Zel's Motoring Adventures...Volvo, Renault, Rover, Trabant, Invacar & A Sinclair C5 - Updated 13/11.

[timolloyd]

That bathroom is a perfect match for the recently reformed countries of East and West Germany.

[Ben_O]

Id go as far as to say the bathroom looks swanky!

[Zelandeth]

Hardly any time to look at the cars today, so was just able to get a little bit of system testing done on the van.

 

Threw some water in the fresh water tank and set the pump running.

 

Soon enough we had water in the kitchen...

 

 

The odd arrangement at the base of the tap is my temporary solution to the problem presented by the emphatically not camper/caravan grade worktop being thicker than the threaded section of the tap is long.  The worktop will be getting binned for something more appropriate as soon as I get around to sourcing something suitable.  See also my previous comments about whoever started to "upgrade" this van having zero concept of the idea that unnecessary weight isn't your friend.

 

Bathroom sink had water through soon enough as well, taps work properly and don't leak which is nice - even though I do have a spare if there turned out to be any issues with the bodies.

 

 

One thing I was curious to see was whether it would be possible to actually get a useful amount of flow from the shower at an acceptably high temperature for it to actually be useful.

 

The water heater I have always eyed with slight suspicion given the fact that it did a good impression of a fountain the first time that I supplied water to it due to perished O-rings in several locations.  Thankfully my replacements seem to be holding up just fine, and aside from making unreasonably loud gurgling noises for the first few seconds, it behaved.  Yes, I did remember to close the drain down valve before turning the pump on.

 

Once switched on, it fired up as soon as the hot water tap was turned on, just as it should.  I don't have a combustion tester, but the flame looks healthy to me.

 

 

Adjusting the shower controls to giving what feels a sensible temperature seems to be at a flow rate that's on par with any electrically heated shower I've used before.  Not a power shower that's going to knock you over when you turn it on, but it's absolutely fine for taking a quick shower and to wash your hair with.

 

 

So I'm calling it done on the bathroom and plumbing in general for a bit.  I still need to fit a shower curtain, finish off a few bits of silicone sealant and to fit a few pipe clips in the utility cupboard, but that's all just simple stuff.  Next main target is going to be the kitchen.

 

What I need to do in there:

 

[] Rip out those poorly fitted household worktops (they're not even close to level for one thing) and install something that weighs less than a Mini.

[] Reconstruct the partitions below the worktops, including the gas cabinet and the support framework for the drawers.

[] Replace the crudely hacked off gas pipework to the oven and cabin heater.  Really wish they had disconnected stuff rather than just snip the pipes off with a pair of side cutters.  Need to confirm for definite if the manifold I have is a long obsolete size for with it's hard to get fittings for or not, and if so just buy a new one.  If not, pick up the missing fittings so I can connect stuff up properly.  I'm very, very aware that the current setup is absolutely NOT getting used beyond the one weekend away - and even then the gas was only on when we actively needed the oven or hot water.

[] Properly reattach the heat shielding around the oven - I'm absolutely certain that my current configuration isn't right as none of the holes in it line up properly.  This is one of those situations where it would be really useful to be able to have a look at one of these vans in standard form so I could see how it was originally put together.

[] Once all of this is done, obviously re-route the plumbing as necessary.  At least being flexible lines that's hardly an issue.

 

[] Finally, sort out the peeling wallpaper around that general area.  I've pretty much decided at this point that the brown mosaic pattern from the bathroom will be continued around the rear window and across the worktop splash back, finishing where the cabinet for the water heater is.  It should help make things look more seamless and professional I think, and be a lot easier to keep clean around the kitchen than the wallpaper.

 

First though, I think I need to have a bit of a tidy up.  I have made quite a ridiculous amount of mess while working on the bathroom...

 

 

Some of the foam core board I didn't end up using in the bathroom will be retained though, I'm going to use that to line the floor before the cabinet bases are put down as a bit of extra insulation.  It weighs nothing so no reason not to use it that I can see.  Being honest though, given how foul it was outside a few days back when I was working in the van it seems pretty well insulated really.  I've never actually even tested the gas fired heater yet other than establishing that the fan runs...

 

We're booked in for a weekend away in May - so that's my deadline to get the thing MOT'd and the kitchen into a serviceable state.

[Zelandeth]

The offside rear corner is the only place on the van I've had any signs of active water ingress.  As is standard for a van like this (or a coach), trying to actually match up where the rain is getting in with where it is appearing is tricky.  

 

There was no sign of dampness anywhere above the height of the worktop (the wallpaper is peeling more because it hasn't been applied properly than due to damp.  As such my guess was that it was finding a point of entry below the height of the work surface but above the floor.  There is a bodywork join there and as such that has to be a favourite.  No obvious issues present there other than that the infill strips were all missing.  This could be to blame, especially bearing in mind that due to the slope of our driveway about 90% of all water coming off the roof of the van pours down that corner at the back.

 

Well I got a huge bundle of new infill strip with the van...

 

 

 

...So no reason not to get it and the missing end caps (which meant open screw holes!) back in place.  This is the point at which I discovered something really rather annoying.

 

When whoever it was last had these strips off, they refitted them with screws rather than the original staples.

 

 

Fair enough, I would have done the same.  The issue however is that what they had not done was countersink the holes in the aluminium trim.  The result of this being the screws sitting just proud of the surface enough to prevent me from fitting the infill strip.

 

Cue me having to remove each screw, drill the hole out slightly and refit it.  For Every...bloody...single...sodding...screw.

 

We got there in the end though - after several hours.

 

 

The only bit I still need to do here is the nearside corner, though I need to dig the old silicone out of the groove there first.

 

Oh...and the spare wheel retaining bolt has been greased...I had to use an uncomfortably large amount of force to remove it given the lack of structural metalwork that the carrier is attached to.

 

Hopefully having got a bit more sealant involved and having replaced all the infill that corner will stay dry now...guess we will see next time it rains.

[PhilA]

That looks really very good as a suitable home away from home.

 

Having driven one of these severely overloaded (box van version) I can attest that in this instance I will thoroughly agree with Chapman and say that large weight, particularly high up, is your enemy.

 

Keep up the good work. What's missing from the back on either side there?

 

Phil

[busmansholiday]

You've doing a grand job on that camper, makes the fucking small fortune I paid for the Autotrail look like I was robbed blind!

[Zelandeth]

That looks really very good as a suitable home away from home.

 

Having driven one of these severely overloaded (box van version) I can attest that in this instance I will thoroughly agree with Chapman and say that large weight, particularly high up, is your enemy.

 

Keep up the good work. What's missing from the back on either side there?

 

Phil

She actually handles reasonably well, especially for all the weight on board - including the household worktops in the kitchen which have to go, originally laminate flooring in the bathroom (which was seriously so heavy that it was dragged out rather than carried). Not sure if they made any changes to the stock suspension spring rates on the assumption that there would always be a moderately heavy body attached.

 

Hoping that I'll be able to shed a bit more before I'm done. Having had it off today the spare wheel springs to mind too - it weighs a bloody tonne. I'm hardly about to swap a wheel on this thing teetering on its tiny bottle jack at the side of the road anyway...tempted to ditch the wheel and swap it for a can of foam and a compressor. Two caveats there - one being that I'll be checking with my breakdown cover to see if they insist on vehicles original equipped with a spare having one, and B: finding a 12V compressor which can actually get the tyres up to pressure - 60psi or thereabouts...my current one just isn't up to it.

 

The rear panel was originally fitted with a pair of high level tail lights duplicating the normal clusters that are at bumper height. I would have liked to reinstate them (I have them in a box) but the previous previous keeper has removed all the wiring to them, so it would be quite a bit of work to do. I may come back to it later if my OCD insists...

[PhilA]

You should put stock US lights there, confuse people.

 

Phil

[Zelandeth]

You should put stock US lights there, confuse people.

 

Phil

 

 

They're actually the right size and shape...

 

[PhilA]

Far too much orange.

 

I was thinking these

 

Or perhaps these

 

Phil

[Zelandeth]

Was the older version of the lower type there I was seeing a similarity to.

 

Afraid I'll not be going for anything that is going to require anything resembling a brain cell to understand...the average driver seems confused enough by the act of driving a car anyway these days!

 

I do like the idea of the additional lighting though, anything which makes brake lights or indicators more visible to other drivers can only be a good thing...

[PhilA]

That is the older version! It's hard to not find the LED variant here these days.

 

Phil

[Zelandeth]

Didn't have any time for car stuff today really, but did manage to spend fifteen minutes refitting the two main side rubbing strips.  Thankfully unlike the smaller infill ones this didn't involve re-drilling three thousand holes, just slipped straight in.

 

 

I stuffed a good blob of non-setting seam sealer under the end caps so there's no chance of water getting into the panel through the screw holes.

 

 

Does help make the van look a lot less generally scruffy, though I really need to do something about the bumper sitting at an angle.  That's going to be a bigger job though as the entire structure under it has been subject to quite major alteration by previous owners 

 

I do have a new mains power socket ready to fit as the one on there currently has a broken hinge.  This definitely needs to be done before we go anywhere again as it flaps around anywhere above 40mph and if the window is open all I can hear is click-click-click-click...

 

The nearside rubbing strip really will need to come off to redo the whole lot as the sealant under it is an absolute mess and it looks horrible.

 

 

What was a bag full of bits when I got the van has now been reduced to this.

 

 

The white circular thing is the cover for the keyhole on the toilet access door.  The last four metal bits are for the lower strip behind the rear wheels.  Those will need the screw holes re-drilled before I can refit the infill though.

 

Aside from the obvious impact on helping keep the van weather tight, I'm glad to be getting stuff like this done as I always like to turn up for an MOT in a vehicle that even if old looks to be well looked after.

 

Speaking of a car looking well looked after...I was feeling really guilty about the state the poor Xantia was in, so finally dropped by one of our local hand car washes and got her a mini valet.

 

 

 

 

 

Looking a bit more respectable now at least.

[LightBulbFun]

Awesome work on the ol camper

 

also thats one seriously shiny Citroen (even if it does highlight the bonnet respray)

 

(Id like to think now that if anyone tries tail gates you at night with full beams that they would be reflected off your car and back into the drivers eyes  )

[Zelandeth]

Not that shiny! Could really do with a good polish and wax - though given the clearcoat peel issues that tends to be a bit demoralising. Funny how much cleaner the whole car always seems once the wheels are clean.

 

Funnily enough I don't tend to have much trouble with people tailgating me around MK in the Activa... anybody doing so usually seems to disappear after a roundabout or two...

[Zelandeth]

One of the things I always tended to do my best to avoid when helping out with preserved buses was the fiddly bits of bodywork...oily bits I'm good with, but the bodywork is something which I always find it takes a massive amount of time for little visible gain.

 

However with it being my own vehicle that's less of an option as I can't delegate it to the new guy!

 

So it is a day of "annoying fiddly bits."

 

First up, the last two bits of infill that were missing.  

 

Offside...

 

 

That whole lower panel skin is in pretty poor state with quite a few tiny holes in, so I may need to think about changing it at some point.  For now I've just touched them in with seam sealer to keep the elements out.

 

Nearside...

 

 

That was the nice easy bit done.  Just wanted those done first as it meant that I could get rid of another bag from the box of bits of van as all the trim is now actually attached to it again.

 

Next up was replacing the missing upright infill from the nearside rear corner.  As this runs all the way to the front of the van, I'm not doing it all right now.  Just the last couple of feet.  However before I could do that I first needed to dig the silicone sealant out of the channel.  This must have taken me the best part of an hour.  Turns out that it sticks really quite well to tarnished old aluminium.

 

Eventually though I managed to clear enough of it out of the channel that it was possible to get the strip in.

 

 

The strip directly above the passenger door on the cab I noticed a couple of days ago had come away from the cab and was just barely hanging on by a couple of threads on two screws.  Was a quick matter to pull that off, clean it up, stick a new mastic strip to the back of it and slap it back in place.  I used slightly larger screws to help take up the slack and then put a new infill in there.

 

 

Getting the infill in was a bit of a chore purely because it was done teetering on the door step.  Funny how jobs like this make you appreciate how much bigger the thing is than a car.

 

This had been on my radar since the day I bought the van.

 

 

In fact I bought a new hookup unit about a week into owning it... replacement of this definitely needed to happen, as aside from just looking awful it also insistently would flap around going click-click-click-click-click-click anywhere north of 40mph.

 

Ten minutes later...

 

 

Much better.  It actually latches closed as well so hopefully won't drive me demented next time I'm on the open road.

 

This was the point at which I spotted two (blindingly obvious afterwards!) bits of infill I had missed.  These were on the surround of the gas locker and luggage compartment doors.

 

You can see how it just fits into a groove around the edge here.

 

 

Now this was a task which I went into thinking it would be a ten minute thing to finish the day off with.  Yeeeeaahh...About an hour later I had both doors done.

 

 

One of those jobs that is just incredibly fiddly and time consuming.  Does help make the van tidier though as a whole bunch less screws heads are on show how.

 

 

Getting there bit by bit.

 

Really do need to get some decent wheel trims though and bin the bargain bin specials currently on there as it drags the whole thing down.

[PhilA]

The funny thing is, those trims aren't far off what Winnebago use.

 

As godawful as they are, they don't actually spill the look of it from the distance you too that picture from.

 

Phil

[LightBulbFun]

thats one thing iv been meaning to say about the wheel trims, as cheesy as they look

 

its always what I see on camper vans for some reason, so they "complete" the stereotypical camper van look

 

(not sure if thats a good thing or an insult  )

 

 

im guessing its steelies under the wheel trims? I wonder how some polished trim rings would look while you search for better wheel trims

 

(or get some of those green pointy things like an arrivia bus LOL)

[Zelandeth]

It should have a metal trim covering the central portion of the wheel. The same trims were used on quite a few Mercs in the 70s I believe, usually painted body colour, only difference was that the ones used on commercials were usually left unpainted. I'd ideally like to find some of those. Not sure if I would leave them plain (though finding a plain set is likely to be a challenge), paint them white or metallic blue to match the detailing.

 

AutoTrail fitted a set of plastic trims I believe, these look from the photos I've seen to be a very generic smooth type which were fairly common in the late 80s to mid 90s.

 

I'd be less bothered about these if they didn't have a "chrome" finish round the outer edge and if the finish wasn't flaking off everywhere. If they were just satin silver they would be somewhat less objectionable I think.

 

Definitely a long way down the priority list though...

[Zelandeth]

All right.  Having ignored the Invacar for the last couple of weeks while I distracted myself playing with the van, it's time I got back on track.

 

Off with the carb!

 

...Which is actually quite a faff due to access, requiring both a very skinny spanner and partial removal of the Dynastart 

 

 

While a bit fiddly not a difficult job by any measure and we soon had the tiny carb off.  A Weber 32ICS10 for those of you paying attention.

 

 

 

 

Yep... that's a bit manky.  What was in the float bowl was even worse, there's a distinct layer of sludge at the bottom and what poured out had the colour and consistency of a cup of black coffee that's been forgotten about at the back of the garage for a week.  It was also discovered quite quickly that the accelerator jet was barely finger tight.

 

I really need a bigger ultrasonic cleaner.

 

 

I'll finish giving it a scrub up tomorrow and get it back on the car and see if it's helped anything.

 

To be honest given the amount of crud in it I'm astonished the car was running at all.

[LightBulbFun]

ohh iv been looking forward to this post

 

will be very interesting to hear how she runs after the carb cleaning, seeing as even before hand she was running very well

 

(I wonder if this will solve the 1 cylinder flooding/running hotter then the other thing?)

 

heres a bit of interesting info on the carb, the guy says it was made for the Model 70 specifically, but I think it was just a case of, it was made for the 500cc engine, which was most commonly used in the Model 70, the Steyr puch 126 having a 650cc engine, would have a larger carb regardless

 

https://puch500forum.eokc.at/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1151

[Zelandeth]

I don't think I've had the flooding from cold start issue since she's been out and about from memory... we'll see. The accelerator jet being loose could well have been allowing fuel to dribble down the carb barrel under certain circumstances, so we'll have to see.

 

I really should have pulled the carb off for a proper clean when I first got the car. All I've done is fish out the worst crud from the bowl with a finger and blow the jets out a couple of times. It's astonishing that she hasn't caused more trouble really.

 

Something I've been meaning to ask anyone reading this: I've been meaning to look at dragging my YouTube channel back into the land of the living...on that subject, *IF* I can wrangle the associated tech into working, would there be any interest in my grabbing a camera and live streaming some of my messing around in the garage/van?

 

This would not be carefully choreographed or planned out - I would literally just figure out somewhere to stuff the camera so you could hopefully see what I'm doing and get on with it so you can all laugh at the disaster area that is my garage and my utter inability to continue on a singular thought process for more than ten seconds.

 

...At least if I've got a camera there my talking to myself will make me look less insane.

 

Any interest?

[LightBulbFun]

I think it might be worth getting a few more subscribers before live streaming, otherwise it would prolly be just me and 2 others watching 

 

but id definitely be interested

[dollywobbler]

I think LBF has a point. Even though my stuff is not live, I still feel I have company in the garage. It's an odd thing. There are plenty of times I'm very glad it's not live!

[Zelandeth]

Not much to report today as I've been busily trying to clear our huge mountain of garden waste.

 

The Xantia and my ancient trailer are helping there.

 

 

For all the trailer looks rather scruffy it tows really well, yet is light enough that it's (just about!) possible to wrangle it through the gate on its side single handedly.  Didn't realise quite how well mannered it was until borrowing a similarly sized modern one from a friend, that thing bounced and skipped all over the shop compared to this. 

 

Poor thing really does need a bit of cosmetic work though.  Obviously varnish on the woodwork...what do you reckon for the frame?  Red, black, Invacar blue or dark grey?  I'll be completely redoing the wiring as well as there are so many patches on there it's hard to tell what's part of the system and what's ancient repair work.

 

The carb for the Invacar is back together and back in place.

 

 

Didn't get time to do a test run today, but she's been started up and ran for a half hour or so.  Had some misbehaviour for the first few minutes, but I know full well there will have been a bit of water and stuff still in there most likely so not reading too much into that.  Hopefully get her out for a proper test run tomorrow.

[LightBulbFun]

I would paint the trailer frame invacar blue especially given the rear lights 

 

(on the note of the rear lights, do they have the solid red lenses without the number plate light white section? it might be worth saving those lenses for an actual Model 70, since from what iv read while you can get the rear light units easy enough these days, they all have lenses with a white section for lighting a number plate when mounted sideways, given the blocks of wood right under the lights on the trailer I dont think a white section lens would be too noticeable there)

 

glad to see everything gone back together well on TPA, I look forward to seeing how she does on the open road

[vulgalour]

I wonder if XM trims are the correct size for the bus?

 

 

They wouldn't look massively out of place on it.

 

 

[LightBulbFun]

I wonder if XM trims are the correct size for the bus?

 

 

They wouldn't look massively out of place on it.

 

Love how you picked a photo with all the transparencies 

[Zelandeth]

If memory serves the XM has 15" wheels like the Xantia.  No good as the van has 14" wheels.

 

Have had the Invacar out for some more runs around the neighborhood and she has generally been behaving.  Definitely seems better on light throttle.  20mph before used to require on/off throttle before, whereas she will now maintain that sort of speed at constant throttle.

 

However it is obvious that the top plate gasket on the carb is weeping.

 

 

The "new" gasket I used appears to have shrunk slightly in storage meaning it doesn't fit perfectly.  Methinks that I may need to make myself a few one.

 

Given several internal passages in the carb are routed from the body into the top and back again I imagine that it's entirely possible for a tiny vacuum leak there to mess up fuelling.  I'll see what I can do about that tomorrow.  While the free play is still an issue, the brakes have really decent bite now which is nice to see.

 

You remember I've mentioned that the worktops in the van are really poorly fitted?  Yeah...this poorly.

 

 

Nothing much to do there until I get a new worktop to install.  Once I have one which is actually flat and at the correct height the lower window plastic trim should fit properly. 

 

I have done away with the scruffy and peeling wallpaper though.

 

 

Much better.

 

 

This will extend all the way round to the left obviously.  I need to drop the cooker hood to do that bit though and I just didn't have the energy for that today.

[MorrisItalSLX]

If memory serves the XM has 15" wheels like the Xantia. No good as the van has 14" wheels.

14” wheels is a tad annoying for finding hubcaps. As I believe all the factory Mercedes hubcaps from the 80s and 90s will be 15” (as you probably already know).

 

I think this style of hubcaps was produced in 14” and would look good colour coded to the blue van graphics.