Project update - Lets get spannering!
Hey all,
Tmy came out of the bodyshop two weeks ago now and has been resting in my dad's garage before the next stage of it's restoration which started this weekend. I can already say that this process is massively rewarding and fun! I have taken pictures as I went and will continue to do so to show how its all going.
I got to dad's house at 1.30 on Saturday and immediatley plugged the car in to charge.
First job for me was to remove the carpets inside to gauge their condition and to establish the state of the floor pan. First out was the passenger seat - very easy as only four nuts;
Here it is with both seats out and the front carpets removed.
The condition of the front carpets was quite ropey and the sound-deadening materials underneath are also quite rough so it looks like i'll be ordering a front carpet set. Could prove expensive but I think it will make a real difference to the look of the car inside;
I took out the damaged centre console to get refurbished and while I was there also removed the glovebox. This will get a clean-up and then be re-fitted once any other dashboard issues have been resolved. The nasty early-90's Goodmans CD player has gone straight in the bin, to be replaced by a fully-updated original Blaupunkt Frankfurt radio, complete with bespoke E9 knobs.
Centre console out
Dash now more bare
Next up was the engine bay. It was quite dusty from the re-spray and also had some residual oil etc. I got an old paint and tooth brush and applied the Gunk degreaser in all the key areas.
Before;
After;
I think the result was worth it, though it took a loooong time. I'll go over the outer part of the 'bay next weekend with the polish to get it looking as new, as well as pianting some smaller parts to give it that as-new look.
While the engine was being cleaned I also removed the flaps that cover the access holes to the headlight bulbs. The items were looking a bit tired and sure enough, on the other side they also had a light coat of surface rust (second picture).
The flaps were cleaned off, then rubbed down and painted with Krust treatment to stabilise the surface to stop any future outbreak. On my travels around the engine bay I found a tiny bit of rust under the bonnet so I ground this out and also treated this with Krust. I have now painted this with red primer and i'll rub it down again next weekend.
After this came the passenger side rear lamp. The only bulbs working were the indicator and reverse light so out came the rear light board for inspection.
The contacts were cleaned up, as were the reflectors and lenses
I then put it all back together again for testing and, hey presto, they all worked!
Very simple fix and very satisfying
I wanted to organise the boot on day 2; some oil had been spilled and it looked generally tired so out came the covering carpet for a damn good clean with car shampoo. It came up really well and will go back once I have completed my work in the boot.
I took out the spare wheel and gave it a good clean and a lick of piant, too. The tyre was very low on air so i'll get this checked out next week.
There was some minor surface rust in the wheel well so I have ground this out and also treated with with Krust then two coats of red primer. I'll put some top coat on this at a later date.
Next was the job of stripping the doors to take off the wood for re-furbishment. The doors are in good shape so I will clean them up, inject them with cavity wax then make a new thin foam membrane to protect from moisture ingress. The second picture shows the top door trim that is being sent away to get re furbished.
Finally I did some detailing. The wiper arm on the driver's side is kaput so I need to find a new one - the screw that secures it to the wiper spindle was cross-threaded; I may try and re-tap the whole but it looks like it'll have to be replaced.
Last up was the seat belt buckle securing strap - the end was a bit rusty so it was rubbed down, treated, primed then covered with 4 coats of satin black. This will go back on when the carpet is re-fitted.
Its been a great start and i'm really enjoying it - your comments would be very welcome all!
Thanks,
o
