Just about to get under way with it.
On the list of things to do are...
- Source and replace wings - DONE
- Throw it for MOT to see what else it fails on
- Remove and clean engine (possibly rebuild but parts aren't easy to come by)
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>>HERE<< to view the Virtual Garage
GARAGE UPDATED:
More photo's added of interior
(You'll see why it needs the retrim) and the engine bay.
10.11.2006 - Updated
Still collecting parts required to repair the exterior but I think i've managed to source them. I've decided that whilst one rear arch is repairable i'm going to replace them both to be on the safe side and one sill is starting to show signs so that's also being replaced just because theyr'e so cheap!
Work starts this Sunday on the brakes and if all goes well and i've got some time left i'm going to attempt to start the engine aswell
12.11.2006 - Updated
Brake callipers are off - Suprised to see that both fronts were in perfect condition. The rears have both siezed due to the seals being shot and only one has a buggered handbrake mechanism so i'm looking for a recon kit to do the lot. Discs and pads are readily available for all four corners
(At £12.99 each) so that's gonna be a good place to start and spend £80 to although I was testing the master cylinder opeeration and found that the car will be needing new brake lines as they've burst - On the plus side, the master cylinder appears to be working just fine
Front ARB and Wishbone bushes are also dead but again they're not too bad as they're like £2.99 each aswell and I only need a total of 8 so £24 will be spent shortly... do I uprate though or go OE? Whilst I was playing about I've found two areas that are going to be needing some fabrication work done on. The first is the inner wing below what remains of the battery tray. It appears to have suffered from what looks like an old battery dieing big time and was never mopped up. The acid has eaten away and left something that's not very structurally sound so out will have to come the tin snips, hammer and the Mig. Thank fully it's a pretty flat piece of steel the stops crud entering the bay via the wheel arch so it shouldn't be overly difficult. The second area is the passenger floor well. The interior pan is fine but the exterior has gone about 2inches in Dia so that to will have to be plated before resealing the floor.
Took the plugs
(Damn that plug on No.4 is hard to get at) out to try and manually turn the engine by rocking it and again, after being dry stored for 4 years the internals are free moving so we topped up the coolant, fitted a new battery and turne the key... No sign of life due to no spark which I think is down to either a dead set of leads or maybe a dead coil pack. I'll investigate this a little more over the weekend when I've got some light.
I'm off to Shropshire on Saturday to pickup some new headlamps, bumpers, indicator/side lights, fog lights, Number plate/reverse lights and other exterior bits to put it back to standard so expect some updated pics to come shortly.
20.11.2006 - Updated:
OK, so we still can't get the damn thing to start up. Myself, ChrisH and Gentle Ben attacked her hard on Saturday and still with no joy either however, I think I might have narrowed the problem down to the Crank Position Sensor... Why the problem you might ask? Well, you try sourcing one for a car they stopped making in 1984 as all motor factors list Renault 5's as starting in 1985-1989 and that's the wrong shape, different engine and sensors - I'm hoping Renault can source one!
So after giving up on trying to get it started I decided to attack the indoor lawn that was formely my carpets and what a task that was. The floor is now back to bare metal and it was all looking too good so I decided to take the MOT screwdriver out and poked it around every panel on the car and i'm glad I did as i've found another three bloomin holes that'll need fixing! x1 in the rear floor pan
(Obviously the source of my water ingress/basic irrigation system in to the cabin) and the other two are on the rear behind the bumper. Still, on the plus side all these bits are plateable and not only that but will be hidden by trim and carpet so bonus!!
I've got some new photos at home but I can never be bothered to upload them so i'll try and remember as the interior has changed so much just from taking out the dead trim, wire brushing everything to bare metal and then hitting it hard with the hammerite!
Dunc, it no longer smells like a scrap yard car either... sorry, I know you loved that
20.11.2006 - Updated:
OK, so we still can't get the damn thing to start up. Myself, ChrisH and Gentle Ben attacked her hard on Saturday and still with no joy either however, I think I might have narrowed the problem down to the Crank Position Sensor... Why the problem you might ask? Well, you try sourcing one for a car they stopped making in 1984 as all motor factors list Renault 5's as starting in 1985-1989 and that's the wrong shape, different engine and sensors - I'm hoping Renault can source one!
So after giving up on trying to get it started I decided to attack the indoor lawn that was formely my carpets and what a task that was. The floor is now back to bare metal and it was all looking too good so I decided to take the MOT screwdriver out and poked it around every panel on the car and i'm glad I did as i've found another three bloomin holes that'll need fixing! x1 in the rear floor pan
(Obviously the source of my water ingress/basic irrigation system in to the cabin) and the other two are on the rear behind the bumper. Still, on the plus side all these bits are plateable and not only that but will be hidden by trim and carpet so bonus!!
I've got some new photos at home but I can never be bothered to upload them so i'll try and remember as the interior has changed so much just from taking out the dead trim, wire brushing everything to bare metal and then hitting it hard with the hammerite!
Dunc, it no longer smells like a scrap yard car either... sorry, I know you loved that
28.11.2006 - Updated:
Nothing of significance has happened recently. The engine is still a non-starter due to the lack of spark and this has started to get me down a little as I can't see anything wrong with the ignition system itself so can only presume that the problem is down to a faulty earth point somewhere that I cannot see >
I had originally planned to fully refurb the brakes and get the car running so it could be moved with ease but that now looking highly unlikely the lump is now coming out ahead of schedule so I can start to plate the areas in the inner wings and slam panel and then prep the bay itself ready to receive a clean engine. I'm still stripping away at the old sealant which is everywhere but it needs to come off so I can continue to find any and all sources of rust and rot. The bumper mounts have had there fill as has the front slam panel so will have to be replaced by some custom brackets and plating as Renault can no longer source these parts/panels. This isn't a bad way to go IMO as it gives me a fair bit of work to do whilst ensuring the car doesn't suffer any further attacks from "Le Tin-worm" but it is by far the slowest and largest chunk of the work so progress will be slow for a few months
Also
(back tracking a little) I have decided that the planned colour change from red to black will now have to wait on account of the sheer cost involved and as the shell is nowhere near ready for that scale of work
(nor is it critical to the project at this stage) I tried to give the existing paintwork some colour treatment to get the "redness" back. To some extents this has gone fairly well considering the amount of times it's been stood covered in bird shit, dust and other assorted mucks care of the environment but the dirt and grim is so well ground in that even Barry Scott himself would struggle to make it vanish without removing some layers of paint so the car is now going to have all the bodywork sorted and then it will receive a dust over in its original colour to keep the costs down whilst making the car look much better. Hopefully, Olly will be able to make some decals for me once this has done!
The dreaded electrical infrastructure has to be tackled shortly as well as some items aren't working. This I am again assuming to be down to the condition of earths and general contact/connections however all lights are being replaced with known working units and connectors and wiring will be replaced at the slightest sign of deterioration... I'm really not looking forwards to this task!
I keep meaning to get some photos uploaded but keep failing on that front due to me being a slack bitch :-[
Well here's a few more updates for you all with a few photos.
First off lets take a look at how the floor pans used to be:
After a good seeing to with the lawn mower and a wire brush:
The original carpet was beyond repair so will be replaced later down the line. Next photo update is the exterior mods. The bumpers on this car should have been black but at some point, one of the previous owners thought they would look better in red to match the paint
(How wrong they were) so they've now been put back to there OE state:
BEFORE:
AFTER:
The paint has also been treated to a minor TCut session aswell which has made it look a lot better but there's that much ground in dirt and other stains that the car will need a good sanding down followed by a few coats of red once the new rear arches have been cut in and the front wings have been replaced.
The turbo has also now been removed and sent off to Midland Turbo for testing. I've been told the turbo is functioning just fine but the actuator has siezed so why that's being replaced the T3 is being rebuilt with new seals and new 360 degree bearings:
Not much to report at the minute i'm afraid as the Gordini fund has had to move over for the Christmas Present fund so it currently stands as the Turbo has been rebuilt and hybradised to include a newly built actuator, 360 bearing, compressor housing and slight increase of compressor wheel to make Mr T3 Hybrid
Will get around to adding the photos of the tailgate and wing swap shortly but whilst browsing the tinterweb i've found some photos of two cars and i've fallen terribly in love with them both which has brought me to a proverbial cross road of which style to go for. They are:
Totally factory standard:
Rally Style:
I like them both and might have to come to a compromise and merge the two somehow especially the ride height of the rally prep'd G5 but the cleaness of the OE is also impressive
UPDATED 28.12.2006
Well I've finally started to replace the wings. It's been raining here all day so i've only managed to get the one done but if hte weather holds off tomorrow I'll be hitting the passenger side to. I'll jump straight to it cos no-one wants to see some ginger nut runnign round like a mad man with an angle grinder and hammer and chissle :-X
Wing Removed:
More welding work found:
And just a little more:
Wing Fitted - Front Shut Line:
Wing Fitted - Pillar Shut Line:
Wing Fitted:
How it looks as of today:
UPDATED - 05.01.2007
Just some pics of the Turbo after rebuild:
More to come shortly once the engine is out
Mick
UPDATED - 24.04.2007
Yes, an update!!
Well on Saturday I decided to pull the cover off of the old girl and do some work to her. Manifolds, Turbo and Carb were refitted, coolant system flushed and filled and finally the turbo was primed. I also fitted a new Ingition Module, Crank Position Sensor and spun it over a few time... forgot the king lead was resting on the rocker cover along with my arm - Leanne found it hilarious when she turned the key giving me (Stupidly having one hand resting on the metal cover) a nice HT jolt!
The battery died meaning I had run out of time so I put it on charge until tonight. Refiited the battery, pulled out hte choke and turned the key... at 6.47pm tonight the car coughed in to life for the first time in nearly 3 years!!
The exhaust manifold is blowing a little but that's cos i've not tightened it fully yet so I will take some video footage for you all on Saturday.
Mick
UPDATED - 25.04.2007
Quick vid that Leanne managed to capture whilst cranking last night:
R5 Gordini Turbo
Nice
Linear Mode
