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  1. So this thing when to 2016 Oldschool Drag Day. Such a sweet event put on by a bunch of good dudes, passionate about crusty old cars. And supported by us! As mentioned before, I use to have real issues getting the car into 3rd gear on the strip. Redline MT90 has sorted that issue. Last year the best that the car could do was 16.4 at 85.7mph. Due to slow shifting into 3rd gear. This year was much better........15.2 at 90mph Stoked to get the 'Best Skid' award. Stolen pics from others with fancy cameras. Thanks for the memories. xoxo
    14 points
  2. I have just popped in to give sort of a quick "hey there fella..how's your car working out so far and what do you think of it?" update like thing. Well.. glad you asked. Note one; Its not very fast but keeps up with traffic fine if traffic drives slowly. Hills scare me. In the other Viva, Viva One, hills are fun and something to look forward to. In fact I often plan a passing move on a hill to really put a point across to what ever I'm passing, really lay down the house rules in a quick simple move No such fun with Viva wagon I'm afraid. Now all I plan is where can I wind up the rubber band and how fast can I take a corner so not to scrub off too much speed. Momentum is king. Note two; Its light. Lighter over the front end which makes for really light steering and a throw it into everything, chuckable sort of fun drive. Great for not slowing down *see note one. Note three; The brakes need a lot more effort to stop. Suspect servo maybe not playing its part and has decided its going to just sit in the bay taking space and to hell with assistance. The brakes work fine but you have to push them hard. So best not to bother using them and just hold that speed which is good again for speed.. see note one. Note four; Its only running on 3 at idle but smooths out when revved? Or is it me thinking its smoothing out and its actually only running on three most of the time. I wonder if its the worn dizzy cap and once up to speed it doesnt affect the engine. But I think its more. I will check the plugs in the morning. The exhaust knocks the cross member in a very noisy horrible way when the engine bounces about on three. This totally goes with the style of the car though. Passers by probably just think 'old cars.. aint they so sweet with the clouds of smoke and noise' Note five; Its not burning any oil. This is good. Instead its doing a very British car thing and leaving puddles on the floor. I thought it was mainly the rear main seal but then I noticed I had not re-tightened down the rocker cover since its been run a few times. Hopefully this might help. If the car continues to behave well with regards to oil use then I may well just dump out the 15 year old oil and treat it to new stuff. I really should change it shouldn't I... I'm so mean. Note six; It needs music. The wheezy little four pot struggling up a hill, gasping for air, stumbling and hurting when I try to make the gigantic leap over the hole the size of the Isle of man that is between 2nd gear and 3rd gear is not music. I have been given an 80's tape deck stereo headunit and I have some plastic speakers that cost me nothing. So perfect for this car. I will fit them and then hunt out the best music the local recycling center will have on tape. I will post up the build of this mega sound system as we all like ICE. Anyway- we took both Vivas to the OS Nelson area meet today. It made it there fine and did not have too large a queue built up behind and didn't blow a cloud of smoke. So that was nice. Event went well and I took some photos. There was actually 4 Vivas there in the end. This is a record surely. Certainly for Nelson.. Then we drove back home- Hannah following in Viva one which she now claims as hers..pfff no taste. Snobbery. It was a nice day out and as I drove home to the sound of rattles, bangs and clunks I made my list of things to fix. I will report back as I sort through them.
    11 points
  3. Well after a super fun day at the OS Christmas Drags It has become apparent unless I get some more Traction and Sort my tune out I ain't going to get down that Quarter any Faster than 13.7 So I am now looking for a slightly wider Pair of 15 inch front wheels to put on for Drag days (maybe track days too) And have a little more smoothing out to do on my "Race tune" as Launch Control was not allowing any boost to build so car had no power untill late in Second Gear / Third. and the Tune without launch control left me wheel spinning the whole way thru third with Tyres deflated to 20psi warm To Contrast 13.756 @ 108mph with Crappy Launch Control Tune and tyres at 28psi cold vs 13.743 @ 107mph with No LC on the Tune and Wheel spinning thru third with tyres at 20psi Warm ^^ Annoying huh! The fact Its running 195/50R15 Road tyres probably doesn't help. the 60ft Time leaves alot to be desired for too. never managing to get it any quicker than 2.45... Other than that fricken love dailying the Car. I tend to down tune it to the less aggressive map other wise she becomes a hand full in the wet -------------------------------------------------------------- On the plus side I have my cert plate fitted to the car now (Thanks Cletus) now I can get my Car insured
    7 points
  4. Got the compressed superlows in awhile ago, so here's some pics:
    4 points
  5. Also, the clutch was a bit juddery before drag racing, now it is not. My bedding in procedure must be superior
    4 points
  6. It was another good turn out today. As always at Nelson meets, a very eclectic mix. It was cool to see Matt rotary Anglia in the flesh after following its build for ages. Even better was to get to drive it! Cheers man. It's everything a rotary Anglia should be including fuel smells and noise. I burnt my foot on the floor pan above the exhaust ! Cool to see Dylans bus build. Good use of space. Just needs wall to wall fluffy carpet. I got to marvel at the super rare Twincam Beagle owned and tuned by Will. Amazing to see Dave the Irish Avenger finally turn up to an event in a classic of his own, a Hillman Avenger of course, with the coolest 80's add on power window that kept many grown men amused for ages... I was also quite smitten with the noise and smoothness of Shanes m50 powered Bmw which he also kindly let me drive to the limiter. Will be such a good engine choice for Hannahs Trump wagon. Speaking of wagons.. mine made it along with the careful hands of Sam who I think was blown away with both the pace and the grace of such a refined piece of machinery. Or maybe not.. Another Viva turned up just before we were about to leave so I got a photo of this rare sight.. I didn't take many photos so hopefully Shane etc has some more to put up?.
    4 points
  7. Making patterns for the spring hanger. Got a 3D printer! Does work for you while youre at work! So good.
    4 points
  8. ebay? that weber specialties guy is a prick to deal with from the experience some of my pals have had
    3 points
  9. just bought seat belts for the back seat so i can take the kiddies to the south island They wont be legal as such but will be installed to spec... and better than having the kids with no belts!
    3 points
  10. I told you, no matter how many times you ask, i'm not going to fist you.
    3 points
  11. Had a decent run at the drags again, for some reason it cant stage on the far lane at all, and there's a bit of an uneven surface 1/2way down which causes a bit of wobble excitement Successful run in the lane closest to the grandstand, Managed a better time of just over 28seconds and top speed of 71.2kph, not bad for some vintage 20" rims!
    3 points
  12. So as mentioned in the discussion I made it to the wof garage with no major issues. I have learned to ignore the temp gauge.. it tells lies. Maybe wrong sender for the cluster I'm using that's the old one from Viva one. The fuel gauge ain't working. The alternator light randomly comes on ..I suspect a bad earth. The speedo cable has now snapped at the other end ! But I made it and it was in good hands.. After wowing the tester as he's never seen an HB wagon before I walked off to do some shopping. I was hungry as and had a nice pie while I waited for the result. Whilst going shopping I spotted this.. I chatted to the owner, an old boy who's very proud of his Viva. He actually has a Datsun engine with a 5 speed box, fitted by the fella doing my wof. Finished shopping, walked back to the garage. Car was moved inside... Did it pass???? It did! Yes One of my sidelight bulbs was out. I'd known about it but forgot. He chucked another bulb in and passed it! (I have to fix the speedo asap which I will do so tonight). Yay!!!! Straight to the post office for some rego. So I drove home happy, checked the ignition timing with a mates light and it was indeed probably 10-15 degrees to advanced! Its also running lean but damned if I can move the jet down. Might put a slightly smaller O ring in that wont jam up. Got home. Took photo of this... Hung these in place... and sat back for one of these... A very, very happy man I am ! So speedo cable to sort then tune the engine. Change the oil. Get radiator leak soldered. Then in between driving I want to sort out the boot floor with some plywood and make it all flat ready for bikes etc.
    3 points
  13. A very exciting evening was had for us. We drove the wagon for the first time. In fact it’s the first time its been on the road since around 1999. I had been intending to have it ready to put through a Wof test on Thursday so we can hopefully take both Vivas to the Nelson area Oldschool meet in the weekend. But it turned out that my wof fella was booked out then. So I booked it for tomorrow and with that little carrot dangling in front of us we both set to work pronto to finish lots of little jobs. We almost had the list checked off but for fitting the bonnet, a side mirror and getting the windscreen washers sorted. The mirror will have to be a little purse mirror taped into the empty side mirror shell that I nicked from the Datsun 120y sitting out back. The windscreen washer is the original old push button type that I just need a reservoir for and the bonnet is now on in place after some quick rust repairs… I also pinched a filter from Hannahs Triumph wagon. It fits well enough and will do until I get something nicer.. Before it got too late in the day I thought I’d better take it for a drive. Its not idling right and shakes about a bit. My timing light bulb is blown so I cant check the timing. I can’t do it statically with a bulb and some wire as it now has electronic ignition. So I just twisted the dizzy until it sounded about right. The carb jet height is set at two turns down since I stripped it, as per Mr Haynes advice . I have no idea what’s going on but it runs. I jumped in and left the shed. I drove down the slope from the shed and heard a loud sound. Ha..I forgot that I had not cut the front lower corner of the front arches away to clear the wider wheels (a standard mod needed for Vivas) . Back into the shed again and out with the angle grinder. Then back out again and this time a little drive just up our driveway to start with. Brakes needed a good application to scuff off the rust on the discs but otherwise it was OK. Took some photos when it was at the top of our drive… I really like this next photo I took from our field with all its spring growth.. ( I have given up on mowing up here).. Hannah walked down and got the recycling bin and tried out the wesome useful load space.. Then back to the shed. I grabbed my tool box, phone and a shirt to stay warm for a possible walk home. First drive on the road here we go. OK not a biggy.. just 3km down the road to the beach. Hey wow.. it goes well! It wanders a little bit and needs and alignment but peppier than I expected. Steering is very light and the clutch is fine. Pretty quiet for a car with no bonnet and no carpets etc. It fun. Excited. Happy! Wow.. I did it. Yay. Down at the beach some old lady remarked how she used to own a Viva when she spotted it as I snapped some photos. I was sort of in an elated but slightly nervous, excited mood and didn’t really concentrate too much on what photos to take. I just snapped away and was happy to be there in the sun after all this time working on it. Drove home and showed the neighbour over the road. We spotted a weeping header tank seam on the radiator… Oh well.. hopefully it’ll hold for a trip to town and the test and I’ll get it sorted out later on. Water pump leaks too but I have 3 spares so will swap one in. Hopefully tomorrow I will also get the bulb for my timing light and properly have a crack at tuning it better. Next to Viva one and getting Kevins approval.. Please wish me luck with the test tomorrow!
    3 points
  14. I have some 15x9 smoothies with drag slicks on them if you're ken for a rip roaring hui of a boogie.
    2 points
  15. 13’s Muffler Lovin Guards Car mocked on Spitties Steering NOS v used Before paint Prep the bay Another couple of primer filler coats then sunrise red Suspension this week from Koni Diff getting rebuilt and rear brake brackets sorted GAME ON!
    2 points
  16. Ill lock this for now as its really a useless thread. Will keep a combo meet on the rad for the new year,
    2 points
  17. 2 points
  18. Some shitty footage of yucklux at OS drag day MK4. What a marvelous day it was. Regards, VG.
    2 points
  19. Drag Day was on this Saturday. //oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/53865-oldschool-christmas-tree-drag-day-mark-4-december-10th-meremere/page-24 Unfortunately the 125 was having some electrical issues (deadish battery/no start) so i didn't do any runs and ended up organizing the staging all day. Great spot to watch from, and lots of banter over the head mics. Those dudes see EVERYTHING. Anyway on the way home it disgraced itself even further with a sudden rear brake lock up on the motorway, and pedal went rock hard. Was hot enough to burn my finger when i touched the caliper. Couple of OSGCs on the way back to town also stopped to see if i was ok, and i ended up a little tipsy by the time the tow turned up, by which time not only had the brake had freed itself up but the car started up and drove onto the truck I suspect either the caliper handbrake mech or something hydraulic up stream of it, as it has sometimes been slow to release when I haven't driven it for a while before (a few pulls on the hand brake loosen it up), but this was the first time it has happened while driving, and the first time i could feel it in the pedal (ie just fine then *on*, and I hadnt even touched the brake!) I pulled the offending caliper off today, nothing obviously untoward, so re greased the slides and boshed it back together. The brakes have been a bit odd lately, and as I already have a brake line kit incoming as the hard lines are getting a bit rusty, I will do a big brake refresh (new master, pads and rotors, and swap out the booster) at the same time. Silly old bugger is getting jealous of the wagon i think.
    2 points
  20. Another great meat with another crazy mix of makes and models. Thanks again to everyone who came along to make it happen!
    2 points
  21. Went hard for what it was tbh.
    2 points
  22. Another small (but to me significant) update, the undersealing is all finished (bar one spot that needs a touch up with a rattle can) which marks the end of the compliance work, and means I can move on to the Airbag fitment which makes me very happy Pic for Fred:
    2 points
  23. While Hannah and I were having a coffee yesterday morning we got out some old brochures for a read. I had bought this one from England ages ago as a bit of 'inspiration' while taking on the worst of the rust. I thought I would share the virtues of the mighty Viva HB Estate 'Space curve styling continues'.... 'Note the smooth, sleek line of the rear of the Estate with its fast-back tailgate'.... 'An exterior rear view mirror on the drivers side is regular equipment for all models'.... So many features... (btw..my Estate is a '90 de Luxe' model from which someone in the past has stolen its mighty 70bhp engine from) For those who want to win at the pub quizz when they ask about the specifications of a Viva HB Estate... Now I need to find a Triumph mk1 Estate brochure for Hannah so she can stay motivated on her quest to restore her rusty wagon!
    2 points
  24. so most of the cert process is finished now.. a few weeks ago I attended Drag wars for my first try since the rejig of the engine. first Run was a 14.3 @ 108mph Second run was 13.7 @ 106.8mph then the night was called off... Video here Picture here
    2 points
  25. Hey Everyone, Last Sunday I was lucky enough to fit in a quick outing to the local Datsun Clubs, Datsun Day meet here in Belmont, Perth Western Australia. I was only there for about 20mins as I had a lot on that day but was able to grab a few quick snaps. Was a pretty awesome turnout with plenty of Z cars and early Dattos, even the odd Hakosuka which is the first i've spotted in the wild (I think it is a gt2000 mocked up as a GTR though but still dope regardless).
    2 points
  26. Fitting out the interior this evening. Hannah has cleaned the seats and they came up great. Now contemplating just having rear seats only and simply extending the pedals and steering wheel back.. so comfy in there being able to stretch out. Kevin agrees...
    2 points
  27. Happy update time.. it runs! After chasing around electrical gremlins which ended up in a instrument cluster swap among other things I finished yesterdays efforts by filling the carb with fuel, pulling the choke out and turning the key. Two seconds later and it fired up easily. I'll get a video later. Couldnt run it for long as Id not filled it with coolant yet. I'm so happy. I'll be happier when Ive taken it for a drive and confirmed it has not got any issues like BHG etc. So going back a few days here's some things that have been finished.. First off. I finished the wiring and mounted the solenoid, tucked out of the way under the servo.. Then I thought I'd better fit the speedo cable. But it didn't turn. It was seized solid in one spot. I tried so many things to free it up, lots of wd40, plusgas, twisting, wiggling, pulling, pushing etc and finally it freed up but only one half... Luckily I had a spare cable from when Viva one was swapped over from cable speedo to my home made electronic setup. But it was really long, made to suit the Mazda rx7 gearbox and how do I shorten the inner down? I tried years ago to grind a new square end and it doesn't work. So I looked it up and the square end is actually squeezed into shape! I made a little form tool from some steel and at 5mm a time I squeezed my new cut down inner into shape... It worked a treat!.. The sparkplug leads that came with the car are horrible old red Repco branded items. Not a chance they will get fitted... I priced up leads in NZ and the prices were stupidly high, even at trade. Plus most are coloured blue or red. So Ebay Uk and the nice people at.. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/The-Green-Spark-Plug-Co?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 .. had just what I needed. 7 days later and I had a nice new set of good quality black leads for only $25.50 inc postage!!! Its great this weak Pound Sterling thing! Yesterday was finishing little things and sorting out why instruments didnt work. I found a defective circuit strip thing plus a broken plastic casing on the cluster so I swapped the parts across from a spare.. While I did that Hannah did some other jobs.. like clean the mucky sunvisors.. That is it really.. I'm hoping to do a bit more today and then take it for a drive to check it out. Very excited. It currently sits here waiting..
    2 points
  28. I am quite happy to say that I have managed to get quite a bit of work finished on this little wagon. With the evenings being brighter and warmer and having a new dose of enthusiasm I have spent more time on it and its been fun. So where was I last update. Lets start with the doors. I knew they had rust but not too bad and in places that’s easy to get to. I have been putting off repairing them so now is the time after having just finished the last few bits on the tailgate (hatch..) Luckily the rust was mainly on the outer skin wrapping over the inner strengthening panels that the hinges are welded to. I cut it away and let in some nice new thick sheet. I actually ground back the welds afterwards because it it made sense to have it all finished properly in a place that is hard to get to once the doors are back on. Plus the seals, speaking of which I will need to get some decent second hand ones with the originals having fallen apart, will need a good smooth surface to squash against. There was minimal rust along the inner bottom of one door and they fixed up well. Really glad they are in good condition otherwise with minimal dents on the outside (just dented enough I say..) While I was working on them I also had one of those ‘expecting it to be a arse but it was actually easy’ moments when I had to remove a broken screw from a window winder stub. The screw was small, broken unevenly and I sure that Id not be able to drill it central enough. But I did, it worked and I was happy.. With the doors repaired and the repairs painted over I put them aside and started on the wiring. I enjoy wiring and have always planned to tidy all the original stuff up. I got carried away and its now pretty well hidden from view. I added some extra wires for the fan etc and decided to run the main loom out of sight via a hole I added in the tunnel. The original bulkhead grommet worked perfectly. Once I started hiding things I got even more carried away. I disliked the look of the fan wires running externally along the top of the bulkhead so they were carefully re-routed then back through the heater box and through another added hole. The main loom sorted back through inside the car and I was happy with it all. So onto the heater hoses. First I fitted them as per original. Oh dear. No, no ,no.. this will not suffice !… Damn they are ugly hoses, just running over the engine like an afterthought, looking like a scaled up version of a badly designed Lego tecnics kit with poorly scaled pneumatics. Nup. No sir..I don’t like it! So I rummaged through my always handy supply of random hoses and found a few Mazda items that will help in my quest for neatness, a Toyota bottom hose and a ideal tee piece. I also found a heater pipe from the Crysler Northstar quadcam V8 I have been gifted (another story…). Still not enough pieces to complete my puzzle. Back to the wreckers then… I love going to wreckers, especially when they let you roam about by yourself and get your own bits, a rare thing these days with so many OSH rules. Luckily Hannah enjoys it too because she was along for this sortee. We found a variety of hoses from a Datsun something, a Mitsubishi Mirage, a Honda Shuttle and also scored an ideal inline heater valve from said Honda. A few hose clips and other handy bits. All this for $10 free image uploading Back home and I assembled my scavenged findings together and came up with a design. I cut that steel pipe down, welded on a bracket so it mounts onto the carb support bracket beneath the carb. Chopped the excess bits off the heater valve and mounted that in the original place using various bends from my even more awesome stash of bends. Added the Tee into the Toyota bottom pipe. It worked out fine except for one thing.. the heater valve works backwards. Hot is cold and vice versa. Luckily my other Viva, with its Chevette sourced heater valve is exactly the same. So no confusion for us.. just everyone else.. After finishing them I noticed my exhaust was not yet connected to the manifold. Then I discovered holes. Bugger! So old towels out to protect things and I carefully welded in some repairs. I am a bit upset in that the blobby welds might well restrict things and lose me a pony or two. However I shall learn to deal with this. Then on to the breather and brake servo hoses. I have decent PCV valve to use and some pipe now. But nothing matches. Out with my stock of alloy bits and I worked out a plan using my 1/8th bsp taps. I machined up an adaptor and it worked a treat. Finished and mounted.. With that lot finished and looking a lot neater it was now it was time to sort out the throttle pedal to carb interface system. I am using a HC Viva floor mounted pedal like in Viva one. The original top mounted pedal system uses rods and is..ugly. I copied the design of cable clamp and pedal mount from Viva one. Noted how much cable pull was offered by the pedal. Did some maths and worked out the diameter of pully needed. Then I machined up a pulley from a lump of alloy on the trusty old, leaky, English lathe. Made a new cable bracket and used some old bike barrel adjuster. It was an easy enough job but just time and I’m glad its done. Cable clamp so the nipple will go at pulley end for neatness... Measure cable pull.. Pedal mounts here on new base... A leaky (because English made) old but trustworthy lathe and a lump of alloy.. A new pulley.. I wont mount it yet as some wiring to do for the starter solenoid yet to be done. But I’m not far from firing the little 1159cc block of fury up and I’m quite excited. Here's a photo of the new hose layout. I'm much happier with it and it was worth the hassle... Back soon
    2 points
  29. Ready for the first pore. The guy at the foundry likes classic cars and was really keen to help. Will charge $5 a kg for casting. Thats cheap! The filter area was too thin and failed after it filled up. So it filled properly and then just before it solidified it half drained out. . I knew it was dodgy but thought I might get away with it. Even though this failed, this is a great success. The cores worked perfectly, they didn’t shift or break, the surface finish is great and there are no cracks or porosity which is really common around the port and cylinder head areas. This is definitely the coolest thing I have ever made! Next step is to cast two cylinders.
    2 points
  30. Booster is easy to test. Stick the hose in your gob, and suck like you're trying to pull a golf ball trough a garden hose. Stick your tongue over the end. If the diaphram can't hold enough suck to keep your tongue on then odds are she's coozed.
    1 point
  31. Wrap the Borg Warner gearbox in sheet metal - Falcon, Charger or P76 would go nicely under my Christmas tree.
    1 point
  32. It was super hard to get it right, it either bogged or spun, as the poost comes on so low in the revs. And yeh, ran on the primewell budget tyres, was too lazy to put the supercats on, ha.
    1 point
  33. Sooooo many lols Awesome day at drag day. Cheers to the organisers and support crew! Nice to get the 3A down the strip before it gets pulled out haha Consistent 19.7's all morning so I was super keen to get some DYO in haha Tried to do a braking burn out so I could sit there and pull a sick one wheeler peeler but as I eased on the brake the motor started to stall haha 34 years, 260,000kms, bad rings and 20w50 to hide thoughts bad rings certainly wasn't helping haha Now with more motivation I'll pull the 4AGE out of anouther car next week so if I get my A into G and finish that small port head then the long block will be finished. Picked up the loom from storage so can start cutting that back to basics and hopefully find the RPM rectifier Ben made for the wasted spark setup. Might haft to call on some help to double check the ignitions configured properly
    1 point
  34. Did a few wee jobbies on the bike today; Modified a sx85 expansion chamber to fit. Will probab.ly do nothing for performance because it's not the right type of pipe for the engine but it looks rad. It'll be the job until my PE175 pipe turns up (then I'll mod that to fit). A GC from work bent some stainless tube for my rear hoop so I welded that on too. Now I can get onto making a proper seat. Managed to strip a thread for the exhaust too. And painted a couple wee things. Rad
    1 point
  35. Woahhhhhhhhh. Its been a while. I have been picking away at little bits here and there and in the last two days put in a bit more effort. I thought I’d better do an update as it’s a great way to motivate myself and actually see the progress. Last time I left you with a photo of the engine bay painted. The car went back on the hoist then I finished making brake lines. I finished cleaning and painting the front brake calipers, mounted them up and cut/bent/swaged/flared and fitted the brake lines to suit. I then decided the shiny new brake lines made the axle look very messy indeed so I just had to remove the lines and paint it. Overall it makes working on the underside so much nicer and looks good for the WOF test too. New seals in the freshly painted master cylinder and bench bleed it before bleeding the system. It was a slow process made faster by using a make shift pressure bleeder and bike track pump. It got even faster when I discovered the loose leaking union on the opposite side to where I was sitting. Brake pedal came up well and they feel good. There is a few years worth of rust to score off the discs on the first application though. People size their wheel dish or lack of road clearance with a phone as a scale. Well here’s a new one- check out the size of my enormous axle… While the car was up I ran some nice thick cable down to the front for the starter.. Oh btw..I had previously forgot to mention the rusty bits along the gutter drain lip over the rear tailgate (hatch..) opening. Well. There was rusty bits. Now they are gone. It was a tricky lots to replace with compound curves but its important. Luckily it was solid around all the hinge area as I could see that being a right pita to fix. So the only rusty bits left are some little bits on the doors and another patch on the tailgate (hatch…..) plus weld a check strap retainer back in place for the passenger door. Then I think I can safely put the welder away. The rocker cover had ugly breather vent tubes sticking right out the top and this had to change. Chopped them off, altered the interior oil splash guard to suit a rear mounted exit pipe so I can hide the breather hose away. Then a flick of filler and a coat of finest spray can paint and it looks much better. The old tube was a tad messy anyway.. Modded the splash shields.. Painted.. I had to modify the inlet manifold too. Same reasons- ugly outlets with no thought to a tidy engine bay. I removed both, welded them up and filed the lot smooth. I then machined up a new boss with a tapered thread to suit a different pcv valve and welded it in where it will work better with the new hose layout.. Hannah painted the engine and bell housing satin black. I refitted a cleaned up alternator Andre gave me. Cheers again Andre. The car previously had a generator fitted with an ugly control box. No no no. That wont do. The alternator looked exactly like the ones in the Haynes manual but it had the lugs orientated wrong ie it was made to mount on the other side of the engine? Then I noticed its front half looked symmetrical. Spot the difference in these two photos… Yep- undoing the front half and spinning it around 120 degrees allowed the alternator to mount on the side I wanted. Clever chaps. So I altered the existing generator bracket… and it all fits fine now. Yay- now I have 35amps of charge capacity to play with. I can probably find a suitable tape deck to run along with a really old inefficient amp. Then play suitable old 60/70’s music as I hold traffic up every where. Yes. Then we slung the shiny clean 1159cc power plant back into its home. Painted the grill area black as well so to work in better with the planned GT grill. I remounted the cleaned and painted wiper rack but will need another tapered rubber seal thingee I’ve yet to source. Painted and fitted the hinges in place. Then I cleaned and stripped the Stromberg carb. It was dribbling out the bottom when I had been checking the engine ages back and I found some hardened perished O rings. That’ll go back together and then I’ll make a little alloy pulley to suit the cable pull offered by the later preferred Viva HC throttle pedal I’ll be fitting. Hannah took the terrible old dash top rescue under her wing. She carefully filled the cracks and missing section in the replacement dash top I was given and made it very neat indeed. Big thanks to Hannah for her patience exceeds mine on those jobs. Then last weekend she celecbrated her fantastic job by sailing a jump on her old Fat Chance mtb and landing in a not very Danny Macaskill sort of way. In fact landing on her face. So as a treat she got a helicopter ride… Hannah is healing well and I have lots of Viva jobs lined up for her to cheer her up. I’ve painted the light brackets and swapped out one of the manky headlights for a good spare. Painted the back of the headlights to tidy them up. Next job will be the wiring and check, rebuild and add the Accuspark electronic ignition kit my Dad brought back home after a family holiday. Hopefully with that I may well be able to reliably sample the full 50bhp that this little engine might muster up! That is a about it for now. Very happy to get that off my chest. I might just go out and do some more! It quite a fun part of a resto this. Pick up bit, clean it, paint it, fit it. Good music, good coffee, helpful fluffy cat and you’re sorted! Here is a photo of how the engine bay is looking at this point in time..
    1 point
  36. Did a bit of machining and chopped it in half. Added some valves to make a proper paperweight. Finished off the moulds for an attempt on 2 cylinders. At the foundry now and theyre meant to pour it early next week. Fingers crossed it works
    1 point
  37. Then time for the outer patterns. Filter and sprue area added. Then fit them all together. Then stack them on top of each other to make a 40kg sand castle.
    1 point
  38. Decided to start with making the cylinder block first. These are photos from a guy in Germany with a genuine engine and also an old sectioned one. He needs a new block himself so he is doing everything he can to help. The Bugatti way of doing things was a bit different when it comes to the engine. The block is also the cylinder head so there is no headgasket!
    1 point
  39. Made some coilovers. Ended up getting MR2 inserts I think, they weren't really short enough and 5kg springs. I shortened the struts and TIG welded them up. Applied paint Test fitted and the springs were too hard, didn't go anywhere low enough unless I pulled out the keeper springs and wound the collars right down. De-sprung the rear to see how low it could go. Removed the bump stops as well Did some calculating and figured some 3kg springs would be better and shortened the insert shaft a bit. Bought some cheap evo camber plates and drew up some new top hats to get laser cut. Cut another coil off the rear springs and installed some shorted shocks, so this is how it sits now. Hopefully settles a bit lower. Bought another K50 shifter housing thanks to enzee. Shifts much smoother without the one that's been brazed and welded!
    1 point
  40. Well finally a bit more traction this week or soon to be lack-thereof Turbo & Injectors and miscellaneous other parts arrived from Europe. I need to fabricate a log manifold for the new turbo to bolt up to. Will also need to send the clutch off to beef it up All new intercooler and pipework to be done also. Will change it to a much larger front mount instead of the side mounted setup I am currently using. Should be good.
    1 point
  41. Pretty much done, went for a blast around the carpark at work, it's a weird sensation... nothing ... nothing... moving ... woah hang on!
    1 point
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