the middle until the tension is good enough. By using this method not only is the bracket held in position but you’re not exposing the bungee cord to snapping, which can happen if it’s just wrapped around the exhaust, due to the heat build-up.
Emergency gasket
It has been known for the inlet manifold on a Lambretta to come loose. Unnoticed it will not only begin to allow air in but also burn away the gasket between the manifold and cylinder. The answer once again is a cigarette packet. By opening one up it is possible to cut a gasket to the same shape. Because the card is so dense, as long as it’s secured underneath the manifold it will not burn away. It should only be used as a temporary get-yourself-home fix then replaced immediately.
Take these spares…
The best way to prevent emergency repairs like this is to take the right spares with you. The problem is how much do you carry, certainly if travelling abroad. You can’t take a spare of everything but include things like studs, bolts, gaskets etc. General fixings are a help but they may be too long. Always carry a junior hacksaw and a pair of mole grips to hold something with. A cutting tool and small items that can help with an emergency bodge is the last resort. Remember if you do ever break down in the middle of nowhere, quite often there is a solution that will allow you to limp home. It may seem rather radical or odd at the time but if it works it’s got you out of a desperate situation.