Warch buys a shite Astraaargh!

[Bren]

What a honey.

It should go well as the 1.3 has 70 odd hp - even in a cavalier it is not exactly underpowered.

Those wheel trims are delish - for bonus shite points you need the white ones from an antibes model.

[sierraman]

My dad had one in the same colour but the later 1.4 unit. I think they also had the distinction of being the most stolen car in the 1990’s? 

[EyesWeldedShut]

1 minute ago, sierraman said:

My dad had one in the same colour but the later 1.4 unit. I think they also had the distinction of being the most stolen car in the 1990’s? 

The Met Police had a big unmarked fleet of this model in this colour plus a dark green (there were a couple of lighter green/beige ones sprinkled about). Each police station had two or three of them - they just screamed 'Old Bill' to all the local neds - especially this colour. Compared to a Metro panda they were rather nippy for the time - not meant to be 'response' vehicles but .....

The hot hatch Astras (SRi) did get nicked a hell of lot - but so did anything with an 'i' badge - you only needed a screwdriver. Slide hammer if you were posh.

[Dobloseven]

2 minutes ago, sierraman said:

My dad had one in the same colour but the later 1.4 unit. I think they also had the distinction of being the most stolen car in the 1990’s? 

Son had a G reg 1.6 Belmont in that red,back around the turn of the century.That got stolen from outside his girlfriends house.Soon found it though.Old boy had owned it from new.Low miles.Massive pile of service history.He was going to New Zealand to be near his son.Had asked at Vauxhall dealer how much they'd give him for it.Huge figure quoted.Day he's leaving,takes it down to cash it in.Tell him that price is only if he buys a new one and that they don't really want it!.Takes it home,sticks it back in the garage, leaving the solicitor he'd charged with selling the house to deal with it,which was where we came in.Despite all the history the timing belt broke which was an easy fix.

[fatharris]

Well bought, can't remember the last time I saw one of these in the flesh!

[warch]

7 hours ago, Burnside said:

Great purchase I've always had a soft spot for the MK2 Astra as a kid, although I've only owned it's main rival a MK4 Escort!

Funny enough I'd been watching this myself, as I remember it being for sale a few years ago locally on Car and Classic. If memory severs me right, the rear comedy arch / sill repairs weren't finished and the passenger wing was still in primer.

Bonus points to whoever painted that wing since, without bothering to drill a hole for the side indicator first.😂

Overall though looks a great little project, look forward to seeing the updates on it. 

Weirdly the indicators do work fine, with one side repeater missing (the missing fixture was in the centre console). Apparently they're not mandatory until April 1986 so not actually an MoT failure on this but I think I will try and refit it if the wirings still there. 

 

[sierraman]

31 minutes ago, Dobloseven said:

Son had a G reg 1.6 Belmont in that red,back around the turn of the century.That got stolen from outside his girlfriends house.Soon found it though.Old boy had owned it from new.Low miles.Massive pile of service history.He was going to New Zealand to be near his son.Had asked at Vauxhall dealer how much they'd give him for it.Huge figure quoted.Day he's leaving,takes it down to cash it in.Tell him that price is only if he buys a new one and that they don't really want it!.Takes it home,sticks it back in the garage, leaving the solicitor he'd charged with selling the house to deal with it,which was where we came in.Despite all the history the timing belt broke which was an easy fix.

It was if the water pump hadn’t seized! 🤣

[Burnside]

10 hours ago, warch said:

Weirdly the indicators do work fine, with one side repeater missing (the missing fixture was in the centre console). Apparently they're not mandatory until April 1986 so not actually an MoT failure on this but I think I will try and refit it if the wirings still there. 

 

Ah yes, that's right I remember now as my first car was a 1986 Talbot Samba Style. It had to have side repeaters and a passenger mirror fitted, which the pre 86 model didn't and rear seatbelts too?

Also thinking back now to my childhood, a friend of my Dad's had a very clean White Astra Club edition complete with it's lairy interior and a ex Royal Fail Sherpa as his work van. 

[MantaGTE85]

On 27/02/2024 at 19:29, adw1977 said:

Looks like the correct Philips AN232 radio.

Sep-Nov 1985 brochure link

A basic two band radio was typical for this class of car in 1985, base Maestros and Escorts had similar. 

Base Novas, Fiestas and Metros still had no radio at all.

My sister once had an E-plate Lipari Blue Metro 1.0 City 'X'. One step up from the base City. From memory, it had much plusher grey velour with open head restraints, digital clock, rear wiper, nearside door mirror. Still had no radio.

[ProgRocker]

On 27/02/2024 at 19:16, adw1977 said:

Nice purchase!

Those wheel trims and that radio make it a base, I believe?

Lack of plastic side strips too distinguish this against the L. 

I really wanted an Astra E (or Belmont) back in 1997 as student transport but alas, Vauxhall ownership has evaded me to date.

Nice buy @warch - all the best with the work. 

 

[24vdiamond]

I might have some new caliper bolts, let me check and let you know, if you need front flexi hoses there were different versions depending on chassis number and also be carefull as Vauxhall were hopeless with brakes around this era with them mixing and matching parts from different engined models! 

[warch]

Just now, 24vdiamond said:

I might have some new caliper bolts, let me check and let you know, if you need front flexi hoses there were different versions depending on chassis number and also be carefull as Vauxhall were hopeless with brakes around this era with them mixing and matching parts from different engined models! 

I’ve ordered some bits, I’ll message if I have any issues.
 

This has been a bit of an issue, the car came without brake calipers so I’ve had to guess what sort it should have had.

[24vdiamond]

Just to confirm the bolts will be M12 cap heads with a pitch of 1.5 and 40mm thread length, not sure on the grade but would assume either 10.9 or 12.9, GM part numbers 90095050 or 90348294, just ping me a message if you get stuck for anything

[warch]

Hurrah, managed to acquire the correct caliper bolts, came as part of a kit. 
 

As a bonus (using my special skill, which is identifying bolts or socket sizes by eye I managed to obtain the correct thread flange head M8 bolts for the starter motor from my local factor.
 

Ordered some new unions and washers for the brake hoses as well. Parts availability is superb for such an old car.

[High Jetter]

7 minutes ago, warch said:

using my special skill, which is identifying bolts or socket sizes by eye

Funny you should post that today, as I visited our local independant plumbing merchant this morning to obtain a brass screw to fix a tap handle to the replacement cartridge they supplied. (I'd had to drill the head off the old screw as someone had been there before and buggered it). He couldn't find one in his bigboxofscrews and sent me to a nearby ironmongers (yes, a real one!). Guy took one look at the screw in my hand (which I had taken from the other side of the tap) and said 3/16 Whitworth. Unfortunately, he only had a steel one in stock which I've cut down and fitted temporarily.

[Joey spud]

On 28/02/2024 at 07:47, EyesWeldedShut said:

The hot hatch Astras (SRi) did get nicked a hell of lot - but so did anything with an 'i' badge - you only needed a screwdriver. Slide hammer if you were posh.

My SRi got nicked off my driveway in the early hours I even heard it being driven away. Unfortunately the next door neighbour had an Astra GTE and i thought it was their car driving off.

The plod found it later that morning with its engine still running parked behind a nearby village hall.

[warch]

Update

Brakes; got one of the new calipers in the post, test fitted it so that should be ok, ordered some new banjo bolts for the hose connectors. Total spend 21 quid on fitting kit, 6 quid on banjo bolts and 90 quid on calipers. 

Also got a much heavier box in the post which turned out to be the new starter motor (the car came without starter or battery). Having improvised a 'ghetto' battery solution (nicked the battery out of my Landrover) and plumbed in the new starter it fired up almost instantaneously and settled down to a smooth idle. Result! 

All I'm waiting for now is the other caliper then it'll be mobile and ready to take for a little remedial welding.   

[warch]

1 hour ago, Joey spud said:

My SRi got nicked off my driveway in the early hours I even heard it being driven away. Unfortunately the next door neighbour had an Astra GTE and i thought it was their car driving off.

The plod found it later that morning with its engine still running parked behind a nearby village hall.

My old line manager when I worked at Somerfield had his SRi pinched as well (c. 1995). I'm hoping my rural location, the lack of keyless ignition/obd port and the extreme shiteness of my new purchase will deter any potential interest from subhuman scum. 

[mk2_craig]

No harm in adding a Disklok to the order as well, these things do keep going missing even in this day and age, somehow the twoccers trade is getting passed on down the generations. 

[D.E]

Back when I didn't rent a secure garage yet, I had a steering wheel lock for visual discouragement and removed a few bits to render it unuseable. Good luck driving a car with no spark plug wires...

[warch]

15 minutes ago, D.E said:

Back when I didn't rent a secure garage yet, I had a steering wheel lock for visual discouragement and removed a few bits to render it unuseable. Good luck driving a car with no spark plug wires...

When I used to live in Oxford I disabled my Landrover by either disconnecting the coil lead or removing the rotor arm. Inevitably I often forgot that I'd done this, resulting in lots of fruitless cranking/ftp before the penny dropped. 

[stuboy]

On 29/02/2024 at 12:44, warch said:

This has been a bit of an issue, the car came without brake calipers so I’ve had to guess what sort it should have had.

see my previous post.... im trying too remeber the official name for the crappy calipers

[catsinthewelder]

Best of luck with it, shout if you want a hand.

Funnily enough I saw a mk1 Astra being trailered out of Ludlow this morning.

[beko1987]

I had a zx td that the pervious owner used to use for his commute into London where he would drive in on a Monday, park it somewhere and leave it all week, then drive home Friday. He'd fitted a hidden switch to the glow plug relay which rendered the car unstartable, could you do something similar to the ignition feed or similar? 

Remembering what happened to triggers poor old Vauxhall, it's still nickable sadly 😢

[warch]

Got both my calipers, unfortunately one of them (which came in a taped up box) was lacking the roll pins and retaining clips. Bollocks! Can’t find these anywhere.

[catsinthewelder]

They've probably still got them on the shelf at Midway.

[24vdiamond]

How many do you want? 😃

 

[warch]

9 minutes ago, 24vdiamond said:

How many do you want? 😃

 

Just the one I think? 

[Cavcraft]

What a brilliant car.

[24vdiamond]

There you go, not worth me trying to find an envelope for that money

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