project 1980 Austin Princess

[overrun]

Yet another picture of all the wonky bulbs. We have all the wrong wattages in all of the wrong places just for testing purposes. Except for the indicators of course.

IMG_0051.JPG

I'm a little confused re the headlamps not working properly now. Series of events is:

-fitted headlamps and backing plates to the car.

- wired up the headlamps correctly and turned them on.

- drivers side worked perfectly up until the inner high beam went up in smoke as it's a crappy sealed beam unit.

-drivers side lamps stopped working.

-passenger side outer lamp (dip/main bowl) lit only as bright as a sidelight bulb does.

-passenger side inner bowl (main only) lit really faintly, looked barely more than a dim orange filament.

-All the lights stopped working at the front!

All of the fuses are good and all of the wiring looks good. No funny smells of burning and no noises at all. I know that the switch is good as it operates the rears no problem. Gut feeling is a really bad earth or something shorting out as the battery drains quickly which I know could be pointing to an earth leak!

Am I missing something obvious? Or is it going to be a case of tracing everything back until I find the fault?

Are you using a multi meter and/or Power Probe? If not, I would.

You should also reterminate the connections and don't be surprised to find the ground wires are black with corrosion.

 

Vulgalour, this really is starting to look great! (Crushed purple velvet) hats off!

[Noel Tidybeard]

That was my original intention.  Unfortunately there's no divider so the fog will bleed into the brake and vice versa and there's no way to really fit one to prevent it because of how they're constructed.  I've got some smart Wipac stainless steel bodied fog lights I can fit, if I tuck them up under the rear valance they shouldn't be too obvious or fussy while still being perfectly legal.

 

but if you use the inner lights just for tail in lower and fog in upper any bleed will be of no consequence- as long as fog is 4"/10cm away from brake lights all is joy

[vulgalour]

That's the thing, I want a brake light in both, it looks better and makes the rear end more visible which it needs.  I've got a smart period pair of Wipac fog lights I can bolt underneath the rear valance that'll do the trick without making a mess of the rear end restyle, they just need a couple of holes drilling and it's job done... providing I can remember where I put them of course.

[ruffgeezer]

Bung a red led bulb in the RH reverse light instead and I reckon you'd probably get away with it.

 

Failing that I bought some of these for the trailer rebuild that are ace:

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-LED-Eagle-Eye-Rear-Backup-Reverse-Fog-Parking-Daytime-Red-Light-Lamp-1-5W-12V-/181428570770?hash=item2a3dfc4a92

[vulgalour]

Chompy and I spent some more time with the Princess today.  A visit to Pirtek with some measurements got us a lovely new hydraulic repair section rated to deal with higher psi than the Princess suspension is under.  It cost about £60, which wasn't too bad considering it's a fully custom piece.

 

We turned it around so the 45 degree bend is at the schrader valve end so that it fits.  You can just about get the original air box on but I'll likely swap it to a smaller air filter of some description, the original is always awkward to deal with.

 

After that was fitted and tightened up we got the suspension reinflated again.  It's likely the suspension will be lifted a little further than this just for the sake of clearance at the front, but we want it to settle out first to make sure it's where it needs to be.

 

 

 

 

We got the car running briefly after having issues with a battery that doesn't want to hold a full charge and the throttle cable sticking fully open.  We used the Picasso to provide more boost to the battery, re-gapped the points, checked the condenser was installed correctly, found we had fuel getting to the carb and spark to the plugs.  However, the car wouldn't run unless we put fuel directly in the carb so it looks like the carb needs cleaning out... again.  Not too surprising, the car has been sat mostly idle for two years.  Bit closer to an MoT at least.

[Rocket88]

This is looking cooler and cooler..................

[320touring]

Cool as FUCK!

[anonymous user]

Those wheels look great on your Harlequin special edition Princess

[320touring]

May I petition for a T series out of a 620ti to be fitted so it has some poke?

[vulgalour]

I've seen someone try it and the chassis rails are in the way quite a lot.  The old 1700 is surprisingly capable, certainly embarrassed a few people in faster more modern cars when I was using it regularly.  There's a good power:weight ratio and bags of torque.

[320touring]

I've seen someone try it and the chassis rails are in the way quite a lot. The old 1700 is surprisingly capable, certainly embarrassed a few people in faster more modern cars when I was using it regularly. There's a good power:weight ratio and bags of torque.

Room for a turbo then?

[vulgalour]

...probably.  But who would do such a thing to such a rare and distinctive classic?  What sort of monster?

[320touring]

...probably. But who would do such a thing to such a rare and distinctive classic? What sort of monster?

LOL!

[Ghosty]

That looks bloody brilliant.

[plasticvandan]

Kind of uneasy seeing it whole,on wheels and at ride height,I've got so used to seeing it full of filler,holes, and sat on its are I've forgot that it used to be a car!

[vulgalour]

You and me both!  It's weird.

[Honey Badger]

That looks epic with tne lotus wheels and the two tone paint.

[Noel Tidybeard]

i wonder if the rear panel would look ok in black á la invalid bloo chavalier?

[Ghosty]

It's just occurred to me how much this car looks like it should be rear wheel drive...

[purplebargeken]

Lights........ ace

 

Wheels....... ace.

 

Colour....... needs more purple.

[stillOrange]

What's the PCD of these lotus wheels?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

It does look far better than I expected. Great stuff!!!!

[phil_lihp]

It looks great, the lower suspension and wheels really suit it and with that and the lack of bumpers somehow the shape looks a lot less awkward than a stock Princess.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

I like the two-tonenesssss of it. Similar to Herr Balls, I had reserved judgement, but like what I see. Get it MOTd and go and ruffle some BL purist feathers!

[Asimo]

Do you need a rear fog? Not a requirement until April 1st 1980.

 

Looking really sharp, Harris Mann would love it I am sure.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

That's coming on nicely, I have to say.

[Felly Magic]

Good progress here, that MOT cannot be far away now

[Angrydicky]

Looking good!

[JohnDeere]

So glad to see it back on its feet like this.  I haven't been 100% sure about the various mods so far - but seeing it come together, I think it's really looking the part. Good paint is going to be vital.  Maybe have an Autoshite whip round crowdfunding for a decent paint job?

[vulgalour]

Thank you for all the positive remarks, makes all the hard work seem worthwhile!  To answer some questions, the PCD of the Lotus wheels is 4x114.3 which is the same as the Princess.  Painting the back panel black a la Vauxhall Cavalier would require more work, there's no bodylines or trim to use as a dividing border for it.  Fog lights are a must have because the car was registered on the 1st of October 1980, missing out on the exemption date by several months.  The MoT list is incredibly short, mostly a case of finishing sorting the lights, stopping that blanking plate leaking and just giving it a check over to make sure everything is working properly.  Whether it passes or not we shall have to wait and see, I shan't be too surprised if it fails on something on the first attempt.

 

The goal was to get it ready for an MoT in time for my birthday at the start of November and it looks like I'm going to achieve that now.  It does mean the car will be potentially road legal just in time for me to not want to use it because of adverse weather and salt which is brilliant timing on my part but at least I can then spend the winter fettling and tidying and that sort of thing to make it the best for when the better weather comes around.