Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Ray White]

[bjacko]

One would expect the supplier, repairer or manufacturer to have tested the item before selling it!
I got caught with a Rover speedometer transducer that was supposed to be brand new in a Rover packet. The packet was previously opened and obvious the item had been used. Probably the unserviceable unit after fitting the original from the packet. I bought a new one cheaper than the rubbish unit.
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1938 Morris 8 Ser II Coupe Utility (Pickup)
1985 Rover SD1 VDP

[Ray White]

[alastairq]

[Ray White]

[ukdave2002]

[Ray White]

[norustplease]

Finally, the wheel cylinders have arrived. Into the garage in the morning!
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1953 Citroen Traction
1964 Volvo PV544
1957 Austin A55 Mk 1
Boring Tucson SUV

[norustplease]

Volvo still off the road. I have decided to undertake a series of other jobs on the car, including two new rear shock absorbers (previous ones had developed a creak) and some minor bodywork tidying. The problem is that I have to turf the other car out of the garage to make workspace and locally the weather has been somewhat erratic, a couple of hours sunshine followed by torrential rain, and so being unwilling to leave a car out in the pouring rain for hours on end, there have only been odd days when it has been feasible to carry on.
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1953 Citroen Traction
1964 Volvo PV544
1957 Austin A55 Mk 1
Boring Tucson SUV

[norustplease]

Over the last twelve months, the Volvo paintwork had been showing signs of wear and tear. There were a couple of patches of microblistering on old repairs which had also faded to a different shade of blue over certain areas and the (assumed) original paint areas had weathered and faded and in some areas had developed light coloured stains. So, it looked okay from a few metres away, and on photographs, but not closer at hand. This, plus the fact that the wing piping was perished and there were a few bits of rust appearing along the seams, was leading me to think that at the very least I should unbolt the rear wings, and see what was happening .
I have given up on spray painting, too much mess, too much risk of making a poor finish, etc., so I took the car to a local restorer in Mawdesley and had a chat about a respray, suggesting that I would strip all the chrome, etc. off the car and let him do the business.
he was about to move premises, so this didn't happen until just after Easter. It rapidly became clear that the car had received more than one respray, and fearing that another coat of paint would cause the original layers to lift, we came to the conclusion that it should be bare metalled, with the possible exception of the front cowl.
The wings were removed, which revealed, as I suspected that it would, several areas in need of welding around the rear inner arches. Fortunately the cills and main tub were in good condition, and removing the windows revealed just a couple of minor bits that needed brazing up.
Wings, bonnet and boot went away for a heat strip and have come back epoxy coated both sides. the rest of the car has also been heat stripped and at the time of writing is sitting in an initial coat of two pack primer awaiting stoppering and final prep for a final coat of two pack high build and then colour. Inside the woings will be coated with a bed liner material which is the current reference to either underseal or stonechip. So, a more elaborate (and more expensive) process than anticipated, but I should end up with a car that will probably now outlive me in bodywork terms.
There are probably another three weeks or thereabouts to go before I get it back, and then another couple of weeks reassembling it, and incorporating a few improvements such as LED headlights and rearlights and possibly reupholstering the front seats to match the rear, although that can probably wait a while. All together with new rubber stoneguards to rear wings, boot lid seals, wing piping, mudflaps, etc.
My main objective will be to get the car back on the road again, but it will probably be well into July by the time that happens..
A few interesting discoveries (a bit like an archaeological dig, stripping a car down to bare metal). At some point in its life the roof has been painted a dark blue, over the original light blue, and then repainted back in the correct Volvo blue. The driver's door , although not rusty, looked like a relief map of the North York Moors and needed a bit of attention with the dolly before filling and finishing. There was no evidence of this prior to stripdown, thanks to some artful filling by the previous restorer/repairer.
So that's where we are, here follow a few photographs of the car going through the process thus far.




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1953 Citroen Traction
1964 Volvo PV544
1957 Austin A55 Mk 1
Boring Tucson SUV