The Blue Rebel Van! - Engine Rebuild Content. p3

[coalnotdole]

Thread resurrection 2018!

 

This van thread died a death in 2013 a mere 2 years in to rebel van ownership! I'm not sure why I stopped updating this really. I think I forgot about it and it then got lost in the depths of the forum software! I eventually found it again via google!

 

As I still own this and as I have recently lavished a bit of attention on its engine I thought it only fair to update the thread. The next few posts are catch-back instalments With some bits new and others originally written in 2014-15 and posted to the news 24 thread. Apologies if you've seen it before.

 

The Rebel Van Continued:

 

2012-14 was an amazing period for the van where it wanted minimal attention but rewarded me with nothing but reliable* motoring!

 

It made many trips around the country collecting improbable loads. It was amazing in the snow. Pictured here in 2013.

 

 

I drove it to Suffolk to collect a huge Oxford 3 phase mig welder which almost did not fit through the door. It was so heavy 3 of us could only just lift it. The max speed on the way home to Sussex was about 45mph. The lack of weight over the front made going any quicker impossibly dangerous as the faster you went the lighter the steering became!

 

It also did lots of runs up to the midlands pictured here in Willenhall.

 

 

 

 

Another time it went up to Pontefract to collect an Esse doric stove for daves boat and on the way home it had a tyre blow out on the M1! (Got spotted by binhoker of this parish on that trip: http://autoshite.com/topic/17005-any-reliant-rebel-owners-on-here-still/ )

 

It did a lot of moving tat around lots of car boots trips to auto-jumbles and tip runs:

 

 

 

And was the go to vehicle when we cleared out the spares boat and took all of its festering contents to the tip,

 

 

 

In September 2014 It did another long distance chassis collection run, this time to the East riding of Yorkshire, that time it was for a rebel chassis:

 

 

 

And in October Dave drove it as support vehicle when I tried to drive a newly aquired straight 6 scimitar GT home from bexhill...

 

[coalnotdole]

By this point the engine fitted in 2012 had done about 30,000 miles, one Friday in November 2014 I took the van into work and it unexpectedly cut out on the way into the carpark and no amount of coaxing would get it to restart. I pushed it into a parking space and went to work my shift. After work at 11:30pm to my surprise it restarted. It sounded a bit rough but I decided to chance the 11 miles to home. WCPGW?

It made it from Chichester to Arundel before it cut out again. A coworker spotted me and gave me a lift home and I left the van in a layby that night. I went back the following morning and again it started from cold. This time though there was a definite knock. Something inside the engine was no longer happy... It still drove home under its own power (just.)

I swapped the engine for a spare 'good' 850 I'd bought £60 a year or so before as a backup. The replacement engine was quite gutless compared to the old one and did not really fill me with confidence, As a result I did not use the van much that winter.

That spring I then went on a bit of a tangent, and decided to improve the interior a bit. I think I was trying to regain my enthusiasm for it a bit… The plan was to touch up the speckeled paintwork on the inside, fit some sound insulation and then make some carpets.

The rest of this post is as written in April 2015 and first appeared in the news 24 thread.

Rebel Van interior work.

I started off by touching up the remaining bits that needed a second coat of speckled paint, overspray areas get hidden behind either the headlining, side pannels or rubber matting to go on boot floor.

















Anti vibration pads,



I then started to cut and fit the insulation,





I then moved onto the carpet, This is a really time consuming job as each piece has to be cut to suit before gluing in. The bulkhead section has all been glued in, the gearbox tunnel is only dry fitted as it needs some edge trim sewing on before it can be stuck down. All the pedals had to be removed the old air vent covers drilled off etc. Sorry about the state of these pics the light was fading as I took them.









Unfortunately I've now run out of tufted carpet.... I've got some more but its a different style much shorter and less traditional. I still need to do two more big panels in the footwells and a small section around the doors, as well as leave enough to create to overcarpets. I'm in two minds as to wether to order some more matching carpet or just say sot it an fit the stuff I've got....

Heres a comparison photo:



Tomorrow I'm expecting the rubber matting for the boot to arrive and I might try to get the headlining fitted!

[coalnotdole]

2015 Retrim Continued:

Few more photos of the rebel van retrim... I spent most of this morning re doing the carpets in synthetic rather than tufted which was what I'd cut out yesterday. I've not got enough of either to finish the job so I'll have to order more and the synthetic is miles cheaper and bearing in mind its a van and gets used hard i think its going to be a better choice than tufted wool.







I'm now at the stage where I'm ready to think about stitching some edging. There will be a vinyl edge on the gearbox tunnel at the front, and at the back



I've not quite decided how this will work as it doesn't look as straight forward as the red rebel because the rear seat aperture is a different shape, Heres How it looks on the red rebel:



I've reached a stage with the carpets and I'm probably going to have to wait until the extra carpet I've ordered arrives before they can be finished off.

So instead I fitted a headlining, this would have been an optional extra on the van, but standard on estate Rebels.





Finally this rubber matting arrived today, so tomorrows task will be to buy a new sheet of ply and remake the load floor.

[coalnotdole]

2015 Retrim Continued:

 

The van carpet re-trim is taking longer than I'd wanted as I just dont seem to be finding the time to get the work done...

That said Its progressed a bit it now has all the stuck down carpets fitted, and the over carpets have been cut,

This photo shows the overcarpets cut to size with the heel pad test fitted.




The gearbox tunnel carpet has been glued into place, Its in two sections with the main section being edged in vinyl. This is a deviation from how Reliant did it as they created gearbox tunnel carpets but stitching 3 sections together with seams along the edges of the tunnel. Edged carpets seem to be an easy way to create a factory look to non standard carpets, There are one or two mistakes made but on the whole I don't think its turned out too badly.




The photo above also shows a new stainless smiths heater vent (currently hanging loose!)

I've also stitched the edges of some other sections of carpet for neatness and longevity, eg this bit just above the seat-belt mount. I did these bits but I must confess I outsourced the stitching of the overcarpets to a professional seamstress! I'll get to those later...!



and on the other side:



I've trial fitted this rear bench seat, It was an optional extra on the van though this van never had one originally. The original load floor had been cut up by another owner I thought about replacing the plywood load floor but have decided to fit the rear seat as I've got one available.




The backrest section is a bit damaged but I'm probably not going to do anything about it as its too much hassle to pull the seat apart, bearing in mind this is a van I use to move engines, car parts and other assorted tat. I'll keep an eye out for a set of period seat covers which will hopefully cover a multitude of minor and major imperfections in the upholstery.



The overcapet edging was finished today and I was able to get them fitted in place, The carpet lifts around the brake and clutch pedals to allow access to top up the master cylinder's.



Passenger side:



Rear footwell:



The next step will be to refit the seat supprorts, and bolt the drivers seat in again. I've ordered the fabric for the rear side panels and the rear seat needs some hinges making before it can be fitted. once thats in the rubber matting for the load area can be glued in. I've got s new set of door cards to go in too. If its quiet enough after all that I can think about fitting a period radio....!

[coalnotdole]

May 2015 I'd more or less finished the interior work:

 

Rebel Van news; The impending trip to the spring autojumble next week has prompted me to pull my finger out and try and get it finished to a sage where it can go back into regular use. Its barely moved in the last month as its had no seats!

Last weekend Dave was able to finish off the hinge brackets for the rear seat. I was missing a set for this seat but before blue estate was sold we remembered to make up a template. The parts to do this job had been sat in a box since then waiting for the time to sort them out and make up the hinge.

These photos show the reliant hinge and the card template used to replicate it.







The seat folding mechanism is actually quite a clever bit of design as both the base section and rear move in order to give a completely flat load space. I suspect Reliant were well ahead to the trend when it came to fitting features like this in the 60's.

The rear seat was a factory option on the van but included as standard on the higher priced estate.

With the ply load floor removed you can see that all the mounting for the seat are already in place.



Here's a pair of the new hinges after Dave had finished welding them up,



Base section fitting:







Floor mounting point:



Backrest fitted:



Over the last couple of days I've spent a bit of time doing some of the outstanding jobs, Backrest catches have been fitted for the rear seats, the drivers door has been off for some grp repairs to the area around the lower hinge as a result it no longer sounds like cracking fibreglass every time you open the drivers door!

Its been treated to new door seals, the sun visors have been painted and refitted but the drivers side one has very poor paint finish and needs redoing at some point. I've fitted some new rubber matting to the load area which is a more practical alternative to carpet.

Heres an assortment of photos:









Its also been treated to Door cards!





I've even given it a polish...



The roof rack has gone back on in preparation for the spring autojumble next week. I've still got to get a set of tyres fitted to a new set of wheels in the week which will mean the 13's on the front can go back on the crossflow.

[binhoker668]

Love your threads chief.  Detailed and picture laden.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Fantastic work! I like a Rebel

[vulgalour]

I'd seen the updates in News on this little van but seeing it all together like this really shows how much work you've done on it.  Interior looks excellent now and that's a very good deployment of black duct tape to sort that back seat out.

 

Did you find out what was wrong with the old engine?

[Exiled_Tat_Gatherer]

That is a cracker! Fantastic thing. Once again I'm shamed by the work you put in. That shade of blue looks great on it too.

The one in front on that pic yours too? I may have missed it as i scrolled through drooling.

[dollywobbler]

Two Rebel vans! It's almost too much. Love how many miles you've covered in it.

[plasticvandan]

I thought you sold it,it was up for sale for a while. Happy memories of my Rebel van,it was incredibly needy in the maintenance department,but as I may have accidentally disconnected the odometer gear from the Speedo I'm not entirely sure how many miles i did!

[bezzabsa]

looks a lovely place to pootle around country lanes in.......very Mini van - ish in side profile...or possibly 1100/1300 ???

 

 

 

maybe it's just me then!!

[coalnotdole]

I'd seen the updates in News on this little van but seeing it all together like this really shows how much work you've done on it.  Interior looks excellent now and that's a very good deployment of black duct tape to sort that back seat out.

 

Did you find out what was wrong with the old engine?

 

The interior in 2018 isnt quite as fresh as it was then, gravity is happening to the headlining and the rubber matting in the back turned out not to be that hard waring. pretty minor issues really.

 

Sadly I've struggled to find any pictures of that engine during the post mortem. When it came apart we discovered it had spun the big ends on the two middle con rods, the center main bearing was also quite worn. the outer bearings were pretty good. No definative cause really.

 

Hard driving alone could possibly have have caused it, the failiure is similar to the kind seen by 750 racers using the Relaint engine. In racing applications they reccomend the center main baring is strapped to prevent the crank from flexing at high rpm. (the reliant engine only has 3 main bearings.) The flywheel was also a heavier early type which would not have been balanced to the engine. 

 

Its also possible I wasnt dilligent enough at keeping the oil level at the full mark, It never went below the bottom mark on the dipstick but its possible that there could have been some oil starvation during hard cornering. There were a number of factory service bullitens issued for the 850cc engine stressing the need to maintian the oil level at the full level.

 

That is a cracker! Fantastic thing. Once again I'm shamed by the work you put in. That shade of blue looks great on it too.

The one in front on that pic yours too? I may have missed it as i scrolled through drooling.

 

Yeah thats mine as well: http://autoshite.com/topic/15064-a-1600gt-crossflow-engined-reliant-rebel-now-with-mot/ Its currently festering in a lockup garage waiting for me to either finish some of the cars I have at here or get offloaded onto my mate Dave and sent to live on the IOW.

 

Two Rebel vans! It's almost too much. Love how many miles you've covered in it.

 

At one point In 2014-16 I actually owned 3 Rebel Vans at once, including a project bodyshell with a dissolved chassis that Dave bought on ebay for £26. That really was one too many!

 

Rebel wise I've owned

 

3 Vans, - 1 Sold as a Restoration Project. 2 are Still with me, ORJI and this blue one.

1 Estate, -  Sold As a roadworthy runner,

1 Saloon - Dave's car now on the IOW.

 

looks a lovely place to pootle around country lanes in.......very Mini van - ish in side profile...or possibly 1100/1300 ???

I've always thought of them as similar in looks to a Mini van, The rebel is actually a fair bit bigger and has a more useful loadspace. The rebel was a bit of a sales flop for Relaint really. They failed to adequetly market it and lacked the production capacity to build it in volume. Rebel van production ended in 1973 but it wasn't until 1976 that the kitten van was avilable as an alternative.

[coalnotdole]

I thought you sold it,it was up for sale for a while. Happy memories of my Rebel van,it was incredibly needy in the maintenance department,but as I may have accidentally disconnected the odometer gear from the Speedo I'm not entirely sure how many miles i did!

 

Dan this one was up for sale for a while, Hopefully cover that a bit more in a future post.

 

The side panels that were fitted to this van were made using the measurements taken from your van, while routing through my rebel photos I came across a few photos I took of your van from January 2012:

 

 

 

 

Both pictures and the dimentions were invaluable and really should have featured in the earlier post about panel

 

making. Have you kept tabs on your old van? is it still on the road?

[plasticvandan]

Yes it is still on the road,I've twice had the chance to buy it back,but I've always felt having a car back is like going back to an ex girlfriend.

[coalnotdole]

 having a car back is like going back to an ex girlfriend.

 

Depends how much you liked her first time round I suppose.

[coalnotdole]

A festering Van: The Story continues:

Shortly after the retrim It became clear that there was something up with my £60 engine, It started to run hot and chucked coolant out of the radiator cap. A compression test showed nothing too far wrong but still the system kept pressurising. In the end I took the head off and sent it to banda engineering in Portsmouth for a skim. 



While the head was away I noticed the waterpump was actually leaking (faultfinding fail!) 



Heres a picture of the offending £60 engine, notice how nasty the engine bay looks after having oil and coolant chucked all over it…







A new waterpump and a refitted head later and it was finally driveable, It still lacked the power and refinement of the old engine but it was usable enough, At this point I finally had a working van. So naturally I decided I wanted to sell it...


My motivation for the sale was based on feeling like I had too many vehicles on the go, In 2014-15 I made a string of bad car purchases all of which needed lots of work and I was suffering from having too many projects and not enough time.


It was advertised for about 6 months at a very speculative £3200. It generated a bit of interest and a couple of deals were put together but both fell through for one reason or another. I'm on the south coast and for some reason rebel fanciers are all many miles away... distance was a factor for both buyers.

Heres a reminder of the for sale photos:




















As it turned out it was still with me at the end of 2015, While it was for sale I’d not used it that much, at the start of 2016 I dropped the price a bit and readvertised it, Eventually I agreed a sale for £2500 and I took a £200 deposit on it. At the last minute the buyer changed his mind and messed me around...

I was offered £2000 for it several times but at the time I was convinced it was worth a touch more. This was in part based on getting £1800 for the rebel estate I sold a few years ago… I thought as this van was in MUCH better condition it should have been worth a bit more? Logic clearly has no place in the emotive classic car market I guess. I also ran foul of tighter eBay selling rules an automated system repeatedly took exception to my description… In the end I gave up let most of the adverts lapse.


By spring 2016 the van was on occasional lockup duty and was being used as a handy shed. Its use was occasional at best. The MOT in April 2016 shows I did just 303 miles since the last test in 2015.

As the year wore on the £60 engine became increasingly oil hungry, it was a bit smokey and seemingly wept oil from every gasket. I took it on a trip to Chichester to pickup some SS1 alloy wheels for Dave. It consumed so much oil that had gone from full to the bottom mark on the dipstick in 14 miles.
Fortunately the seller of the wheels donated some oil (5W/30!) and it made it home! but my faith in the engine was shaken.

By August 2016 The Scimitar was off the road for its EFI engine upgrade and I resorted to borrowing my dads 2.0 Jaguar x type to get to work. Using the rebel van only when no other vehicle was available! It mainly sat there undriven though on occasion my nephews liked using it as a play area...





The 2017 MOT showed that I’d only done another 373miles in the van, I was still using it occasionally as a proper van, on one trip it bought a replacement Scimitar nose section home after the GTE had hit a deer. The repair section was unused in the end…



The Van continued to be my vehicle of last resort to get to work through the rest of 2017. I was increasingly aware that the engine wasn’t in the best of health. Yet I continued to rely on it… By this point my faith in the cheap engine had totally evaporated. Wherever I parked it leached oil like the Torrey Canyon, despite my efforts to replace the most culpable gaskets and seals. By now I was borrowing my dad’s X type again as the GTE was off road with engine troubles. I generally only used the Van when there was no other vehicle available…

Heres a photo of the offending x type / rebel van... Remember summer 2017 when it rained?





In November 2017, I was driving home from work and the van’s engine began to give the knock of death a mile form home…

It died just as I was pulling up and I pushed it into a parking space amd I left it there untouched until the start of this year…

[Marm Toastsmith]

Love this van... I remember wanting it badly when you listed it for sale, and thinking it very good value given the work you'd done on it. Sorry to hear it's no longer a runner, but glad to see that it's still in safe hands.

[Skut]

Do like a Rebel. That extra wheel compared to most other small Reliants makes all the difference. It's the kind of car I'd poibtlessly daydream about engine swapping a K series into without having the financial or technical wherewithal to do it.

[DeeJay]

I'm sure a friend put a Herald engine in a Robin (It's 40 odd years ago so a little vague.)

[Mally]

And me! I don't even need it to run I have a trailer.

[tooSavvy]

You have all seen the Cosworth Kitten? [Trrbo delete] ?

[coalnotdole]

It is now running, MOT'd and on the road. I've got a half writen post about the engine rebuild saved on my desktop...

 

I would consider selling it, I'm not using it enough. I've considered some kind of autoshite joint ownership scheme for it too where. I continue to own a stake in it and It goes off to other homes.... I'm just not entirely sure how to stucture such a group.

 

I'll try and sort out the engine rebuild photos...

[plasticvandan]

I've got the money and a reliant shaped hole in my life,but remember my van as being the most labour intensive car I've ever owned,mine wasn't in great shape to start with,but the spannering never stopped!its what stopped me buying it back a few years ago.

[plasticvandan]

Ahh bollocks I'm going to put my name down,saves me having to change my username!

[Rocket88]

Combien, Monsieur Dole...?

[oldcars]

Love these. Looking forward to reading more about the engine rebuild.

[plasticvandan]

This was mine

[Minimad5]

You're a legend.

Fancy taking my chassis, body and other bits and screwing mine back together ?

 

Keep the updates coming

[UltraWomble]

I think its a lovely looking practical vehicle.