MGA heater control lever and switch:
My MGA heater temperature control lever was sticking in the detent at
both ends of travel, but especially at the off position. I was having to
use two hands to get it to get it to move. It finally got so bad that I
bent the lever and the detent mount trying to move it.
So I bought a new one from Moss, part number 360-455. The new part was
even worse. The lever could not be moved from either end of travel
without the assistance of a small screwdriver to lift the detent pin from
the detent notch. I had to grind a bit off of the edge of the cam
surface at BOTH ends of travel to get it to work.
A tag on the package says "Made In Taiwan". Now I don't have anything in
general against Taiwan made parts, because I know they can make good
parts when they are required to. I put this problem directly in the
hands of Moss Motors for negligence in quality control.
Incidentally, both the detent pin and the detent cam on the new part look
identical to the old part. It's possible that the new parts are being
made from the original drawings, and maybe the dimensions somehow fall at
the bad end of tolerances. Still, if the part obviously doesn't work, it
shouldn't be shipped from the factory, Moss shouldn't accept the part,
and Moss shouldn't ship the part to a customer.
One other thing. The part was packaged in a thin plastic bag. The bag
was stapled shut with several staples at one (ragged) open side. Looks
to me like the part had been discovered bad by a customer, returned to
stock, and then resold.
I'm submitting a complaint to Moss (for whatever it's worth). The first
time I complained to Moss about a part design defect, it took them 10
years to get it right. The last time I complained to Moss about a part
design defect, it only took then 2 years to get it right. Maybe they're
trying harder these days?
Barney Gaylord
1959 MGA with an attitude
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