My nightmare... errr restoration thread.

[Brap_Brap]

• shrug* I have no idea why he did it in 3rd. Middle of the gear range perhaps?

According to this, http://www.wallaceracing.com/braking-hp.php and TVR's 270bhp claim, I'd be losing 28.35hp right off the top due to being 3500 feet above sea level. That's the same as starting with a 241bhp baseline and then having to factor in the same drivetrain loss.

From what the garage told me, the often touted "15%" loss is a little light, and in reality it's typically closer to 25% from cars they've both bench and chassis dyno'd. If this is true, what I ended up with isn't far off the mark.

Don't forget that with less air I also have to add less fuel.

Edited by Brap_Brap on Friday 21st September 02:50

On another note, I brought the car home from the garage and will be using this weekend to tidy up the "to do" list.
It's parked along some nice company imho. I'm not a huge American car fan, but I do like this '69.

Edited by Brap_Brap on Friday 21st September 02:57

[Brap_Brap]

adam quantrill said:

But at that altitude/loss of air it's screaming out for a supercharger!!! Next project perhaps...

Or a 50 shot of laughing gas...

For the few and far between times I need extra power I don`t think a 50 shot of NOS would put too much strain on the internals.

[Brap_Brap]

Ripped the boot carpet out this weekend. It stunk to high hell with mould and mildew.

When I started back working on the car this past spring there was a lot of stagnant water
in the spare tyre recess that made the carpet underlay putrid.

Also, a mouse or mice had been living in the boot stting all over the place and shredding things
to build a digusting debris and hairball nest.

I ripped out everything, got as much underlay out as I could. It's glued down pretty good.
After that I scubbed it out with pinesol, water and a hard bristle brush and it still stunk
pretty good. So this morning I bought some mould and mildew killer and applied it liberally.
After it dried I used up two cans Gravel Guard, a rubberized paint that dries like a membrane.

It smells a helluva lot better now.

Edited by Brap_Brap on Sunday 23 September 22:08

Edited by Brap_Brap on Sunday 23 September 22:13

[Brap_Brap]

I just inherited a decent amount of money and have decided not to worry too much about driving my car this autumn.
Instead I'm going to rent a heated garage over the winter and refurb all the leather, wood, veneers, carpets, hood and also get it resprayed. I'm not a guy who can do all of this myself, but I do plan on doing what I can to save money. I used to lay carpet and linoleum as a young man so I can do the carpets myself. I figure I can handle the body sanding prep work and just
let an autobody shop finish the rest. I can also remove and replace the leather bits to save money.

I would also like to get a full front/rear bushing kit and redo all the bushings. If new lower wishbones are available
I would also like to replace those as mine look pitted from rust. I would have them ceramic coated like my headers for a nice
look. New dampers front and back are also in the plan. I also wish to get a nice classy looking set of white faced gauges.

I'm also thinking about getting an Aluminium flywheel as well as custom made Aluminium half-shafts and the driveshaft.
Lighter rims and lower profile rubber is also something I'm considering.

I can't wait to see it in all its glory when it's done.

[Brap_Brap]

Campbell said:

Im not sure what you will gain with an alloy fly wheel except more chances to stall the engine when you try to get going ,

I've already put two alloy flywheels in other cars, both low torque mazda rx-7's, and it makes a HUGE difference in the first 3 gears. I admit I do have to slip the clutch a tad more to get rolling, but once your foot gets used to a light touch it's no big deal. What I do find annoying is driving at a crawl as it gets very jerky with gear lash. Are the pros worth the cons? Absolutely! Given the fact my rover v8 makes far more torque than my mazda 13b engine, I don't think stalling it is very likely.

One single kilogram removed from the flywheel in first gear has the same effect of removing FOURTY kilograms off of the chassis.

(edit)

Campbell said:

as for the drive shafts and prop shaft made in alloy that would be interesting, some one with more experience that me im sure will say the good points and bad points of the drive shafts made of alloy as since they are also the upper wishbone too,

Remove the half-shafts and the wheels will fold in right? That's the hinge point. Tensile strength is not a factor and using aircraft grade Al tubing I'm not worried about compression either. Also, the half-shafts take less than half (parasitic losses in diff) the stress of the main shaft. The only remaining force to worry about is twisting, and good custom reliable Al shafts are made in the thousands...
(/edit)

Edited by Brap_Brap on Saturday 29th September 00:09

Edited by Brap_Brap on Saturday 29th September 00:10

[Brap_Brap]

A few years have passed and besides moth, rust, mildew and time, nothing has happened to my wedge since the EFI/Carb swap. Last weekend I pumped the tires up, turned the key and ripped up and down a dirt road for maybe three miles total. That was all it took to get bitten by the bug and get inspiration again to get it done.

Part of my quick burn.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BAKbXKuDZH4


At any rate, fun as that was I have work to do.

At a minimum to pass my insurance saftey (mot) it needs a 4 wheel alignment. New spax/koni shocks. A new speedo (have already). Also new bushes all around. There's also an electrical quirk or two.

Not too much if you ask me. Not easy either, but I think I can get it done this summer.

Updates to come.

Edited by Brap_Brap on Sunday 24th May 00:06

Edited by Brap_Brap on Sunday 24th May 00:08