Happy to become a Daf owner.

[banda]

Well yesterday I finally bought a 66 Marathon coupe 1100 first registered in 1973. I still am not 100% sure why as this marque only caught my attention a couple of weeks ago and now I have one. Thank again to the people on here who readily gave advice to help me reach that decision. I decided on this particular model because despite various tempting 44's, 46's and Daffodils in France this one was just 'down the road' and seems to be the model closest to a 'normal' car which would make sense for a first time Daf owner.

I do not claim to be a mechanic or even mechanically minded in any sense of the word so I will not be hurling around pearls of wisdom. However I've always loved cars and  belong to a couple of clubs here in Brittany. I was immediately happy to find the sense of camaraderie here that I last experiences back in my days with the TVR car club and the Lotus Owners Club. Way back in the seventies in my late teens I used to grind out valves, replace big ends and change clutch plates with my mates on a Saturday so that we would have a car to go out in that evening. Typically the vehicles would be Escorts, 105E Anglias, MGB GTs, Vauxhall Vivas and the like. Life was 'oh so simple.' Now in my sixties it is time to rediscover some of those skills.

As to the car itself I have attached a photo file which is posted elsewhere but some may be interested but have missed it. I took a mechanic friend along and was very impressed (and gratified) with the thorough examination that he gave the vehicle. He is a professional, rather than an enthusiastic amateur, runs a garage and showroom here in France and along the way has had an MOT testing station in the UK so he knows his onions. His conclusion was that it is a very honest, original little car with no alarming mods or repairs and although not perfect a very sound example that can either be run as is or I can spend monies on it if I wish. It has a little bit of filler on one rear wing and the right hand side sill will need replacing although not critical. The trailing edges of the boot lid and left front wing are a little messy and will probably need cutting out and replacing eventually. Other than that there are some spots as the photos show. The underside is sound despite a couple of non structural patches towards the rear.  The weakest link as far as looks go are the seat covers (although the padding is not too bad) which are all ripped and let the side down. I think my best bet is to take them off and send them away to have new ones made up from the patterns. Can anyone recommend anyone or perhaps I can even buy them direct from somewhere that has stock?


When we took the car for a run it was obvious that the car needs some fettling. The engine itself will be quite straightforward but we will need to do some more research on the power train. It seems to need to rev very high to gain initial speed after which it settles down and we reached 110kph without too much trouble. An engine overhaul will increase the power delivery but getting it to the wheels is the problem. My mechanic friend believes it is something to do with the vacuum system and the diaphragm seems the obvious culprit? The owner has changed it and he showed us the old one with a split but perhaps he did not do a perfect job? The brakes bite very well and do the job though they will need an adjustment to bring the pedal up. There did not appear to be any other problems and although a bit noisy it was not as bad as I had expected and in fact pretty much the same as our Renault 6. Perhaps a little more road noise but the cabin seems better insulated and quieter.


Two things that I will need……….the trim inside the passenger door is falling off and as it was raining it was dripping in. Is this available through Daf sources or do I just use any other manufacturers or even building window trim? Also tyre sizes…….I know what is on the car at present but there seems to be some debate over which size is best from what I read. Is there a definitive recommendation?


   Here is the photo file:                photos.app.goo.gl/AKzLdgTHWJaNOrXg2


Once again thank you and good luck with your own cars. Please excuse me if anything I've said above doesn't make too much sense - as I said I am not a mechanic. Any tips or pointers on any of the above issues will be greatly appreciated and of course if anyone reading is in France and wants to get together or set up a northern France chapter please contact me.

[banda]

Sorry…………I should have also said that despite the misleading front wing transfer it is 100% an 1100 Marathon.

[andrew]

Well done on the purchase of the 66! You won't be disappointed! You've mentioned a few problems that you've mentioned, and I might be able to suggest a few ways to investigate them. The tyre size recommended by Daf for an 1100 Marathon is 155x13, and Daf specified Michelins. As to the change-up (or lack of!) problem with the transmission, the cause might be a lack of engine vacuum reaching the transmission unit. Investigation is fairly easy, so here goes.... Start with the valve mounted on the bulkhead, operated by electrical switches. This valve is actually TWO valves; one provides vacuum to assist change up and the other assists change down. The first thing is to check that the electrical connections to the valves work and this is easy. Sit in the driving seat & switch on the ignition but DON'T start the engine. Gently depress the accelerator and you should hear a "click" as the change up valve is operated. If you hear it-good! If not, don't panic. Again sitting in the driver's seat with the ignition on, gently depress the brake pedal; again you should hear a "click" as the change DOWN valve is operated. If so-good! The third test is to operate the low hold switch on the dashboard, which also operated the change down valve. By operating this switch the change down valve should operate, so listen for that click and try to differentiate between the switch clicking and the valve clicking. The switch should light up green when energised but this should go out when the brake pedal is depressed. Having the bonnet open and an assistant to listen for the clicks might help.

I'll need to know the answers to these before going forward. The important thing is to tackle things in sequence and methodically. Don't try to run before you can walk and report back with the answers to these points.

[Richard DAF Webmeister]

Well done indeed.

The door trim/seal is probably not your top priority at the moment - need to get the car sorted out mechanically of course!
But when you are ready to get such items such as door seals/rubbers, I think you will find our friends at DAF Hobby in Netherlands will have these. I have bought door seals for my 33 from him. Take a look at www.dafhobby.nl. Danny supplies items very quickly.

[andrejuan]

Great news on the purchase, fun times to come.


Regarding the seats, your best and cheapest option is to find good replacements to simply swap over. If you find you have to go down the route to recovering, the fabric is not available as far as I know. There is a good Ford fabric available from these people www.segalmotortrimmings.net/index.php/fabric/ford/?k=:8:145402:
I have replaced a seat base with it and if a stitch is added like the DAF fabric it is quite passable, in fact very close to the real thing.

I notice you mention the diaphragm being done. Was the use of singular accidental? because there are of course two diaphragms. It is good practice to replace both even if only one is split. Whilst talking about the vario, on the 'pics. it seems not to have a vario cover in place. You might want to get one once the car is regular use, road grit and water splashes are not good for the unit. They are readily available here second hand so probably the same in France. Andrew has given great advice to you to start the checking procedure of the vario, but there is a good chance it is all fine, my 66 still seems too revvy to me sometimes, and compared to my 44 it is much more revvy.


However, you have a 66 Marathon Coupe, how cool is that !!! :-)

[swissdave]

Congratulations on your purchase, they are a cool little car and much more fun than “ordinary” classics.

[banda]

Thank you everyone for your kind remarks. I picked it up this morning and drove it about 40 kms home without incident. I will respond in more detail in the not too distant but must say they do quickly gain your affection. I think 'cool' is the word and I'm just surprised that I've never seriously or even remotely entertained the thought of buying one before.

[banda]

Well I picked it up on Monday and have been too busy since to do anything let alone start Andrew's helpful diagnostic process. I will let you know as soon as. I am still very pleased with my purchase although when I took it for a run on Tuesday it was pretty horrendous. A little like riding a bucking bronco………..stutter, stutter etc. It seems to be okay once I get to about 50mph but under this is not pleasant and it almost stops going up inclines. I think part of this could be engine related but the bulk must be the vacuum side of things. It will take time but we will get there……..or rather my mechanic friends hopefully will. For my part I am going to increase the tick over and see if that helps at all because it seemed to be better before the old owner adjusted it between my test drive on Sunday and my collecting the car on Tuesday.

[andrejuan]

I wouldn't be too concerned about the rough running. As you will already know that engine is a breeze to work on and adjust.
There is a little tip for the carburetor (I think already mentioned), If you are sure the timing is correct etc., screw in the mixture screw until the engine becomes a bit lumpy, then adjust it back out
until the point where if you activate the low hold button (or apply the brake pedal) the engine speeds up slightly.

There is also a built in mesh fuel filter on the top of the carb. held in by a brass nut, pop that out and clean it, mine was really gunged up.

[banda]

Well this is just a quick update to keep those who were kind enough to give me advice informed. When I bought the 66 coupe I knew the engine needed sorting but on its first drive it shuddered and shook as reported. I tried to improve things myself but had to concede as things were not getting any better and I did not want to damage anything with my limited expertise and zero knowledge of variomatic technology. I borrowed the car trailer of the friend who inspected the vehicle for me on purchase and took it to his workshop. Being the excellent mechanic that he is he quickly diagnosed the problem as being twofold.....fuel starvation and ignition related. He has now ordered the necessary parts from daf hobby and I hope to be driving around in about a week from now.
I should add that he must have been impressed in some little way as he has since bought himself a 46 in excellent condition in the same green colourway as that in andrejuan's avatar.

[banda]

I retrieved my 66 from my mechanic friend and it is now purring along. The engine seems to be 'sweet as a nut' as the saying goes. It is revving hard to get up to speed so I need to research and refine the Variomatic vacuum. I had a great weekend driving down to the beach and generally swanning around. However, yesterday evening I was stationery outside a cafe waiting for my wife when a young lad jumped into his Peugeot and promptly reversed into me. The car is still driveable but the rear wing and trailing edge of the door are now obviously dented. The insurance company said that they will phone me tomorrow with the name of a specialist garage that can help me.

I was looking forward to making an appearance at the local car club meet next month but I shall now be exhibiting a slightly dented example. Unfortunate and irritating because although not serious we all know how these things drag on. I shall try and get a new wing on the insurance for my troubles which I believe they have in stock at daf hobby.

[bobdisk]

Well done with your fantastic purchase! I too have just got a 33 today. It is such a long time since I had anything to do with a Daf, I look forward to working on it. Its had a lot of work already done, new brakes, exhaust, petrol tank and tyres to start with. There are a few electrical faults, none of the instruments or dashboard lights or the wipwers work. The bodywork is excellent for its age, although another respray would be good, Its been painted before, but I am fussy!

[Richard DAF Webmeister]

Excellent, and the other story about the 66.

I feel some "Owners DAFs" stories coming up (hopefully) for the magazine...

[andrew]

Aug 7, 2018 17:13:40 GMT bobdisk said:

Well done with your fantastic purchase! I too have just got a 33 today. It is such a long time since I had anything to do with a Daf, I look forward to working on it. Its had a lot of work already done, new brakes, exhaust, petrol tank and tyres to start with. There are a few electrical faults, none of the instruments or dashboard lights or the wipwers work. The bodywork is excellent for its age, although another respray would be good, Its been painted before, but I am fussy!

Congratulations! I think your 33 was the one recently offered on E-Bay, which I thought was in pretty good nick! Any more pictures available? Whereabouts are you? There's loads of advice available here and some of us have loads of spare parts, too!

[bobdisk]

Hi, Yes it is the one from eBay. Got the wipers going, a wire off the switch, but there are more bad connections behind the dash, and a couple more wires off. I think its a 6 volt converted to 12 volt. I need to get behind the dash, but have to drop/remove the steering wheel/column. One of the first things I need is a speedo cable. It has been incorrectly routed and rubbed on the the track rod and suspension. I will post some pics over the weekend. I live near Heathrow.

[bobdisk]

Thought I would try and put a pic up. Its a spare engine I got with the 33 this week.Attachment Deleted

[banda]

Congratulations on your 33 bobdisk.
My 66 has now had the panel work repaired by the garage and they are now trying to match paint colour. It was about three shades of 'inferno red' down that side before so now it will probably be four.

[banda]

Congratulations on your 33 bobdisk.
My 66 has now had the panel work repaired by the garage and they are now trying to match paint colour. It was about three shades of 'inferno red' down that side before so now it will probably be four.

[andrew]

Near Heathrow? I spent 27 years working there! Happy to pop over sometime if you get really stuck with the car. An "L" reg one SHOULD be on 12 volts (the change-over was between "K" and "L" cars) but yours might have been old stock. PM me if you want some hands on help!

[bobdisk]

Hi, What makes me think it might have been a 6V is the battery clamp has been bashed to make it fit the (larger) battery, and there are 2 new holes for it. I dont think the dynamo is the original, and the wiring between the regulator and dynamo is incorrect, eg the DF (dynamo field winding) connection has been wired to the dynamo case! There are other errors as well, the oil pressure light was connected to the coil, the fuel solenoid on the carb was wired to the points. There is one more thing I cant figure out, With the engine idling, when I press the brake pedal. the engine speeds up. I could understand that if there was a servo, but there isnt! I dont think the previous owner has much knowledge of electrics, lucky I have always worked with electronics, including cars.

[Richard DAF Webmeister]

Aug 13, 2018 18:04:48 GMT bobdisk said:

There is one more thing I cant figure out, With the engine idling, when I press the brake pedal. the engine speeds up. I could understand that if there was a servo, but there isnt! I dont think the previous owner has much knowledge of electrics, lucky I have always worked with electronics, including cars.

This is actually a good sign - it's supposed to do that. Likewise, see what happens when you switch on the low ratio hold switch whilst idling - the revs should also increase then.

It's all to do with the mixture settings - shows that it's set up properly.

[andrew]

The clue as to whether your car was originally a 6 or 12 volt one is in the chassis number. The engine number probably starts "B-74-E" followed by a load of numbers, indicating it's an "emissions" engine, designed to burn the fuel in a more environmentally efficient way.

[bobdisk]

The chassis number begins *330*B-----* and there is "TYP 330" on the id plate. Dont know what the engine number is, I cant see it on the engine and dont yet have the V5. The only place I can see for the engine number (I looked on the spare engine) is to the right of the base of the oil filler, but it is hidden by the starter motor. I cant see it on the engine and dont yet have the V5.
So what I thought was a fuel cut off solenoid on the carb is to do with the engine speed/low ratio. With this solenoid wired (incorrectly) to the points, why did the engine speed increase? From what you say, this solenoid should not be simply wired to the ignition supply to the coil. I will have to work it out. I hope to get the electrics sorted this weekend, so I will get back with any more news.

[andrejuan]

What you identified as a fuel cut off solenoid is just that, idle cut off or whatever its called, the vacuum valve is what causes the revs to rise
when low ratio or brake pedal is pushed. It's also a neat simple way to check the mixture is correct, adjust the mixture until
when the brake is pressed firmly the revs rise a little and the engine becomes slightly lumpy.

[andrew]

Aug 15, 2018 18:51:57 GMT andrejuan said:

What you identified as a fuel cut off solenoid is just that, idle cut off or whatever its called, the vacuum valve is what causes the revs to rise
when low ratio or brake pedal is pushed. It's also a neat simple way to check the mixture is correct, adjust the mixture until
when the brake is pressed firmly the revs rise a little and the engine becomes slightly lumpy.

As Andrejuan says, the fuel solenoid cut off was fitted to later cars as part of the changes made to comply with tighter exhaust emission regulations. It should have a live feed when the ignition is on and the cut off when the engine is switched off. This stops the engine, as the fuel supply is instantaneously stopped, as well as the ignition being turned off.

The reason why the engine rev RISE when the brakes are applied (or the low ratio switch is operated) is because the solenoid is operated by both these actions and this opens the vacuum line to "change down" side of the rear pulleys, thus weakening the fuel/air mixture a little. When the brakes are used while the car is in motion this slight difference in the mixture is so little it makes no difference to the engine's running. If your car is exhibiting these symptoms then the mixture's correctly set.