crad

Nothing to report on the car yet as I'm on holiday. I did join an fb page for specific ford ltd's based in America. I had a message from a guy claiming to have owned the car in the UK. I messaged him & he sent me some details & se pics of it when he first collected it in 2018.
This is his message.
It has quite interesting history
Original owner was in the
military from Oklahoma. It
came in to UK via raf greenham
common in 1989. Was used till
95 then put into storage in 97
where it has been until 2018.
I did quite a bit of work to your car to get it running, it had been sitting in a warehouse since about 1991 when I bought it. I had it running after I went through the whole fuel system. I removed the tank had it refurbished fitted a new intank pump and sender unit and a new injector. It ran OK but not perfect. There is an external pump aswell which might have given up so try that first.
 

Another quality vehicle incoming!
 

Bugger. Had a slight loss of coolant in the Astro for months now, which recently turned into a big loss of coolant.Had to take all the dash apart to see what was happening, and access is..... a little restricted. Water was pouring down the back of the cylinder heads and I concluded the inlet manifold gaskets had finally given up gasketing, so I pulled off the plenum and the inlet manifold. Its a squeeze, but you are working inside, diesel heater keeping the chill off and some good tunes on the radio..The old gaskets were rock hard and took some serious work to get the faces cleaned up. Got a pair of proper Fel-Pro gaskets and built it back up. I filled up the radiator, then left it for another day as half eleven at night working on an old American van in the street late at night was causing some curtain twitching..
I went out this evening to get a bit more done, and there was water pouring down the back of the cylinder heads...  Turns out it was a heater hose that had gone all squdgy and had some tiny cracks, and the leak was running down, straight into the Vee but was pretty impossible to see from inside or from under the bonnet..... Harumph.

No-one told me Northern Ireland has really cool fuel stations

An pair of harlequin polo's
I spotted these in real life when looking at a car for sale about 10 yrs ago, took me a while to remember where they were, I just remembered they were by a church and I drove through Wooten wawen on my way there! Wonder if they are still there?

 
 

I turn up to every interview, in person or online, with a (professional, smart looking) notepad in which I've written out 10-12 examples of Things Wot I've Done, laid out in bullet points, one scenario per page. Each page is headed with at least 3 cues (eg 'time management' or 'resolving conflict') it could be relevant to.
When I'm asked the 'could you give me an example of a time when you've managed a challenging situation?' I then explain that I'm just going to see which of these examples best fits the question and then answer. When I'm done flicking through, I always ask them to repeat the question before giving my anecdote.
Interviews aren't a memory test, they're an opportunity to demonstrate you have the skills they need and I would never have an issue with someone giving themselves the best chance of giving a good answer. Twenty years of reasonably senior public sector roles (including NHS) and the only feedback I've ever had about the notepad from interview panels was "that's a really nice idea".

EFLOLZ

The shad shed has had some later replacement plates…

 

 
Theyre in a blocky modern font and follow the love for black background plates. IIRC you can put these on anything up to a ‘79 now. To a number plate obsessive (raises hand awkwardly) this feels, and looks, all wrong.
Anyway- would a 71/72 k been on the more modern reflectives or the old plates? Maybe, maybe not. I wanted a bit of 70s modernist realism going on so ideally wanted a reflective set. 
Trouble is, the 7s and 8s are all wrong on these. I want an 8 to have an hourglass shape. Yes im aware this sounds pervy 😂 and a brand new number plate has no patina.
So i got hold of an old number plate that had the key older characters i was after, and added new old stock one of those that were missing.

 
I then aged the too-new looking NOS ones with some wet and dry, took it all to bits, and drilled and reassembled.
So the shad shed has a bit of a 70s sweeney / long good friday era look to it….

 

Judging by the absense of aftermarket stick-on tat your "friend" has never seen your car. 

This has been sitting on one of my mates driveway for at least 15 years now, his Dad will not sell it (I have tried & tried to buy this)  the mileage is genuine also.
 
it’s looking worse for wear now (as you will be able to see)
 

Built from aluminium salvaged from an old Lanchester boot lid, and covered in carpet that was formerly a Princess carpet set, I have finally finished the custom rear light covers and trim panel in the Princess.  It only took me eight years.

Hopefully it will take me rather less time to do the other trim panels in the boot.  I do have a board for doing the back of the back seat, and the exposed metalwork all needs to be redone in black.  The original floor mat wants to be replaced ideally, either in red carpet to match the interior, or black carpet since it's the boot so it's not mega important, I'll use the original as a template when I do that job.  Wheel cover is the original and can stay as is, and I need to replace the boot seal at some point since it has more issues than just overspray.

Yeah, Autobahn. Might be fine in a normal car on a UK reg with two people inside but I was stopped regularly, on a German registration more recently. In that case probably because I could bring in drugs from the Netherlands, however I doubt a car full of stuff on a UK reg is less suspicious.😂 At this point I can claim that I bought it all in the Netherlands though.
Until then, have some Amsterdam spots. Despite ULEZ and other car related fees there's still the occasional interesting spot.

I, and I'm sure I speak for many others, would part with good money for the opportunity to watch the first attempted channel crossing by an Invercare.

You have reached your destination:

Just fitted the wheels today. £120 from Leeds and I've put a replacement part worn on the spare £47 for a good ride 235/45/17.
Decent enough condition and they are from the facelift b7 and seem to suit it.
A good bunch of lads sorted the cleaning duties for £7, apparently "just take it steady with the roof/window etc" translates to blast the **** out of it and soak the occupant (not really).
Looks how sexy it now looks.

The WD40 had no effect on the seized nut.
I decided to take advice from our resident experts and grind the nut off the bolt.
I clamped the manifold in a vice, it's always good to have a safe and comfortable working environment when working with abrasive tools.

Using an angle grinder, I reduced the size of the nut up to the point where the remaining metal got thin.

Out came a more precision tool. More of the same but now with finesse.

I got enough of the nut off to enable removal without causing significant damage to the bolt thread.

I fitted a couple of right sized nuts, job done. As I tightened the new nuts, I could see the joint getting narrower. I made sure the new nuts were tight without overtightening, breaking the bolt and fucking up all my hard work.

I fired up the unsilenced Pinto (the exhaust system has been removed). Amazing how an OHC Ford four banger can sound like a top fuel dragster. Despite the deafening noise coming from the end of the downpipe, I couldn't hear or feel any blowing from the manifold to downpipe joint. Win.
I'm off to order a new exhaust.
In other news, the V5 arrived today. I now three pieces of paper in the service history. The seller apparently posted the service history documents yesterday. All being well, I will get them by the end of the week. I have SORNed the Sierra as of today. 
 

if you're skilled maybe, not when you're cackhanded like (and that corner is a bit out of whack because he hit a deer)

So presently, im looking to deliver on the ambition of a former owner of having a red interior on the wagon. Great idea, but in parts fell down on the execution. E bay de is proving a fairly fertile ground for looking for oem red bits (at least ones not RHD specific)
But also i thought ive nothing to loose in dyeing the current carpets in the passenger cabin, which to my eyes clash horribly with the rest of it.

Plus those fur flex door seals which should be a match for the seat colour also. My girlfriend thinks its all fine, but as I have a deep seated mental disorder i cannot leave this as is. I acknowledge this is not normal, but also it will be satisfying to max out the factory spec look for the change.
Handily the front carpets just pull out- so I could have a go at dyeing it whilst i try to play fur elise on the piano…


factory example:

Verdict- better than i expected, although my piano skills are terrible.
Even ludwig Van himself was a fan, of “mittelrot” as this colour was known on the home market

Mittlerot: BEETHOVEN approved for fashion accessories
The images of dyeing a vehicle carpet on the dining table are brought to you, clearly,  by an uninhibited batchelor living the dream*

Have a pez shot. It will be a while before this bitch makes it to a petrol station under her own steam.

I added a splash of this stuff, I'm sure it won't hurt.

I kept the fuel receipt for the service history. The number of documents has doubled.

Precisely what I didn't want, the E46 outside and the Sierra hogging the workshop.

Whilst looking in the boot, I noticed this arrangement of cables, which extends to the boot lock. Looks like we have central locking. Whether it works is another matter.

Up she goes.

I removed all four wheel arch liners. They came out ok, just need cleaning and removal of blue overspray paint.

This is where the story gets a lot better.
Yes, there is surface corrosion and flaking paint just about everywhere but there is no sign of any significant corrosion anywhere in the arches. The new front brake discs are a nice touch.




The fronts of the A-posts and the inside of the front wings are just fine.


The fuel tank has light surface corrosion, nothing that can't be easily sorted.

The underside is totally solid. No sign of any significant corrosion, most of the paint / sealer is still intact. Only the sill to floorpan seams need a tidy up, but they are all solid.





Daisy told me that she likes the shiny brake discs.

I created a warm, dry and comfortable working environment.

Whilst access is great, the three bolts that secure the downpipe to the manifold are fucking tight. 

It was easier to remove the downpipe with the manifold attached.

And here we are, the reason why the joint is blowing.

The securing nut is on very tight. I have left the downpipe in an upright position and will spray WD40 on the nut and bolt for a couple of days. Can't do any harm.

I removed the exhaust system. Looks nice and shiny, doesn't it?

Until you look at the underside of the middle box.

And the back box.

Depending on whether I can sort out the manifold to downpipe joint without fucking up the downpipe, I will be ordering at least a new middle and back box from the eBay supplier in Poland. I've used the same or similar company in the past, they provided a replacement exhaust for my W124. The parts were good quality and fitted perfectly.
Finally, I removed the cam belt cover to reveal the cam belt.

It's not cracked but it's not box fresh either. I will replace it. I will also replace the fan belt, which is worn and squealed like a pig when I fired up the Sierra whilst negotiating it into the garage. 
I wasn't looking for a project of this scale. Based on my (possibly too high) expectations, I was planning to take delivery of the Sierra, tax it and take it for a maiden voyage to Windsor for a work appointment. Instead, it is now in bits in my workshop and will cost me £££ before it can safely turn a wheel. Never mind, things could have been worse. I could have had cort16's C6 in my garage by now.
 

Clutch delay valve awa tae fuck!

No, I don't plan on doing burnouts / drifts regularly. I've read up on these enough to form an opinion that it may just generally improve the clutch feel when removed though.
 
I'll be collecting my newly built struts this evening.
Then I just need to fit them. Plus the new front brake calipers, and the water pump, the thermostat, the new radiator hoses, then bleed the cooling system and bleed the clutch too.
Just a small list of things to be getting on with.

Parts have begun arriving!
I so far have a set of front brake pads and calipers, thermostat and a thermostat housing.
 
The mechanic neighbour has asked me to drop off all the strut parts over the weekend and he'll get them assembled... at some point.
Saves me faffing about with spring compressors though.
 
 
Since I cleaned the tracks on the potentiometer thing in the Astra's throttle pedal, the responsiveness is better than it ever has been.
I'll still eye it with suspicion but it's behaving for now.
 
I found out how much fun can be had with a 50mm prime lens and a wide aperture earlier, too.


That trip reading is how far it's gone on the tank of petrol I put in it in September. It's somewhere just below a quarter now. However it does seem to average a real calculated mid-30s. Not too shabby.

Astra showed the first signs of trouble today.
I did 5 miles with full throttle feeling like half. Shut down and restart sorted it.
Throttle position sensor?
I took the throttle pedal out and cleaned the tracks in the potentiometer and also speayed some carb cleaner down the throttle body. Seems fine again... For now.

Still a lot easier than some moderns where you have to take the bumper off.  Or my 75 and Z4 where you have to bugger about through a flap in the inner arch.

changed a headlight bulb on my dad's mk4 mondeo this morning. why oh why do you have to remove the fucking thing to change a poxy bulb.