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Maintenance advice

Thomas Vinnicombe

Enthusiast
Messages
25
Location
chichester
Good afternoon. Does anyone have any advice for extra maintenance tips for my renault 4. I have done oil change , fuel filter and basic stuff are there any super dooper things I can do to keep it pucker
 
Fitted a Gammatronix ignition system onto mine, has made a noticeable difference to running, just smoother, easier starting etc. Not too expensive and easy to fit too, would recommend, mines Spanish with a Fasa distributor, there are more options out there if you have a duciller distrubutor on your car.
 
Inject Waxoyl into all the chassis members (easy to do by taking out the bolts holding the body to the chassis). Then slap Waxoyl over the entire underside. R4s are notorious rust-traps and this will improve longevity.
 
Maintenance work on an R4, or any car of its era, is more adjustment- than replacement- oriented, unlike modern cars. Therefore its important to check and correctly adjust contact points gap, ignition timing, rocker arm clearances, spark plug gaps, idle mixture and speed, clutch cable play, water pump/alternator belt tension, handbrake cable tension.
 
As another method of protection add an ethanol protection additive to your fuel especially if you use the car infrequently, as if the fuel is left in the tank for a long period of time it can rust the inside of it. Also small things like lubricating the gear linkage with a bit of engine oil from the dipstick every now an then can keep it feeling nice and positive.
 
I read that the dynamo needs oil every few years and was wondering how to do that
 
The bearings need an occasional few drops of oil, but only a few drops, as you don't want oil on the commutator! The fan belt tension is important, too. Although too loose a belt may mean insufficient charging, too tight a belt puts a strain on the dynamo's bearings.
 
All good valid advice -in addition I would give it a thorough wash/balsam/rinse & massage b4 a couple hours of polishing with wax heavy on Carnauba-wax (palm-oil) to close all micropores and to have it look like a million in its new gleaming shine-this also makes it a much easier job to keep it clean after -As an added it earns you street-cred and Not to forget that chick-magnetism upped by Ten-fold c",) -Reid
 
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Hi AndyThanks for the photo. What do you do? Unscrew and a couple of drops of dip stick oil into hole ? Or what?
Thanks Edwin
Hi Edwin
The hole has a lid which flips up - here are a couple of pictures of a Paris-Rhone dynamo I found in the garage. Haynes suggest 2 or 3 drops every 3000 miles. An old-fashioned oilcan works well!

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