Under Bonnet Panel Scuttle Finisher Wiper Motor Bonnet
Slam Panel Horn Heater Duct  
Under Bonnet Panel - Removal
All the trim has now been removed from the cabin, there are a few items left like the pedal box, heater unit, loom, fusebox and the gear selector, but in general it is now empty. So I decided to make a start under the front bonnet, beginning with the shroud panel. I have removed Scarlet's shroud panel a number of times because it conceals the valves for the Hydragas suspension. I began by using a 10mm socket on a ratchet to remove the pair of plastic nuts to the left, near the horns. Before you start, yes it WAS difficult taking this picture! :-) At the bottom of the shroud panel is a pair of studs, I needed to pull the panel off of them (one each side of the spare tyre well). You may find this easier with the tyre removed.
Using a Philips head screwdriver the next task is to undo the plastic retaining screw above the brake master cylinder. Be careful, if you drop it it's a right pain to find again! All the bolts/screws have now been removed, I was able to work the panel out of the under bonnet area to reveal...
...The hydragas valves - each side of the windscreen washer bottle. These valves are used to adjust the ride height of the car using a Hydragas pump. Right, that's enough from me for now - i'm sick of working on MG's for this weekend!

NOTE - you will not find hydragas valves on a TF....but you knew that....didn't you.		  

Scuttle Finisher - Removal

It makes a change to see someone else's hands in the photos. As you can see Tim is removing the screw covers with a (very) small flat bladed screwdriver. He has also removed the plastic cover to the retaining nut on the wiper spindle Using a Philips head screw driver remove all the retaining screws. Also, using a ratchet and a 10mm socket, undo and remove the retaining nut on each wiper spindle as shown in the picture.
We then closed the bonnet and removed the wiper blades. Hmmm, that's not one of Tim's hands - it must be one of mine! Open the bonnet again, and remove the press studs under the rubber seal, they should just push out from below (or prise out from above in a couple of locations) - nearly there now.
The finisher is now free of the car, there is a rubber 'hook' on each end (shown on the far left of the picture) that needs to be negotiated around the bonnet hinge, but other than this it can just be lifted off the car. Hey, we're both in this shot.  

Wiper Motor - Removal

With a ratchet and a 13mm socket, undo the lower retaining nut as shown. Slide off the spacer on the wiper spindles.
The next step is to undo the large retaining nut on the spindles, we didn't have a large enough spanner for this job, but they weren't very tight so we were able to use a set of offset pliers. This is a tip from Tim, the next step was to remove the cover to the wiper motor by undoing the two T20 Torx screws - the reason for this will become clear shortly...
...The cover contains a pair of large magnets, with it in place you cannot move the wiper bar as you are working against the motor. With the cover removed you can then spin the motor and wind the bar across so that becomes possible to lift the assembly out of it's mounting - nice one Tim. With the motor wound on and the bar's position adjusted, all that remains now is to disconnect the multiplug as shown and...
...lift the entire assembly out of the car.  

Bonnet - Removal

We began by removing the under bonnet light, it should just prise out, but is fairly brittle so if you are following this, you need to be careful as it is easy to break. If you have a TF, this is an unnecessary step as the under bonnet light is one of a few deleted items in the specification of the two cars. Thread the under bonnet light wiring out of the bonnet and unclip the retaining stud. This is quite tricky to remove, we had to use a small flat bladed screwdriver in order to avoid damaging it.
The next stage is to detach the washer jets. These are a two piece item that work like a rawl plug, in so far as the inner piece squeezes the outer 'grommet' into the hole, thus keeping it in place. We used a pair of pliers to remove them both. This picture shows the washer jet removed from the car, you can see the flat grommet around the jet and hopefully get a better idea of how it is fixed. The grommet also acts as a gasket, sealing the jet to the bonnet and (hopefully) preventing trapped water against the bodywork. We also unclipped the hose from the underside of the bonnet - all the clips just pull out.
Using a 10mm socket undo the two pairs of bolts that secure the bonnet to the hinges. I used a ratchet spanner (as Tim was using the socket on the other hinge). This job is best done by two people in order to avoid the bonnet dropping and potentially damaging the car. The bonnet is free of the car and can be lifted clear - thus.

Slam Panel - Removal

Using the ratchet, undo the 10mm bolts that secure the upper radiator panel as shown. We then used a 10mm ratchet spanner and a pair of pliers to remove the pair of nuts and bolts that secure the panel stay. As an aside, in the background of this picture you can see Tim's rather nice F and also the back of my ZS. Tim's F is also a 1996 model and is around 200 cars older than Scarlet.
The panel is now unbolted, but is still connected to the car by the bonnet release cable. Turn the panel over and unclip it from it's mounting, you can now hook it over the release pull. The upper radiator panel is now free of the car and can be removed.  

Horn - Removal

OK, on with the gallery, beginning with the horns. I began by disconnecting the pair of multiplugs as shown. If you have a TF, there is a good chance that you only have one horn - this is a cost cutting casualty I'm afraid - the TF is priced at a similar level to the F in the 1990's and as a result of this highly competitive pricing some models have lost a couple of 'standard' F items like the extra horn, the under bonnet light, the map pockets in the back of the seats and the ignition illumination. The good news is that these parts are available as spares for the F, so if you feel like a bit of DIY work... I then used an 8mm socket on an extension connected to a ratchet to remove the retaining bolt that secures the horn bracket.
was then able to just lift each horn free of the wing. Note that I have put the retaining bolts back, although I have been separating and cataloguing the various screws / nuts / bolts etc as I have removed them, the easiest way to know where each one comes from is to put them back.  

Heater Duct - Removal

Tim actually did this last week, but I didn't take any photographs, so I put it back again, just so that I could remove it for the gallery! Ain't I good to you? ;-) Using a 10mm socket on a ratchet, remove the retaining nut as shown. Then just drop the duct away, it is just 'push-fit'. OK, OK, so I'm not THAT good to you..