So I replaced the NSX with an old VW...
Discussion
That is really lovely, please do keep the thread updated.
I managed to find a 22 year old 1972 Bug which only had 33,000 miles on it, with one old lady owner, when I was in my 20's. It was so good underneath and inside, but all other viewers had been put off by the touchup's on the body, so I was lucky to snap it up!
You did really well to find this one.
Rich
I managed to find a 22 year old 1972 Bug which only had 33,000 miles on it, with one old lady owner, when I was in my 20's. It was so good underneath and inside, but all other viewers had been put off by the touchup's on the body, so I was lucky to snap it up!
You did really well to find this one.
Rich
Thanks for all the positive comments - glad I'm not the only person that likes old tat.
Does anyone know anything about Portuguese spiders??? I wouldn't call it an infestation but there are a number of the same species living on the car. They are quite small & brown / orange in colour and have erm 8 legs. But they don't make a web in a corner. I will come into the garage & there are hundreds of vertical strands across the back end of the car, down to the garage floor, like a waterfall of web. I clean these off and the next day they are back again & it's starting to freak me out.
So, the big update... I initially wanted to do the bare minimum to get this car back on the road, as expected this has snowballed & I have taken the engine & box out. There were a few reasons for this. It was impossible to clean all of the muck from under the back end, the gearbox had a leak and I had some rust to deal with.
This grime was an inch thick in places.
the 3 vertical holes are where the selectors are assembled, these originally had cork plugs which have obviously rotted away and gear oil was dripping out. £3 worth of core plugs has fixed it.
The rust.
Does anyone know anything about Portuguese spiders??? I wouldn't call it an infestation but there are a number of the same species living on the car. They are quite small & brown / orange in colour and have erm 8 legs. But they don't make a web in a corner. I will come into the garage & there are hundreds of vertical strands across the back end of the car, down to the garage floor, like a waterfall of web. I clean these off and the next day they are back again & it's starting to freak me out.
So, the big update... I initially wanted to do the bare minimum to get this car back on the road, as expected this has snowballed & I have taken the engine & box out. There were a few reasons for this. It was impossible to clean all of the muck from under the back end, the gearbox had a leak and I had some rust to deal with.
This grime was an inch thick in places.
the 3 vertical holes are where the selectors are assembled, these originally had cork plugs which have obviously rotted away and gear oil was dripping out. £3 worth of core plugs has fixed it.
The rust.
So with the box out I could do this -
Plus I can give the engine a similar spruce up.
As expected, pretty much everything that comes of is knackered. This is the throttle cable which snapped when I took it out. At least thats 1 embarrassing breakdown avoided.
And finally for today, gearbox back in, new mounts, rear brakes, hub seals & CV boots fitted. Still waiting for the torsion bar bushes & then I can do the final assembly.
Plus I can give the engine a similar spruce up.
As expected, pretty much everything that comes of is knackered. This is the throttle cable which snapped when I took it out. At least thats 1 embarrassing breakdown avoided.
And finally for today, gearbox back in, new mounts, rear brakes, hub seals & CV boots fitted. Still waiting for the torsion bar bushes & then I can do the final assembly.
And so on to my least favourite job. The bodywork. I'm don't enjoy welding, its dangerous, stuff usually catches fire, I get burned and it never turns out as well as I'd hoped. Both rear inner wing sections:
I'm getting better & quite pleased with the result so far. Just have to make a little repair section for the rear valance.
My missing torsion bushes finally turned up so I could finish the suspension rebuild. This has included every bit of rubber, most of the seals and lots of cleaning & painting. Torsion bars out:
All the little jobs seem to take most of the time - making brake pipes, bleeding brakes, fitting and adjusting handbrake cables etc.
Will probably bore you with more pics in a weeks time.
I'm getting better & quite pleased with the result so far. Just have to make a little repair section for the rear valance.
My missing torsion bushes finally turned up so I could finish the suspension rebuild. This has included every bit of rubber, most of the seals and lots of cleaning & painting. Torsion bars out:
All the little jobs seem to take most of the time - making brake pipes, bleeding brakes, fitting and adjusting handbrake cables etc.
Will probably bore you with more pics in a weeks time.
Edited by LarJammer on Saturday 8th June 20:59
Another update, hurrah! (said no-one).
I managed to get a pic of one of these Portuguese spiders. Still not sure what it is...
This week was engine week. First off was to strip off all of the tinware & give it a thorough clean. Glad I did as the cooling fins on the engine were clogged with crud, mouse nests & general filth. The inlet manifold had a small hole which needed welding up but whilst cleaning it up, I discovered a rusty hole between the exhaust heating tube & the intake. So kind of like an EGR setup. But I can't afford to lose any horses so a new manifold was ordered.And a new exhaust. And a new starter motor.And and and.
The engine stripped of its peripherals.
It's cleaned up really well. Decided not to repaint all of the tin as it has some nice patina (I hate the use of that word in the VW community...). Obviously has a new clutch too. And various oil seals. And and and.
Also freed of the seized heater flaps (and found more nests & spiders living in the heater boxes). They are now working perfectly.
The engine is now back in the car, everything reconnected but I have mislaid the throttle cable clamp so waiting for a new one to arrive. BUT the exhaust was a complete PITA - I had to fight with it for about 2 hours to get everything lined up. All that was left to do was fit the tailpipes & one side fouls on the rear bodywork, a lot. So I've left it for now until I decide how to resolve it. I also discovered that the new inlet manifold is shyte as the air filter no longer fits (the carb sits too close to the fan housing). Will have to think about this fix too - I can't take a grinder to it whilst still on the car & the engine has to come out to remove it...
I managed to get a pic of one of these Portuguese spiders. Still not sure what it is...
This week was engine week. First off was to strip off all of the tinware & give it a thorough clean. Glad I did as the cooling fins on the engine were clogged with crud, mouse nests & general filth. The inlet manifold had a small hole which needed welding up but whilst cleaning it up, I discovered a rusty hole between the exhaust heating tube & the intake. So kind of like an EGR setup. But I can't afford to lose any horses so a new manifold was ordered.And a new exhaust. And a new starter motor.And and and.
The engine stripped of its peripherals.
It's cleaned up really well. Decided not to repaint all of the tin as it has some nice patina (I hate the use of that word in the VW community...). Obviously has a new clutch too. And various oil seals. And and and.
Also freed of the seized heater flaps (and found more nests & spiders living in the heater boxes). They are now working perfectly.
The engine is now back in the car, everything reconnected but I have mislaid the throttle cable clamp so waiting for a new one to arrive. BUT the exhaust was a complete PITA - I had to fight with it for about 2 hours to get everything lined up. All that was left to do was fit the tailpipes & one side fouls on the rear bodywork, a lot. So I've left it for now until I decide how to resolve it. I also discovered that the new inlet manifold is shyte as the air filter no longer fits (the carb sits too close to the fan housing). Will have to think about this fix too - I can't take a grinder to it whilst still on the car & the engine has to come out to remove it...
Sooo...
Engine issues are now resolved with a 3 step plan.
1. walk away.
2. have a cuppa.
3. use much brute force.
The interior has been stripped, cleaned and refitted.
Haven't taken a pic of the finished interior yet, there are a few small jobs to do. I decided it was time to take it out for a spin, probably the longest drive its had for a number of years.
You may notice the rear window is not fitted yet... There were a few running issues so its had a tune up & final checks (timing, points gap, carb adjustment, checked heater flaps, torque wheels, adjust brakes etc) and seems to be all good now. The tracking was also done.
You know a car is almost ready when the polishing starts. It is coming up better than I hoped (half done for comparison).
And now it is looking like a car again
Engine issues are now resolved with a 3 step plan.
1. walk away.
2. have a cuppa.
3. use much brute force.
The interior has been stripped, cleaned and refitted.
Haven't taken a pic of the finished interior yet, there are a few small jobs to do. I decided it was time to take it out for a spin, probably the longest drive its had for a number of years.
You may notice the rear window is not fitted yet... There were a few running issues so its had a tune up & final checks (timing, points gap, carb adjustment, checked heater flaps, torque wheels, adjust brakes etc) and seems to be all good now. The tracking was also done.
You know a car is almost ready when the polishing starts. It is coming up better than I hoped (half done for comparison).
And now it is looking like a car again
LarJammer said:
As an aside I managed to get hold of an owners manual for not much money (it is a bit rough...). Strictly speaking it should be in
Portuguese but was printed in August 1960 so is correct for my November 1960 car.
There are some great bits of artwork inside too.
So much more readable than the tightly printed small font size tomes which are manuals for modern cars.Portuguese but was printed in August 1960 so is correct for my November 1960 car.
There are some great bits of artwork inside too.
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