Well I seem to have neglected this for a while but I wont bore you with the pressures of work/home etc. Suffice to say the ZR is running well and being modified all the time. Latest additions have been a full set of HID lights. Anyone with a ZR will know that the standard lights are adequate rather than anything special. I can certainly recommend this upgrade. The interior was getting a little tatty and showing its age so I have retrimmed this with a set of OE covers I managed to find. The Powerflow exhaust gave up the ghost and has now been replaced with a Janspeed system which is far superior and has even hadd a few horses to the engine.

Well since the PTP conversion I have been SO busy. Unfortunately it has been work and not with the ZR. That said it is now run in and WOW!!! what a difference. It is far better than I had hoped for. I have had a few minor problems in as much as that turning right I was getting a terrible clicking that I was certain was a UJ going and turning left I had a metal to metal squeal. On investigation I found that although I had modified the Rover 623 carriers to fit I had forgotten about the anti-squeal shims and these were contacting the discs under cornering. A light dressing with a file has cured this problem. I have now added an ITG Maxogen induction kit to replace the Apiro Diavolo that gave me good service. The Diavolo was a bit of a bodge and the metal connection pipe was forever fracturing. I have done a bit of rolling road work with induction kits and TBH I have always been a bit sceptical about claims. I am pleased to report that I have now lost some of this scepticism since fitting an ITG Maxogen induction kit. It is expensive I agree but then again it was designed for the car and for competition by MG themselves. I didn’t think it would make that much difference but I am wrong. The pick up is crisper and quicker, the car accelerates faster and the nasty resonance I had at certain revs has now disappeared. I decided to retain the heat shield I had fitted before, more for aesthetic purposes and I have also re-used the Mikalor clamps instead of the nasty little jubilee clamps. It is a sod to fit and the whole front of the car needs to be removed to fit it, but it is well worth the trouble. Along with the induction kit I have added some new lights to the engine bay (and removed some I wasn’t happy with). I took it too Southend recently were it attracte4d quite a bit of attention (including some from a police helicopter....must have thought a UFO had landed, LOL). Another cheap and easy modification is the addition of the lower front splitter from a Seat Leon Cupra R. It is not a perfect fit and needs some cutting and bending but it does look effective and at less than £20 (despite what some sods are selling them for on eBay) it doesn’t matter if they take the occasional knock (I am on my second now, thanks to some of the road calming bumps around my home) Next things in the pipelines are some braided brake hoses (just turned up in the post today) from Girling, a re-fit of a 7inch monitor to the boot area and possibly a rear brake upgrade from the drums to some ventilated discs, a project to be prototyped with my car and a commercial company, but more of that when (IF) it happens.

Well I have finally got the ZR back from PTP after they have carried out the R140 conversion. WOW!! What a difference. It is so much more responsive and even treating it gently for the first 1000 miles, the hint of the extra power and torque is there. I have posted a few pictures of the engine bay now after the conversion as it looks so much better than before. Anyone considering this conversion, well I cant recommend it enough.

Things just get busier and busier. I have been without the ZR now all week as it was taken to PTP on Monday. Hopefully I will get it back in time for the weekend when there are a few shows on, notably the annual MG meeting at Silverstone. Was at Brighton last weekend and got caught up in the London to Brighton bike ride in aid of charity. All for a good cause I agree but why, when there are designated lanes for the bikes to keep them segrgated from the cars do you still get them try and squeeze past in the car lines and invariably clip the mirrors and scratch the paintwork.!!! I wonder if they would have been so happy if I drove a few of them over in the bike lines?

Well the world cup is upon us, but I dont have the time to sit and watch any of it. I missed England's opening match AND the British F1 Grand prix as I was busy working on the ZR. How's that for dedication? TBH I am not a great football supporter anyway and the Grand Prix's are not the same anymore, I'd rather watch the BTCC. Anyway, anyone at the Modified nationals recently might have seen the ZR there on the Banshee Motorsport stand and in the evening I put on an impromtu light show near the fun fair which seemed to be well received. Since then, there have been yet more modifications (pictures to follow) including some door card 'flocking' and the replacement of one of the amps with a nice little monobloc for the sub. Of course there will be the usual 'cheesecake' shots of the girlies but I missed the topless shoot they did in my car!!! Have to keep a look out in the Lads Mags for that one in the near future. Next major modification is a trip to PTP where they are going to breath thier magic on the engine, so watch out for more news on this in the near future.