Post by tonyhosk on Aug 7, 2023 21:59:29 GMT
Well, I may have taken leave of my senses, but I've just bought another one!
Rileyrob got me thinking when he spotted my Mk11 trim in a Mk11 car - I really hadn't appreciated the trim differences and belatedly realised that the front door cards are quite different and my restored door capping would not fit the Mk11 style. I had a look on eBay in the vague hope someone may be selling Mk111 trim and seats - no luck - but I did spot a very tatty Mk111 for sale. It is a 1964 car that did 89000 miles until 1976 when something happened with the engine, so the owner took it off the road and removed the engine. it has stood in a barn since then until a father and son bought it to restore (the father had actually worked on the car as a BMC mechanic when it was new!!). They had too many other things on the go, so decided to move it on.
initially I thought it would be a donor car as the interior trim and heading were in good condition and could be swopped to mine. I would dismantle the car and sell the bits, but when I got it home and had a good look, it is actually in better condition than my car when I bought it five years ago (ok, the wings and doors are worse, but the underneath is much much better). With a registration number of YEE 221 it doesn't deserve to die, so I've decided to restore instead. Not sure yet if I will restore like my other one, or just strip it, rebuild the body to the same standard - actually could be better as at least I now know my way round these cars - and then sell the completed body on to someone who wants to swap all their bits from their terminally rusty 1.5 to a rebuilt shell and then paint it.
The engine is totally seized! There has been diesel oil in the bores for God knows how long, but not escaping south. I've cleaned it up and removed the head - valves ok, then the sump. Took off the two big-end caps I could get at and the crank journals and shells look absolutely fine with oil all round, so no anticipated problems with the crank or main bearings. I shall keep applying Kroll deruster to the edges of the pistons for a few weeks/months to see if I can then shock the rings loose, otherwise it is a goner and I'll pick up another engine. Any other ideas??
One advantage is that this car is totally original - never been mucked about with apart from the filler and genuine chicken wire in the sills! I'm photographing everything so if anybody wants any reference photos of where bits should go, please just let me know.
I'll try to attach a few photos for your amusement in another post.
Tony
Rileyrob got me thinking when he spotted my Mk11 trim in a Mk11 car - I really hadn't appreciated the trim differences and belatedly realised that the front door cards are quite different and my restored door capping would not fit the Mk11 style. I had a look on eBay in the vague hope someone may be selling Mk111 trim and seats - no luck - but I did spot a very tatty Mk111 for sale. It is a 1964 car that did 89000 miles until 1976 when something happened with the engine, so the owner took it off the road and removed the engine. it has stood in a barn since then until a father and son bought it to restore (the father had actually worked on the car as a BMC mechanic when it was new!!). They had too many other things on the go, so decided to move it on.
initially I thought it would be a donor car as the interior trim and heading were in good condition and could be swopped to mine. I would dismantle the car and sell the bits, but when I got it home and had a good look, it is actually in better condition than my car when I bought it five years ago (ok, the wings and doors are worse, but the underneath is much much better). With a registration number of YEE 221 it doesn't deserve to die, so I've decided to restore instead. Not sure yet if I will restore like my other one, or just strip it, rebuild the body to the same standard - actually could be better as at least I now know my way round these cars - and then sell the completed body on to someone who wants to swap all their bits from their terminally rusty 1.5 to a rebuilt shell and then paint it.
The engine is totally seized! There has been diesel oil in the bores for God knows how long, but not escaping south. I've cleaned it up and removed the head - valves ok, then the sump. Took off the two big-end caps I could get at and the crank journals and shells look absolutely fine with oil all round, so no anticipated problems with the crank or main bearings. I shall keep applying Kroll deruster to the edges of the pistons for a few weeks/months to see if I can then shock the rings loose, otherwise it is a goner and I'll pick up another engine. Any other ideas??
One advantage is that this car is totally original - never been mucked about with apart from the filler and genuine chicken wire in the sills! I'm photographing everything so if anybody wants any reference photos of where bits should go, please just let me know.
I'll try to attach a few photos for your amusement in another post.
Tony