122s at black and white garage bounemouth
Discussion
Has anyone viewed this old thing.
It looks nice.
It's a four hour drive for me to view it. Has anyone one seen it. Is it OK?.
I've owned quite a few classics. The ones I've bought privately have generally been good but the ones I've bought from dealers ( just two) have had lots of probs.
Geoff
It looks nice.
It's a four hour drive for me to view it. Has anyone one seen it. Is it OK?.
I've owned quite a few classics. The ones I've bought privately have generally been good but the ones I've bought from dealers ( just two) have had lots of probs.
Geoff
At the risk of boring you, here are my thoughts:
Looks nice and clean on the photos. Certainly worth a look. Price is probably about right in the current market but a closer inspection will tell you all you need to know. Encouraging to see decent tyres on it.
Worth asking what size the engine is. If 1966 then it would be a 1.8, but if it is on a 'B' plate then it may have the 1.6. Later ones (post 1968 I believe) had the 2 litre but you do find a few earlier cars where the engine has been swapped out for the bigger one. Twin carbs look like they've been refurbished, but from the photo it looks like the pan filters are different sizes. Odd if they are, as is the covering on the wings around the engine bay. Looks like fibreglass or something, but no idea why that would be. Also note that there's no alternator visible (therefore runs on a dynamo) and I don't see a brake servo either. Both worthwhile modifications, and the latter one saves the seat upholstery when faced with the need to stop at anything other than walking pace, which is nice.
Bodywork looks OK, but check rear wheel arches for repairs (no problem if done well but difficult to rectify if bodged) and the top of the front wings just behind the headlights for bubbling. Wings are eye-wateringly expensive at around £700 for a reproduction replacement, but at least they bolt on and off easily. If they're not too far gone then you can get them refurbished properly for less than £200 including painting. Also check the bottoms of the doors. They rust nicely too. Oh, and look under the carpets in the front footwell. The screens tend to leak so water often pools under there and rots the floor. Everything else is usually pretty solid on these.
It looks like it's been restored so ask about suspension. Poly bushes give you a much better control and are much better than the original rubber, but time consuming (and not inexpensive) to change them all. Springs are inexpensive and easy to change, as are shocks.
Ask about the gearbox. 4 speed is standard, but there was an overdrive option. It only worked on 4th gear but makes motorways a much nicer place to be. An expensive thing to add later if you want one.
Finally, most parts are easy to come by and don't cost daft money...apart from front wings, so if it's tidy then it could easily be a daily driver.
Happy hunting!
Looks nice and clean on the photos. Certainly worth a look. Price is probably about right in the current market but a closer inspection will tell you all you need to know. Encouraging to see decent tyres on it.
Worth asking what size the engine is. If 1966 then it would be a 1.8, but if it is on a 'B' plate then it may have the 1.6. Later ones (post 1968 I believe) had the 2 litre but you do find a few earlier cars where the engine has been swapped out for the bigger one. Twin carbs look like they've been refurbished, but from the photo it looks like the pan filters are different sizes. Odd if they are, as is the covering on the wings around the engine bay. Looks like fibreglass or something, but no idea why that would be. Also note that there's no alternator visible (therefore runs on a dynamo) and I don't see a brake servo either. Both worthwhile modifications, and the latter one saves the seat upholstery when faced with the need to stop at anything other than walking pace, which is nice.
Bodywork looks OK, but check rear wheel arches for repairs (no problem if done well but difficult to rectify if bodged) and the top of the front wings just behind the headlights for bubbling. Wings are eye-wateringly expensive at around £700 for a reproduction replacement, but at least they bolt on and off easily. If they're not too far gone then you can get them refurbished properly for less than £200 including painting. Also check the bottoms of the doors. They rust nicely too. Oh, and look under the carpets in the front footwell. The screens tend to leak so water often pools under there and rots the floor. Everything else is usually pretty solid on these.
It looks like it's been restored so ask about suspension. Poly bushes give you a much better control and are much better than the original rubber, but time consuming (and not inexpensive) to change them all. Springs are inexpensive and easy to change, as are shocks.
Ask about the gearbox. 4 speed is standard, but there was an overdrive option. It only worked on 4th gear but makes motorways a much nicer place to be. An expensive thing to add later if you want one.
Finally, most parts are easy to come by and don't cost daft money...apart from front wings, so if it's tidy then it could easily be a daily driver.
Happy hunting!
I've had a few 120s, the last one was a two-door 122S.
The glass pop-up sunroof would make it a non-starter for me at the price, although I suppose a Webasto could be installed which would look a lot more in-keeping.
The four-door cars have galvanised sills all the way along - unlike the two-doors, which are galvanised until the back edge of the doors, the remaining bit ahead of the rear wheels isn't - so they should be sound, but the outriggers behind them need a close looking at. Same for the front inner wings, spare wheel well, and the boot floor around the tank. By now they'll probably have been repaired, but from the small photos it's hard to be sure how well they've been done (or if they're original).
The material on the inner wings is odd - sound deadening, or fibreglass matting?
Before driving off in one, it pays to double-check the fibre coupling/joint in the steering column, visible with the bonnet open. They deteriorate over time and you'd not want one coming apart while driving along. They're cheap and easy to replace though.
There aren't any interior photos, but they're pretty hard-wearing - it should have rubber mats, not carpets btw. Check the dash top for cracks, and that all the windows wind up and down, as the chains inside the doors can snap. The earlier cars had less comfy and supportive seats than the later Amazons, offhand I don't recall the year that they changed.
hth, RJ
The glass pop-up sunroof would make it a non-starter for me at the price, although I suppose a Webasto could be installed which would look a lot more in-keeping.
The four-door cars have galvanised sills all the way along - unlike the two-doors, which are galvanised until the back edge of the doors, the remaining bit ahead of the rear wheels isn't - so they should be sound, but the outriggers behind them need a close looking at. Same for the front inner wings, spare wheel well, and the boot floor around the tank. By now they'll probably have been repaired, but from the small photos it's hard to be sure how well they've been done (or if they're original).
The material on the inner wings is odd - sound deadening, or fibreglass matting?
Before driving off in one, it pays to double-check the fibre coupling/joint in the steering column, visible with the bonnet open. They deteriorate over time and you'd not want one coming apart while driving along. They're cheap and easy to replace though.
There aren't any interior photos, but they're pretty hard-wearing - it should have rubber mats, not carpets btw. Check the dash top for cracks, and that all the windows wind up and down, as the chains inside the doors can snap. The earlier cars had less comfy and supportive seats than the later Amazons, offhand I don't recall the year that they changed.
hth, RJ
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