Discussion
Some bits of the Alpina experience from the driver's seat. Obviously I couldn't photograph the effortless smooth power and supple suspension aspects, so restrained myself to the bits they tarted up in Buchloe. Thank you to the original buyer for your judgement (jet black and extended champagne Nappa) and excellent options choosing.
Edited by Polynesian on Friday 16th September 19:20
Patina
Parked next to this today. Said it was a 2002tii, I don't know enough about then to be sure, but it was lovely, in a needs-every-bit-of-rubber-replaced way. On the next road down is a 635csi with 4 flat tyres and a Kew Gardens' worth of moss. A real shame. The 2002 looked daily driver great!
ETA- is there any way to correct the autorotate on thumbs nap? It doesn't like portrait layout pics.
Parked next to this today. Said it was a 2002tii, I don't know enough about then to be sure, but it was lovely, in a needs-every-bit-of-rubber-replaced way. On the next road down is a 635csi with 4 flat tyres and a Kew Gardens' worth of moss. A real shame. The 2002 looked daily driver great!
ETA- is there any way to correct the autorotate on thumbs nap? It doesn't like portrait layout pics.
Edited by Polynesian on Saturday 17th September 15:42
Edited by Polynesian on Saturday 17th September 15:43
SebringMan said:
...As for the gearbox I went with the SMG. I thought long and hard about which 'box and drove a few cars along the way and after. I initially looked at manuals from what the forums said, but I wondered about trying the SMG as well. In the end the SMG won so that was done 
. It's probably about the second 'auto' car I have owned (yup, I am aware it is an automated manual but you know what I mean). I have to say that I do like the 'box now and wonder where the hate comes from.
As for the thread, you can find it right here.
Thanks for that- I've been following your progress! I'm often tempted by thoughts of an SMG M3, no question a better car for hooning or on track. The Alpina is a lovely, relaxed old thing though, and that's good for my driving and my pulse. If I could change one thing about it, it would be to have a ZF 8 speeder. Oh, and an Alpina v8.... It's probably about the second 'auto' car I have owned (yup, I am aware it is an automated manual but you know what I mean). I have to say that I do like the 'box now and wonder where the hate comes from.As for the thread, you can find it right here.
Edited by Polynesian on Monday 19th September 00:36
This is the 635csi Kew Gardens edition. It's a (nearly) mobile moss display for them. A real shame. I'd like to become its custodian but don't have another entire financial existence to sacrifice on it:
The most forlorn split rim I know:
Not a good day for moss photography. When the monsoon comes I'll take some pics. Painful to see!
The most forlorn split rim I know:
Not a good day for moss photography. When the monsoon comes I'll take some pics. Painful to see!
aka_kerrly said:
I do like Alpina models but love manuals which restricts Alpina ownership somewhat. How do you find the switchtronic gearbox?
Quite a shame to see the 6 series abandoned like that.
Switchtronic- a very good auto box, not a replacement for a manual. You have control of it and it's very well programmed by Alpina, but it doesn't have any of the experience of a manual, of course. For me, at the moment and in London, that's fine. It's the same box and system called tiptronic by Porsche in the 964. Quite a shame to see the 6 series abandoned like that.
If you are talking about modern Alpinas, with the 8 speed ZF, I doubt it can be bettered. You could always take along a manual gear stick to pretend, because the car is likely to be doing a much better job of it. I know that's usually the challenge made about good autos- the car is doing the work. I'd happily have a caterham for manual exercise and live with/ reap the benefits of the switchtronic in an Alpina.
Another amazing update. Alpina V8 supercharged 4.4 being fitted. No, really, just a newer battery tray to replace the rusted mess that was in there. I'm cleaning up the replacement one now and will paint it before it's bolted in.
It looked awful, but all of the 10mm fasteners managed to undo and the bodyshell underneath is completely fine, just needs a clean.
Untitled
Untitled
It looked awful, but all of the 10mm fasteners managed to undo and the bodyshell underneath is completely fine, just needs a clean.
UntitledUntitledAnd the Alpina lives again! Just got the battery connected up again after brushing out the rust/dust from the battery well. There was a little bit of surface corrosion in one corner where the acid had had its most knackering effect in the battery bracket fastener. It's all been cleaned up and sprayed liberally with syntax s50 (it's a void or cavity more or less once the tray is fitted above the battery, the clean and freshly painted bracket fitted and the recharged battery put back. All that for a flat battery! At least I know one more job has been attended to. Wing, bootlid and bumper next. I'm sure the bumper would have rusted if it had any metal content, but in fact it's just a bit cracked and I've sourced another jet black one. The bootlid and wing are, of course, rusty. Not for long!
Thanks to a brilliant guy called Nick Jupp, who specialises in S/h E46 parts, Alpina now has a completely rust free backside, and a new bumper. And some other bits.
Nick has forgotten more about E46s than any BMW dealership ever knew... and had a jet black bootlid and bumper for me. I'm sure someone somewhere is upset that a precious pre lci alpina has a facelift bootlid and a m sport bumper. I am interested that they are BMW parts, rust free and the right paint code. If there was a jet black non m sport one available I'd have been delighted. If I eventually get round to a full derusting and respray it will all be perfect fly exactly the same from the same paint gun at the same time. For now it's great, I quite like the facelift boot handle, and the bumper is a smoother design even if no alpina b3 ever wore an m sport bumper from the factory.
I also came away with the correct warning triangle in the case, a new boot seal, a new bootfloor carpet and that Nick will keep an eye out for good condition coupe door seals.
Just need to clean up the 320cd badge marks (was tempted to keep it) and refit the Alpina badges- something like £300 new...
Some of you might hate this work, or find it understandably boring, but this old not particularly fast car has got under my skin, so there will be plenty more. Nick had his Phoenix yellow M3 there and was saying he should have bought an alpina. I guess they do that to you, until you're on the Nurburgring. Then again, my car's been around there too.
No connection to Nick except as a very happy customer, he lists of eBay and Facebook under German Car Spares Kent. Onto the rusty front wing and an oil change next. Living the E46 dream!
Nick has forgotten more about E46s than any BMW dealership ever knew... and had a jet black bootlid and bumper for me. I'm sure someone somewhere is upset that a precious pre lci alpina has a facelift bootlid and a m sport bumper. I am interested that they are BMW parts, rust free and the right paint code. If there was a jet black non m sport one available I'd have been delighted. If I eventually get round to a full derusting and respray it will all be perfect fly exactly the same from the same paint gun at the same time. For now it's great, I quite like the facelift boot handle, and the bumper is a smoother design even if no alpina b3 ever wore an m sport bumper from the factory.
I also came away with the correct warning triangle in the case, a new boot seal, a new bootfloor carpet and that Nick will keep an eye out for good condition coupe door seals.
Just need to clean up the 320cd badge marks (was tempted to keep it) and refit the Alpina badges- something like £300 new...
Some of you might hate this work, or find it understandably boring, but this old not particularly fast car has got under my skin, so there will be plenty more. Nick had his Phoenix yellow M3 there and was saying he should have bought an alpina. I guess they do that to you, until you're on the Nurburgring. Then again, my car's been around there too.
No connection to Nick except as a very happy customer, he lists of eBay and Facebook under German Car Spares Kent. Onto the rusty front wing and an oil change next. Living the E46 dream!
Thanks for the comments and encouragement!
While we do only about 3000 miles a year in the Alpina, it does quite a few short journeys. So it was time for the annual oil change today, BMW filter and Castrol 0W 30. After changing the brakes with me 18 months ago or so, my 7 year old wanted to help out and did much of the job himself with a bit of guidance and basic spannering (oil filter lid) from me. I was really impressed! He siphoned out the old oil, replaced the filter and rubber seal. I poured in the new oil, preferring an Alpina engine full of expensive Castrol rather than an expensively shiny street and minor environmental disaster.
Still, it's done and one more task he can feel growing confidence in. Must just remember to reset the oil service counter now.
While we do only about 3000 miles a year in the Alpina, it does quite a few short journeys. So it was time for the annual oil change today, BMW filter and Castrol 0W 30. After changing the brakes with me 18 months ago or so, my 7 year old wanted to help out and did much of the job himself with a bit of guidance and basic spannering (oil filter lid) from me. I was really impressed! He siphoned out the old oil, replaced the filter and rubber seal. I poured in the new oil, preferring an Alpina engine full of expensive Castrol rather than an expensively shiny street and minor environmental disaster.
Still, it's done and one more task he can feel growing confidence in. Must just remember to reset the oil service counter now.
helix402 said:
Good work. Always looks odd seeing an M52 (non tu) in an E46. I think you can probably bin the auxiliary air pump with no engine management light coming on. It's pointless anyway. All you need is a blanking plate for the manifold take off point. I binned mine when I had an M52tu, as did BMW when the M54 was introduced.
Thanks for that, yeah, no disa valve, a heavy old iron block, and I have had a blanking plate for ages but not got around to it. Was also worried that it would throw a light on the dash. I might have to try it out. And yes, it is a great usable car. If it was a B3S Touring, even more so, but I'm trying to appreciate what I've got and not covet everyone else's Alpina these days!
It's been a while and loads has happened with the old Alp, including upgraded Gladen speakers, a new Alpina steering wheel, an oil service, new windscreen cowl, silentcoat soundproofing, all sorts. But I'm more excited to share a trip I just completed:
Had a pleasurable drive back from Strasbourg today. After this morning's customs bust on the Alp- 7 douane agents looking for smuggled M&Ms I suppose (I work for Mars)- we had a good day at work, and then I hopped in for the 500 mile drive home.
It's true that the French autoroute network is still a treat, especially for those of us living in the south east where empty roads and 0.9 leptons aren't the stuff of everyday.
After the douane agent asking about the car this morning I experienced further interest in it along the way, of two kinds. The first kind, which came uniquely from 320d and 116d driver's was the "I am faster than you" attention, showcasing the worst of French driving and the desperate plight of people trapped in Diesel s
tboxes, across all borders.
The other kind of attention came from larger engines BMWs including a couple of tuned E46's. This attention was really nice- appreciation and a flash of the lights and a wave, reminding us that mental wellbeing is improved by a large capacity petrol engine. Everything about the car was pleasing. Well, except if my seat went 2 inches lower it would be just about perfect.
We had some incredibly heavy downpours, the ones where you actually think you should pack it in, roll up the autoroute and sit in a field to wait it out. Mad levels of water sat on the road. But nothing the michelins couldn't handle :-)
And then appearing beyond some blonde wheat fields under a black sky that still managed to have bright sunshine beaming through- then the garages of Reims circuit appeared. I've never paid pilgrimage to them before, and I felt lucky to have stunning weather and the place to myself. It genuinely does feel like the ghosts of competitors and spectators, kids with their dads and rich gentleman racers, are there still. It's a must visit site for any petrolhead.
Before I knew it, my rusty 17 year old 158,000 mile car had managed 420 miles in 5hours 15 minutes of driving time. Relaxed, comfortable, sure footed, meaty noise from the peage toll, quiet underway. It was a memorable bonding experience for me and Alp.
[url
|https://thumbsnap.com/bQRufoy9[/url]
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|https://thumbsnap.com/1HCFhJvB[/url]
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|https://thumbsnap.com/nB32pb5N[/url]
Had a pleasurable drive back from Strasbourg today. After this morning's customs bust on the Alp- 7 douane agents looking for smuggled M&Ms I suppose (I work for Mars)- we had a good day at work, and then I hopped in for the 500 mile drive home.
It's true that the French autoroute network is still a treat, especially for those of us living in the south east where empty roads and 0.9 leptons aren't the stuff of everyday.
After the douane agent asking about the car this morning I experienced further interest in it along the way, of two kinds. The first kind, which came uniquely from 320d and 116d driver's was the "I am faster than you" attention, showcasing the worst of French driving and the desperate plight of people trapped in Diesel s
tboxes, across all borders. The other kind of attention came from larger engines BMWs including a couple of tuned E46's. This attention was really nice- appreciation and a flash of the lights and a wave, reminding us that mental wellbeing is improved by a large capacity petrol engine. Everything about the car was pleasing. Well, except if my seat went 2 inches lower it would be just about perfect.
We had some incredibly heavy downpours, the ones where you actually think you should pack it in, roll up the autoroute and sit in a field to wait it out. Mad levels of water sat on the road. But nothing the michelins couldn't handle :-)
And then appearing beyond some blonde wheat fields under a black sky that still managed to have bright sunshine beaming through- then the garages of Reims circuit appeared. I've never paid pilgrimage to them before, and I felt lucky to have stunning weather and the place to myself. It genuinely does feel like the ghosts of competitors and spectators, kids with their dads and rich gentleman racers, are there still. It's a must visit site for any petrolhead.
Before I knew it, my rusty 17 year old 158,000 mile car had managed 420 miles in 5hours 15 minutes of driving time. Relaxed, comfortable, sure footed, meaty noise from the peage toll, quiet underway. It was a memorable bonding experience for me and Alp.
[url
|https://thumbsnap.com/bQRufoy9[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/1HCFhJvB[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/nB32pb5N[/url]Thanks for the comments, sounds like graphics on one side and not on the other then!
Plenty to update but tonight is really just about sharing my shame with fellow pistonheaders.
You may have noticed that the car was wearing an E46 sport rear spoiler, as the boot lid was changed in January for a non rusty example. And in a moment of gross idiocy I snapped the precious original spoiler in the cold, trying to remove it from the old lid. Two almost perfect halves, right in the middle. Probably my first experience with beta-link, the BMW adhesive (though it seems alpina is it alongside double sided tape.)
Anyhow, today, having applied some of my old badges- the "B3 3.3" bit- I decided I'd put the (now two part) Alpina spoiler on. The sport one came off easily with nylon fishing line, and being a doting custodian I'd purchased the full beta-link kit. After all, it deserves it, and I figured I'd need something strong to make the two parts appear as seamless as possible.
So, prepped the lid with the beta-link primer, had even read the instructions- this stuff gives you cancer just by ordering it according to the warnings- had marked out the exact position with expensive new low rack masking tape... and we, the two halves didn't match up well. Oh, and the beta-link turns out to need a rather expensive applicator gun, £150 or so. This could only happen to me. And only happens when the sun is beating down on me. On one of those "10 minute" jobs...
Well I couldn't get the beta-link coaxed out of its tubes, so I stuck it on with 3m double sided tape, it's securely on, but looks shocking, a half mm gap between the halves and a jaunty difference in their meeting angle that looks completely embarrassing.
So, as anyone else would have done first anyway, I've ordered some epoxy to glue the two halves together, before glueing to the bootlid. The spoiler seems to be glassfibre (and is the original alpina marked part) and so I think I have a chance of repairing it. It will definitely need filling, sanding, painting though, and you sort of start thinking about ordering a new one from the factory. What a tit.
Plenty to update but tonight is really just about sharing my shame with fellow pistonheaders.
You may have noticed that the car was wearing an E46 sport rear spoiler, as the boot lid was changed in January for a non rusty example. And in a moment of gross idiocy I snapped the precious original spoiler in the cold, trying to remove it from the old lid. Two almost perfect halves, right in the middle. Probably my first experience with beta-link, the BMW adhesive (though it seems alpina is it alongside double sided tape.)
Anyhow, today, having applied some of my old badges- the "B3 3.3" bit- I decided I'd put the (now two part) Alpina spoiler on. The sport one came off easily with nylon fishing line, and being a doting custodian I'd purchased the full beta-link kit. After all, it deserves it, and I figured I'd need something strong to make the two parts appear as seamless as possible.
So, prepped the lid with the beta-link primer, had even read the instructions- this stuff gives you cancer just by ordering it according to the warnings- had marked out the exact position with expensive new low rack masking tape... and we, the two halves didn't match up well. Oh, and the beta-link turns out to need a rather expensive applicator gun, £150 or so. This could only happen to me. And only happens when the sun is beating down on me. On one of those "10 minute" jobs...
Well I couldn't get the beta-link coaxed out of its tubes, so I stuck it on with 3m double sided tape, it's securely on, but looks shocking, a half mm gap between the halves and a jaunty difference in their meeting angle that looks completely embarrassing.
So, as anyone else would have done first anyway, I've ordered some epoxy to glue the two halves together, before glueing to the bootlid. The spoiler seems to be glassfibre (and is the original alpina marked part) and so I think I have a chance of repairing it. It will definitely need filling, sanding, painting though, and you sort of start thinking about ordering a new one from the factory. What a tit.
I've just dropped a very good condition, freshly powder coated front subframe in for AKG reinforcement plates to be welded before a bit of Alpina branded powder coating takes place...
Good to see my welder drives an avantime- clearly a man who understands quirkiness and difficult to source/ expensive parts. I doubt the Renault needs as much metalwork as the Alp though.
This is part of a front underbelly refresh- new purple tag rack, AR bar, droplinks, steering swivel joint, engine mounts and fancy subframe. Possibly some other bits too. Most of the other bits are recent now anyway.
Good to see my welder drives an avantime- clearly a man who understands quirkiness and difficult to source/ expensive parts. I doubt the Renault needs as much metalwork as the Alp though.
This is part of a front underbelly refresh- new purple tag rack, AR bar, droplinks, steering swivel joint, engine mounts and fancy subframe. Possibly some other bits too. Most of the other bits are recent now anyway.
The subframe is still being welded, front H&R 27mm antiroll bar is on its way from the fatherland. It's blue of course. And parts of an inadvertent and unnecessary upgrade are on their way. Already in: creation motorsport brackets and green Hel hoses for a Porsche Brembo brake transformation.
Of course, as fitting as a Samoan boob in a Gaugin painting, there's a peep of Bilt Hamber in this E46 boot contents image.
The Brembos will be off for a rebuild, blue paint and Alpina decalisation, and as I'm on holiday much of August they're not going to be on until well into September now. But NEW THINGS.
Nice that Hel don't copy Goodridge's little yellow tag on their braided lines. Oh.
Hoping to get to ETA before holidays for the planned underbelly refresh, though there's no chance of the brakes being ready then. And a question, anyone have a good recommendation for Boxster S/ 996 brake pads?
Of course, as fitting as a Samoan boob in a Gaugin painting, there's a peep of Bilt Hamber in this E46 boot contents image.
The Brembos will be off for a rebuild, blue paint and Alpina decalisation, and as I'm on holiday much of August they're not going to be on until well into September now. But NEW THINGS.
Nice that Hel don't copy Goodridge's little yellow tag on their braided lines. Oh.
Hoping to get to ETA before holidays for the planned underbelly refresh, though there's no chance of the brakes being ready then. And a question, anyone have a good recommendation for Boxster S/ 996 brake pads?
Edited by Polynesian on Tuesday 18th July 15:38
helix402 said:
I think you'll like the 27mm arb, are you running a 21 on the rear?
Intriguingly, the E46 B3S catalogue lists a 20mm rear bar, but no front. the 20mm is from the E46 cabriolet. The 3.3 catalogue lists no antiroll bars, so i'm guessing I have the 19mm early "sport" rear bar. All of my research into E46 suspension suggests that the 46 benefits from a stiffer front bar but is not necessary at the back. Normally you'd expect this (stiff front bar, wobbly rear) to generate great wodges of understeer, but with E46s it seems that it helps get the best out of the front set up without unwanted ploughing-on-ness.
I've had the Koni FSD dampers on for around 7000 miles now, and they are really excellent. Improved comfort, at least over knackered old Alpina standard units, and much better in the corners. I haven't seen any misting or leaks yet, but I believe that's the thing to watch out for with FSDs. I'd recommend them wholeheartedly.
turboflutter said:
Well this was a very nice morning read, a good start to an early shift! Excellent restoration. I had an E46 coupe previously and it's amazing to see all the small subtle changes on the Alpinas and how they all add up to a huge difference overall.
Thank you! Glad if someone finds it interesting. I love all the little Alpina touches, perhaps except for the pipes and rubber gaskets and the like that are also bespoke, painful to purchase!As penance for my earlier idiocy in cracking the rear spoiler in two (only about £450 from Alpina), I have successfully glued it, using a two pack unibond repair epoxy which worked well on the polyurethane, and now I'm sanding it ready for primer and paint and refitting. Doing it the proper way.
Ok, I've just totted up the spend on my "cost conscious" big brake upgrade. It better be good because it isn't very cost conscious-
ECS 345mm 2 piece discs £385
Akebono pads £80
Brembo calipers £435
Refurb, paint, decals £275
Hel braided hoses £39
Creation motorsport brackets £127
Only remaining aspect to buy is:
Brake fluid £400 probably
I don't even want to do the addition on that. But it does get an as new front brake setup which will be Alpina branded (like the brembos on the B10s) and a sort of real world ideal brake setup for me. Of course I'll feel obliged to do something with the rears next.
The calipers are on their way to the refurb guy- they get stripped, cleaned, new seals, bleed screws, pistons if needed, paint and decals. Then I just have to wait until my US trip to pick up the pads and discs- sorry, rotors.
ECS 345mm 2 piece discs £385
Akebono pads £80
Brembo calipers £435
Refurb, paint, decals £275
Hel braided hoses £39
Creation motorsport brackets £127
Only remaining aspect to buy is:
Brake fluid £400 probably
I don't even want to do the addition on that. But it does get an as new front brake setup which will be Alpina branded (like the brembos on the B10s) and a sort of real world ideal brake setup for me. Of course I'll feel obliged to do something with the rears next.
The calipers are on their way to the refurb guy- they get stripped, cleaned, new seals, bleed screws, pistons if needed, paint and decals. Then I just have to wait until my US trip to pick up the pads and discs- sorry, rotors.
helix402 said:
That's not a cheap brake upgrade! Is it for improved performance or appearance or both?
I guess you could leave the refurb, use standard 345mm discs and save a substantial amount that way. But once I got started, I figured I'd do it as if it were an Alpina specified kit, with, er, fancy 2 piece discs. The reality is that anyone who thinks they needs kit like this for road driving probably needs to think about how they are driving, yes it's nice to know they are incredible anchors in an emergency, but let's be honest, if the car isn't driven more than 50% of the time on track it's probably completely excessive. So appearance certainly factored into it for me. You can dress it up any which way, but no amount of rationalising will explain away an absurd upgrade like this as being all about function and performance.
However, it does make a Nurburgring trip seem more necessary. The car was there before my ownership with knackered dampers and standard (shock!) brakes, so i'll be keen to drive it on fresh FSDs and with the new antiroll bar and brakes. I've upgraded myself into needing to go to the Nurburgring. I'm sure it's supposed to be the other way around.
No alpina should have rusty wings. While BMW fitted rust-ready parts to much of the E46, Herr Bovensiepen says "nein" to rust. It's not part of the brand identity. And I agree. So I removed the embarrassingly rusty passenger wing and replaced it with a new one. I found some rather surprising matter as I worked, enough soil and muck behind the arch liner to noticeably increase the car's weight- no really, have a look below! And, of course, I found some more rust.
IMG_6112
Muck by the windscreen cowl at the rearmost top wing bolt
IMG_6114
Clearly these brakes are in desperate need of replacement with something bigger. Look at the lack of pad and the huge lip on the discs. Definitely need replacement
IMG_6117
FSD's still healthy. No misting, which is good news. The ride and ability to stiffen immediately into corners with these dampers is fantastic, and very Alpina
IMG_6118
Unlike the guides and the ECS fittings replacement kit, the Alp came with plastic screws to hold the arch at the rear. I replaced with the little BMW pins, the plastic screws did not survive removal
IMG_6123
Naturally, one wing bolt rounded off. They are Torx 30 and soft, but also hard when you try drilling them. The dremel did the job and cut a groove I could use the leatherman in to loosen this final bolt.
IMG_6129
Looking down into the crevasse between wing and inner body. At this point I thought this amount of muck was shocking.
IMG_6132
Inside of the old wing. Knackered.
IMG_6137
You could really grow crops in here
IMG_6128
This was after I had removed a large clod of earth
IMG_6139
It might not look it, but there is easily 400g of muck and soil here from behind the arch liner. Was this car used as a tractor?
IMG_6141
Rust below the rear fitting of the front wing. I dremelled it all off and applied lashings of bilt hamber hydrate 80.
IMG_6153
IMG_6144
A tiny smidge of rust in the sill. There were 4 of these patches, each around one of the side skirt attachment points.
IMG_6155
All new fittings to put the arch liners back
IMG_6157
IMG_6156
Freshened up the side repeaters while I was on the case
IMG_6113
IMG_6112Muck by the windscreen cowl at the rearmost top wing bolt
IMG_6114Clearly these brakes are in desperate need of replacement with something bigger. Look at the lack of pad and the huge lip on the discs. Definitely need replacement
IMG_6117FSD's still healthy. No misting, which is good news. The ride and ability to stiffen immediately into corners with these dampers is fantastic, and very Alpina
IMG_6118Unlike the guides and the ECS fittings replacement kit, the Alp came with plastic screws to hold the arch at the rear. I replaced with the little BMW pins, the plastic screws did not survive removal
IMG_6123Naturally, one wing bolt rounded off. They are Torx 30 and soft, but also hard when you try drilling them. The dremel did the job and cut a groove I could use the leatherman in to loosen this final bolt.
IMG_6129Looking down into the crevasse between wing and inner body. At this point I thought this amount of muck was shocking.
IMG_6132Inside of the old wing. Knackered.
IMG_6137You could really grow crops in here
IMG_6128This was after I had removed a large clod of earth
IMG_6139It might not look it, but there is easily 400g of muck and soil here from behind the arch liner. Was this car used as a tractor?
IMG_6141Rust below the rear fitting of the front wing. I dremelled it all off and applied lashings of bilt hamber hydrate 80.
IMG_6153IMG_6144A tiny smidge of rust in the sill. There were 4 of these patches, each around one of the side skirt attachment points.
IMG_6155All new fittings to put the arch liners back
IMG_6157IMG_6156Freshened up the side repeaters while I was on the case
IMG_6113Edited by Polynesian on Wednesday 26th July 11:51
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