GR8 4 Collecting Pension.

[Angrydicky]

£33.55 for the sets listed on the website, which are almost all Ford dealers. They do look superb quality. The guy asked me for some photos so he could see if they could reproduce them for me, and add them to their portfolio. I only really needed the front plate but then again the tax disc holder has lost its sticky and the rear screen sticker is badly faded so if they can do them to a good standard it'll be well worth doing.

 

http://www.dmb.uk.com/cat/122/dealer-sets

 

What I'm trying to say is, they may well be able to do ones for the Micra and Rover but probably only if you've got the originals to take pictures of, as they only seem to have Ford and a couple of VAG dealers on file.

 

You can get basic pre-2001 plates here as well. You can have text at the bottom so if the dealer script is just words with no logos and you're not bothered about perfection this could be worth a try. I thought about getting the Maestro plates here but I'd like to keep the little BL plugholes next to the dealer name.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PAIR-of-UK-OLD-FONT-Pre-2001-Vintage-Car-Registration-Number-Plates-16A-/161006768776?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item257cc05288

[Lord Sterling]

I'd like to have the big 'ROVER' in the Claret box (as per my signature) as many Rover dealer plates came with. The Micra has its original 'RegVardy' dealer plate on the rear still which I can take a pic of in order to get a front plate done.

[Guest Tony Hayers]

I'd like to have the big 'ROVER' in the Claret box (as per my signature) as many Rover dealer plates came with.

 

I can PM you a picture of a plate with the red border/red block 'ROVER' setup if you want. Will send it over to you tomorrow afternoon sometime with measurements if needed.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Splendid work there AD. Are you getting a nice big fat spark? I can't help blaming anything other than the SU carb for a non-start, they seem to be pretty infallible in my experience, more likely to be an ignition problem I'd have thought.

 

Hopefully you'll find that you can carry out a few repairs on Fay with your 'hot glue gun' once you take her for a spin in this hot mutha.

[Angrydicky]

The one thing I haven't checked yet, as I don't have a plug spanner! I've fitted new plug leads (they do appear to be in the right order, 1,3,4,2, I checked that this morning) and Barrett changed the plugs during his tenureship.

 

I'll whip them out and check for a spark next time I get a chance. Although the carb is a bit shit, like you say it is surprising it won't start at all.

[Lord Sterling]

I can PM you a picture of a plate with the red border/red block 'ROVER' setup if you want. Will send it over to you tomorrow afternoon sometime with measurements if needed.

Yes please. Thanks!

[Guest Tony Hayers]

Will do.

[plasticvandan]

can still chuck a plug in a disconnected lead and see if its sparking

[Angrydicky]

Well I've been doing a bit more tinkering today. I stuck a fresh gallon of petrol in the tank as it was showing empty on the gauge, and whipped out the plugs and gapped them. All looked ok really, but did smell of stale petrol. Once I get the battery charged I'll take off the fuel pipe to the carb and see if we're getting any petrol through. Annoyingly it won't even splutter now. I did check for a spark and got a healthy spark at number 1, so it points to a fuel issue. The Maestro obviously didn't want to leave Gary! Anyway I'm not too worried about getting it running at the moment, as I've got plenty of work elsewhere to be getting on with.

 

I started off by sanding down the unsightly surface rust on the valance and front bumper, and wet 'n' drying it ready for paint. We did it with an aerosol when I first got the car three years ago, and it lasted for a couple of years, so I think it's worth doing it like this again. Eventually it will be getting a proper respray, but for the moment I just want to get it looking respectable again.

 

 

I removed the headlights and cleaned the dirt of ages out from behind them. The whole front panel area was speckled with surface rust from winter road salt. I gave it all a really good clean and rubbed it all down for paint. It's all really solid here though, a testament to being garaged for the first 25 years of its life.

 

 

 

Then I got the front bumper off. I spent ages rubbing this down and if I get a chance tomorrow, I'll give it a fresh coat of satin black. The rest of the front panel is also just about ready for paint. Sadly, the original front numberplate got broken in the process of removing it, as the screws rounded then sheared off when I tried to get molegrips onto the screw threads at the back. Thankfully it was in pretty poor condition, warped and delaminated, so no great loss. I have a new set of dealer plates in the correct font on order from DMB Graphics, so they should set it off well when they arrive!

 

 

 

I also did the bonnet and roof with the clay bar. Results are pretty good, obviously it needs more work with polish and suchlike but the paint finish is really clean and smooth now, and it's got rid of that horrible tree sap. Does anyone know, do I need to use T-Cut and polish on the clayed areas, or just polish?

 

 

 

Unfortunately I then went and poked at a crusty bit on the front wing. The good news is these wings look quite straightforward to remove, and apparently new ones aren't as rare as I'd thought. These type of wings were only fitted to metal bumper cars without side repeaters, so pre 1986 (or something) Base and City models. As no one ever bothers preserving these low-spec models, there is a glut of the correct wings on the market. The bad news is that when I'm looking for a pair, I can't find any cheap ones! There's a couple on the 'bay, but one is £60 (too expensive) and the other is cheaper but collection only from Leeds. A guy in the club reckons he's got several pairs in his spares barn, but doesn't know when he'll next be visiting. Hmm.

 

 

I could really do with a pair of front indicators if anyone has some knocking about, as my lenses are both cracked. I have spent a ridiculous amount on this Maestro so far, so as cheap as possible please!

[Shep Shepherd]

^

 

When I clay barred The Volvo in 2008, I just gave it an application of Mer afterwards. It looked great

[Angrydicky]

Thanks Shep I'll have to give it a going over with Asda finest polish then!

[trigger]

I went to the autojumble in the little village of Kettleburgh here in sunny Suffolk back in the summer and there was some chap knocking out a pair new genuine Maestro wings for £25 each, I remember at the time thinking how cheap they were.

[RobT]

If you find wings for sale that are local to me I'm happy to collect and bring them down to you Dicky, unlikely I know but the offer is there!

[vulgalour]

After claybar you only need to polish.  I found I got the best results from Farecla G3 and then Autoglym Super Resin Polish but you don't need to go that far.  I don't really rate T-Cut for anything but really tough jobs, it's not particularly nice smelling, it's not great to work with and it can make things worse rather than better, unlike the Farecla and Autoglym products.

[barrett]

Really glad to see this getting some love, keep it up! I saw yesterday somebody offered to buy this "for £100 and give it one last blaze of glory lol" on RR so really glad the total opposite is happening. Do hurry up and get it sorted so I can ram some pictures of it looking minty fresh down that guy's throat.

 

Plugs probably have about 80 miles under their belt, so if they looked anything other than brand new that might help point towards what the issue is. I also have a new oil filter for this sitting on my desk but I might nick it for the Allegro. If I have a fit of generosity then I'll post it on to you!

[Angrydicky]

Rob - Thanks, that's a really kind offer! Will bear it in mind if I find any wings in your neck of the woods.

 

Vulgalour - Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping to be able to save all the paint above the windows as apart from the odd rust bubble and stone chip it's actually pretty good. Lower down there's a few scabby areas and bits where it's been touched in with a aerosol. It always was a 'twenty feet' car! The door shuts are near mint though. I can't wait to get the bits of MOT welding cut off the back arches and repaired properly as they make it look loads worse than it is.

 

Barrett - Yeah I saw that, I'm also really glad that's not happening! Being an early base model it's so rare now and really needed to be preserved. It'll be a while before it looks "minty fresh" with a proper respray, but it should start looking quite presentable soon. It will be absolutely standard and original as well, no nasty RR style mods here! Tartan rug on the parcel shelf, packet of Werthers Originals in the glovebox and a period 'Vehicle Watch' sticker for the back window (If I can't find one I'll try to get one reproduced) is all it needs for the full giffer effect! 

 

Re. the oil filter, I got one in the Euro Car Parts sale for £3, so I'm not too bothered really, as long as it fits that is! I haven't offered it up yet. The plugs looked shiny on the outside, but the electrodes were pretty black, like it had been running overrich for those 80 miles. I'm pretty sure it's a fuel delivery problem anyway, possibly a collapsed rubber pipe somewhere. I'll keep you posted.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I was very tempted to have a lick of this. Wish I had now. Should it have some vinyl stripes down the doors or was it too povo even for those?

[Angrydicky]

I was very tempted to have a lick of this. Wish I had now. Should it have some vinyl stripes down the doors or was it too povo even for those?

Yep, no side rubbing strips on the base models, I think they were only standard on 'L' spec and above. Quite a few of them had stripes applied by later owners or dealers though I believe.

 

A few pics of today's progress.

 

 

Champagne top coat on:

 

 

Repainted bumper on

 

 

Headlights back in and connected up:

 

 

Repaired grille refitted.

 

 

 

 

I'm very pleased with the finish really. It's not perfect, but about as good as you can get from an aerosol can that's probably been on the shelf in a motor factors for 20 years. The colour match is pretty much spot on as well, which is great. Also, the grille actually lines up with the front panel properly for the first time in my ownership. I also managed to knock out the worst of that nasty dent in the front valance.

[Jim Bell]

That looks a thousand times better already!

 

Very well played.

[phil_lihp]

That's made a huge difference, the paint looks great but it's also surprising what a difference clean headlights makes.  If the rest of the car is in for similar treatment it's going to look superb.

[Lord Sterling]

Looks superb Richard, really tidy. Did you rub the front down and lacquer the painted areas?

[Angrydicky]

Thanks! I did rub it down but haven't lacquered it...would that be a good thing to do? I've never used lacquer before. 

 

It's only got to last a year or so until it gets a proper lower half respray anyway, hopefully.

[Lord Sterling]

Well, to be honest, I've never sprayed a car before (actually, I did matt-Black, badly, a matchbox scale Jaguar XJ6) but from what I've heard, lacquer will help protect the paintwork and therefore the metal better than just pure areosol paint where surface rust can build faster.

 

I am happy to be contradicted on this point as I have no experience if painting.

[Angrydicky]

Look what arrived today!

 

 

 

 

Sneak preview!

 

 

Can't wait to get these beauties fitted on the car. I can't recommend DMB Graphics highly enough, they made these from a few shonky photos of the originals and I can barely fault them. If anyone else has a 1980's or 1990's car with naff modern plates on it these are well worth buying. Total cost with postage was £37.50, so not bank-breakingly expensive either.

 

Also Gary sent over the original handbook pack, and his mum sent the missing mudflap! It was nice to put the original service record back in the wallet where it belongs, as Gary discovered it when he removed the glovebox.

 

[vulgalour]

I wouldn't worry about putting lacquer on the paint since it's a flat colour and you're planning a respray anyway, should do you for a few years without looking appalling.  Top stuff on the plates and stickers and whatnot.

[garycox]

Excellent work AD!! This is already looking miles better, it's gonna be great when it's all finished.

 

Those plates and other gubbins look spot on!

[Lord Sterling]

WOW! Those plates look the BIZNESS. DMB Graphics are whom I am contacting once I work out where most of my cars came from. I've never seen the actual 'Shields Rover' logo, but I might just make one up with 2 claret Rover logos either the side of the writing to make it look authentic.

[trigger]

That's the bo11ox!

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Certainly is, I often SPEND MY WAD when I see a good dealer plate or dealer sticker on somethng if I see it at a car show, they are going to look the business. Great work AD!

[cort16]

Looks great already. Personally I'd laquer it as it protects the paint. Some base coats are porous and need to be laquered otherwise you might get rust coming throug sooner than you like.

When I do paint on explosed bits of the car (the front) I stone chip them first. You can then flat it back smooth with wet and dry before painting it. It just gives an extra layer of protection between the road and the metal.

 

As for the tree resin, I've got a mate who's a painter he says the only thing that'll move it is hot soapy water.