Stalled projects confessional

[Six-cylinder]

There is no history of madness in the family but........

Now you have found me out, so here you are the whole horrible list of stalled projects, please don't hold them against me just come and given me a hand!

 

Make Model - Colour - Year owned - Problem

Volvo 740 GLE Auto Estate Blue 2004 Will not start

Maserati 425 Bi Turbo saloon Blue met 20/5/13 Needs brake caliper

Citroen Oltcit Red 26/10/11 Needs MOT

Citroen Visa 17RD Met Blue 18/3/15 Recommioning, mot and wing fitted

BMW 328i M sport blue 12/7/11 Needs engine

Range Rover 3.5 Auto green 7/6/02 Needs finishing after engine transplant

Citroen BX Gti red 1993 Not used for 5 years

Citroen CX 2400 I/E Pallas red 17/6/06 No power to ignition

Triumph Herald 12/50 White 15/7/01 Not used for 7 years

Bond GT4S deep red 6/4/96 Needs full restoration

Bond GT4S deep red 11/7/99 Needs full restoration

Triumph Herald 13/60 convertible white 1987 Needs full restoration

Triumph Herald 1200 Coupe blue/white 1990 Needs a fair amount of work

Triumph Spitfire white 1987 Needs full restoration

Triumph Herald 1200 white/green 1995 Not used for 5 years

Triumph Herald 13/60 convertible Red 3/11/11 Needs a fair amount of work

Peugeot 504 Cabriolet grey 13/2/09 Been in trim shop for last 2 years

Alfa Giulietta 2.0 red 17/2/09 Lots of talk not much action

Jaguar MK10 Blue 1992 Needs full restoration

Triumph Spitfire MKII Blue 17/9/11 Needs full restoration

Triumph Spitfire MKIII 2.5 Red 27/4/13 Needs recommioning

BMW 325i SE E30 Green 13/7/11 New engine just fitted needs MOT work

Citroen ZX 19TD Aura Red 18/9/10 Broken cam belt

[fatharris]

The Mini: I had every intention to restore this, I honestly did. I had the workspace, the tools and the enthusiasm to do it. Hell, by the end of day 3 I'd ordered several hundred pounds worth of bits and a jig to mount the shell.

 

Unfortunately, the jig turned out to be a death trap, the seller turned out to be a massive twat about the entire thing and the Mini had to be stowed in a garage, completely stripped to a bare shell, and badly hacked at by myself. The garage has no power, and is leaky and damp. I need to pull my finger out and get on with it soon, but now there's a waiting list for the project spaces at the car club, which figures.

 

Oh, and I'm shit at welding.

 

Shame rating - Having a really loud poo next to someone in the adjacent cubicle, and the person exiting their cubicle as you're washing your hands. He knew what you did, and he doesn't approve.

[purplebargeken]

Avoiding the small amount of rusty bits on the Amazon. Also need to just refit the seats too. Everything else distracting me.

 

Personal shame: I have no shame. 

[xtriple]

This is where you need to be OCD. It is against nature to allow projects to sit and fester. If I start, I finish. Regardless of cost or personal pain...

 

Usually, vast quantities of both.

[Inspector Morose]

No real stalled projects really. All the cars are on the road and work to a greater or lesser extent. The list of things to do on these fine velocopedes however...

 

Ooh, one stalled project. A 1960 Viking hosteller. Still in bits after five years without wheels (got to find some 27" rims and tyres one day). Needs a respray in its original metallic pinky purple and en a full rebuild.

 

Personal sham: meh.

[crapcarcollector]

Alfa GTV. I've rebuilt the engine. I just need to put the fugger in.

Alfa 147. I've rebuilt the engine, I just need to put the fugger in.

Shame rating. I never learn.

[wuvvum]

Volvo 164.  Owned for 10 years, off the road for 7.  Taken off the road because of binding brakes - front calipers removed seven years ago and that's as far as it got.  Made a half-arsed attempt at freeing them off in the summer of 2014 (managed to remove 3 out of 8 pistons), then bought it a new offside caliper this year.  That's as far as it's got.  Meantime it's been slowly rotting away (the centre of one of the horns fell out last winter, and a section of front valance fell off about a month ago) and it's finding new and inventive ways to break every time I touch it.  Still starts on the button though, because Volvo.  Although it did have to have a replacement (electric) fuel pump a couple of years ago as the original gave up the ghost.

 

Renault 6.  Owned for nearly 8 years now, spent more time off the road than on.  Needs welding to the floorpan in a few places before it'll pass another test - I was intending to do this this year, it's not particularly difficult welding so was going to attempt it myself, but a combination of crap weather and lack of arsedness means it's now sat in a garage for a year, pretty much without moving.  Still, at least the current garage is dry, unlike the previous one - although it's now cost me more in storage than I paid for the car in the first place.

 

Rover 200 SDI - MOT ran out in the spring, and a pre-MOT poke around with a screwdriver made some holes in the outer sills.  I could quite easily have got this welded up cheaply by a mate, but decided to concentrate on the VI instead for some reason.  So the SDI is sitting on the car park looking sorry for itself (and wearing four VI alloys with bald tyres as I nicked its wheels to get the VI through the test).

 

Mobylette - I've owned this for 20 years now.  It last ran about five years ago - I tried to start it last summer, bought it a new plug so it's sparking OK, but the carb is gunged up and I couldn't get the Allen bolt undone, so I gave up and it's sat behind the Renault 6 in the garage.  I still kick it over occasionally to prevent it seizing up.

 

I've actually done a bit on the Innocenti recently, so I can't count that, although I still haven't got round to sorting the water ingress.  Progress on the A35 has stopped for the winter, and was slow anyway as it's stored round a mate's, but I did get quite stuck into that when I first got it so can't really count that as stalled.

[Clanger]

 I PROMISE not to be sidetracked by any tinder milfs this weekend.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Uh huh, sure...

 

In that case, can I interest you in this?

[PhillipM]

This was supposed to be finished for my 16th so I could learn to drive in it later on....I'm now 29...



And I now have two of them.

There's a 405 Mi16x4 sat at the top of the garden that required the stupid bosch ABS system ripping out and replacing with a normal M/C, pump, etc....that's been there 10 years now.

Oh, and the buggy came out of competition just 'over winter' for a quick engine change:



That was the engine in, 3 years ago. It still looks much the same.

 

[jakebullet]

Land rover s2 swb:

15 fucking years in my damp shed of a garage. Chassis was fucked, I've plated every square inch of the bastard. Needs gearbox putting back in, steering box fixing, doors + wings + seatbox refitting, repaint. Wiring making remotely safe.

 

Crapi 2.8:

9 1/2 years dumped outside waiting for garage to become free.

[Clanger]

I bought this about 4 years ago recently, promptly disassembled it, started working on various bits myself while shipping other parts out to the experts for refurbishment.

I have been working* on it slowly, while trying to remember who has what bits and if I owe them any money.  Here are some pictures showing the current state of play.

[TataBobu]

Mobra s50: bought 9 years ago (some 270 miles round-trip, came back with the bloody thing in the back of a Hyundai Accent and a horrible headache due to 2-stroke engine smell), took to shed, tried kick-starting it 3 times and gave up. Gaved it away a couple of years later.

Accent X3: left as non-running because the turn indicator would't work. Left to rot and bind the brakes for 2 years now.

 

Level: throwing a tantrum in McD because the toy in my Happy Meal is not what I wanted, all while being a 20 stone full-grown man.

[Bobthebeard]

Buying some shitty mopeds on eBay whilst on holiday abroad. The thinking was "I know, I will buy some shitty mopeds on eBay (whilst I am away and bored) and do them up when I get home to sell on at a profit*)

Almost a year later and I have the same shitty mopeds cluttering up my garage and have done not a jot of work on any of them.

Personal shame?

Telling ever more inventive and creative lies to Mrs Beard about why Beard Towers is constantly cluttered up with "must have" chod that "will make us a profit one day love"

It won't obviously.

[willswitchengage]

 

This has been sat on my drive for a few months now, with a tax disc and an insurance, fixed, but just not used 

 

Yes, I wear checks with checks. I have a passion for fashion.

[Eddie Honda]

I bought a Reliant Regal in November 1991 and it was trailered 400-odd miles to Scotland.

 

I MOT'd it sometime in January 1992 and drove it for a few months. Then around June 1992 it came off the road due to OMGHGF. It sat for a bit and kept getting moved back in the queue of things to do.

 

I moved down south May 1997 and about 6 months later had the car brought down 400 miles...on a trailer.

 

SKR679H 001 by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

Then I moved again around 1998/9, this time locally, so had the car moved again...... on a flatbed transporter.

 

SKR679H 002 by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

Roll on 2003 and another local move...on a flatbed.

 

PICT0020 by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

(Shortly after this point, I declared myself bankrupt, so a friend of mine made a suitable third-party offer to purchase it from the Official Receiver - I then repurchased the car after I was discharged)

 

Then it was 2006 and another move, this time a 25 mile trip...on a flatbed. At least it made it into a garage at this point.

 

Reggie on side by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

Then in 2007 it had to be moved locally again, to a mate's garage...in another mate's Merc 208

 

Moving Regal Shell 004 by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

Then it spent a couple of months in there until I was able to get my hands on a.......converted caravan chassis. Then I towed it with a borrowed Volvo 340 (1.4) and got it 300 miles up the road to where it currently sits.

 

Regal330_20100423_001 by macplaxton, on Flickr

 

I've stopped / started work on it numerous times. The only snag at the minute is that I moved to Ireland in 2007 and so the car is a bit far away to work on at the minute. Should really get round to hiring a van and sticking it in the back and bringing it over on the boat...

 

This is my most-stalled project. Recently I fixed a broken tumble dryer motor....3 years after taking the tumble dryer apart. Most impressed I only lost one non-essential screw.

 

Started project: June 1992

Last worked on: 8 years ago

Project years: 23

Projected completion: Christmas (not saying what year)

 

Personal shame rating: Wearing flip-flops to the shops. In winter. With socks.

[dollywobbler]

Worryingly, the only project I've ever completed was my red/white 2CV. Now it's f*cked again and I've no money to attempt its second salvation. Has been sitting in a couple of different garages since April - I can see that very easily becoming years though.

 

The Dyane has only been off the road for a handful of days, but I've a massive To Do list to get through over the winter. I should be working on it now really but I can't get very excited about the prospect. 

 

The clutch change on the XM has now been a 'stalled' project for over a year. I really should get it done, but it sounds horrendous, so I don't fancy it. It'll transform the way the car drives though.

[Craig the Princess]

Six-cylinder has cheered me up as I pale into insignificance next to that list.

 

Mrs the Princess an I have

Make Model - Colour - Year owned - Problem

Austin Allegro - Russet Brown - 2003 - Rusty inner wing, very smoky engine

Austin Allegro - Aconite - 2004 - Respray needed

Leyland Princess 100 club - Pewter over Romano Purple - 2007 - Exhaust fitted, wheel arch repairs, ignition barrel to fit

Austin Ambassador - Emberglow - 2008 - New Exhaust system needed

Morris Marina - Applejack - 2010 - Needs the piston rings I incorrectly fitted to be fitted properly

Austin Metro - 2008 - Oporto Red - New sill, paint for rear quarter panels, roof, fix fuel leak.

Austin Ambassador - 2011 - Clove Brown - Rust everywhere

Austin Allegro - 2009 - Lagoon Blue - rust under windscreen, burst displacer

Austin Allegro - 2009 - Lagoon Blue

- jack hole in floorpan, engine work

Austin Allegro - 2007 - Rhinegold - Burst displacer

Austin Allegro - 2008 - Harvest Gold - replacement differential

Austin Allegro - 2007/2009 - Hammerite blue - needs carb and alternator back from the brown Metro

Rover 414 - 2006 - white - Possible ecu problem

Citroen AX - 2001 - red - cv joints, possible rear axle problems

[mercrocker]

I once left a Mk1 Mini MOT failure in a council lock up for 11 years.   I bought replacement subframes, had them powder coated, ordered poly bags full of suspension and steering parts, everything needed to convert it back to dry suspension and went to Mini meets where I constantly re-planned the car's restoration.    Fourteen years after buying it (and moving it three times) I swept the remains out of the garage and handed back the key.   

 

Personal shame rating - caught rooting in her next door's knicker drawer.

[Steviemillar]

My own stalled restoration pales into insignificance time-wise against most of the preceding posts but stalled it is none the less.

 

In a fit of nostalgia, I bought a lavender series 2 Daimler Sovereign 4.2 that was for sale locally earlier this year as I have vivid memories of another such car (not the same one) that used to haunt the Torry area of Aberdeen in my younger days.

 

As always with new projects, enthusiasm was high for a start and I took off the bumpers with the aim of getting them re-chromed, lower quarter tank covers were off next as I wanted to clean out both tanks and get it running. I even sorted out the snapped bonnet hinge pins. The one I remember in Aberdeen had Slot Mags on it and I have even managed to buy a full set of the for the darned thing.

 

I put a battery on it and it turns over just fine, it doesn't need any welding as far as I can see either and the paintwork is presentable.  All big postives with these cars but I just can't be bothered with it anymore. I have made a half-arsed attempt at selling it on C&C, Gumtree & over on the "Blue" but no takers so far so here it stays, clogging up my carport. 

 

Not sure what to do with the thing - anyone want it cheap?

 

Shame Level - realising your zip is open after the girl you fancy at work gives you a nice smile having noticed this already!

[xtriple]

I have thought further on this and realise that I am an outrageous liar! My first post on this thread was completely wrong.

 

Back when my wife and I first got together I bought (from a weird bloke that repaired clocks, collected small Japanese two strokes - had dozens of them - and drove on 'L' plates with his 90 year old Father as passenger) an Austin A30. It cost me £400 as a non runner but came with boxes of new spares a new exhaust, a new engine and loads of other bits. It was also absolutely sound if a bit tatty.

 

My wife (though we were not married at the time) had always wanted one (her first car was nearly a Metropolitan in two tone blue/cream which was lovely but her Dad got involved and made her get a Fiesta... which was rubbish!) and so I got her it.

 

Got it home, spent ages getting it going properly and fixing the brakes (hydraulic front, rod rear) which was costly and awkward and then drove it.... there was no way on Gods green Earth that I was ever going to let her loose in that death trap with three kids and local lunatics!

 

But, she was adamant that she really wanted it on the road 'just for fun times' so I decided that it needed to be seriously upgraded....

 

I acquired an Ital 1.3 for free and stripped it completely with a view that all the brakes and mechanicals were going in the 'peanut' and I shoved it all in the garage together and hoped that osmosis would finish the job! I hated the car, had zero interest in it, thought it was a death trap and didn't want to do it.

 

Years later, I advertised the whole contents of the garage on e-Bay! Sold it to a guy who wanted the Austin, then we did a three way deal with another chap that wanted the Ital bits. I made about a hundred quid and got the garage emptied!

 

 

 

 

Note: I gave the boxes of new spares to the A30 club and the bloke that came round to look at the stuff/collect it made me feel like he was doing me a favour and at one point I thought he was going to ask ME for money to take the bits away!

[mercrocker]

Rather keep stuff aimlessly and pointlessly than give it to a car club.   They always want more money than anybody else and pull the old charity act whenever they sell you a duff'un which is in my experience pretty bloody often. 

[John F]

Inspired by a comment by Mr Bollox in the recent Maserati buyage thread, and my own deep shame at not cracking on with my own Maserati project, what stalled projects do we all have?

 

I'll go first:

 

Maserati: I got as far as welding in the new driver's side sill, realised the passenger sill had been seam welded in place & then baulked at the grindathon required to remove it. Also, the fuel lines run down that side of the car & would need removing, which would mean the car was sat immobile on the ramps until the hot work was done. I suspect the last time I did anything with it was about 2 years ago.

 

Calibra: I bought a 3.0 V6 engine and an F26 6-speed gearbox for it about 5 years ago, they've been sat in a corner of the workshop ever since. The Calibra has been off the road ever since I had to press it into service as the 'only working vehicle' a year ago, despite a known leaking radiator (which are now almost unobtainable). The coolant loss got worse & worse, requiring daily top-ups, until the inevitable OMGHGF happened. Car has sat waiting for attention ever since, duff radiator not even removed for re-coring.

 

Land Rover Series II 109: has been practically ready for its MOT for the last 8 months... just needs the wiring sorting out for the electric fan conversion and a new set of tyres. A massive dose of CBA has prevented these trifling jobs from being done, although I'm going to try REALLY hard to sort it out over the next month or so. Promise.

 

Suzuki GSX1100 SZ Katana: I got it running just over a year ago after it had been stuck in a garage for 12 years. Done nothing with it since.

 

Honda CBX750F: I changed the leaking fork oil seal about 2 years ago... still haven't even topped that fork leg up with oil.

 

++++++++++++

 

Personal shame rating: Hello Kitty boxer shorts worn over suit trousers to a job interview. One eyebrow shaved off & replaced with a drawing of a little dog.

 

Thread resurrection!

 

Here's the current state of play nearly 3 years later.

 

 

Maserati: still done nothing to it

 

Calibra: replaced the radiator, done the engine swap, now need to replace borked thermostat (a bitch of a job with the 1990s Vaux V6 engine) and also replace the full exhaust & all four brake callipers

 

Land Rover Series IIa: Finished, MOT'd & sold.

 

Katana: done nothing with it.

 

CBX750F: MOT'd and used last year, currently just out of MOT, ideally needs n/s fork seal replacing.

 

 

New additions:

 

Yamaha XJ900F: assembled & running, needs attention to the indicators & fuel tap for MOT

 

Disco 4.0 V8: welded up, needs ride height sensors calibrating for MOT

[fordperv]

My mk1 3 door sierra, held up for ages by my mate at the bodyshop not being able to fit it in, everything else is pretty much done, it's still not there he says it's going in over winter.

 

My Capri laser, i need to do the engine conversion and fit new wings, it's halfway there with the wings as one is cut off and a replacement bolted on, it needs to come around mine when my sierra is in for paint as I find it difficult to work on at my mums because she works nights, I'm a brave man but I ain't waking her up working with a grinder etc

My mk1 sierra actually went to the bodyshop this month so waiting for paint to get done now

 

My capri laser the welding is complete but it had to go back to my mum's on the back burner waiting for the engine swap because the escort rs turbo needed doing so im on that at the moment but when the weather says I can't do the welding on the escort I will bring the capri back and do the engine, my mates road rally car is sat where my mk1 sierra was at the moment otherwise I would have it around

[Skizzer]

I’m too ashamed to post. Right now everything in my fleet that’s pre-2006 is a stalled project.

[Parky]

Building a shed base so I can buy a shed.

 

Transfer stuff from garage into shed

 

Paint floors and walls of garage so it looks and feels like a cross between the Ferrari pit lane and Kwik Fit in Romford

 

Buy something Shite to live in said garage

 

Sounds easy (and it is) but work and family always somehow conspire to prevent this stuff happening.

[John F]

I'm actually amazed that my Disco 300 TDi has needed nothing major doing to it over the last 3 years...!

[Lankytim]

All my projects are stalled, Mantaray Beetle Buggy, covered in shit and dust in the garage, Chevy Blazer, partly repaired but up and running, Citroen C8, still diagnosing problems- It's so depressing- I've started a new shift pattern so hopefully i'll get some time to actually DO something about them.

 

Oh, I did fix a Ford Fusion, but I don't class that as a project.

[Guest Hooli]

I've got a stripped down Bonnie in the kitchen still, I really must make an effort to start getting the bits to build it.

[HMC]

Austin 7 currently requires a new fuel pump

Mx5 needs a partial respray.

[Six-cylinder]

Car from 2015 list that HAVE been fixed

 

Make Model - Colour - Year owned – Problem

 

BMW 325i SE E30 Green 14/7/11 - MOTed and been in use

Maserati 425 Bi Turbo saloon Blue met 20/5/13- Nothing really wrong with it

Citroen Visa 17RD Met Blue 18/3/15 All working if scuffy
BMW 328i M sport blue 12/7/11 new engine, nothing really wrong

Citroen ZX 19TD Aura Red 18/9/10 Broken cam belt – passed on and scrapped

Car from 2015 list that have not been fixed

 

Make Model - Colour - Year owned – Problem

 

Volvo 740 GLE Auto Estate Blue 2004 Will not start
Citroen Oltcit Red 26/10/11 under bonnet fire

Range Rover 3.5 Auto green 7/6/02 Needs finishing after engine transplant
Citroen BX Gti red 1993 Not used for 5 years, engine now runs and it lifts up
Citroen CX 2400 I/E Pallas red 17/6/06 engine now runs but rear suspension has collapse
Triumph Herald 12/50 White 15/7/01 Not used for 7 years
Bond GT4S deep red 6/4/96 Needs full restoration
Bond GT4S deep red 11/7/99 Needs full restoration
Triumph Herald 13/60 convertible white 1987 Needs full restoration
Triumph Herald 1200 Coupe blue/white 1990 Needs a fair amount of work
Triumph Spitfire white 1987 Needs full restoration
Triumph Herald 1200 white/green 1995 Not used for 5 years
Triumph Herald 13/60 convertible Red 3/11/11 Needs a fair amount of work
Peugeot 504 Cabriolet grey 13/2/09 Been in trim shop for last 2 years
Alfa Giulietta 2.0 red 17/2/09 Lots of talk not much action
Jaguar MK10 Blue 1992 Needs full restoration
Triumph Spitfire MKII Blue 17/9/11 Needs full restoration
Triumph Spitfire MKIII 2.5 Red 27/4/13 Needs recommioning
 

Project Cars added after 2015 list

 

Make Model - Colour - Year owned – Problem

 

Lancia Gamma white 2/5/17 Engine bust

Citroen Xantia V6 green 20/8/11 Gearbox bust

Citroen Visa GT black 21/8/16 needs major welding

Citroen Visa Super E blue 27/1/17 Engine bust

 

There are other cars that need MOTs but should not require very much, such as my Visa Twin that needs the new exhaust box I have bought fitted.

 

So still on 22 project cars and only 4 fixed in 3 years. That of course is not the whole story and other cars such as my MG Metro and Citroen LNA have been bought and returned to the road during the last 3 years. Details in Six-cylinders Motoring Notes.

 

New policy – do not buy any more projects!