<VV> Lucas reliability

[Tony Underwood]

At 03:49 PM 9/4/2011, David B. Neale wrote:
>Whilst Lucas automotive electrical components were of extremely 
>dubious quality from the early 1960s until maybe the 1980s, ( mainly 
>because they supplied British Leyland with all of their electrical 
>components, and BL demanded parts at the lowest possible prices, and 
>therefore the quality was concomitantly poor ), the real horror was 
>the Lucas mechanical fuel injection systems fitted to several 
>British Leyland cars.
>
>Lucas mechanical fuel injection fitted to otherwise superlative 
>Triumph 2500 PI cars would habitually burst into flames during a 
>cold start. These high-performance vehicles were used by several 
>police departments, and a standing order was issued that required 
>that an officer equipped with a fire extinguisher would always be 
>standing alongside the opened engine compartment at every cold 
>start. Until then, several cars were completely destroyed due to 
>fuel fires. Lucas engineers were quite unable to fix the problem. 
>When working correctly, however, the 2500 PI went like a rocket.



Bosch fixed their mechanical FI by simply making it difficult to 
start the cars at all when they were cold.


tony..  experienced both Audi and Porsche 924 FI glories

PS:   Once started and warm, Bosch mechanical FI did seem to work 
pretty well

PSS:   A photographer bud of mine had an Audi with Bosch FI and his 
was total misery to get started when cold.