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My 1978 Fiat 900T van. And the rest of my fleet...(3 years later!!! ...Updated 11/12/23)


Vin

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There is also a little update on the Fiorino engine...

I don't have any pictures, but the cleaned up pistons are now back in the block. They were fitted with new piston rings and new end bearings.

I also fitted the new crankshaft seals. I cleaned and refiited the oil pump and oil pick-up pipe.

Cleaned and painted the sump with POR-15 and assembled with a new gasket...IMG_0838.thumb.JPG.896bc824fe6308398428d7312dfcdb46.JPG

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I'm not sure how I've missed this before. Good work on the Panda, I reckon most would have just stripped it for spares, which would have been a shame.

Props for dailying the 45, I can't remember the last time I saw a MK1 Panda on the road, probably the late '80's!

Fergie, as in Ferguson tractor? Tell us more please.

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Bravo Vin ! Well done for getting stuck in and changing the Panda quarter panel & sill on the driveway.  Also nice to see some progress on the Fiorino Van engine too. 

I'm sure I've mention this before on AS, but my Brother 1st Car was a 89 G reg Panda 750L. Honestly one of the best small cars I've driven. We liked it so much my Sister had a last of line 95 M reg 1000 CLX as her 1st car. Wish we still had them seeing yours. 

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9 hours ago, Vin said:

 

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Loving the sparkle stick action.  I'm currently doing something similar with the largely identical Y10. Do you reckon temporary bracing is unnecessary. I don't do bracing due to time/money and it just never seems to bother the Y10 unduly to hack chunks out of its structure. 

Also how do you deal with exploding seams where the metal is still present and solid but rust is pushing it apart? Just use extreme prejudice and chop it out anyway or attempt to clean it out using chemical or mechanical means. I was thinking of that seam at the top of the picture where that triangular floor piece joins the inner wing. 

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1 hour ago, Skut said:

Loving the sparkle stick action.  I'm currently doing something similar with the largely identical Y10. Do you reckon temporary bracing is unnecessary. I don't do bracing due to time/money and it just never seems to bother the Y10 unduly to hack chunks out of its structure. 

Also how do you deal with exploding seams where the metal is still present and solid but rust is pushing it apart? Just use extreme prejudice and chop it out anyway or attempt to clean it out using chemical or mechanical means. I was thinking of that seam at the top of the picture where that triangular floor piece joins the inner wing. 

I haven't used bracing, but I do try to deal with one section, complete it and start on the next. For instance I made sure the inner sills were back to strength before chopping about the back sections. Where the seams are exploding, for example in the arch where the boot floor meets the inner wing and chassis rail (the two pics below), I bite the bullet and chop it out, with a dremel in this case as it's easier to get in. I then make repair sections, in this case two pieces, a floor section and then a wing section.

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As regards the triangular section you referenced, in my case it is solid and the seam is OK, the rust on the section is surface which I ground off with a cup brush and a dremel to get into the corners. I then put converust and painted with POR-15. There was actually a little bit above the triangular section on the seam, which I dremeled out and you can see in the below picture where I welded in a patch and ground the welds down. Top left 1/4 of the picture.

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  • 2 months later...

I was going to post here, out of not knowing where better to:-

 

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“FREE COME AND TAKE IT” local Facebook ad last week. 
 

However, at the metals yard this morning:-

 

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Too freaking late then. As a consolation prize I might be able to get some bits salvaged - need anything? Would have to be early on Monday morning as I think it’ll be in the baler shortly afterwards. 

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  • 4 weeks later...

You may dare...?

Both the doors that were on it, one original, one replacement circa 2006, were both absolutely rotten. The bottoms were full of wob, mesh and glassfibre, that I put there over the years....

The green doors are 100% better than what was there, but they are not perfect, so I didn't think it worth going to the effort of painting, as I will have to do work on the passenger door at some point in the future. I have a brand new drivers door in primer and bubble wrap in a lock-up, so that is not such a concern.

I got the doors from a scrapyard circa 1995, from a 6 month old malta green Panda CLX that had been crashed by a pensioner. I got the boot lid too. I put them on my daily driver at the time and then kept them when that Panda died circa 1998, so they have been in a shed since then...

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  • 4 months later...

How about an update then??

It's about fuckin time, you say...

OK.

It's probably not what you were expecting...

Right. Fiorino engine has progressed, no pictures to hand though. Will be eventually.

1947 Ferguson TE20 tractor. This is now mine after I bought it off my Step-mum. All is not lost though, as she bought back (from my mate) her Dad's 1949 Ferguson TED20, and has paid him to re-comission it. Should be ready in the next few weeks...

Now, my update relates to the 'lockdown'....

I've been working from home and haven't left my village in North Lincolnshire for nearing 5 weeks...

This means my daily driver Fiat Marea hasn't gone anywhere.

I was aware it needed 'de-rusting' as it was mentioned that it was getting crusty at the last MOT....

No use of the Marea and more hours to mess about, meant let's get it sorted...

Basically, the upshot was, there were quite a few holes in the boot including the common Marea rot spots. The rear right footwell has suffered too. There was loads of rot around a 2017 MOT weld patch. I've kept the patch as the welding is solid. I've just trimmed out the rotten floor from underneath the patch with my dremel. I've cut out and welded in repairs for the rotten sections.

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Boot floor...

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Repairs welded in.

 

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Rear right footwell and floor, before and after...

 

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Now, after further investigation with a screwdriver and my dremel grinder, I found out (I had suspected this was the case for a while...) that the inner wheelarch was fucked. This is only accessible from below with your head in the arch, so was going to be a ballache to repair.

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I actually ordered some more P40 glassfibre and mesh (I do now have it), but I couldn't go through with actually using it...

SO....I, bit the bullet and cut the wheeltub out, which needs repairing anyway, but can be done on the bench, and welded back in after...

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I have actually cut out the rot and welded in new metal, but I will take some more pics as I carry on...

So, there you go. I guess that's an unexpected 'Lockdown restoration'. To be fair, if anyone told me in January, that by April I'd be cutting loads of shite out my daily, because it wasn't a daily anymore, I'd have told them to do one...

 

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  • 1 month later...

Ive been persevering with this for the past month or so. I ended up doing the other wheel tub and arch as well, plus I had to fabricate a new fuel pipe mount. It's actually all back together now, seam sealed, the underside painted in POR 15 and undersealed. The interior is now all leather cleaned and back in. I ended up taking the towbar off as well, due to making a couple of holes in the vicinity of the MOT no no area. I cut them out and welded in new metal. The towbar was painted in POR 15 and reinstated. I'm just waiting on some chimney nuts, so I can put the right rear quarter/bumper back on...

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