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Angrydicky

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Angrydicky last won the day on August 29 2022

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    Lincolnshite
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    Old, unloved cars

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    United Kingdom

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  1. There's no comparison, the Somerset is like a rocket in comparison! I'm actually going to be moving it on soon. I prefer driving the Hampshire and it's just sitting there not being used so it deserves to go to a new home with someone who can lavish more time and attention on it than I can.
  2. Fitting a filter is a nice idea, but to be honest I’m not that bothered. I’ll just change the oil regularly. I’ve already changed it once. I don’t like SAE 30 (it always seems too thin for cars) I settled on a quality 20w50 instead. Oil pressure at idle when cold is 50psi and about 20-25psi when hot. That’s pretty decent for an old sidevalve and I’ll happily take that. The oil is staying very clean on the dipstick which shows the sump is good. The engine must have had work done over the years but I really don’t know exactly what. It’s nice and quiet and doesn’t smoke. I bought a new set of number plates from Tippers to replace the dreadful, cheap rubbish it had fitted. Also fixed the headlights, the switch was faulty so I got a good secondhand switch and swapped the original ignition barrel into it to keep the original key. Not a lot else to do on it really. I’ve trundled around a bit in it locally, the longest trip was about 15 miles. It’s definitely no speed demon. Quite like driving a prewar car with better steering and suspension. Great fun though.
  3. Where abouts in Lincolnshire are you? I’m approx midway between Boston and Horncastle. Ruffgeezer is local too.
  4. Nice. Same year and interior as mine (mines the sporty 130bhp Si model). All pretty standard issues they all suffer with there. PAS leak will be the oil cooler behind the bumper. Mines on its second set now. Pipes from contemporary Honda Accord are much beefier and I liberated a near perfect set from a scrapyard a while ago which I’m keeping for when mine starts leaking again. I had to repair one arch on mine, I spent ages getting it just right but it did need work behind the sill cover too. Strangely the other side was perfect. They are absolutely brilliant, completely underrated and very rare cars nowadays. I find mine very comfortable to drive and faultlessly reliable. Another vote for keeping it original, covering it with tat would totally spoil it imo.
  5. Think Bluemels supplied most of the steering wheels in that era. Did about 20 miles in this beast yesterday. It ran really well and I managed to swap the ignition barrel over onto the replacement ignition switch, so we have headlights now.
  6. Fatha and dog approved. Shame the weather hasn’t been up to much lately.
  7. It’s a shame about the number plate. The first one I viewed in South Wales did have its original plate but the car itself was a dog, awful paint, poor welding underneath and lopsided. Also very overpriced for the condition. This one might have lost its plate, but it was cheaper and there’s no comparison between them in terms of condition and how much more original this one is. It’ll look better once I’ve got some half decent number plates from Tippers on it, the el cheapo ones currently on it look dreadful and the rear one hasn’t even been stamped straight.
  8. Yes, there’s been a few people who have fitted Herald/Spitfire engines and some even retain the original gearbox with column change. I’m quite happy with the little sidevalve to be honest. It’s got loads of charm, if you view it more like a thirties car it doesn’t seem too slow.
  9. Yeah that’s well overpriced. I paid less than that for this one which is all on the road and very well sorted with a fortune spent on it. I did really want one which still had its original number. This one is a very original car which was in the same ownership 1969-2017 then in 2019 fell into the hands of someone who robbed the original number plate off it (MRM 79, now on a Range Rover). I suspect it was a bent mot as it did virtually no miles between 2013 and 2019 and the subsequent owner spent a fortune having it all recommissioned.
  10. I’ve been improving this car since picking it up on Saturday. Greased all the points, changed the oil (no filter on these) therefore it’s important to change it regularly. Second gear was an awkward bastard. It was very reluctant to engage going 1st-2nd, but going down and the other gears were fine. The previous owner who traded it in for a Minor got in touch and said that second gear problem was one of the reasons he got rid of it, the other was the lack of speed. We can’t do much about the latter but what about the former. He said he used to slip the clutch and move off in second which is less than ideal. Although the accepted thing to do with the Hampshire is pull away in second, it’s got a very torquey 2.2 OHV engine which the Mayflower, well, hasn’t so it’s important to have all the gears working correctly. Adjusting the gear linkage made it so it always went in but it wasn’t very smooth unless I double-declutched. I had a look at the clutch adjustment. The free play should be 1/2” but it was at least 2- 2 1/2”. Adjusted that up correctly and now it works perfectly and smoothly in all gears. Other jobs included tuning up the engine, and feeding the very dry original leather with the leather cream Vulgalour used on his Lanchester, I went and bought a bottle on his recommendation. It’s had two applications already and it’s getting there but it hadn’t been done for years so it really needs another application. I also tightened up the fuel pump and the stator tube on the end of the steering box, both were leaking and topped up the steering box. I think the fuel pump may need a new gasket as it’s still weeping slightly but the steering box is now dry which is good. Unfortunately the (recently recored) rad is leaking from two places, the drain tap and a soldered joint on the side so I’ll have to whip that out and repair it. I’ve got a spare tap which should fit. The only other thing I’ve had to deal with is the non-functioning headlights. The car has a brand new loom so my first thought was they’ve forgotten to connect something or wired something in wrongly. I couldn’t find anything wrong with the loom so tested the switch with my test meter which showed it was faulty. To prove the point I ran a link wire across the back of the switch from sidelights to headlights with the switch turned on and the headlights came on. I ordered a secondhand replacement from the Austin Counties car club (same switch used on Somerset etc) which turned up and I tested it and it’s a goodun. Unfortunately you need to turn the ignition switch to the on position to remove and swap the barrel over and none of my keys would operate the switch. So that’ll have to wait until a key turns up for it. So far though, I’m loving it. It drives beautifully and it’s brimming with character. Also it’s nice to have something that doesn’t need welding!
  11. How much did he want for it? They’re not very desirable as you know and four grand should get you an absolute minter.
  12. Holy thread resurrection! I bought myself a Mayflower on Saturday after years of wanting one. For once I spent proper money (four figures!) and got a decent one as my project queue is out of control and it’s embarrassing how few of my cars are actually on the road. The solution is obviously to buy MOAR cars. It’s a bit of a sad story this. It was cherished for years by some old boy in Northumberland who bought it in 1969 and presumably when he died or gave up driving it was sold and immediately got plate raped. The original number MRM 79 ended up on a Range Rover and the car ended up down south with a chap who spent over £7k at a vintage Rolls Royce and Bentley specialist having work done. It’s had a full suspension rebuild with all new springs, bushes, kingpins, new loom, fuel pipes, recored rad, rebuilt carb, distributor, new brakes all round, 5x new Michelin XZX tyres and loads of other stuff. He then became ill and died before he had a chance to enjoy it. His son sold it for a fraction of the money spent to a chap who barely used it as he found it too slow. Also the gear linkage had been apart when the gearbox was out and they hadn’t got the adjustment correct so 1st to 2nd was very difficult. He used to slip the clutch and move off in 2nd which isn’t ideal on a Mayflower as 2nd is quite tall, being only a three speed. So he PXd for a Morris Minor it after doing about 150 miles. And made another whopping great loss on it. I bought it from the dealer. Spent a bit of time adjusting the gear linkage and now it’s a lot easier to engage, it was possible before but there was more of a knack to it. It drives like a new Mayflower in 1953 would have done. The ride is excellent and the engine quiet and smooth. The steering is nice and taut with little play and it’s a delight to drive. There are a couple of minor tinkering jobs to do. It has no headlights at the moment. I’ve traced the fault to the switch so I’ve got a good used one winging its way to me. The drivers seat is sagging and it needs restuffing. The leather is all quite dry and needs feeding. But the interior is amazingly well preserved, it’s all original. The headlining is in perfect condition and it even still has its original rubber mats under the carpets and underlay . It also needs some decent numberplates as the cheap and nasty ones fitted look crap. The rear one hasn’t even been stamped, or fitted, straight. I’ll get onto Tippers when I get the V5 through. One of the most amazing things with this car is how straight it is. It’s had the undersills replaced but apart from that, it’s had no welding at all and doesn’t need any. I can’t see any filler in it at all. It’s a great little thing to trundle around in and ok, it’s no speed demon but it’ll go at 45 all day and I’ve had it up to 50 a couple of times. Here’s some pictures. Is @vulgalour still around on here? I’m sure he’ll like it.
  13. I agree, I have no interest in going to YouTube meets, you can just imagine the kind of people that will be there. No thanks. Without a minimum age it will be full of moderns as well. FOTU can get in the sea as well. It started off well but Hagerty have got very greedy, looking at pictures from the last couple they’re full of modern cars now and the entry price is ludicrous. Piston heads come across as a bunch of rich wankers who look down their noses at ‘lesser’ cars (such as the Sierra) so that doesn’t appeal at all, although it sounds a laugh invading their snooty meet they would genuinely be angry and upset if we did and the atmosphere wouldn’t be very fun. I find local static classic meets really boring. Road runs are a lot more enjoyable but there don’t seem to be many.
  14. Nice save! These look so good in saloon form and with the paint patina, missing wheel trim etc, looks like the sort of car you used to see just parked at the side of the road in London. I love it. I’ll have a proper read of the thread later.
  15. Lovely! Was it owned by a bloke in Devon for years? I seem to remember one a few months ago that was teetering at death’s door.
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