ESSENTIAL READING

The people that predicted the end of the book were massively wide of the mark. In recent years not only have there been some great automotive books released but the sales of hard copy ‘proper’ books are on the rise again.

There have been so many corkers lately that I thought I’d group a few of them together.

Two of them have come from The Crowood Press (I’m currently ‘building’ a book called ‘Caterham Cars – The Complete History’ for them!) in the shape of ‘Lotus Elise and Exige’ by occasional TKC Mag contributor Johnny Tipler.

It is a beautifully produced in-depth history More >

ESSENTIAL ITEMS FOR THE GARAGE SHELF

Along with a Dremel and its various accessories and Sugru, one of the essentials in my garage is the products of Quiksteel. Absolutely essential.

In case you didn’t know, Quicksteel is a reinforced putty that is easy to use, hardens in minutes and has thousands of automotive uses not to mention those around the home. It hardens like steel and can be drilled and painted.

I used it once on the water jacket of an outboard motor and it worked beautifully. As far as I know that motor is still going strong and still has my Quicksteel repair!

In addition to the Steel More >

CLASSIC DUNLOP AVAILABLE AGAIN

If you have a vintage-type kitcar or replica these new Dunlop Sport Aquajet tyres might be of interest to you.

Dunlop has just announced a new production batch of these classic tyres which are renowned for wet grip and fine, dry cornering ability and back in the day they were one of the company’s earliest radial tyres.

The tread pattern was designed to drive water away from the contact patch aided by little ‘jets’ in the tread, hence the Aquajet name.

They are available now and cost £212 per tyre and are available through a variety of outlets including Longstone Tyres – More More >

MOTUL DON’T JUST PRODUCE OIL!

I’ve been using the new glass cleaner, which is part of the Motul Car Care range just released in the UK. The French oil giant is represented in the UK by Witham Group.

Having been on a rainy trip to Derbyshire this week my black X5 was looking a bit unkempt and before it rained (again) I managed to put the Glass Clean product through its paces on a couple of the BMW’s filthy windows.

Rather than just being a re-badged version of someone else’s product this one seems to be a bit of a star if the results of my first More >

BAG IT

Another storage solution from Laser Tools: this set of three multipurpose storage tool pouches (part number 7837), is ideal for carrying tools, spares, fixings, or handheld electronic devices when you’re on the go.

Manufactured from heavy-duty nylon material for durability, they each have a hanging loop and smooth zipper close and are water-resistant to protect tools from water and stains. There are three different sizes in the set: 30 x 23cm, 23 x 18cm, and 18 x 14cm. The smallest of which would be ideal for protecting your mobile phone, and the largest is big enough to hold most regular-sized spanners More >

NEW YB PISTONS FROM MODATEK

Official Cosworth parts distributor, Modatek has just launched a set of long-rod pistons designed and manufactured by Cosworth for the YB engine.

The pistons have the pin bore moved up by 7.5mm and are designed to work with a longer 136mm con-rod. They are forged from aluminium and feature valve cut-outs, anti-detonation bands, oil drain holes and have a Xylan fluoro-polymer anti-friction coating.

The compression ratio is 10:1 and you can choose from three bore sizes – standard (90.2mm, a +.5mm oversize and a +1mm oversize. A set of four pistons, rings, pins and clips costs £856.20 inc VAT and they are More >

GERM KILLER FROM TURTLE WAX

New from Turtle Wax, currently riding the crest of a wave is Multi-Purpose Cleaner & Disinfectant with Byotrol Technology.

Easy to use, unlike most disinfectants it has a really nice smell is said to give the sanitised area a full 24-hours of protection and it removes dirt, stains and odours, is non-staining contains no bleach or alcohol.

The best part is that a 500ml trigger spray bottle costs just £7. Lovely product.

It is available now from www.turtlewax.co.uk as well as Halfords stores ENDS.

ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET WHEN WELDING

The all NEW PWH616 – Welding Helmet with PAPR (Powered Air Purifying Respirator) with auto-darkening is perfect for all your welding needs. Suitable for MIG, TIG and arc welding it comes with many features.

The lithium battery-powered respirator unit provides the user with a constant filtered stream of air to the users’ head and face for up to approximately eight hours. For added safety, an audible alarm alerts the user when the battery/airflow is getting low.

The helmet features a contoured design for added comfort, adjustable shade control from 9-13 and 5-8 and fully automatic switching from light to dark on striking arc More >

GBS AND MOTUL TEAM UP ON THE ‘ZERO MOTUL EDITION’ AND THERE’S A COMPETITION!

Motul is delighted to announce a new partnership project with bespoke UK car constructor, Great British Sports Cars (GBS): the Motul-Edition GBS Zero. The lightweight hand-crafted sportscar is now in build with the Nottinghamshire company, ahead of a public reveal at the end of July during The Classic at Silverstone.

The Motul-Edition GBS Zero will feature a host of Motul-inspired design features unique to this partnership but, even more than this, the whole build will feature Motul involvement.

GBS is proud of its in-house engineering capabilities and manufactures the vast majority of components from scratch, using Motul throughout the various processes. From More >

INTAKE OF BREATH FOR ZETEC

The Ford Zetec engine has been the tuners engine of choice for over 20-years thanks to its lightweight, low cost and ease of tuning. Tuners know that one of the easiest ways to liberate power from a Zetec is to fit a pair of Weber DCOE carburettors.

The key component in that conversion is the intake manifold and Webcon can provide a top quality, UK manufactured, 60mm deep intake manifold that allows fitment of both Weber DCOE carburettors as well as DCOE flange EFI throttle bodies.

The Webcon Zetec DCOE manifold is available as part number MW5000 priced at £335.65 inc VAT.

The More >

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