Project Meg the Visa.

[HillmanImp]

Was it? Oh dear. Still did not push up the price too much. Its still a cheap car even if it is £20 more Than it should have been.

[Junkman]

I'm glad you have it. Maybe you get tired of it one day.

[Spiny Norman]

Top shiteing, always good to get a wad of proper personal history with a car rather than just a little pile of receipts and an oily Haynes manual.

I nearly bought a Visa once, one of the early ones with the grey plastic nose, quite a fun wee car to drive from what I recall, like a smoother and faster Renault 6.

[Partridge]

What a lovely write up. The history makes it that much more interesting. I hope all turns out well.

[HillmanImp]

Well......progress on Meg has been slower than expected.

 

It was kept in tax exile until the first of October as I was not going to tax it for just a few days and a new tax disc was picked up on Friday from the Dooovla offices.

 

I knew the exhaust had a 'blow' but when I looked underneath the front pipe was pretty borked and covered in exhaust clag and also had a bad blow from the middle box too despite the rest of the centre section looking in quite good condition. I looked online managed to get hold of both sections for £60 which seemed reasonable enough for me to just buy them without looking around and got them delivered to work.

 

Meg is currently sat in a garage about 7 miles away from my house so on Saturday morning, i gathered up all the tools that I needed and took them over. The exhaust came off easily with the exception of one nut that rounded but that even came off aster a short while with a little persuasion.  

 

It was at this point that I encountered my first problem.

 

 

The flange on the pipe had no means to come off as there was some sort of brace on the pipe that was not going to move stopping the flange coming off. So I had to go home, pick up my angle grinder and come back. When I got back I realised I had forgotten my extension cable. Much cursing ensued mainly about why didn't I just take the pipe back and cut it at mine instead of bringing the ange grinder to me. Thinking this was a good idea I headed home and cut the pipe, sat down, had a beer and some super noodles and headed back over to Meg WITHOUT THE FUCKING FLANGE WHICH WAS THE ENTIRE REASON I WAS BACK AT MY HOUSE IN THE FUCKING FIRST PLACE! FUCK!

 

Thankfully I was only about half way there when I realised which probably saved me having an aortic aneurysm and I simply headed back and picked it up taking a few deep breaths.

 

Once back I managed to get all the exhaust together and hung properly ableit only provisionally with nothing tightened up. So i went to tighten up the front pipe. This is where I encountered my second problem. The old bolts that held the flanges in place were old and the thread had rusted. This meant that there was no way of tightening them back up. Not a big problem, I can get some new bolts from a motor factors and simply replace them and so packed up for the day and went out for a few beers. 

 

So yesterday I went and bought a new fitting kit from town. I headed over to Meg after work, pulled off the front pipe from where it was provisionally fitted ready to be tightened and removed one of the bolts. When I went to remove the other bolt this happened:

 

 

That is as far that the bolt will go in any direction until it hits something. The flange it fits into will not budge. Therefore after a discussion with Volksy over the phone last night I think I am going to have to rethread it and try fitting a smaller bolt with a washer or something on it and hope that works before I dismantle the whole fucking car in order to remove this one sodding bolt.

 

So basically I am still soley responsible for keeping the Grangemouth Refinery open as I am still using the Audi as a daily driver. I will hopefully have a slighty better update on Meg in the next few days.

[ruffgeezer]

I've very much fancied trying out an old Visa ever since I took on Ruffgeezer's old C15 (which I love). Hope you enjoy it.

Stop rubbing it in you bugger!

 

Well bought that man, I've often fancied a Visa, it's awkward looks are oddly alluring.

 

Let me know of you need any bits, I'm sure there are a few odds and bods for Visas at work.

[KruJoe]

LOL H_IMP UR A FLANGE

[eddyramrod]

I do love a good collection thread.  Nice to get all that history too!  I have hardly any with my fleet.    Good luck with it.

[SambaS]

I greatly dislike any job that involves me doing it at the moment, but especially fitting exhausts onto these things!

[catsinthewelder]

I was quite tempted to lob a bid on that but the thought of having two light blue E reg Citroens with irritating exhaust woes at once makes me glad that I didn't.

 

If you have any bother getting those bolts give me a shout,  I bought some for the BX that I didn't need.

[HillmanImp]

I have the bolts thanks but think that I am going to try re-threading the one that's already there before I try and replace it as its going to be a right pig getting it out. 

 

I did not think that fitting an exhaust would be such a total pain in the arse. If I had known that I would probably have reclagged it. But I did say I wanted something small and French so I only have myself to blame and like I say, I am going to be using this as my daily so need to make sure its done right. Been out to the pub tonight so will dig out my tap and die set tomorrow and head back over and give it go before I consider sorting properly and rapping my knuckles on various bits of engine.

 

SambaS, have you dealt with these before. Any tips on when the re thread inevitably goes wrong? 

[cort16]

Just weld it on you know this is the correct* solution

[HillmanImp]

Just weld it on you know this is the correct* solution

 

I did wonder about just using a small bolt and ignoring the springs but it was agreed that they did not design it like that for shits and giggles and it probably needs to be a spring clip to give some flexibility? Not sure but I suppose it cant hurt* if all else fails rather than do any proper taking stuff apart shizzle.

 

 

*will probably bork it

[SambaS]

Don't remember having trouble getting the bolt out once undone... it kind of begs the question how did it get there in the first place?

 

But the location of the manifold makes it a right fuck on to do.. and the bolt sits in a recess just enough to make getting a 10mm spanner on it nigh on impossible from most of the angles you have to work at.

 

2 fitting kits, hours scouring the web for a wire mesh gasket that it turns out DOS NOT EXIST, and my exhaust is still blowing from this join.

[SambaS]

Here's my manifold with the engine out, this is the 1360cc suitcase. I wonder if you have a different manifold to mine.

 

 

[alf892]

Isn't just the heatshield stopping it going up and out?

 

If not can't you cut the old bolt out and then fit new with bolts going up (nuts on top) instead of down?

[DSdriver]

Re Visa by DSdriver, on Flickr

[HillmanImp]

Isn't just the heatshield stopping it going up and out?

 

If not can't you cut the old bolt out and then fit new with bolts going up (nuts on top) instead of down?

 

This might work.......

 

However in order to keep the sleeved part of the bolt in the flanges I think I will have to put the springs on upside down assuming they fit that way round. What I can't figure out here is whether or not the spring will do what it's meant to the other way round as illustrated in this picture from the Haynes manual. i.e. give the pipe (illustrated in Pink) some flexibility.

 

 

I really don't suppose it matters which side the spring is on does it? Or does it? I don't know? Its been a long day and other excuses for being dim.

 

I will have a better look at mine when I am over there SambaS. TBH I am probably making a mountain out of a molehill here. I can bodge it well enough but for the first time in my life I thought I would try doing something properly but am quickly finding out that's for chumps and its almost always better to take the easy way out and fudge it together with elastic bands, chemical metal and sheer optimism. 

 

Ta for the help chaps and will give an update when i have made a decision how to bodge it or even do it properly. 

[alf892]

I am guessing that the thick part of the bolt fits through manifold and flange?

 

In which case assemble as your left pic above but with bolts other way up then nuts and flat washers on top. 

 

I reckon you will struggle to get the spring on top anyway....unless you know a pygmy with 6 foot arms and triple jointed fingers

[barefoot]

Are they drawings of cocks?

And if not, why did you do them in pink?

[catsinthewelder]

If it's any help the order on mine was bolthead-washer-spring-tailpipe flange-manifold flange-washer-nut.  and all was well till the pipe rusted out.

[HillmanImp]

Isn't just the heatshield stopping it going up and out?

 

Yes it was.

 

I took a lamp with me today rather than use the light from my phone and it was pretty obvious. Was still a pain in the arse but only took about 10 mins to get on after all that. I then took it for a spin but the exhaust was knocking against the bodywork at the back so adjusted the middle clamp/hanger and its bob on. Whoop.

 

So all is good but once again I have made something simple very complicated. Its not just cars I do this on. At work I will make a simple bit of advice the most complicated convoluted slog of a piece of work and will go round the houses until I step back and realise there is a simple solution.

[myglaren]

I had a Visa 11E a while back.  Bought from a scrapyard, two-tone bodywork - left side silver, right side green (moss).

Wasn't until I had driven it home and was filling in the V5 that I realised it was a Visa and not the AX I had presumed - just shows my acute powers of observation

 

It rattled along for many thousands of miles and nothing serious went wrong with it.  I did have the exhaust to replace but don't recall it being difficult.

 

One morning it refused to start so stupidly instead of trying to fix it I bought something else, possibly the Renault 14.  Left it parked for ages then got fined as the tax had expired

It was comfortable enough and very economical.  Could be surprisingly quick around the corners for such a seemingly ungainly vehicle.

[VAGDave]

Great stuff - saw this today and thought it might be yours...
 
I was picking up a pool car this morning and saw a great looking Visa shoot past as I was exiting the car park.  A split second decision saw me turning in the opposite direction to investigate, but I got held up by some other cars turning in...  By the time I'd reached the Visa you must have just gone into the office! 
 
Erm, so rather embarrassingly, here's another pic of one of your cars... I'm really not trying to stalk you!
 
 
 
By the way, keep an eye out for a couple of Lancia Beta Coupes around there.  A guy who parks near the car I sometimes use has two identical blue ones.  I had a chat with him when I spotted him under the bonnet of one before Christmas.  He must be keen as he's using them through winter - brave stuff in a Beta

[HillmanImp]

That's brilliant! Shame I missed you. 

 

I know the Lancia Coupe's. I moved about a month ago and they now live about 200m away from me. It seems I am as guilty of stalking people as you are 

 

 

There is another one on the drive but this is the only photo I have of it:

 

 

Although looking at it now I think it might actually be the same one. The one in the top two photos had a residents parking permit for Milton Keynes (or somewhere round there) up until recently IIRC and the snowy photo on the drive was taken some time ago before I moved over there so I assumed the top one was a new addition. Maybe they have similar registrations. Will investigate in the next few days.

 

Not seen the owner yet. I don't own the Fulvia Coupe now but I am sure he might have tracked me down if he had seen me floating about in it as he seems like a keen Lancia enthusiast.

[VAGDave]

Ha - glad it's not just me then! 

 

That's the Lancia - what a coincidence.  This appears to be his daily driver, and is solid but a little rough close up.  The other is a minter (although was the one requiring the fixing when I saw the owner).

 

The other one is also a T reg, but has a shorter numberplate IIRC.

[HillmanImp]

I have been using the Visa as my daily driver for a few months now. I really like it, its spot on for tootling to work and back, is comfy and dare I say it, reliable.

 

It got through its MOT with very little issues. As you will have seen in various other threads, I needed a side indicator and Vulgalour managed to track one down in Poland at exactly the same time as I did. The O/S headlight was also a french one but got through the MOT with a couple of beam benders on. Other than that it was fine with an advisory for a couple of new rear tyres and a slight oil leak.

 

Since then I have managed to get hold of a UK spec headlight for the cost of postage from the most excellent Mikee on the Visa Forum who also sent me the trim that was missing from the front.

 

At some point this summer I will sort out the rust on the bonnet but for now have just straightened it up slightly, although its worse than I thought and may have to play with the idea of a new bonnet if I am going to do it right. I need to speak to someone about painting it, if I am going to have to paint the whole bonnet after repairing it I may as well get a better bonnet and paint that but if I can get away with a small area betting painted after a repair, I may as well get it sorted as its only a small part of the bonnet that is fooked.

 

The bumper was not secured properly either as the bash it has had has knocked all the brackets out of whack but I have just cable tied it for now as I am busy with the GT6 more than this but it does look a lot better now:

 

 

Where it has been bashed, the bumper plastic is a little white in places where it has been stressed. Therefore I think I am probably going to have to paint it one weekend. This will also give me the chance to get it reattached properly when I put it back on.

 

I do not have much else to add though as it really has been quite good. Now its getting nicer I might have to fit a stereo so that I can pop on some shades and go CRUZIN' WIV SUM PHAT CHOONS BLUD, a subwoofer and some WIKID DUBSTEP should make me well look the part.

 

[phil_lihp]

Superb, she's looking much better now.  Good to hear it's being well looked after, not so many of these around now.

[HillmanImp]

Superb, she's looking much better now.  Good to hear it's being well looked after, not so many of these around now.

 

Its not really needing much looking after TBH but I feel it deserves a little loving after being used over the winter. I need to track down the oil leak though as it looks like its made a right mess on the drive in that 2nd photo hasn't it. Whoops.

[HillmanImp]

Right, I need to sort out this oil leak. As I am incredibly lazy, I was wondering if it was worth popping some sort of stop leak in it first rather than actually get my hands dirty?

 

Do any of these things work and if so what is the best one?