A long time ago in a Galaxie far, far away (and other shit)

[treehugger]

What an absolute beast. As cool as penguin pee.

[captain_70s]

On 12/14/2019 at 4:06 PM, sdkrc said:

These brochures are fantastic! So I've got the 280bhp thunderbird engine. Don't think I've been appreciating the spec enough. Also thanks for all of this collective wisdom. It's 3 degrees, pissing it down, and I have no tools, mechanical knowledge or time but the enthusiasm here has got me fired up to make some progress.

Give us a shout if you fancy an extra pair of hands to lend automotive aid. Chances are I won't actually be any help at all but I can supply a toolbox full of Imperial tools and can generally hang about with my hands in my pockets ooohing and aaaaahing. 

[somewhatfoolish]

You've also got the right wardrobe to be lounging about in a distressed lump of '60s detroit iron.

[eddyramrod]

On 12/15/2019 at 8:31 PM, Frogchod said:

Like others I've scrolled past thinking the thread was about a Galaxy. 

Fucking glad I clicked on this.

Definitely a winner here

I need* a V8 , my V6 Buick  is not awfull enough....

If only you knew someone with a V8 for sale, who might take a px.....

[DodgeRover]

For a windscreen just claim from your insurance they will import one of they can't get one in this country. They brought 2 in from Australia for my old Kingswood, 2 because the first broke in transit...

[sdkrc]

On 12/17/2019 at 12:36 AM, captain_70s said:

Give us a shout if you fancy an extra pair of hands to lend automotive aid. Chances are I won't actually be any help at all but I can supply a toolbox full of Imperial tools and can generally hang about with my hands in my pockets ooohing and aaaaahing. 

@captain_70s  could genuinely use a second set of eyes so may take you up on this in late January once I'm not drowning in poverty and can order parts. Could oooh and aaah together

Binding rear brake just needed a bit of a run. Starting and stopping beautifully. Looking for an excuse to use my new axle stands now...

[JeeExEll]

That is fantastic, so surreal.  The 66 Galaxie is back.

[Zelandeth]

On 12/17/2019 at 2:29 PM, DodgeRover said:

For a windscreen just claim from your insurance they will import one of they can't get one in this country. They brought 2 in from Australia for my old Kingswood, 2 because the first broke in transit...

Beware of that - Adrian Flux would rather have written my Saab off than pay for the replacement screen!  So just double check the small print first.

[LightBulbFun]

7 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Beware of that - Adrian Flux would rather have written my Saab off than pay for the replacement screen!  So just double check the small print first.

it was the saab? I could've sworn it was the Lada?

it would be fun to buy a car that has no factory glass, then make a claim for a new windscreen or something and see what happens

[Zelandeth]

8 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

it was the saab? I could've sworn it was the Lada?

it would be fun to buy a car that has no factory glass, then make a claim for a new windscreen or something and see what happens

No, the Lada was a case of contacting the local approved glass centre and they just said "sorry, can't get one."  The Saab came alarmingly close to being written off because of this before I moved south.  Last time I ever leave my car at Autoglass!

I stopped pursuing it shortly after as it wasn't an issue at the MOT because my tester is sane.  It's quite likely that I'd have been able to find one if I went further afield, just ceased to be a matter of urgency once I had the MOT out the way.

It's not a hard screen to change (have done three I think) so my intention was to just track down a used one and swap it myself, just fell off the to do list.

[sdkrc]

No reverse lights...haha, oh fuck. I've done ~150miles like this

[hairnet]

eddy you too can be this cool

 

[LightBulbFun]

Just now, hairnet said:

eddy you is this cool

 

FTFY

[Skut]

12 minutes ago, sdkrc said:

No reverse lights...haha, oh fuck. I've done ~150miles like this

You don't have to have reversing lights unless the car was registered on or after January 2009. Somebody will correct me if I'm wrong but pretty sure that's right. 

[Pieman]

5 hours ago, sdkrc said:

@captain_70s  could genuinely use a second set of eyes so may take you up on this in late January once I'm not drowning in poverty and can order parts. Could oooh and aaah together

Binding rear brake just needed a bit of a run. Starting and stopping beautifully. Looking for an excuse to use my new axle stands now...

Stunning noise from an equally stunning car, I'm loving this.

You mentioned that the headlights randomly turn off...having recently watched The White Room, maybe your car and Timelord are relatives.  Maybe rig up some translation device using an Alexa and ask it.

[SiC]

I'm surprised at that age it even had reverse lights out of the factory. 

[Split_Pin]

My 2003 Astra Coupe's reverse lights did not work for years but they were not mandatory on that age of car. 

[PhilA]

1 hour ago, SiC said:

I'm surprised at that age it even had reverse lights out of the factory. 

It's been a US requirement since 1968 to have them.

Optional extra before then, but still fairly common to have.

Phil

[eddyramrod]

Huggy has them built into the rear bumper.  They don't work though.  In common with a lot of old American cars in the UK, they were disconnected and repurposed as indicators at some point.  However before I got him, the indicator wiring was reinstalled in its proper place (going to the stop/tail lights in the fins) and the reversing lights simply ignored.

[loserone]

The reverse lights on my MGF were dead, but not testable.

[Matty]

10 hours ago, sdkrc said:

No reverse lights...haha, oh fuck. I've done ~150miles like this

Not backwards though ?

[brownnova]

Just catching up on this... fuck me sidewards this is cool. Honestly... jealous doesn’t come close!! Good luck with the resurrection, and as said previously...

Do not Paint!! 

[Three Speed]

10 hours ago, PhilA said:

It's been a US requirement since 1968 to have them.

Optional extra before then, but still fairly common to have.

Phil

Reversing lights were standard issue on my '59 Chrysler. I don't believe you can be pulled over for them not working, (remember the Avenger DL that looked like it had them but you didn't get bulbs unless you paid for a Super) but you can for driving forwards with them stuck on. 

Really enjoying this story. A big shabby yank tank is a very wonderful thing. 

[sdkrc]

I'm pretty sure this should have reverse lights. Didn't know that it was road legal without them but I'm not too worried about the law side of things. I've been confidently reversing but people behind me would have had zero idea about my intentions

Tried to download a digital version of the 1966 Ford and Mercury shop manual but after 2 hours of faffing around with corrupt PDFs and a license that can't be checked I've given up and raised a dispute on PayPal. Seems like the publisher went out of business a while back.

Found the source of the boot leak...painfully obvious. This grate just drains straight into the boot. 2 rubber pipes that go nowhere. Wonder what this looked like from the factory

Next step is to figure out how the hell this jack works and whether it's safe

[eddyramrod]

Perfectly safe, as long as the shaft hasn't rotted.  Look under the bumpers, near the corners.  You should see little slots, that's where the jack hooks in, then all you have to do is crank it up.  And up, and up, it'll go to a quite alarming angle but it's fine for wheelchanging.

[DeeJay]

Just make sure it's the car going up and not the jacking point bending down.

[purplebargeken]

That is just fucking cool as fuck. 

[Frogchod]

On ‎12‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 9:38 AM, eddyramrod said:

If only you knew someone with a V8 for sale, who might take a px.....

Is this the Caddy near Portsmouth ? 

Buicks mostly working, I'll be keeping it 'till at least after SF France and SF Ipswich

 

[eddyramrod]

On 12/29/2019 at 7:33 PM, DeeJay said:

Just make sure it's the car going up and not the jacking point bending down.

If it does, it'll be easy to see: the whole bumper will bend!

On 12/29/2019 at 7:47 PM, Frogchod said:

Is this the Caddy near Portsmouth ? 

Buicks mostly working, I'll be keeping it 'till at least after SF France and SF Ipswich

 

Only occasionally!  With me it's been there twice, but normally lives 400 miles north in the Lakes.

[captain_70s]

On 12/29/2019 at 5:41 PM, purplebargeken said:

That is just fucking cool as fuck. 

Quoted for truth. I met this beast today.

Credit to Mr @sdkrc 'cause this thing is ace.

Interior and exterior are gloriously patinated from a mixture of Arizona sun and a small interior fire, the massive V8 pulls it along quite nicely and the autobox goes through gears smoothly aside from the jump into D or R from neutral. On reflection this may be because it is currently idling at about 1,100rpm which is probably faster than the 'box is designed for. This is the first Yank motor I've driven and only the second left hooker (The first being @320touring's GSA), steering is effortless, torque is endless although it handles like a small yacht and the brakes require some thinking ahead as it's tiny drums all around. Once you adapt to it though it really does go nicely.

Other bonus points - 

Heater doesn't work so, no desmisting but a squeegee on the front window works fine + it's an excuse to open the pillarless windows.
The bits of the interior that haven't been baked in the Arizona sun have been on fire, characterful as fuck.
Sounds fucking amazing.
Quarterlights open with their own handle - Posh as fuck.
Remote mirror adjust - Posh as fuck.
Lap belts to chop you in half in the event of an accident.
Gets an mpg figure.
Seems to have been painted cream at some point and then changed back to the original colour. Leaves a trail of lacquer in it's wake.
Hubcaps detach while on the move for pedestrian slicing action.
Is exactly the correct length for a McDonald's parking space + about 3ft.

11/10 top shitting - would daily in the summertime.