UK - Germany car design differences

There's a pretty good chance that a British sourced Ford engine was actually built in Germany. If not, then it's likely to be one of the engines that were/ are built in Britain for the whole of the European Ford market. Other makers build in different places.

Without knowing a lot more details, nobody can be more specific, and you may need to consult a main dealer for help.

Metric, unless it's a *very* old car. If it's even older than that, then Whitworth and BSF, but they were discontinued in the '70s

There are probably many detail differences. Different markets have different expectations for trim, for instance. A British DAB radio, if fitted as an option, probably won't work outside the UK, and so on.

Pretty unlikely on anything vaguely recent.

Almost certainly.

No Imperial since the sixties AFAIK.

Any differences will be tiny, and mainly related to trim levels. Some early diesel Focuses have auxiliary cabin heaters in countries with very cold climates, and vehicles for those areas would be more likely to heated seats than aircon, for example. Obviously, in markets where required, some will have DRL's. In those countries where they drive on the wrong side of the road, the rear fog and reversing lights are on the opposite side.

Chris

I would have thought he might have more problems with it being a kit car and the German rules and regs (TUV is it and from what I've read)?

Cheers, T i m

Most post war UK cars used Unified threads. These are largely - but not exclusively - the US American Coarse and Fine. Called UNC and UNF. Spanners are imperial and marked as AF - across flats. So US ones are correct. BSF and Whitworth were mainly pre-war on some makes, but did get carried over post war on major units which were a post war design, like say an engine. Pre WW2, Morris and some other makes owned by them used rather strange threads - some say based on cycle ones, which Morris made before cars. Big end bolts on an XPAG engine (MG TF, etc) are one example.

I only mentioned it because my 1968 Land Rover has an unholy mix of Unified and Whitworth threads on it.

It's also got some metric on the bits that have been replaced more recently.....

When you decide which kit car your after give the manufacturer a call and discuss it with them. They will know the regulations.

What ever the maintenance, parts are procurable world wide.

Oh no no no, he can't just expect to do that the silly boy. Here in the antiquated and backward UK we only use imperial nuts and bolts, primarily the Unified Whitworth Acme Cycle Thread in both coarse and fine varieties. We even have spanners where the size on the spanner is the dimension across the bolt thread not the dimension across the flats just to confuse the bloody continentals in case they try to invade again and need to repair any of our machinery. Just imagine their little faces when they pick up a 1/2" spanner and find it only fits on a bolt about one inch across the flats. Hopefully they'll then sod off and invade Poland again and leave us alone.

In fact under the 1983 Specification of Acceptable UK Thread Forms Act passed by parliament everything imported into the UK has to have all metric or other fittings replaced with Unified Whitworth Acme Cycle Thread fittings because we don't even understand metric. We still work in pints, fathoms, rods poles and perches, furlongs and hundredweights where a hundred isn't even a hundred it's a hundred and twelve. Put that in your pipe and smoke it Adolph!

Nope, the UK variants break down constantly because the imperial nuts and bolts fall out all the time whereas the German variants last for ever, obey every rule of the road without question, annex neighbouring territories on demand and are obliged by law to make no sound louder than the squeak of your girlfriend's earing when she sits in the passenger seat. A tiny squirt of WD40 usually cures that though as well as making her smell really nice if she was a bit niffy to start with which she probably is if she doesn't shave her armpits and shower more than once a week.

Next question purrrrlease - I'm on a roll.

If only... At least it would be better than the annoying mix of thirty standards each with tools carefully designed to round off the edges of any nuts of competing standards, should you fail to use the correct one.

The only common mix was Unified and Metric at change over time. My SD1 is mainly metric, excepting the engine. But it's not been a problem. (Small electrical stuff can be BA)

Domestic plumbing is far worse. Nothing seems to be to a standard. I'm not surprised most plumbers use an adjustable wrench.

OK, I'm trusting you not to Google; how many different thread forms were used on the immediate post-war BSA Bantam engine?

Chris

Since it was designed in Germany, my guess is 1.

that was probably right on the original German design (DKW ?)

Sadly not. There were five!

Chris

Find the closest size in your 'misc bolts' bucket that almost fits ( gets the most turns into the thread before seizing ) and horse it up :- )

Think of it as semi-self-tapping.

But when manufactured in a different country, it would change to the local threads, where practicable. To enable existing tooling to be used.

You're the secret professional mechanic, and I claim my prize!

Chris

The Bantam was only loosely based on a pre-war DKW design; it was only ever manufactured in Birmingham.

Chris

and the UK turned down the rights to the VW Beetle, choosing the Bantam design instead.

At least we got something right then ;-)

Chris