project 1980 Austin Princess

[Ghosty]

 

 

There's a vague look of 'gasser' about this and it's giving me silly ideas... Even if they are FWD.

In all seriousness though, it's looking great!

[Asimo]

More cool than a cool thing.....

[stuboy]

looking great!!!!!!!!!!!!

[vulgalour]

After completely failing to DIY refit the tyre that I'd managed to pop off the wheel, I took it to my local friendly tyre place to see if they could help.  They could, took all of two seconds and cost me the grand total of nothing.  The chap that sorted the tyre was very complimentary about the wheels too, as everyone that sees them seems to be.  I didn't get as far as jiggling with suspension settings on the back because after sorting the tyre and giving the car a much needed proper wash to get the deadly winter muck off I'm left with little daylight to work in, as is usual for this time of year.

 

The weird ride height is now resolved with the steel wheel back in the boot where it belongs.  I will still try and find the time to sort out the rear arms, but since there's no issues driving the car at all at the current settings I'm not in a rush.  The new wheels are quieter on all but the roughest road surfaces, the car stops considerably better and goes around corners like it's glued to the tarmac.  So not only are they a nice aesthetic improvement, they're a massive driving improvement too.

 

 

 

 

The car itself seems a lot healthier.  Temperature guage seems to stick at 1/4 and go no higher.  Engine idles much quieter and is far more willing to go from a standstill, I'm using about half the amount of pedal I used to for the same effect.  Fuel economy seems much the same, not really better or worse.  I'm not consuming oil or water, several smells that used to come into the cabin through the air vents that I'd considered to be 'old car smells' have disappeared.  I don't have to run up and down the gearbox so much when I'm in traffic and more often than not I can get the car up into fourth and leave it there, where it seems happy to stay, where before I'd be hopping in and out of third just to keep things smooth.  This all makes the driving experience much more relaxing and inspires greater confidence.

 

I am yet to go on the motorway to get a feel for the car post head gasket fix and alloys but I have had it up to 50mph on some of the back roads around here and experienced absolutely nothing untoward.  I keep marvelling at how different this car is to drive than when I bought it, I do feel like my effort and money spent is being rewarded and that in turn makes me more willing to reward the car with more effort and money as and when I can.

 

Really, I could leave the car as it is now and probably have no problems at all for a good long while, but I'd rather continue to work through the niggles, the following are what I'm aware of:

 

> Dashboard switches - Need cleaning, they're 98% reliable but I think there's some mucky contacts

> Radio & Speakers - Radio needs fitting properly, I can do this when the dash comes out for the switches.  Need to swap the old BL speakers out for some better Lexus ones I have to match up with the radio better.

> Rear suspension - Need to reset the trim level and double check torque settings since doing the sphere

> Brakes - Bleeding required.  Brakes are very effective, but a bleed wouldn't hurt.

> Handbrake - Needs adjusting, again.  Doesn't always work properly and I'm still not sure why.

> Fan/Temperature switch - cooling fan is permanently on with ignition and has been for a while, I need to find out why.

> Headlights - Need adjusting, but resetting the rear suspension may mean they don't.

> Interior - Still have interior trim to swap to finish off the paler interior that's going in.

> Paint - yeah... I need to sort that when the weather gets better

> Rust Protection - ongoing, as usual, but not too bad at the moment.

 

I think I'm over the worst of the problems now, regular maintenance and tinker time should see this car sorted fairly easily now, I hope.

[Bobthebeard]

You are a hero! Much respect!

[cms206]

That looks the fucking bollocks.

I'm off to the bog, I won't be long...

[Spiny Norman]

Still one of the best reads on the whole forum this thread, love it on the new wheels, keep it up VL.

[drum]

They fill the arches nicely. If I had smilies, I would give you the thumbs up.

 

The off side front wing looks a bit rippled or is that my eyes?

 

That scoop Car article I scanned in described the mystery car as "unusually stylish" . Quite right too.

[vulgalour]

The rippled wing is the one I straightened with hammers and a Maestro.  It still needs more work but now is not the time to be doing it.  I've got used to it now, I don't really notice it anymore.

[Mr Livered]

Looking fantastic Mr V. Really really good. It's probably my favourite Autoshiter's car.

[mercrocker]

I think its the very spririt of Autoshite, both as a vehicle (in that colour) and as a symbol of dogged determination.   There should be a medal of some kind (maybe a specially minted* beige BL roundel mounted on a Supercover windscreen sticker)

[Twiggy]

^^^^^^^

 

+1

[barefoot]

the wheels are 4 winnahs

 

I can't believe that they are quite so spectacular.

 

I've found, since being a bit regular on here that my attitude towards aftermarket/alternative wheels has changed quite dramatically.

I'd never even have thought about looking at wheels from a Lotus.

 

Well done Sir.

[Rocket88]

Would look great on colour coded Minilites, but the Lotus wheels are very "Space 1999".

[Guest Breadvan72]

This thread is like the bumper Christmas Special edition of Razzle circa 1979, except even better.

[wackywacerwill]

Check it looking all sporty like, well done that man.

 

Sent from my commode using crapatalk

[garethj]

When I had my Ginetta G26 I was after the same kind of Lotus wheels, they look DA NAILZ on wedge shaped cars.

 

A Princess, in beige, with Lotus wheels is the Autoshite version of a triple orgasm.  If it had a K Series in there it would probably be a squirter as well.

[beko1987]

Quote of the thread for me right here - "The rippled wing is the one I straightened with hammers and a Maestro."

[vulgalour]

Would look great on colour coded Minilites.

 

You wash your mouth out!

[drum]

Wonder if I could get wheels like this for the allegro...

[vulgalour]

You could.  Prices vary, I think I paid £120-130 for my set of four with reasonable tyres.  I'm after a fifth wheel to have as a proper spare.  You really do need the proper Lotus wheel nuts too, and they can be a bit of a bugger to find but I'd be happy to pass on the details for where I bought mine if/when you need that.  You don't need spigot rings and shouldn't need spacers for the Allegro.

 

Prices seem to yo-yo, I bought mine at what I thought was a fair price but I've seen sets go for £200+ in similar condition and £100 for painted ones without tyres.  There are other Eclat and Elite wheels you can get too, these would, I think, look better on the Allegro than the ones I've got and they're the same fitment.  Can't remember whether or not they're staggered as a proper set though.

 

 

[Mr_Bo11ox]

^^^^^ I've got a mint set of those with good tyres

[drum]

VA, you should be a consultant for pimping cars the autoshite way. That pic you did of the black allegro estate was the dog's hairy balls.

[drum]

^^^^^ I've got a mint set of those with good tyres

I hear they're currently retailing at £5 a corner.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Oh dear, I've been bummed then I think, can't remember how much I paid but it was more than that

[Mr Livered]

VA, you should be a consultant for pimping cars the autoshite way. That pic you did of the black allegro estate was the dog's hairy balls.

Ace idea. Shiters who were short of ideas could employ you to provide a "Shite My Ride" service, whereby you would provide artists impressions of how their car could look with some modifications. A bit like they do with photoshop on RR.

[vulgalour]

I'd be like Boyd Coddington but with Crayolas and that never ending stripey green-and-white daisy wheel printer paper.

[PhilA]

 

 

 

 

CliveWagerfield-EM by renault9gta, on Flickr

 

 

A BL choke symbol on each corner. I approve.

[vulgalour]

It would appear my ball joints have worn out, a problem that has become more apparent since doing the head gasket and restoring a good amount of power, torque and efficiency to the engine.  I've had a read through the manual and tried to find info online but as usual, information is fairly scarce.  It would also appear that replacing ball joints is not a job you usually have to do on a Princess so I'll chalk that one up as yet another odd thing this car has thrown at me.  I wouldn't mind, but I've just spent a pile of money and effort sorting the engine and the suspension out so I could do without this.

 

Symptoms - Car pulls right when accelerating from a standstill or at anything more than gradual pace.  Car pulls left when decelerating (but not braking).

 

I'd put this down to the additional torque from the engine, but it's gradually getting worse and having passed the wheel to my brother he concurs that it's very much like the Fords he's driven that have needed ball joints replacing.  There's no bangs or squeaks, knocks or rattles, just this abnormal pulling behaviour.  There's no play in the steering and the tracking is good, there's no other untoward sensations to hint at any other problem.

 

My theory is that by fixing various bits on the car it's put stress on a weaker component which has caused it to fail as it now has to work properly, this seems to be the theme of pushing a neglected car back into service.

 

Has anyone out there done ball joints on one of these cars?  The book makes it seem like an intimidating job of special tools and internet prices for ball joints ranges from £7-£60 each and when you need four to do the job that could be very expensive indeed.

 

Feeling a bit disappointed about it, really, but I'll get it done.  I'm just after a bit of advice from those with experience.

[plasticvandan]

has this problem appeared after fitting the aftermarket wheels?

have you actually jacked up the car and rocked the wheels/steering to check?