Is 2014 the year for that dream car purchase? Time to take the plunge on something fast, possibly fragile and definitely fun? Fortunately for two PHers, 2013 was that year thanks to the PistonHeads and Adrian Flux Classifieds competition that gave away £15,000 to spend in the PH classifieds on any car they wished.
Our winners were Matt Purdon and John Crook. Matt spent his £5K on a Ford Capri, continuing a love affair that began as a child with his Dad's Mk3 X-Pack. You can read his earlier updates from
May
June
November
to get up to date with his Capri story so far.
John took a little longer to source his perfect Integrale so we've just the one update from him so far. It's a stunning Lancia though, so well worth reading. We will hopefully have more from him soon with his plans for 2014.
Thanks again to Adrian Flux for sponsoring the competition.
Matt writes: This month's update is brought to you by the word 'Serendipity'.
Infotainment, 1980s style
Over the past few years I've built up a very broad network of friends, largely due to a shared affection of ridiculous old cars. I saw some parts advertised that were more than relevant to my interests, and it just so happened they were in the next village along from an old friend who I never see enough of.
Instead of doing the sensible thing and asking him to pick them up for me, I decided I'd drive up and collect them myself.
A plan was hatched for the Saturday before Christmas. Southend to South Mimms to drop off some Land Rover hood sticks to pay for my fuel, drive to Ramsey, collect new parts, see Toby, Annabel and young George, drive home Sunday via Saffron Walden in time to catch my relatives who were visiting. That was the plan, anyway - I loaded up the surprisingly spacious Capri and got on the road early, just in time for it all to go out the window.
Burning the midnight oil...
The brakes on this car have always been poor, but I learnt to live with them as I and many others were always a little unsure about what was up, figuring it was just standard old Ford, never famed for stopping well. Surely it couldn't be too serious, it'd just passed the MoT...
Arriving at South Mimms in the pouring rain, it was clear something was properly wrong this time. It stopped in a fashion, but plainly didn't have a lot left to give.
I had a few options. One: turn around and drive home. Two: call the RAC and wait for hours, or three: make it to Toby's fully kitted-out workshop in Cambridgeshire, which was about the same distance as option one. I checked everything over and found no apparent leaks or anything out of the ordinary. I had faith in Tony and did what any 20-year-old would do.
Forester support vehicle came in handy!
After an hour and a half or so of 60mph and masses of space ahead, slowing down on the gears, I made it to Toby's. Kettle on, spanners ready.
Turns out the master cylinder had lost the will to live. For anyone thinking of having their MC fail while half way up the country on a tight schedule, don't do it late on a Saturday - finding a replacement is impossible.
We called everywhere local and tried in vain to resurrect the original, but it was just too far gone. Looking it over, it was safe to assume I'd actually been running the car with almost no rear brakes since it came to me in April, as the rear piston was sucking in nothing but air. It'd only truly shown itself now that the front seal had started to break up.
Luckily, I'd been doing a lot of research into the brakes recently so had a vague idea of an upgrade we could carry out, both being Land Rover-minded. According to many people on the Internet, an early 110 master cylinder fits a Capri servo perfectly and even increases braking performance. All it needs is a couple of fittings and a T-piece to fit.
A call to Domino's signaled the end of play, but several more calls and posts across Facebook and various forums saw us with a free master cylinder. Perfect! Except it was in Norfolk.
Up early, the freshly cleaned Forester was fired up and we headed out on a three-hour round-trip, via Wilco's in Wisbech on the return leg (who very kindly stayed open for us, cheers guys!). We got back just in time to get a call saying there was another one in Chatteris, five miles from where we started. Great.
Nevertheless, more tea was made, pipes were bent and flared, fittings were fitted, seals were cut down and finally the brakes were bled up. After a brief fire-scare when some fluid burnt off the manifold and a rather Professionals-inspired entrance back into the close, it was time to load up my haul and get back to Essex in time to demolish a Chinese with my family, chased all the way by some of the most sinister looking clouds I've ever seen. Being able to confidently stop at junctions for the first time since buying the car was absolutely fantastic.
A cameo for Bernard the Land Rover
The latest additions to the parts store are some Capri Sport Essex to Rover V8 mounts, a hydraulic pedal box, LT77/R380 gearbox mount and a custom prop to suit. Removed from another '79 3.0 S, apparently it requires little modification to fit, especially if I stick to a Ford 'box - perfect for keeping whatever I do reversible.
Being my typically indecisive self, there's still a mental battle between a Cosworth 24V, RV8, Ford 302, or even a rebuilt and tuned Essex if I become a billionaire. Never anything wrong with keeping your options open.
One thing that is certain, however, is that the Essex is now begging for time out after returning a new personal worst of 18mpg over 200 miles. In spite of that, I still can't help but shake the smile it gives me.