Marina Shite (long overdue updates- lots more Marinas...)

[MarinaJosh]

Some unexpected fleet changes have occured!

You may have seen I popped the engine-less Ital up for sale as I had far too many cars and was running out of space. I also advertised it in the Club magazine and was contacted by a local member who was interested. By this time a Marina appeared for sale that I had wanted for a long time. I mentioned to the chap who was coming to look at the red Ital that I would also be selling my white Ital. He ended up buying them both, leaving with me with 2 spaces and 2 money, ready for the new arrival which appeared today.

It's another early Marina in Bedouin, so it will go nicely with my saloon. The plan is this one will be for regular use whilst the saloon will continue to be the show car. Surprisingly, it actually has less miles on it. It appears to have been stored somewhere dry (very original with hardly any signs of welding) but with lots of UV as the original interior was completely shot. The seller managed to track down replacement trim, but it's multi-coloured!

Two out one in is a start but sadly I am going to be selling my Traveller soon. To be honest, with the choice of two early Marinas (my number one passion) I can't see an occasion where I would choose to drive it. Plus they're not exactly rare so if I wanted another one I could go out tomorrow and get one which isn't the case with an early Marina.

[Matty]

That looks really lovely. Is it as solid as it looks? And any chance of some interior pics Josh?

[Matty]

Multi coloured interiors are for life's winners anyway. I've got blue door cards on one side, green on the other and a half blue half green back seat!

 

[grogee]

20 minutes ago, MarinaJosh said:

Some unexpected fleet changes have occured!

You may have seen I popped the engine-less Ital up for sale as I had far too many cars and was running out of space. I also advertised it in the Club magazine and was contacted by a local member who was interested. By this time a Marina appeared for sale that I had wanted for a long time. I mentioned to the chap who was coming to look at the red Ital that I would also be selling my white Ital. He ended up buying them both, leaving with me with 2 spaces and 2 money, ready for the new arrival which appeared today.

It's another early Marina in Bedouin, so it will go nicely with my saloon. The plan is this one will be for regular use whilst the saloon will continue to be the show car. Surprisingly, it actually has less miles on it. It appears to have been stored somewhere dry (very original with hardly any signs of welding) but with lots of UV as the original interior was completely shot. The seller managed to track down replacement trim, but it's multi-coloured!

Two out one in is a start but sadly I am going to be selling my Traveller soon. To be honest, with the choice of two early Marinas (my number one passion) I can't see an occasion where I would choose to drive it. Plus they're not exactly rare so if I wanted another one I could go out tomorrow and get one which isn't the case with an early Marina.

What's she packing, mister? High-tech* siamese-port A series, or sophisticated*  B-series punch? 

[MarinaJosh]

Yes, it's very solid. Original sills, arches etc. I don't think it's going to require any welding which makes a nice change. Interior is mostly in the boot! Dashboard is completely shot but fortunately I have a good spare. Uncracked brown dashboards are very rare. They always seem to survive worse than black ones. If there are any missing trim bits I should have them in my stash. At some stage they can then be painted to match. The original trim colour would have been Autumn Leaf- it would have been the same as the pic of my saloon's interior.

It's a mighty 1.3.

 

[High Jetter]

Oof. Proper car, that.

[ETCHY]

3 hours ago, MarinaJosh said:

Some unexpected fleet changes have occured!

You may have seen I popped the engine-less Ital up for sale as I had far too many cars and was running out of space. I also advertised it in the Club magazine and was contacted by a local member who was interested. By this time a Marina appeared for sale that I had wanted for a long time. I mentioned to the chap who was coming to look at the red Ital that I would also be selling my white Ital. He ended up buying them both, leaving with me with 2 spaces and 2 money, ready for the new arrival which appeared today.

It's another early Marina in Bedouin, so it will go nicely with my saloon. The plan is this one will be for regular use whilst the saloon will continue to be the show car. Surprisingly, it actually has less miles on it. It appears to have been stored somewhere dry (very original with hardly any signs of welding) but with lots of UV as the original interior was completely shot. The seller managed to track down replacement trim, but it's multi-coloured!

Two out one in is a start but sadly I am going to be selling my Traveller soon. To be honest, with the choice of two early Marinas (my number one passion) I can't see an occasion where I would choose to drive it. Plus they're not exactly rare so if I wanted another one I could go out tomorrow and get one which isn't the case with an early Marina.

Loving the early RHD wiper pattern.
Cool thing, I like that a lot.
 

[MarinaJosh]

I have, as always, been hopeless at updating this. The Bedouin coupé isn't quite on the road yet. Plenty of work has been carried out including new brakes, a replacement gearbox, sorting out all the missing trim and making a start on the interior. I haven't made much progress since spring, as I then went on a bit of a buying spree and got distracted by other projects. I have been able to piece together a complete interior from my stock of spares and got some vinyl paint to make it all the same (and almost the correct) colour.

I had a massive amount of luck and was able to buy a correct NOS 1.3 dash fascia panel somebody advertised on Facebook. The dash fascia panels changed style twice in the first year of production.

All of the glass has been replaced as it was really badly scratched. Fortunately, I had all of this in stock. I enlisted the help of a friend who is a screen fitter for this! I did have to use my NOS coupé rear screen rubber as the original had perished badly. It's the only NOS one I have ever come across!

There isn't a huge amount left to do to get it on the road now. The only fly in the ointment has been a bit of a change of plan. I had intended this one would be one to drive regularly whilst keeping my Bedouin saloon as the best one for shows. However, I have since bought a few others and as this one is so straight and solid, I'd like to try and take it to the next level which has meant redoing some of the work to make it nicer!

[MarinaJosh]

Sadly, I did end up parting with my Traveller. I had it for three years in the end and looking back at the photos it certainly improved a lot in that time. It was a nice old thing and never failed to put a smile on my face. I never quite 'got' Minors until I drove one for the first time, it was just charming. It was also wonderful having spares available off the shelf, although I have to say the quality of most of the new bits available was pretty abysmal.

However, driving it did show why BL were so desperate to get the Marina out on sale. Despite it's charm, they are very antiquated in comparison and it must have been embarrassing to be a BL salesman in 1970/71 selling these and Morris Oxfords competing against the Cortina, Escort, Viva and Avenger! Contrary to popular belief the Marina is not based on a Minor and the front suspension is very different. The Marina owes more of its heritage to the Triumph brand reflecting the influence of ex-Triumph Harry Webster who was in charge of the design project.

I definitely wouldn't say no to another and I do miss this one.

[MarinaJosh]

Onto the first distraction.

I was doing a load of work on the Marina database one dull afternoon and I started to think I rather fancied a MK2 saloon. Preferably a reasonable spec one such as an SDL or a Special. The very next day a MK2 1.8 Special appeared for sale about 20 minutes away!

A quick look round revealed that, whilst scruffy on top, it was solid in all the right places- chassis rails, sills, A posts etc. Post-BL nationalisation cars always rot worse as BL were forced to use cheap recycled Soviet steel procured by the government. It's a fair bit thinner. This had already received some comically large patches on the front wings. The engine and gearbox were lovely, suggesting the 34k mileage was genuine. Some work had been done and I was able to drive it home, although it revealed a few faults. The clutch was completely knackered, the front brakes pulled badly and the steering rack was knocking. All easily resolved- the front calipers had been rebuilt but only one side had received new pads, the others were still in the boot! Two tyres were new but the others were ancient so I replaced those.

Being scruffy but solid it would have made a perfect one to drive regularly and I was really looking forward to using it, but shortly after tackling the list of woes something else came along...

[Homersimpson]

9 hours ago, MarinaJosh said:

I have, as always, been hopeless at updating this. The Bedouin coupé isn't quite on the road yet. Plenty of work has been carried out including new brakes, a replacement gearbox, sorting out all the missing trim and making a start on the interior. I haven't made much progress since spring, as I then went on a bit of a buying spree and got distracted by other projects. I have been able to piece together a complete interior from my stock of spares and got some vinyl paint to make it all the same (and almost the correct) colour.

I had a massive amount of luck and was able to buy a correct NOS 1.3 dash fascia panel somebody advertised on Facebook. The dash fascia panels changed style twice in the first year of production.

All of the glass has been replaced as it was really badly scratched. Fortunately, I had all of this in stock. I enlisted the help of a friend who is a screen fitter for this! I did have to use my NOS coupé rear screen rubber as the original had perished badly. It's the only NOS one I have ever come across!

There isn't a huge amount left to do to get it on the road now. The only fly in the ointment has been a bit of a change of plan. I had intended this one would be one to drive regularly whilst keeping my Bedouin saloon as the best one for shows. However, I have since bought a few others and as this one is so straight and solid, I'd like to try and take it to the next level which has meant redoing some of the work to make it nicer!

I can recommend vinykote from Technispray https://www.kolorbond.co.uk/vinylkote-paint-leather-vinyl/, I've used to re-colour two car sets of MK2 Jag door cars (one the same colour and one from tan to dark blue.  I've also used it on some seats and seems ok so far.  They can colour match for you as well.

[grogee]

11 hours ago, MarinaJosh said:

The dash fascia panels changed style twice in the first year of production.

"I repeat: we won't be giving in to management demands to fit a new facia for a second time this year" 

[EyesWeldedShut]

2 minutes ago, grogee said:

"I repeat: we won't be giving in to management demands to fit a new facia for a second time this year" 

Red Robbo! The bête noire of my parent's tabloid back in the day (The Scottish Daily Express) he managed to get on the TV news even more than Mr Scargill
 

[grogee]

8 minutes ago, EyesWeldedShut said:

Red Robbo! The bête noire of my parent's tabloid back in the day (The Scottish Daily Express) he managed to get on the TV news even more than Mr Scargill
 

He was a bit before my time (I was 5 in 1980) but have since discovered a lot about him. Mainly standing in yards with a megaphone. 

My parents never swore in front of me but I remember my Mum doing the V-sign at Scargill on the Six O Clock News, I was gobsmacked! 

[grogee]

9 hours ago, MarinaJosh said:

 

That is pure sex. 

Is the Soviet steel thing true? How did the British govt get a load of cheap Russian steel? 

[EyesWeldedShut]

1 minute ago, grogee said:

He was a bit before my time (I was 5 in 1980) but have since discovered a lot about him. Mainly standing in yards with a megaphone. 

My parents never swore in front of me but I remember my Mum doing the V-sign at Scargill on the Six O Clock News, I was gobsmacked! 

Sounds a bit like my mum 'damn' would get you a thick ear from her if she heard you utter it.
There was a lot of 'hate' generated by the centre right sort of paper/media - my dad (as a mature student) came back from college with a copy of the Morning Star once - you'd have thought it was porn by the frosty attitude from my mum/her parents/the relatives. Voting was never discussed but I'd have given them all as Tory with the odd wibble towards Liberal. 
Looking back all I recall from the TV News in the 70s was a continual, mild hysteria about Red Robbo, Scargill and the like being the spawn of Satan (Grunwicks, BL, Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, NUM etc etc)

[grogee]

5 minutes ago, EyesWeldedShut said:

Sounds a bit like my mum 'damn' would get you a thick ear from her if she heard you utter it.
There was a lot of 'hate' generated by the centre right sort of paper/media - my dad (as a mature student) came back from college with a copy of the Morning Star once - you'd have thought it was porn by the frosty attitude from my mum/her parents/the relatives. Voting was never discussed but I'd have given them all as Tory with the odd wibble towards Liberal. 
Looking back all I recall from the TV News in the 70s was a continual, mild hysteria about Red Robbo, Scargill and the like being the spawn of Satan (Grunwicks, BL, Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, NUM etc etc)

A bit like Farage and Brexit:

Robbo wasn't the cause of BLARG's downfall but he was a contributing factor. 

Highly recommend watching the fictional early 80s Central TV drama as recommended by (I think) @reb:

 

[MarinaJosh]

R.E. Vinyl paint, I have been using aerosols from https://www.vinyldye.co.uk/

I sent a sample and they matched it. I did have some trouble with it to begin with as it stayed tacky. I then found out a matt lacquer could be used over the top. By the time I discovered this the bits I had done had got dust on them though and being tacky it was very difficult to get any of it off! I have had some more practice as after doing a pair of front door cards I have now ended up with a much better pair, so have now painted those.

Anyway, onto distraction number two!

Around Easter I heard that a friend of mine who had bought a Marina from me a few years ago was looking to sell it. He was retiring and no longer needed a 'modern' daily, so was hoping to sell it and buy another pre-War car for his growing collection. I had always hoped it would end up back with me, so I simply had to have it. Sadly, it meant I had to sell the MK2 to fund it, a shame as I really didn't have it for long.

This one is the earliest known surviving 1.8 saloon, or more accurately a few bits of it are. I dug it out of a field in 2013 where it had sat since 2001/2. In 2001 it was sold by an MG specialist down in Eastbourne and was advertised as being on the road. It must have been a wreck even then as the inner sills and floors were made of pop riveted plates and fibreglass. It had clearly lived a life. Most of the running gear had been replaced- the engine was from a later Marina, it had also been fitted with late Ital telescopic shock absorbers, a front anti-roll bar and a MK2/3 rear axle with rear anti-roll bar. I kept it stashed away until 2018. It was at this time that my friend contacted me saying he was looking for another project after restoring a Marina coupé. He wanted a complete basket case, he certainly got one!

After three years of work, all carried out on his driveway or in his car port, it returned to the road in 2021 in time for its 50th birthday. He then used it as his everyday car, parked outside in all weathers etc, until I bought it.

By the time June rolled around he had found a 1930s Austin 6 cylinder to replace it with, so the Marina was mine once again. I have clocked up just over 3k miles in it since then and it has been my daily driver whenever the weather is decent.

It hasn't required too much work. It was running a bit lumpy when I got it- this was traced to the pin in the dizzy cap being completely missing. The clutch slave cylinder sprung a leak so that was replaced. I have improved a few cosmetic bits and pieces. It'll never be perfect but I don't want it to be, I'd be too afraid to use it then! The combination of being a 1.8 and having the various suspension upgrades makes it a great daily driver!

 

 

[High Jetter]

12 minutes ago, MarinaJosh said:

In 2001 it was sold by an MG specialist down in Eastbourne

Ooh, an HC Eastbourne reg. Was this the guy in Dursley Road?

[MarinaJosh]

4 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

Ooh, an HC Eastbourne reg. Was this the guy in Dursley Road?

Yes, D.C. Motors. So, it stayed in Eastbourne for a good 30 years. It was then bought by a chap in Surrey. He, his wife and his late son were all serial Marina collectors. Sadly, his son died in a car accident which tore their lives apart. In 2013 he was clearing the place. Fortunately, all of the saveable cars were rescued and many are now back on the road. I have looked on Google Earth and the land appears to have been built on now. I hope there are names like 'Trunnion Terrace'. There were at least 30 cars there, all saloons and estates plus one Ital van. No coupés, he said they were a waste of a good vehicle as you couldn't get anything in them so he scrapped them as soon as they arrived.

[lesapandre]

2 hours ago, EyesWeldedShut said:

Sounds a bit like my mum 'damn' would get you a thick ear from her if she heard you utter it.
There was a lot of 'hate' generated by the centre right sort of paper/media - my dad (as a mature student) came back from college with a copy of the Morning Star once - you'd have thought it was porn by the frosty attitude from my mum/her parents/the relatives. Voting was never discussed but I'd have given them all as Tory with the odd wibble towards Liberal. 
Looking back all I recall from the TV News in the 70s was a continual, mild hysteria about Red Robbo, Scargill and the like being the spawn of Satan (Grunwicks, BL, Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, NUM etc etc)

A fair bit of deflection there by BMC/BMH/Leyland/British Leyland management and government. Industrial relations were very poor for a whole host of reasons - Derek Robinson though powerful was a convenient bogeyman for the press.

Sacked by Micheal Edwardes in November 1979. He lived to be 90 years old and died in 2017 two years before Edwardes who died age 88.

[High Jetter]

13 minutes ago, MarinaJosh said:

Yes, D.C. Motors. So, it stayed in Eastbourne for a good 30 years.

2nd from last is another Eastbourne car, and there's a Brighton one in there too. I kinda think I remember seeing JHC BITD but had no reason to take special note of it. Totally unrelated, but the first property I bought was a flat in Dursley Rd. The guy who lived downstairs had his own car bodyshop - though he never drove.

[MarinaJosh]

6 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

2nd from last is another Eastbourne car, and there's a Brighton one in there too. I kinda think I remember seeing JHC BITD but had no reason to take special note of it. Totally unrelated, but the first property I bought was a flat in Dursley Rd. The guy who lived downstairs had his own car bodyshop - though he never drove.

LJK? I bought that one too. Sadly, I ended up stripping it for spares a few years later as I had too many cars at the time. I did try selling it but nobody was interested (project Marinas were worthless at the time). Something I really regret now as although it needed some work it was really quite sound and a very rare colour (Wild Moss). 

[ETCHY]

21 hours ago, MarinaJosh said:

I have, as always, been hopeless at updating this. The Bedouin coupé isn't quite on the road yet. Plenty of work has been carried out including new brakes, a replacement gearbox, sorting out all the missing trim and making a start on the interior. I haven't made much progress since spring, as I then went on a bit of a buying spree and got distracted by other projects. I have been able to piece together a complete interior from my stock of spares and got some vinyl paint to make it all the same (and almost the correct) colour.

I had a massive amount of luck and was able to buy a correct NOS 1.3 dash fascia panel somebody advertised on Facebook. The dash fascia panels changed style twice in the first year of production.

All of the glass has been replaced as it was really badly scratched. Fortunately, I had all of this in stock. I enlisted the help of a friend who is a screen fitter for this! I did have to use my NOS coupé rear screen rubber as the original had perished badly. It's the only NOS one I have ever come across!

There isn't a huge amount left to do to get it on the road now. The only fly in the ointment has been a bit of a change of plan. I had intended this one would be one to drive regularly whilst keeping my Bedouin saloon as the best one for shows. However, I have since bought a few others and as this one is so straight and solid, I'd like to try and take it to the next level which has meant redoing some of the work to make it nicer!

So how did the dash fascia panels change ?

I like knowing geeky  stuff like that, so please let me know !

Cool Marina's BTW. First car I ever drove. I've always liked them.

 

[ProgRocker]

I'm quite fond of Marinas. In the Spring I visited The Great British Car Journey in Derbyshire and had a drive in their 1980 1.7 saloon. Once I found the right gear I enjoyed it. 😎

[MarinaJosh]

15 minutes ago, ETCHY said:

So how did the dash fascia panels change ?

I like knowing geeky  stuff like that, so please let me know !

Cool Marina's BTW. First car I ever drove. I've always liked them.

 

Be very careful what you wish for!

MK1 Super Deluxes and TCs were available with either a black or a brown dash depending on interior colour. MK1 Deluxes (base model) had black only. These are the various fascias that were fitted...

Type 1: 1970 - early 1971.

1.3s and Deluxes- Silver fascia with black outlines and black line on heater controls.

Not a lot is known about these, in my collection I have the remains of the earliest known Marina and it's the only car left with this trim. The car is chassis number 343 (production began on 101, excluding prototypes, in December 1970). Not certain when it was built, the chassis number is lower than quite a few of the press cars. The glass is dated 1970, I seem to recall the latest date codes on the car are January 1971. The next earliest known survivor is chassis number 1498 and that has the 'Type 2' trim. The unique feature of the 'Type 1' is the black line next to the red line on the heater bar. I don't know if this featured on 1.8 SDLs and TCs.

Type 2: 1971 - late 1971

1.3s and Deluxes had a silver dash fascia with black lines around the edge.

1.8 SDLs and TCs had I Can't Believe it's Not Wood with silver lines around the edge, note these lines went around the bottom border by the ash tray too, ignore the awful stickers on this one... Also not sure why the heater switch needs labeling when it's the only switch there is.

Type 3: Late 1971 - c.1973

In late 1971 the Marina underwent a few changes. New colours were introduced (Harvest Gold, Aqua, Green Mallard, Black Tulip, Bronze Yellow, Wild Moss) and some were dropped (Bedouin, Racing Green). The dashboard also changed- the demister ducts were raised and the dash fascias changed again.

1.3s now had bluey-grey fascias on black dash cars, or bronzey-beige fascias on brown dash cars. Deluxes, all having black dashboards, received the former. 1.3 lines changed from black to silver. The silver line went around the heater slider controls, but not the lower part of the fascia where the ash tray is.

1.8s lost the silver line from the lower part of the fascia where the ash tray is, otherwise remained the same.

Type 4: c.1973 - 1975

The length of the red line on the heater slider control increased in length on all models.

Goodness knows why BL bothered with all this, still, it gives me something to do! In these photos you can also see the change of gearknob which I think happened in 1972. The word 'Lift' was added to the left of reverse. Presumably people were wrecking their gearboxes!

[Homersimpson]

8 hours ago, lesapandre said:

A fair bit of deflection there by BMC/BMH/Leyland/British Leyland management and government. Industrial relations were very poor for a whole host of reasons - Derek Robinson though powerful was a convenient bogeyman for the press.

Sacked by Micheal Edwardes in November 1979. He lived to be 90 years old and died in 2017 two years before Edwardes who died age 88.

The main problem with Longbridge was the lazy workforce who wouldn't stop stealing.

When growing up everyone I knew had a relative/neighbour who worked there and they never paid for any parts for their car, they just appeared.

For years after you would see adverts for mini bits (well into the 90's when I had my first car) and when you went along they had a garage full of stuff, almost always it was 'I used to work at Longbridge'.  I never bought anything when I found out and after a couple of times didn't bother to ring these type of adverts any more.

One guy had a roses tub sized container full of points he proudly showed me.

[ETCHY]

31 minutes ago, MarinaJosh said:

Be very careful what you wish for!

MK1 Super Deluxes and TCs were available with either a black or a brown dash depending on interior colour. MK1 Deluxes (base model) had black only. These are the various fascias that were fitted...

Type 1: 1970 - early 1971.

1.3s and Deluxes- Silver fascia with black outlines and black line on heater controls.

Not a lot is known about these, in my collection I have the remains of the earliest known Marina and it's the only car left with this trim. The car is chassis number 343 (production began on 101, excluding prototypes, in December 1970). Not certain when it was built, the chassis number is lower than quite a few of the press cars. The glass is dated 1970, I seem to recall the latest date codes on the car are January 1971. The next earliest known survivor is chassis number 1498 and that has the 'Type 2' trim. The unique feature of the 'Type 1' is the black line next to the red line on the heater bar. I don't know if this featured on 1.8 SDLs and TCs.

Type 2: 1971 - late 1971

1.3s and Deluxes had a silver dash fascia with black lines around the edge.

1.8 SDLs and TCs had I Can't Believe it's Not Wood with silver lines around the edge, note these lines went around the bottom border by the ash tray too, ignore the awful stickers on this one... Also not sure why the heater switch needs labeling when it's the only switch there is.

Type 3: Late 1971 - c.1973

In late 1971 the Marina underwent a few changes. New colours were introduced (Harvest Gold, Aqua, Green Mallard, Black Tulip, Bronze Yellow, Wild Moss) and some were dropped (Bedouin, Racing Green). The dashboard also changed- the demister ducts were raised and the dash fascias changed again.

1.3s now had bluey-grey fascias on black dash cars, or bronzey-beige fascias on brown dash cars. Deluxes, all having black dashboards, received the former. 1.3 lines changed from black to silver. The silver line went around the heater slider controls, but not the lower part of the fascia where the ash tray is.

1.8s lost the silver line from the lower part of the fascia where the ash tray is, otherwise remained the same.

Type 4: c.1973 - 1975

The length of the red line on the heater slider control increased in length on all models.

Goodness knows why BL bothered with all this, still, it gives me something to do! In these photos you can also see the change of gearknob which I think happened in 1972. The word 'Lift' was added to the left of reverse. Presumably people were wrecking their gearboxes!

Superb, thanks for that, exactly the kind of stuff I like.

You should do a book on these. There's one been done on Allegro's why not a Marina !

[Mr Pastry]

53 minutes ago, ETCHY said:

Superb, thanks for that, exactly the kind of stuff I like.

And he's only covered the Mk 1 so far...!

[lesapandre]

With the dashboards (and maybe it's because of their age or the technology and materials they used) it's interesting how the fit of everything is not quite smooth. Parts sit slightly proud of each other and some of the individual panel gaps are large. Maybe it's just the effect of time and sunlight? Or were they all like that?