Older restorations - have they stood the test of time?

[Steve 155C]

Has anyone here got a car that had a major restoration 5+ more years ago?

If so how's it fairing up , and what would you do differently if you had the chance to do it again?

 

[tommy]

Hi Steve my car was finished in 1999, so that just over 8 years on the road and almost 9 years since it was painted and its sticking it really well, with just a couple of pinhead size surface blisters in the paint. I put 22 litres of waxoil in it so it should last. Regrets are few but here goes;
Wish I had made sure sidelamps and grille fitted before topcoat of paint layed on because I had to file out the sidelamp holes to get everthing to fit thus breaking the paint. (airflow car, grille and sidelamps are a bugger)
Wish I had been able to get a new bonnet (could not get one at time of resto and body man warned me after it was repaired, it would not last as long as the rest of the car, but hey no problems with it yet)
Should have got gearbox rebuilt when it was removed for body resto but it was working ok, so I didnt and 2nd gear syncro failed after a couple of years
Should not have bought the remanufactured anti roll bar and rear side window surrounds from Terry Batchelor as they were s***e.
Should have replaced the small core plugs in the cylinder head but Miles Wilkins book said not to. The back one failed as soon as I fired it up so engine had to come out again.
I also should have bought the stainless exhaust and manifold from the same place. I didnt and exhaust collector box was too near the floor and burnt the paint off. Also should have modified the manifold to clear the steering idler and then I would not have ended up with a seized steering idler and broken steering box.
My main advice is get the best paint job you can regardless of cost. It may seem dear now but in 5years time when your cheaper one is bubbling and looks crap you will wish you had. Also smother everything you can in anti rust wax and sod the concourse judges who do not like it.
Tommy

 

[tommy]

One other thing I have remembered is if you use nos ford doors, make sure the front quarter lights fit before you paint the doors. I found that the gap in the top of the door between skin and frame was too narrow and had to cut the stiffener that connects them to get the gap big enough to fit the quarter lights. Because they were already painted I could not weld the stiffener up again so a little piece of steel had to be pop riveted in instead. I am sure there are other little things that would help somone doing a resto now and I will post any more I remember.
Tommy

 

[Steve 155C]

Cheers Tommy - there are some good tips there. I do plan to do a dry build of my car before paint which will hopefully save me having problems similar to yours.

I'm still undecided whether to have it acid dipped and e-coated after the body rebuild is complete. Its about 50/50 on good and bad stories so far. Today I would send it away to get done , but tomorrow I know someone will tell me another horror story !!

 

[tommy]

Heres a photo taken last week for the insurance renewal. Do you think its lasting well?
Tommy

 

[Hirev]

While not a Lotus, I finished this MK1 GT in Sept. of 2001.
I sold it in 2005 and just purchased it back. The person that owned it
the two and half years, drove it only a few times. It was garaged here in
Southern California. In total, there are about 10,000 miles since the restoration. Aside from a few small rock chips on the leading edge, and a few
small bubbles along the lower rear qtr. there are no issues.
I used a combination of window rubber from the UK and Australia. The Australian rubber seems to have held up better. Perhaps it's formulated for a dryer climate like ours in California. It has a very good paint job with many layers of etching primer.
I expect to keep it a while this time. Now I just need to finish my Lotus.

 

[waf]

I know its not a Cortina, but my anglia was restored in 1988. Picture take 18 months ago.

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[tommy]

On the subject of dip or not to dip Steve I would be reluctant to do somthing which will eradicate the original body markings on the rear parcel shelf. When I got my car painted inside, outside and underneath I expressly forbade the painter to touch the rear parcel shelf, so this would stay original with the original markings.
On the other hand if you have ever had to repair the front pillar/scuttle area you will know that they are bare metal up inside the front pillars.
This is because they were only dip primed to the waist, so the e-coat would be good to get some protection up into places like that.
For rust removal on anything that can be removed and emmersed I use a phospheric acid solution called Kilco Chemicals Milk Stone Remover which is normally used for descaling milking machines. It is available from agricultural suppliers for £8+vat per gallon (far cheaper than rust remover like Jenolite). Put anything rusty in it for 2 to 3 days and it comes out clean as a whistle, just rinse with water and dry off. Be careful though IT BURNS.
For rust removal on metal work that cannot be dipped I use Hammerite Rust Removing Gel which is a green gel that comes in 1/2 litre tubs.
I ignore the instructions on the tub and find it works best if you put it on the rust nice and thick and leave overnight. Next day rinse off with water and wire brush. Keep reapplying and rinsing off the next day until rust is gone. DO NOT LET IT DRY OUT AS IT TURNS INTO A SCALY MESS. It does work better in cold wet weather as warm dry weather tends to dry it out too quick. Do not believe any claims for anything that turns rust into some sort of layer that stops the rust,removal is the only way.
I have derusted quite large areas like the A post panels with the gel but it does take patience. It might take about a week of reapplying and rinsing to derust a heavily rusted A post but it does work and its better than blasting as you tend to get little specs of rust left at the bottom of pits with blasting. I did not use these on the lotus but have succesfully on more recent restos.
Tommy

 

[Steve 155C]

Hi Tommy - the rear parcel shelf markings is one of the things that I dont really want to loose , but I may just sacrifice it if the trade off is it means my shell will not have to be restored again in my life time. I have taken pictures of the parcel shelf markings just for the records.

 

[Pete G]

Hi waf
That's a really nice 'Anglebox' you've got there. My first two cars were 105E s and always dreamt of putting the 1500 GT engine in one but never had the money.

 

[garyeanderson]

Hi Tommy - the rear parcel shelf markings is one of the things that I dont really want to loose , but I may just sacrifice it if the trade off is it means my shell will not have to be restored again in my life time. I have taken pictures of the parcel shelf markings just for the records.

Steve
Don't let anyone near the parcel tray, if its not rotted then leave it alone. Cover it with paper and tape. I would not dip a shell, my car will have what it needs done and no more.

Gary

 

[tommy]

Also Steve in my experience if you have a seam with rust in it,you have no option but to cut it open, even if both components making up the seam are not yet rotten. Nothing you do will get to the rust in the seam and kill it, so it will just creep out under your new paint. I know that the dipping is supposed to do this, but having not used the process, or seen the long term results, I am still to be convinced. I know from bitter experience with my Sunbeam how quickly this can ruin an expensive paint job.
Tommy

 

[Hirev]

When I had the Lotus Cortina painted, I specifically requested to
leave the rear parcel tray alone to preserve the marking.
It was covered with masking paper and never touched.
The car was brought down to metal with chemical stripper and sanding.
Ken.

 

[Benny]

Ken,

Did you go and seek out your old GT, or did the new owner come back to you?

I don't blame you for getting it back, I don't think I would have ever let it go in the first place!

 

[Hirev]

Benny,

I heard he wanted to sell it and so I bought it.

I didn't want to sell originally, but at the time, I couldn't see having two
Cortinas. My view has changed.

I am ordering some new tires and once installed, I will start driving around.

KA

 

[Benny]

......I couldn't see having two Cortinas. My view has changed.

Yes, you can't have just one.....

I'm glad you got it back in one piece. I once sold a beautiful MGB GT that I really regretted selling after the fact. I went to some effort to track the car down, and was actually going to offer the guy more than he paid, but I saw the car before speaking to him and what had been a stunning original 35 year old car had deteriorated to a scruffy, non-descript car after being in his "care" for just two years....almost broke my heart.

 

[Keith Halstead]

......I couldn't see having two Cortinas. My view has changed.

Yes, you can't have just one.....

I'm glad you got it back in one piece. I once sold a beautiful MGB GT that I really regretted selling after the fact. I went to some effort to track the car down, and was actually going to offer the guy more than he paid, but I saw the car before speaking to him and what had been a stunning original 35 year old car had deteriorated to a scruffy, non-descript car after being in his "care" for just two years....almost broke my heart.

I did a similar thing in 1978 when I sold my mint H reg 1600E Aubergine/Chrome Rostyles to a bloke called Chris who flagged me down in the street and wanted to buy it for his wife. I foolishly traded up to a Scimitar GTE.

I saw it a few weeks later and he had added a towbar and roofrack to my pide & joy - as time went by I saw it fall apart. Choked or what.

Funnily enough he owned a pre-airflow Lotus Cortina reg 500 BOY at the time and I believe he still owns it.