Another shonky Italian motor - Collectioning

[Vin]

As you may be aware, I snapped up the Alfa 156 Sportwagon that Mr Barrett posted up for sale on behalf of his Gaffer...

 

Well I collected it on Tuesday. Sorry for the delay in posting all about it but, other things etc... This collection thread is also gonna be light on pictures. It started out OK, but it just rained so much all day that I gave up as a bad job in the end...

 

Anyway, I got my neighbour to give me a lift to my local station.

 

This is it. Barnetby.

 

 

Anyway, here are some more pictures for you train pervs, as there are still a lot of semaphore signals in this neck of the woods...There are two manned signal boxes to go with them also, Wrawby junction and Barnetby East...

 

 

After about 15 minutes, this turned up to whisk me off to Newark Northgate...

 

 

Waited at Newark for 20 minutes...

 

 

until this arrived to take me to King's Cross...

 

 

When I arrived at King's Cross I made my way over to St Pancras to catch another train to Gatwick Airport...

 

 

The train arrived on time...London was covered in mist and grey cloud...arrived at Gatwick Airport...

 

 

From Gatwick Airport it was another 25 minute train journey to Horsham. At Horsham, Mr Barrett and his gaffer picked me up from the station in the Alfa. We went back to their place of work and did all the necessaries and had a cup of tea and a chat. I then set off about 3 o' clock and headed for the M25 via Dorking...

 

I filled up with Diesel before the M25. Massive PIC FAILZ as I have no pez station money shot...

 

M25, M40, A46, M69, M1, A46 Leicester bypass, A46 to Newark, round Lincoln, A15, home at 7.15.

 

Fairly uneventful journey to be fair. Pissed it down all the way. Only highlight was as I came off the M40 to get on the A46, I passed the legendary 1972 Volvo F88 timber carrier on the slip road. What a beast that is...

 

Home sweet home...

 

 

The intention is to get it it's problems sorted and then serviced, then fix it's cosmetics, then It will be pressed into service by my sister as her Brava is now on it's last legs.

 

I will provide further updates as they occur...

 

 

[Junkman]

Hmmmm.. Brava on last legs.

Now that sounds strangely tempting...

[Vin]

Right here is an update on this.

 

Basically it left me last weekend and is now in the Peak District with my sister.

 

But while I had it I gave it to a mate who runs a little Fiat & Alfa specialist repair place in Hull. He gave it a full service, checked out the EGR, all OK. Needed a radiator as it was missing about half of the fins. He also ended up putting a cambelt on as the timing was out by half a tooth as the locking tools didn't appear to have been used in the past. Needed a set of scrappy sourced headlights and some brake flexis for the MOT. It was now running lovely no soot or smoke anymore, spot on.

 

When I got it back I set to with the cosmetics. I replaced the Knackered rear wiper motor. I took the mirrors off sanded down the mounts and painted them satin black. Got a replacement drivers side sill skirt from E-bay as the one on the car was smashed. Took the passenger skirt off as it was OK but was coming away from the car. Put a pair of front seats in to replace the worn and torn originals. Went round it with touch up paint.

When I had it on stands to take the sill skirts off I cleaned it all up and covered it all in stonechip. I then refitted the skirts and then tiger sealed them at the top where it was originally fitted with tape.

 

I didn't take any photos unfortunately, but here are two from last weekend when my sis took it away. She left me with the Brava (it used to be mine...I ran it for 9 years) to dispose of. A few weeks ago I managed to get hold of another council lock up, so I have stashed it away on the basis it can be a spares source for the Marea...

 

 

[Cavcraft]

Lovely looking car that.

[pompei]

Good work  -  that must have been Alan who did the service?

[Vin]

It certainly was, he knows them inside out...sorted it out a treat.

 

TBH it was too modern and of no interest for me to muck about with it mechanically really...

 

When I picked it up, as well as a Mk 2 Croma turbo in the workshop, he had a 30k mile E reg Vauxhall Belmont SRI in...Apparently a chap he knows will only entrust him with working on his old cars. This bloke currently has 30 or so low mileage old Vauxhalls stashed all over the place. This Belmont SRI had electric windows and central locking fitted by the dealer when new at the request of the first owner. The Vauxhall pervert got Alan to rip it all out and put it all back to standard...right ballache apparently. But worth it I reckon.