Zee
05-09-10, 05:13 PM
Hi there,
I've owned Horace for nearly a year and a half now, I've been working until now just to get past all the things that had to be done (timing chain, alternator, roll bar bushes etc) and am finally able to get on with some of the things I want to get done. I've taken a week off work and am just getting to grips with how long things take and how expensive they are.
I had a few jobs that I needed to get done before winter, one of which I started today. Replacing front wheel bearings and cv joints:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5676.jpg
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5677.jpg
We only managed to get the drivers side done today, mostly because the wheel bearing was an absolute pain to get out, we don't have access to a press so a massive socket and a lump hammer were employed to very good effect.
I also discovered today that circlip pliers come in different sizes, the ones I'd bought for fitting the new wheel bearing circlips were just too small for the job ;oops: Anyway, we know now and have a pair of needle nosed pliers doing the job instead.
The weekend just past was a Bank Holiday so I took advantage of a good day to grind off all the old paint on the new-to-Horace sunroof skin, rub it all down and respray it. Getting all the old paint off took FOREVER!! A good couple of hours with a wire wheel on the angle grinder, but it was important to me not to damage the metal, that would have made it worse. As it was I could barely stand up by the time I'd done it, my arms were shaking from shoulder to wrist, but a good job done I think:
Before:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/sunroof1.jpg
After:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/sunroof2.jpg
It's not been cut and polished yet, but I'm hoping to do a full clean, cut and polish, valet, wheel wash etc when I've finished everything else this week.
Next project is to get the body trim off and see what horrors are lurking under there, I know it takes on water 'cos it covers my feet everytime I open the door after a rainstorm. I have a question for you good folks though. Any clues you can give me about getting the trim off? I can't seem to find any instructions and the place where the trim is attached to the doors has a fixing I've never seen before.
From inside the door it looks like this:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5624.jpg
And from underneath:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5625.jpg
I think I can unscrew the fixings on the wheel arches, but this stuff on the doors and back seat area has me stumped.
For now though I have a window regulator repair kit which I'm going to tackle until I can figure out the trim (or you can help me :cheesy:) and there are a number of places on the door skins where there are little rust circles coming through from the other side, I'm going to grind those down, treat them and then re-paint so they don't re-occur, then try to figure out what is causing them.
I'm also planning to waxoil some of the engine bay which is getting a bit rusty, next summer (assuming we actually get one) will be engine out, sort out the engine bay, replace gear linkages and give everything a good clean up. I have an oil leak somewhere near the back of the bay which I need to track down and that will be happening fairly soon, but everything will need a good clean.
Lastly, (for this year) will be re-covering the headlining. I've already got the board out and cleaned off the old foam, I'm going to give it a spray with some adhesive to make a good surface to attach the new headlining to, but at £25 a metre I'll be buying that next month I think. Can't wait to get it all back together and I'll take lots of pictures, Horace is going to look pretty spiffing in his new get-up with his bodywork all taken care of and no wierd grindy noises when we turn left!!
I've owned Horace for nearly a year and a half now, I've been working until now just to get past all the things that had to be done (timing chain, alternator, roll bar bushes etc) and am finally able to get on with some of the things I want to get done. I've taken a week off work and am just getting to grips with how long things take and how expensive they are.
I had a few jobs that I needed to get done before winter, one of which I started today. Replacing front wheel bearings and cv joints:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5676.jpg
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5677.jpg
We only managed to get the drivers side done today, mostly because the wheel bearing was an absolute pain to get out, we don't have access to a press so a massive socket and a lump hammer were employed to very good effect.
I also discovered today that circlip pliers come in different sizes, the ones I'd bought for fitting the new wheel bearing circlips were just too small for the job ;oops: Anyway, we know now and have a pair of needle nosed pliers doing the job instead.
The weekend just past was a Bank Holiday so I took advantage of a good day to grind off all the old paint on the new-to-Horace sunroof skin, rub it all down and respray it. Getting all the old paint off took FOREVER!! A good couple of hours with a wire wheel on the angle grinder, but it was important to me not to damage the metal, that would have made it worse. As it was I could barely stand up by the time I'd done it, my arms were shaking from shoulder to wrist, but a good job done I think:
Before:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/sunroof1.jpg
After:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/sunroof2.jpg
It's not been cut and polished yet, but I'm hoping to do a full clean, cut and polish, valet, wheel wash etc when I've finished everything else this week.
Next project is to get the body trim off and see what horrors are lurking under there, I know it takes on water 'cos it covers my feet everytime I open the door after a rainstorm. I have a question for you good folks though. Any clues you can give me about getting the trim off? I can't seem to find any instructions and the place where the trim is attached to the doors has a fixing I've never seen before.
From inside the door it looks like this:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5624.jpg
And from underneath:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w165/Zahryn/Da%20Cars/DSCF5625.jpg
I think I can unscrew the fixings on the wheel arches, but this stuff on the doors and back seat area has me stumped.
For now though I have a window regulator repair kit which I'm going to tackle until I can figure out the trim (or you can help me :cheesy:) and there are a number of places on the door skins where there are little rust circles coming through from the other side, I'm going to grind those down, treat them and then re-paint so they don't re-occur, then try to figure out what is causing them.
I'm also planning to waxoil some of the engine bay which is getting a bit rusty, next summer (assuming we actually get one) will be engine out, sort out the engine bay, replace gear linkages and give everything a good clean up. I have an oil leak somewhere near the back of the bay which I need to track down and that will be happening fairly soon, but everything will need a good clean.
Lastly, (for this year) will be re-covering the headlining. I've already got the board out and cleaned off the old foam, I'm going to give it a spray with some adhesive to make a good surface to attach the new headlining to, but at £25 a metre I'll be buying that next month I think. Can't wait to get it all back together and I'll take lots of pictures, Horace is going to look pretty spiffing in his new get-up with his bodywork all taken care of and no wierd grindy noises when we turn left!!