Our engine and gearbox oils and oil filters arrived from Opie Oils. So Richard also sourced some Redline Water Wetter, some sump plug washers and some plumbers PTFE tape in anticipation of changing all Rexy's oils.

He also bought a new sump plug with a super strong magnet:


So on Saturday... Having inspected the current engine oil, it was in far too good a condition to warrant changing it! It'll be done as a matter of course after Pembrey. When the new sump plug will be used and the original will be kept as a spare.

The gearbox oil swap was easy and straightforward. Richard noticed there was some swarf on the plug, but nothing too bad. The gearshift quality didn't seem to have changed at all. We'll see what happens at Pembrey. However, the rear diff oil swap was a little troublesome thanks to not being able to undo either the fill or drain plugs! Richard tried again with a new plan on Sunday morning and all came good. Thanks to needing the car level on the ground, access was tricky and he ended up having to use a big syringe to get the oil into the diff. Another time consuming and uncomfortable job.

Richard then used a very fine blade on an angle grinder to cut sections in the return flange of each rear arch. His step-father Terry then used his bodyworking skills and tools to bend them all back out of the way and we used some seam sealer to keep them in place and treat them. Richard has just got to let that dry and then he'll paint over it with some black Hammerite or underseal.


When removing the rear wheels to facilitate the rear arch work, Richard noticed a carbuncle in the sidewall of one of the Silverstone tyres! They've all lasted really well and we were looking forward to using them at Pembrey, but now we'll be using our other (so far unused) set. We'll discuss the problem with Silverstone Tyres, but we'll probably have to buy a new tyre!