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Picked up a Radio Flyer wagon as a new project. I still have my daughters hot rod but it has small and narrow wheels so car meets on grass are a no go. Still fits and I finally added the "lake pipes" Scored this on gumtree for a bargain and looking at some secondhand go kart wheel this Friday. Pulled it to bits Plan to copy this style chassis Hopefully end up with something like this

I will now rummage through all my fading memories the happenings of the last few weeks since the wagon became legal, weeks of holidays, drinks, sunshine, fettling of various old car things. Hopefully as I type it will become clearer.. Since getting the car back into life I have just kept using it for all sorts of trips and its been fun. I love the looks it gets. Often I get thumbs up, usually from young folk who might not even know what it is but certainly like the fact its shabby. Older people often smile too. Many comments But it was never 'right'. I felt it had better potential and didn't believe that the engine was knackered. It was not using much oil but enough to make me look further than just the patches it left here and there. Every time I drove it Id discover afterwards a new fresh coating of oil mist over everything. I checked the rocker cover and sure enough that was loose. But still the mystery mist kept appearing.. hmmmmm… Finally I worked out that it was spinning off from the front pulley. Luckily my stash of Viva spares had a new seal. I popped off the timing chain cover and swapped out the very very hard old seal. The nice soft new one stopped the mist. Yay. But that rough idle was annoying me. More so the engine shal=king about and making the exhaust knock the crossmember. This I had to fix. It was too close and sat quite low as well.. So I cut off the down pipe and while it was off I repaired my previous ‘repair’ to the manifold joining flange which had started to leak. Knock be gone but still the car idled rough. I checked the compressions and they were all good @ 150 psi each (which is way higher than the 130 Mr Haynes tells me to expect so I either have a gauge that lies or someone in the past has skimmed the head?) But still the car ran rough. I finally bought a new timing light. A self powered one. So good not having to plug in the battery leads! With my new light I was able to check the timing which turned out to be only about 5 degrees out. So I was happy that Id managed to get it so close just by ear but not happy that it was obviously not the cause of the poor idle. I checked the valve clearances. Now things got messy… the manuals all say check them hot and many sources out there say the best thing is to check them with the engine running….. NEVER AGAIN will I try using feeler gauges on a idling engine! What a kerfuffle and resulting mess! After I had spent many clean rags clearing up the oil from everywhere I set the clearances hot. They were all pretty good actually. I screwed the rocker cover down and started the engine. TINK TINK TINK TINK TINK…. WTF?!!! Where’s that coming from. Oh no.. have I dropped a valve? Sounds like piston slap or a broken piston top but higher pitched? Oh dear I thought. I popped the cover off and started the engine. Sound has gone! What? Looked at rocker cover and I could see marks underneath from where a rocker was just touching my altered breather gallery… Oh OK. So tightening the cover down further on a new hot cork gasket just pulled it down that bit more to touch. One swift smack with the hammer and the sound was gone So what is causing the rough running then. I had been pulling the plugs after every few runs to look at the condition. Always the front 1 and 2 plugs were clean and borderline lean. The rear 3 and 4 always a touch oily. Hmmmm. Then I looked at my servo and breather lines heading into my inlet manifold- remember back when I changed the positions?.. I popped off the servo one and sucked on it. Hang on… no resistance! What? Bugger me.. I have a split diaphragm in the servo causing an air leak. Which also explains the hefty brake pedal ( I’d just put that down to poor brakes bedding in or not being manly enough..) I plugged the tee on the manifold and started the car. Wow!! What a difference!!!! So smooth. I was able to lower the idle speed right down. Then double checked the timing, tweeked the carb jet a little and it was heaps better. Next drive was way smoother, engine had more pull and no lurching. Heaven. But I knew it could be even better. So I undid the breather pipe from the inlet and re-routed it down the back of the block, holding it in place by the bottom of the bell housing with a zip tie. I plugged the remaining takeoff on the tee and started the car… even better! Yes!! Having got rid of another ‘air leak’ helped no end plus was also explaining why the rear two plugs were constantly oily. I will source another HC servo and for now just put up with a harder pedal. The brakes work well but just need a shove. As for the inlet take off I will move the position to just after the carb in the middle so its even across all cylinders. The breather can remain to atmosphere. Now I knew the engine was actually OK I gave it an oil change. The old oil was not too dirty but it did smell. It burns a little oil at start up past the inlet valve stems. I have found out that this earlier engine doesn’t have stem seals but a friend who owns many Vivas said they used to slide an O-ring down the stem so most oil ran over the o-ring rather than down the guide. Nifty idea I might try if I do pop the head off. Im now a little reluctant to take the head off as its running well..but I am a little curious to see how carboned up it might be?. So my once rough running Viva is now a very smooth little car to drive. In fact its an utter joy to drive, allowing for a general lacking in power. My fears about driving up hills have been removed. Yeah it’s a bit slow but only on one very steep section do I need second gear, otherwise its third gear and cruise. Its ideal about town and fantastic for popping to the beach, a trip it has done many times now. I like it. I like it a lot. I just cruise. Windows down. Chilled out. Lifes a breeze. I love the way the car handles with the tiny engine up front. Steering is very light and it fun to flick around. Many more little things to tidy up now and make it a nicer place. Hannah’s mum is over from the UK on holiday so I made the most of her baggage and got her to bring over lots of stuff I got cheap on ebay Uk. See here… New dizzy cap, rotor, a full set of mint Vauxhall service manuals (only £1.50 ), full head gasket set (cheap), a few magazines, adjustable electric fan controller, a chrome air filter which doesn’t quite fit but I’ll sort that. So that’s where I’m at now. Just using it. Transporting mountain bikes (easy pesy).. Going to the beach.. Sitting pretty in the afternoon… Taking me down to my local village for moonlit strolls along the beach.. Just generally being a very good fun wee classic daily

Adequately British.

He'll yeah ill be there with the world hating on my beetle. It's going to be great. Can Not Wait

Thursday night was wagnats packing and jamming the CB radio and aerial on. The gas fridge took a lot of room in the back, and I contemplated putting the towbar on so I could take a trailer. Couldn't get the bolts to line up easily so I jacked that option in and just packed more carefully. My Mrs was coming camping too so that reduced the space available, and it was raining. Anyone with an old wagon knows about water leaks! Loaded for bear! Tagged onto the OS convoy in Te Horo and headed north. Prior to this I'd only driven the thing for about 5km in total. It went well though. Leaks as expected around the windscreen and rear side windows mostly. Some hesitation developed at higher throttle when getting near Hunterville. I suspected a blocked fuel filter due to the rusty tank, so picked up a new filter at the BP in Hunterville. Still got us to Vinegar Hill though. It's big enough for two to sleep in (so long as a few drinkies first) and did the job expected at Wagnats. I replaced the filter over the weekend and the old one (which was only little) was well clogged. Ran fine on the way home, even in the stop-go traffic coming in to Otaki. Might have been a bit smokey there, as reported on the CB. The cross-shaft in the gear linkage between the body and engine popped out when I was backing it into the garage so I lost gear selection. It was easy to lever back - looks like a new rubber bush is needed there. Still plenty to get done, but I'll leave the next steps until after British Car Day. ObPic of rusty metal removed:

If you need another shed south auckland ways, I got a doozy in Papatoetoe. ... PS - if included bring money for oldschool stuffs for sale (deceased estate...)

So, no actual physical progress but..... While i was in town today i thought i'd go and have an argument with someone at a wof / compliance place just for shits and giggles. Also so i could feel superior to the 'office' people by saying "YES there is such a thing as a Phillips Gadabout and YES they are eligible to be road legal. BUT, fu*k it all, things didn't go to plan. Lady behind the counter said 'Oh, maybe you should talk to ***** as he's our motorcycle guy'. So after chatting to him for 5 minutes and him checking the system and yelling across the waiting area to say "Yeah bro, our system has Phillips Gadabouts on it". He then produced a form which he half filled out and handed to me saying "when ya up and running bring it in so i can check frame and engine numbers match what you write on form and i'll sort ya plate and shit. Oh, and don't worry about lights and shit cos i won't be doing a 'safety check', besides it won't have a battery so it don't matter" If all goes to plan ***** will be getting very drunk courtesy of me the weekend following my bike receiving plates and reg' lol.

how she looks now. Photo care of Steelies

It's that time again! Now we're back from Wagnats it's back to the regularly scheduled programming. Since it's still Summer (or sorta) the Beach meets continue! We'll be heading back to Plimmerton beach in the carpark area across the road from here: https://www.google.co.nz/maps/place/62+Moana+Rd,+Plimmerton,+Porirua+5026/@-41.0731399,174.8555419,80m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x6d3f514cdc162d63:0xbcf7386dd17cb113!8m2!3d-41.0729852!4d174.8557369 For all you regulars, it's the same Plimmerton spot as the last few times we've been out there. Slightly earlier meet time of 6.30pm to make the most of the daylight hours for those who can make it out earlier. So, bring along some dinner and come have some yarns! Discussion

Only way to know is to try another guage

Did you see the glass HQ on TM? There is a silver one driving round Henderson to

Home at last : I dunno how many miles I clocked up! Should do Clac's shortly since last Friday 27th DVK>AKL>Leadfoot>Whitianga x3>Napier>DVK Feb 8th Here's my last pic from Leadfoot, note they updated the Mobil 'livery' Car never missed a beat, used no water or oil that I could tell & a few of the other volunteers there also "used to have an Avenger once" half a tank of gas / 20L from Taupo via Napier to Dannevirke aint too bad i reckon edit : 1000 Miles or 1654km's round trip

So Cert is booked for the 13th Feb and I've been busy working on getting everything finished, All the Airlines have been secured every 300mm or less, ive fixed the leaky exhaust, just have a tailpipe extension to weld on, the biggest thing ive had to do is make my front shock mounts, I had to get a spacer machined up to space out the bottom mount as it would've fouled on the brake line mount, and for the upper mounts i got a bit of 2x2 box section, cut it diagonally length ways, boxed the top, and welded them into the car, ended up having to trim the leading gusset as on full drop the top of the shock body fouled (Simon from Airride NZ said he uses right angle and now i can see why haha Car is booked in for a Wheel alignment on friday so i think we are as set to go as i can be, will see what Cletus finds, and fix that too haha

Despite a self-imposed ban on tutu-ing due to hectic schedule: New battery, fuel filter & fresh gas (reading through the history, the truck seems to have about 5 fuel blockages to the points failure, really needs a screen or sediment bowl that isn't in the fuel pump, of course its all hardline) replaced carby inlet seal washer, painted scuttle and inside of cab. Have been using it a bit to blow the cobwebs out, not going to win any races but runs really well. Slowly getting the hang of crashbox, in fact only time i seem to miss gears is in traffic when it actually matters To do: continue paintin' cab, underside etc Grease everything (the lube chart is like a star map) Check steering box oil New tyres & exhaust Figure out why wipers & roof lights not working (suspect bad earth?) both rear axles leak a bit, doesnt seem too bad i.e not all over the tyres so down the list with it There is a massive stash of s15 commer (different sheetmetal on the front and ohv motor) parts near htown on t.m, i'm a bit torn as to whether to get it or not as the dude wants it all gone as one lot, realistically i'd have to "take the best and scrap the rest" in total there is "2 side valve motors 3 ohv motors ,5 gear boxs 3 chassis 3 front axles 3 diffs radiators 1 cab with 2 doors 10 rims 8 tyres and more". Probably enough parts to keep the thing going another couple of centuries, but i'll be sleeping in the spare cab if I drag 3 old chassis home! Also am fickle with vehicles so a lot of effort to shift everything if I sell/garden ornamentise the Q. Also used it as mobile connect 4/stereo transporter for my wedding on sunday, was a great hit. (and then used it to drag a portaloo back to hirepool and dispose of 1,000,000 bottles)

Just put a few hundred miles on this car over waitangi weekend. My lil brother, dad and best mate all went for a good cruise around kapiti making noise and snapping necks while dad told tales of the hunter he used to own. Most fun I've had in ages. The next day I used it as my car for my wedding and the lads and I all turned up to our ceremony in it. And only the day after our wedding has it started being unreliable. Im happy it waited until the next day.

OK, so I got this done. - Fixed petrol tank and slapped some paint on it before putting it back again - Installed an electric windscreen washer setup (first bit of hack wiring on the car, amazingly) - Redid exhaust to manifold joint - Put washers on the tailgate - New bushes on the shackles. Tires were a bit of a run-around. Got some used 175's for the back as a temporary measure. New 165's for the front as I had no time for anything else. Also adjusted the column shift linkage (one rod was 5mm short) which made it heaps better to drive. Put various bits of the interior back in to make it 'comfy' I picked up the front wheels and new tires on Tuesday evening (the garage owner fitted them after hours) then took it back for a WOF recheck early Wednesday (6:45am). Mechanic was a bit grumpy but did the required paperwork and issued a sticker. I nearly drove it to town but decided I shouldn't temp fate/the popo so just bought the rego during the day.

Today I finished the main bogging and sealed her up. Photos on this side are a bit ham cause it's a lot darker.

Gather round children I'll tell you a tale... I'll try updating this thread as I go both for your own interest and my sake to document the build. Ive been crazy about diggers and trucks since before I could walk, and back when I was about 10 years old my dad took me up from New Plymouth to the Field days in Hamilton for my birthday. As we went through the gate one of the first machines I saw was what I later learned to be the Kaiser X4 Turbo walking Excavator. This thing was mind blowing back then, in fact I was so enamored I returned home and built one out of Lego which won me second prize in a contest at Toyworld (prize was a technic Helicopter which I believe I still have at the olds place). Anyway fast forward 20 years and through some searching I became friends with the man who back then owned my dream machine, since then hes owned several other versions. He sold it to a lovely guy up past Opotiki, so with some rough directions and a lot of hope I set off on an adventure with my poor girlfriend to find it. I knew it was up east cape way, past a school, over a bridge and up to the right "you can see the beach from the machine"... cant be that hard right?? First trip we drove right up the coast from Whakatane to a little past Waihau Bay, and up every road on the right that looked hopeful but with no luck. It later turned out we drove straight past it (behind a row of trees), and were intently looking at a shed full of things on the opposite side of the road!! Upon returning home I quizzed the old owner again, and he told me you could see it on Google maps Two more trips up there id not only found it, but found the owner and struck a deal. Yesterday myself, the missus and my mate set off to retrieve it.. How shes sat for 10 years:

I'm just waiting to hear back from richard about looking at his race car shed But it's.looking like it's.going to be the 12th Sunday. So we have 5 sheds. Vapour shed papatoetoe Tumeke Papatoetoe Bigfoot Papakura Richard Alfreston(yeah I know) Neal Ardmore.

thinking about adding a water and amps underneath might just fit in.

Probably just low oil pressure knowing A series. Don't worry about it until the light comes on / take the bulb out. Do try another one though to be sure.

As long as the needle moves a fraction off the stop your good to go Is it a Trisco gauge? there mechanical oil gauges are ok but the temp gauges are crappy

does it leak?

There's a full glass body on FB ..I was trying to get the doors off him but he wasn't keen. Still, for $1600 it's a bargain (if you can be bothered trying to get the cab legal..Would need lots of steel I imagine)..Actually even if ya biff the cabin- for the doors and one piece front it's still cheap I hear there were 20 made in NZ, the one on Faceballs is FG cabin, FG doors and one piece FG front (I can't work out if that is cool or just a pain in the ass)

Engine bay now officially satin black. Rubber Underseal still to go for wheel arches, transmission and driveshaft tunnel and fuel tank as well as anywhere else I can get out of the tin.

so tonight I decided ill have a beer after work and hack into the dash my surprise it was tin hahaha thought it was gonna be different, not sure if I'm gonna regret hacking into my dash but meh

And have series Holden's probably aren't the strongest in side impacts anyway

Not any different to the many glass body rods that are kicking round.

Such a rad wagon dude ! Enjoyed looking at it for 5 days. Rad hanging out too bro !

Yeah looking good man, rims are sweet

be pretty sketchy to have them on a road car you would loose alot of protection from memory even race cars to run composite doors had to have a cage with side protection.

Apparently Vantages are old school.

I'm pretty sure you don't have to touch the jets..

Today didn't really fire like I'd hoped, spent ages with the Knick putty and sanding wee spots, re-did the bottom of drivers front guard and primed it all, carbonded the gutters and the boot and bonnet webs-to-skins (great product), bogged and sanded the upper inner of doors, finished the nose of the bonnet and some repairs on the scuttle vents. Moving forward is still acceptable no matter how fast

What is the story with fiberglass doors on a vehicle like the HQ? Do you have to frame out the guts? (Simple bar work between hinges and door latch? What's the minimum requirements?)

New page brings new energy into building this tho there wont be many photos to post up as my 15yo digi camera is takestoo good of photos to upload on Os have to slave through photopucket adds insteed

this happened!! pretty gutting as i can't find the same tyre anywhere so i am waiting on a pair of tyres with (hopefully) a similar thickness whitewall. o well at least the spare will now be a near new tread tyre. the tapped thermostat housing was a fail the temp sender just fouled the thermostat so brought a junction to go in radiator hose instead. has been pretty good being daily driven goes really well for what it is, the speedo cable has decided to play up unsure whats going on with it might just try another if i can find one

Back to fixing the lower cab corner rust. Look at that nice 1950's welding!

Got any tech questions? Spam thread is that way ->

make sure it doesnt touch it, including the dust cover when the suspension is compressed can you tweak them a bit away from the shock?

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Some more rust, this time the cowl vent. The channel where the rubber seal sits needs to be completely replaced. The other piece that is spot welded underneath just needs a few small holes patched up. Attempted to use a shrinker/stretcher to make up individual pieces but it wouldn't stretch enough for the tight radius. So then I thought about other ways and decided to try and form it out of one piece. Drew up some cad drawings and got them laser cut. After one hour of smacking it with a hammer. Came out way better than expected. Just needed to fold the inside up now. The inner corners required heating as they needed some decent stretching. The shape and fitment turned out as good as my measuring and cad drawing skills.

So today, 5 years later, this happened //oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/46798-hkm400s-1969-lotus-7-series-3/

Finally made a change from making the car further away from being on the road, to doing something that is a step in the right direction, Put my first coat of POR15 down: Came up fantastic, I was told by the panel beater we use at work to seam seal it once it gets to the point my finger leaves a finger print but the paint doesn't stick to my finger, so while I was waiting for that I etch primed the underneath of the floor pans, I then checked and it was ready for Seam sealing. Ran a thin bead first and worked it into the Seam with a paint brush, then ran over it again with a thick bead and gently spread it over the whole Seam. Very happy with the outcome. Finally I leave you with a picture that I've been using for inspiration, if I can get my car looking half as good as the one in the following photo I'll be happy (plus the Fred needs photos and the one I posted is potatoe spec/boring)

Friday took the day off and painted it... prob should have posted this before the last post but meh!

Hako makes it's first official public outing. I was asked by one of the organisers of a car show if I could bring the Skyline out to have on a Nissan stand. So I agreed. It's crazy to see the size difference between old and new.. everything has just become so much bigger.

Sill ready for paint, going to spray it at a mates new shop (silverstream panel) going to talk to him about OS hookup/ deals for OS guys... my mate Shaun and his brother Scott bought it around a year ago , was a failing business and is cranking again... he is being a GC and letting me use his booth and gear for me to spray it... Also lately ive rebuilt brake callipers and have a pedal again , if its not raining this evening ill get my first drive in on new wheels its a good day!!!

Extreme happyness , got the sill tact in last night!

With the tank i've had success doing this. Put a whole heap of small nuts & bolts, ball bearings and other small things in it, wrap well with a duvet or thick blanket then put in the clothes drier on 'cool' cycle for half hour or so. You'll be surprised how clean it gets the inside. (DO NOT do this when the missus is home tho')