Invalid carriage blue Mk1 Cavalier

[Felly Magic]

Nice and steady, don't rush the rebuild Feck knows what Billy is going to be like when this is complete

[4wheeledstool]

Enjoy, after all the hard dirty work you have done this time is the reward which you certainly deserve.

Cheers! Just one crappy job left to do!

Nice and steady, don't rush the rebuild Feck knows what Billy is going to be like when this is complete

That's the plan! I'll take it round to show him when it's done.

 

Not a lot to show as yet, the wiring loom is installed in the engine bay, and the cleaning of the underside has started.

 

 

I've got next week off work to get stuck in.

[purplebargeken]

Drool!

[fordperv]

It's looking bloody fantastic, when you do go see Cavcraft Make sure you get a picture of Cartland dog looking happy in it

[Pillock]

Autoshite Gold.

I think the best bit of this is the sheer amount of effort put in to what started life as a repmobile everyday dull car. Brilliant, can't wait to see it at shows and stuff

[purplebargeken]

Please leave those inner wheel arches body colour.

[4wheeledstool]

Drool!

It's looking bloody fantastic, when you do go see Cavcraft Make sure you get a picture of Cartland dog looking happy in it

Autoshite Gold.

I think the best bit of this is the sheer amount of effort put in to what started life as a repmobile everyday dull car. Brilliant, can't wait to see it at shows and stuff

Utterly brilliant!

Please leave those inner wheel arches body colour.

Many thanks fellow choddists! The front an rear inner arches will be left body colour, until stone chip damage makes a thick layer of wax a necessity.

 

Got about half the underside cleaned and painted so far.

 

 

 

Should be done by the weekend, then after a coating of this -

 

 

- I'll be ready to start hurling it back together.

[4wheeledstool]

The rear of the underside is done

 

 

The rest has been washed off ready for painting, and while it was drying off, I had a go at putting the glass back in.

 

 

 

I didn't know if I could do it alone, but it wasn't too difficult. I'll seal them up with the Arbomast stuff, then fit the trims tomorrow.

[anonymous user]

It's a good job you didn't have Mario helping you fit the screen

[4wheeledstool]

Finished paint application underneath this morning, so it's ready for its coat of Dynax now. Sundry small jobs attended to, such as fitting the bonnet release mechanism and cable, front flexy hoses and the coil. By far the most time consuming job was fitting the window rubber chrome trim. Helpful people lent me tools for the job, but none of them were any use. I ended up giving up with the proper tools, and did it with a small blunt screwdriver and a cash card! Not a job I want to do again any time soon!

 

 

[vulgalour]

Crumbs, you're zooming through this now!

[purplebargeken]

Please do not eat, sleep or drink. Just continue working on the car 24/7 for the sheer delight and entertainment of us lot.

 

Ok, we might allow you to nibble on something every now and again. Not for long though.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 10th

 

The wax is on, the masking removed - its all ready for me to get the engine and transmission back in. Apart from not having an engine crane. This will hopefully be sorted tomorrow!

 

 

 

My "working underneath cars" light makes it look very brown under there. It looks just as black as the shot of the passenger compartment floor with less harsh lighting. I'll get some decent pics of the underside when I get it on a ramp at some point.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 10th

 

Slowly but surely, the pile of junk in my dining room is getting whittled down. The latest pieces to leave the house were the heating/ventilation stuff that goes under the dashboard.

 

 

Hopefully this trend will accelerate in the next couple of weeks.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 11th

 

After going to get an engine crane, I finally made a start on getting the engine and gearbox back in. There was nobody around to help, which is strange for a Monday, but I got stuck in anyway.

The hardest part was getting the engine from next to the car, to underneath the car. The engine and gearbox were sat on their cross member, on carpet underlay. The car was on stands with its nose in the air - I just needed to slide the lot underneath. Definitely easier said than done! It took a fair old time to drag/man handle it in position to get the crane attached to then lift it into position. Later on, the height of the front end caused an issue of running out of jack lift on the gearbox. It was sorted by putting the jack on some wooden blocks to give me the amount of lift required to do up the gearbox mount. It all worked out in the end, and no harm came to paint or person.

 

[4wheeledstool]

Went back for a short stint this evening for some light fettling - all the wiring for the engine is now connected, the earth strap is on, vacuum hose plugged in, and throttle cable fitted and adjusted.

 

 

 

It was a most pleasant couple of hours (most of it spent gassing!) compared to the wrestling marathon earlier on.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 12th

 

More stuff done today, the flash on my phone has stopped working though, so most of the pics I took are no good.

The front to rear brake line went in first, closely followed by the prop shaft. Next up, the speedo and clutch cables were fitted, then the choke cable that came with the Weber carburettor conversion.

 

 

The steering rack and cross member braces were next up, and after struggling for a while trying to fit the universal joint to the end of the steering column, my mate who lent me the engine crane appeared. With me pulling the column upwards + my mate wiggling the joint, it was done immediately. Some jobs just can't be done alone!

 

 

Hopefully decent pictures will be taken with a camera from tomorrow.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 13th

 

Refurbished callipers came back from Bigg Red this morning. Excellent service!

 

[4wheeledstool]

From July 13th

 

Today started off by fitting the gearstick - what a faff! To get the e clip onto the pin would have been easy with three hands, but in the end a bit of contortionism got the job done.

The exhaust was next on the list, I've ditched the standard downpipe bolts and used Allen headed bolts instead. I have some super long Allen bits which make this job a lot easier.

 

 

The middle section was awkward to fit with the car being on the deck at the back, but I didn't want to risk jacking it up while the engine laden front end was so high on axle stands.

 

 

The back box was incredibly easy though!

 

 

A mate from work showed up for a look - and was instantly roped in to give me a hand holding the doors up while I knocked the hinge pins in.

 

 

 

Both passenger side doors, and the drivers side rear one were pretty easy. I'd bought some new hinge pins for the drivers door as the original ones were worn, they're like big roll pins to look at. This caused a bit of a problem as the new ones didn't fit in the holes - they needed their splits closing up before they'd go in. This involved a bit of hammer and vice action as they're made from a very hard steel! By the time I'd driven the new pins in, then removed them again to ensure they would work as they should, my mate had escaped. Fortunately, a short time later, someone else came for a look - the last door would go on today after all.

 

 

The lower part of the new door fits really well, but the window frame seems to sit a little too far forward. I'll have a go at fettling it another day though.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 15th

 

Dash top panel was fitted next.

 

 

The fiddly bit was next, heater control cables were a bit of a faff, but were easier than I thought they were going to be!

 

 

The binnacle cover, lower switches, and column shroud on.

 

 

And finally, the lower dash panels and steering wheel.

 

 

Now the dash was in, I could mount the choke knob.

 

 

I routed the cable through an unused grommet in the bulkhead, just above the servo. I think it's where the kickdown cable goes on an automatic.

 

[4wheeledstool]

From July 16th

 

Not much to report today - just treated the insides of the doors, sills and A-posts with cavity wax. Then left to do some chores.

 

[4wheeledstool]

From July 17th

 

Well, my spring compressor was completed this morning, it does look just like a proper one!

 

 

In practice, it wasn't nearly as straightforward as I was hoping though. It took many attempts at compressing, offering the arm/spring up to the car, then unwinding it, repositioning the tool and trying again until it was right for fitting.

 

 

Finally, after several hours of trial and error, it was in!

 

 

 

All the paint remains intact, although the same can't be said about my head, so I finished the day off by fitting the disc/hub, calliper and brake hose.

 

 

Hopefully the other side will be a lot quicker now I know where exactly to position the tool.

It would have been a lot easier if I wasn't bothered about ruining the paint - I think there might be something wrong with me!

[4wheeledstool]

From July 19th

 

As my spring compressor broke whilst trying to do the other side, I got on with other stuff while the mk2 version is being crafted. It was ridiculously hot in the unit today - 32 degrees outside - so an easy task was chosen.

Starting with this

 

 

I attached the door membranes with a bead of black silicone sealant, as I couldn't find any of that silly putty stuff used originally. The finished job looked identical though, but I forgot to take a picture!

 

The door cards went on with new door pull surrounds (thanks to a man called Peter!) The cards are pretty grubby from storage, but they'll clean up nicely when I get the car away from the unit.

 

 

 

 

Bought a new battery, and some 20/50 oil today too - as soon as I get it on four wheels I'm gonna run her up!

[purplebargeken]

Whoohoo

[anonymous user]

As these are reappearing I'm able to like them all over again, although when I checked the thread for a moment I thought you had been taking it apart again

[4wheeledstool]

From July 20th

 

I gave the rear panel a bit of satin black paint this afternoon. The area to be painted was scotched, then panel wiped, then hit with the black stuff.

 

 

I unmasked it while the paint was still soft.

 

 

Once the paint has hardened, I can put the lights, trims and letters back on.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 21st

 

Rear end starting to look like a Cavalier again.

 

 

I'm told there's a good chance my boot lid will be painted at the weekend - that would be nice!

[4wheeledstool]

From July 22nd

 

I found a new radiator for very little money on eBay - a lot easier than trying to smarten up the old one.

 

 

It's identical in every respect other than cosmetically!

 

It was soon in position, complete with a shiny new cap..

 

 

 

Unfortunately I'm still awaiting the completion of spring compressor version 2, but she'll be run up as soon as all four wheels are on.

[4wheeledstool]

From July 23rd

 

I trial fitted the wing against the new door - it fits perfectly! I wasn't expecting that!

 

 

Got a call to say the second spring compressor was ready, so I went straight over to fetch it. It's a lot better now, but still took a little trial and error to get it right - it doesn't matter now though, its in!

 

 

Theres a couple of bits of touching up to do from when the first compressor broke, but it's no biggie! I had to leave as soon as it was all bolted up, but it will definitely be back on its wheels tomorrow. Oh, the bonnet and boot lid have been painted too!

[Danblez]

Looking fantastic, and that door gap is pure automotive porn to me!