Recommissioning a barn find Volvo P1800ES
Discussion
This is the second barn find car that's been offered to me this summer. The first was a Mini Cooper which I restored in 10 days. Mechanically that was pretty sound and needed a body restoration and interior. More details on that for those who are interested can be seen here:
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I thought that was me done this summer, but this came along and it was just too good to refuse.
This project is the polar opposite in almost every way. This car is 100% complete and the bodywork and interior (albeit filthy dirty) is in fantastic shape. However mechanically it needs A LOT of work. It's absolutely huge and unlike the Mini, I plan to take my time over this project. I'll use this thread to post updates as they happen.
This car has been sat untouched and locked up in a garage for over 20 years. It was parked up because it had a slight misfire at the time and the previous owner just never got round to do anything to it.
After being told about it I had to go check it out, so this weekend we managed to roll it and inspect it further.
Allow me to introduce you to the Volvo P1800ES. I have never seen one on the metal before, in fact, I never knew these existed until now, but I have totally fallen for it's glorious looks, it's super retro styling and interior, the hefty 50 year old Swedish engineering and the wafty soft suspension that should make for a hilarious driving experience.
Here it is as we found it.
And after we managed to roll it out of the garage.
The back end has echoes of many modern Volvo models and the side profile reminiscent of a few recent estate models also.
And the front end it is classic P1800
So, there are plenty of good points about this car.... It's rare. According to the owners club register there's less than 50 left in the UK, but parts are readily available as it shares the same platform as the Amazon and regular P1800.
The bodywork is in top shape and should clean up very well. Same with the interior. It's all in very good order, totally complete and with a little love should look fantastic.
The car also comes with lots of spares including a new rear boot glass and even a genuine Volvo workshop manual.
However, there's a lot that's not good and largely a consequence of being parked and untouched for 20+ years, so essentially this is a recommissioning project rather than a restoration.
Even though it was parked with the handbrake off, it took 4 of us to crack it free and roll it out. The brakes are seriously pitted and need a complete overhaul.
I got a borescope in the petrol tank and the fuel is jellied and the tank rusted from the inside out, so it's going to need an entirely new fuel system.
As it's an end of run car it has the Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection system. Whilst that's a good thing, I'm slightly dreading having to diagnose this if it's at fault.
I plan to be methodical and steady about recommissioning the old beast, so the first thing we did was pull the plugs and spray some Marvel Mystery Oil into the cylinders.
Next plan is to give it a proper clean up and then we'll move on to the fuel system, working our way forward to the ignition system and eventually attempting to fire it up. It also last ran on 4 star fuel... Who remembers that?! So it will probably need a cylinder head rebuild with hardened valve seats at some point.
There's plenty to do, but Autumn is fast approaching so I won't be able to do much mechanical work this year, but I'll be sure to update this as I go.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I thought that was me done this summer, but this came along and it was just too good to refuse.
This project is the polar opposite in almost every way. This car is 100% complete and the bodywork and interior (albeit filthy dirty) is in fantastic shape. However mechanically it needs A LOT of work. It's absolutely huge and unlike the Mini, I plan to take my time over this project. I'll use this thread to post updates as they happen.
This car has been sat untouched and locked up in a garage for over 20 years. It was parked up because it had a slight misfire at the time and the previous owner just never got round to do anything to it.
After being told about it I had to go check it out, so this weekend we managed to roll it and inspect it further.
Allow me to introduce you to the Volvo P1800ES. I have never seen one on the metal before, in fact, I never knew these existed until now, but I have totally fallen for it's glorious looks, it's super retro styling and interior, the hefty 50 year old Swedish engineering and the wafty soft suspension that should make for a hilarious driving experience.
Here it is as we found it.
And after we managed to roll it out of the garage.
The back end has echoes of many modern Volvo models and the side profile reminiscent of a few recent estate models also.
And the front end it is classic P1800
So, there are plenty of good points about this car.... It's rare. According to the owners club register there's less than 50 left in the UK, but parts are readily available as it shares the same platform as the Amazon and regular P1800.
The bodywork is in top shape and should clean up very well. Same with the interior. It's all in very good order, totally complete and with a little love should look fantastic.
The car also comes with lots of spares including a new rear boot glass and even a genuine Volvo workshop manual.
However, there's a lot that's not good and largely a consequence of being parked and untouched for 20+ years, so essentially this is a recommissioning project rather than a restoration.
Even though it was parked with the handbrake off, it took 4 of us to crack it free and roll it out. The brakes are seriously pitted and need a complete overhaul.
I got a borescope in the petrol tank and the fuel is jellied and the tank rusted from the inside out, so it's going to need an entirely new fuel system.
As it's an end of run car it has the Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection system. Whilst that's a good thing, I'm slightly dreading having to diagnose this if it's at fault.
I plan to be methodical and steady about recommissioning the old beast, so the first thing we did was pull the plugs and spray some Marvel Mystery Oil into the cylinders.
Next plan is to give it a proper clean up and then we'll move on to the fuel system, working our way forward to the ignition system and eventually attempting to fire it up. It also last ran on 4 star fuel... Who remembers that?! So it will probably need a cylinder head rebuild with hardened valve seats at some point.
There's plenty to do, but Autumn is fast approaching so I won't be able to do much mechanical work this year, but I'll be sure to update this as I go.
Thanks for the kind comments. From looking at others for sale, these seem to be a bit of an undiscovered secret in the classic car world and a good one doesn't cost too much. I'm not in this for the money, just for the fun of reviving an old abandoned car.
My thoughts when I first saw it was that it's ripe for an engine swap with something juicy, but I think I should try and get it running as it is.
The other good thing is it's MOT and tax exempt!
My thoughts when I first saw it was that it's ripe for an engine swap with something juicy, but I think I should try and get it running as it is.
The other good thing is it's MOT and tax exempt!
Challo said:
Looks a fantastic find, and good luck with the project.
What is the interior like? Any pictures for retro goodness?
I didn't actually get any shots of the interior after getting the car out, but I took this shot whilst it was still in the garage. Excuse the nasty steering wheel cover, that will get cut off soon to reveal the preserved bakelite!What is the interior like? Any pictures for retro goodness?
I'll take some interior shots when I'm next with the car. It's complete and I'm hopeful that it should clean up ok. There's a bit of mould on the dash and doors and lots of dust as the windows were left open.
croissant said:
Challo said:
Looks a fantastic find, and good luck with the project.
What is the interior like? Any pictures for retro goodness?
I didn't actually get any shots of the interior after getting the car out, but I took this shot whilst it was still in the garage. Excuse the nasty steering wheel cover, that will get cut off soon to reveal the preserved bakelite!What is the interior like? Any pictures for retro goodness?
I'll take some interior shots when I'm next with the car. It's complete and I'm hopeful that it should clean up ok. There's a bit of mould on the dash and doors and lots of dust as the windows were left open.
Looking forward to seeing the progress.
Not much to add to this as we've been too busy to get back to the car.
We are planning to give it a full clean up very soon so I'll post an update on that with plenty of detailed pics when that's done.
In the meantime I managed to get some pics off of the borescope. I'm not quite sure what to make of these, but I think that considering this engine is approaching 50 years old, done 100k miles and hasn't been fired for 25 years; they don't look too bad. The camera amplifies the detail so it looks worse than it is.
A sensible restorer with unlimited time and funds would do a full engine rebuild first, but I think we're just going to send it and go for a start up once we have renewed the fuel and ignition systems!
I'm keen to know what any experts think of these.
We are planning to give it a full clean up very soon so I'll post an update on that with plenty of detailed pics when that's done.
In the meantime I managed to get some pics off of the borescope. I'm not quite sure what to make of these, but I think that considering this engine is approaching 50 years old, done 100k miles and hasn't been fired for 25 years; they don't look too bad. The camera amplifies the detail so it looks worse than it is.
A sensible restorer with unlimited time and funds would do a full engine rebuild first, but I think we're just going to send it and go for a start up once we have renewed the fuel and ignition systems!
I'm keen to know what any experts think of these.
My approach would be to do an oil change first, then I'd stick a healthy squirt of engine oil down the bores. Take the rocker cover off and liberally dose everything up top with oil. inc down the pushrod tubes (if you can).
Then turn over by hand with the rocker cover off and ensure all the valves/rockers/pushrods move freely.
If everything seems to turn over freely then turn it over on the starter until you get decent engine oil pressure. Stick some rags over the holes to ensure you don't spray oil *everywhere*.
Then plugs in, fresh fuel and send it.
EDIT: The worst concern really is sticking rings, either gummed up or just with rust when you turn it over and they scrape the surface rust off the cylinder walls. It will drink oil and have low compression if they are stuck. Then again it may get better over time...or it may not. You can try some of the top-end detergent type things. Basically fill each cylinder with them, leave overnight, empty and then change the oil (as it will typically leak down into the sump).
Then turn over by hand with the rocker cover off and ensure all the valves/rockers/pushrods move freely.
If everything seems to turn over freely then turn it over on the starter until you get decent engine oil pressure. Stick some rags over the holes to ensure you don't spray oil *everywhere*.
Then plugs in, fresh fuel and send it.
EDIT: The worst concern really is sticking rings, either gummed up or just with rust when you turn it over and they scrape the surface rust off the cylinder walls. It will drink oil and have low compression if they are stuck. Then again it may get better over time...or it may not. You can try some of the top-end detergent type things. Basically fill each cylinder with them, leave overnight, empty and then change the oil (as it will typically leak down into the sump).
Edited by Fastdruid on Monday 28th September 17:42
croissant said:
I'm keen to know what any experts think of these.
Not sure about "expert" but I've rebuilt a few engines in my time!croissant said:
This looks not too bad tbh, a tiny bit of surface rust but can still see hatch marks, doesn't appear to be any pitting. croissant said:
Don't like this so much, that looks like it may be an actual patch of rust. croissant said:
Ditto and is that some pitting at the top left?croissant said:
Not _quite_ as good as #1 but not bad, again can see hatch marks, doesn't _look_ like there is any pitting. That patch top right looks a _little_ concerning but may still just be light surface rust. Oil in bores, fresh oil in sump, fresh fuel in tank, quick clean of carb to check for jellified petrol, remove king lead and crank until you have good oil pressure followed by an actual go at starting it. Fingers crossed it'll go but you'll probably have some carb and ignition work to do. Looking forward to the next update where it runs perfect on the first go 
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