OK, OK I know it’s been a while… Been a bit busy with life and stuff (see the Le Mans page…) Still been planning and researching tho, so it’s not at a complete stand still…
Last time out I mentioned the engine mounts. Was a little inaccurate in what is needed to get the engine in on the standard mounts. There are two trains of thought – the UK approach is to weld on some aluminium blocks to the 13b front plate, and then drill and tap them where they need to meet the engine mounts. The second is the one done by the aussies which is to put a 12a front plate on, with some small modifications for the oil pickup. I’m keener to go to the second method, as it seems a little ‘purer’. All I have to do now is find a 12A front plate (plus new sump, and a series 3 prop shaft to spline with the second gen one). Oh yeah, then strip the current engine and put the new front plate on. Not a lot really… *grin*
Have also started looking at some of the peripheral stuff we will need to do – suspension, interior, exhaust, steering, wheels… I’m starting to get the impression this may take some time… *lol* The coolest thing we’ve been looking at recently is the carputer – a double din PC that fits in the dash and has a touch screen to run stuff. These have become cheaper over the last couple of years, and if we are REALLY clever (shut it), we should be able to have it doing all sorts of funky things – running the ECU, wirelessly synchronising with the network at home, gps, etc, etc… Lining this up with a decent ICE install, and we should have something pretty special.
Anyhow, on with how things have gone so far… The front wings have been considerably tidied – the last entry showed one of the wings being worked on, and a very shabby looking first gen. As you can see, they have been rehung (only bolted at the top) to avoid damage, and the filling and smoothing is very nearly complete. The indicator and badge holes have been removed, dents have been filled, and all rust has been beaten up, had it’s wallet stolen, and told to leave metalville. Oh yeah, them thar wings have less rust than I do!! They’ve been rehung, and given a gloss guide coat (to make it easier to see the imperfections when it comes to finishing everything off…)
The next task is to do the doors – I hope we can do these in place without having to remove them. I’m sure they are easy to rehang and align, but I just have the feeling this may be something that can be done easier ON the car… I’ll let you know…