I was never happy with the front brake pipes. Although they followed the original Riley route, they were messy and, had I started, would have been difficult to secure.

So instead of the pipe sticking to the profile of the suspension cradle, I took each side straight out and down...

... to a central point on the subframe...

... where they meet at a three-way junction - the third orifice accommodating the pipe that goes to another junction where the rear brake pipe comes in and both lines are then fed by the master cylinder reservoir.

There's also a hydraulic switch for the brake lights.

As I seemed to be getting on so well, I thought I'd tackle the propshaft UJ's. The secret to a successful operation in this department is making sure that the surfaces in the yokes for the caps are completely free of corrosion. I stick a piece of emery cloth on the end of a slotted rod and whizz it up in the drill. This gives a super-smooth yoke wall which when one of the rollers hooks up - that's almost inevitable - a couple of taps with the knockmeter and the cap pops out.

It happened to me on the very last cap, but otherwise it was a relatively anxiety-free operation. I'm not sure that there's a regulation 'stick-out' for the gearbox yoke - mine looks a little bit big - but there's not the slightest chance of it coming close to popping out, even at full suspension deflection.

I bought an alternator that looks like a dynamo. They're a very good addition and a distinct advantage over a dynamo for night-driving. I fitted one to the Hillman which at the time was around £450. I noticed that there are now examples made in China for a third of the price and after speaking to the importers, took the plunge. There's a reason why one is more expensive than the other; the imported version is a completely new item whereas the one made in the UK is built into the original casing and has the right shaft size - so no messing about, just fit it and get on with the next job.

Slight problem removing the pulley from the old dynamo - I can see where this job is going. There are plenty of V-belt pulleys on the market and if the worst comes to the worst, I'll wave some sausages at Chumley and I'm sure he'll oblige.

My thoughts then turned to the cooling system. Some years ago, I bought a Davies Craig electric water pump kit which, as I've had perennial problems with sealing the MS impellor in the block of the Hillman, I shall incorporate in the Teardrop Special. It's quite fancy and has computer control and whatnot. I've ordered an aluminium Honda Civic radiator that will fit snugly between the suspension pillars. A small heater matrix will be supplied from the cylinder head outlets and a fan will take care of demisting and Miss X's cabin comfort. I can't do any better than that.