ShiteRiders' fleet. The vectard edition.

[ShiteRider]

For lack of updates i'll make this posts pic heavy.

Tip of the fucking iceberg.......

 

 

[ShiteRider]

A badly fitted previous over sill had caused that, the i started poking at other bits :-C

[HMC]

Great progress! Looks a really tidy repair, is the other side in a similar state?

[ShiteRider]

The only upside was a '79 10 pence piece fell out of the quarter (the old big type).

[ShiteRider]

The other side was worse, i couldn't be arsed taking pictures. Then the steering rack went fucked, by went i mean it was never great but it moved from vague to akin to white water rafting in a bath tub.

So it ended up multi coloured.

[ShiteRider]

I banged it in for it's MOT which it failed on pretty much everything suspension related, so i flipped the aforementioned 10 pence............yet another thing it failed. So it got relegated to bumper rack/rape victim.

 

I did the only sensible thing and bought something even more fucked, but xud powered.

Veg friendly?

[ShiteRider]

I decided, after seeing everyone enjoying there old shite/prized classics i'd get one of mine back on the road.

Some of the newer members may not know this car, but it baled me out the shit in the bad winter of '12. 24,000 miles from new never welded and all it's original panels, only problem being everything else on is vintage 1982 as well.

[Lacquer Peel]

Berlingo not veg friendly, I think that's a DW8 engine.

[ShiteRider]

Water pump seized. Stripped cleaned, new belt+tensioner, thermostat, and reset valve clearances. Now runs like a sewing machine, sadly it has the power to match.

[ShiteRider]

Cheers laquer peel, diesels aren't really my forte. I'm not even sure why i bought it my cortina estate makes the tardis look like an empty match box.

[ShiteRider]

The beige knicker dropper was meant to go for it's MOT on friday. Things did not go well........

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

So the blue Cortina is now scrap after all the welding?

 

Seems harsh.

 

The beige one may be a German built one - from my days as a trader 25 + years ago, the words 'Ford Werke' in the VIN were good news. British and Belgian built ones were shit, rotten after 6-7 years.

[ShiteRider]

Sorry for the minor cliff hanger, needed a piss.

I managed around fifty yards, before i had an issue. I got to the edge of the yard and as i pressed the brake the peddle dropped half way before trying to launch me through the screen. Thinking the m/c had gone, i pumped the brakes and it stayed the same. I knocked the engine off and tried again and got a solid peddle, so i fired her up and it was the same before, except i noticed the engine bogged down when the peddle was going soft.

So i figured vac leak. I checked the one way valve in the servo, all good, i checked the pipe work from the servo to the inlet manifold,also fine.

It was now time for magic potion (wd40), i let her tick over and gently pressed the brake to the point were the engine was struggling and started spraying. When i got to the back of the servo unit the revs picked up again, specfically where the actuator rod passes through the rubber boot.

The seal in the servo had gone, arsebiscuits.........

[ShiteRider]

So the blue Cortina is now scrap after all the welding? Seems harsh. The beige one may be a German built one - from my days as a trader 25 + years ago, the words 'Ford Werke' in the VIN were good news. British and Belgian built ones were shit, rotten after 6-7 years.

Blue one isn't scrap at all, it's just donated it's oily bits. The constant uncertainty is would complete a journey meant i was either going to fuck it off completely or keep it and strip it and do it properly. It's still here......

I'm not sure of the beige ones' origin, the VIN decoder on the bsc site says it's a dagenham built car, and yet it says "Hans is a wanker" in flemish on the inside of the drivers door casing. (i put a new regulator in three years ago).

[ShiteRider]

Servo pictures! Yay!

This is where the original was leaking from.

Amazingly rust free was a pleasant surprise.

Nicked the servo off the smurf, which was also surprisingly rust free.....sadly only in this one specific area.

[ShiteRider]

Cleaned up the new/old servo, fitted it up and t'would appear i now have fully functional brake system.

There's maybe £200k in motors in the background.

And then on my side of the workshop, maybe £2k....

And as i was taking this more premo shite was getting dropped off.

[ShiteRider]

The highlight of the day though was this after three years of constant wd40 and fiddling i've finally got the aerial up.

BOOM! Achievement unlocked!

[sloth]

i applaud this. tinas are a great car.

 

did yo know the oz ones got a 4.1 straight six?

[ShiteRider]

I can haz clean sheet!

[HMC]

Congratulations! No Advisories either. Textbook.

[ShiteRider]

I've nicked an idea from a fellow owner of beige chod, Vulgalour.

My plasti-chrome gutter trims are brittle, cracked and discoloured so i've experimented with aluminium tape.

From ten feet they look mint, but up close they are a little shite. This was mainly down to my ham fisted aplication leaving little wrinkles here and there.

 

[ShiteRider]

Now that the blonde clunge magnet is road legal, it's time to move onto another turn of mine........

[ShiteRider]

First thing was to was give it a good going over, to see how viable it'd to have it on the road next month (for the first time in my ownership) left rear sill end

[ShiteRider]

Right rear sill end. Looks like this would have been too bad if the last guy had undersealed it.

[ShiteRider]

Front corners/lower A posts. Not to bad really, i've done more welding on 10 year old micras/ford kaks

[ShiteRider]

Considering both me and the previous owner have left it out in the open for months, even years at a time i think it's done alright. It runs well, it blows on the offside exhaust manifold and the idle is little high but other wise wants nothing other than service.

Suspension wise, visually there seems nothing too amiss. No cracked springs, split bushes or perished boots.

Brakes, on the short run around the yard, arrest progress to suitable degree. I'll still flush the fluid and change the pads and shoes, and give everything a good strip and clean up.

I thought i'd taken more oily bits pictures.

Finned drums.....not seen this on any other cortina or capri i've had. Aftermarket or V6 specific?

[ShiteRider]

Sorry if these posts are a little heavy on pics and light on words/detail.

Lower body rot, this is mainly cosmetic and will receive minimal repairs to save time....er, i mean maintain patina.

Rear lower panel, with previous repair visible after a blast with the steam cleaner

[ShiteRider]

Lower arches , doors and sills.

[HMC]

As you say, that estate hasnt faired too badly at all really. Do you know much of its history?

[ShiteRider]

The wings and front panel are super crusty but surprisingly solid, i do have a couple of pairs of spare wings but none in matching colours and i've a feeling if i pull them off they'll take the ends of the front panel with them.