First post - Mk1b restoration - help needed

[rpm]

Hi everyone

I'm the proud owner of a red Mk1b. I bought her new in 1990 and ran her until 1996 when I took her off the road; she's been in my garage ever since.

My son is 17 in a few days time and together we intend to spend the school summer holidays trying to get the old girl back on the road. A bit of father-son bonding :-)

My initial aim is to get the mechanical things sorted out and then move onto the bodywork later. There's no obvious rust that I can see: arches and sills look good. Just a couple of stone chips on the bonnet! But if there are any out-of-the-way places that tend to rot, please let me know.

So what are the priority jobs I'll need to tackle?

I know the radiator was leaking 16 years ago and I suspect it hasn't got any better since then! I've seen websites that claim to refurbish old radiators. Does anyone have any experience of that? Can it work or should I just invest in new one?

Any suggestions on other things that I'll need to sort out? I'm guessing any rubber hoses might have perished to some extent. What about seals in the braking system? Would they need to be replaced? Cam belt? Brake pads?

Obviously I'll need new brake fluid, coolant, oil + filter, tyres, battery.

Any suggestions, guidance or encouragement would be most welcome :-)

Thanks, and apologies for my rambling first post!

Rob

[tommo]

Hi everyone

I'm the proud owner of a red Mk1b. I bought her new in 1990 and ran her until 1996 when I took her off the road; she's been in my garage ever since.

My son is 17 in a few days time and together we intend to spend the school summer holidays trying to get the old girl back on the road. A bit of father-son bonding :-)

My initial aim is to get the mechanical things sorted out and then move onto the bodywork later. There's no obvious rust that I can see: arches and sills look good. Just a couple of stone chips on the bonnet! But if there are any out-of-the-way places that tend to rot, please let me know.

So what are the priority jobs I'll need to tackle?

I know the radiator was leaking 16 years ago and I suspect it hasn't got any better since then! I've seen websites that claim to refurbish old radiators. Does anyone have any experience of that? Can it work or should I just invest in new one?

Any suggestions on other things that I'll need to sort out? I'm guessing any rubber hoses might have perished to some extent. What about seals in the braking system? Would they need to be replaced? Cam belt? Brake pads?

Obviously I'll need new brake fluid, coolant, oil + filter, tyres, battery.

Any suggestions, guidance or encouragement would be most welcome :-)

Thanks, and apologies for my rambling first post!

Rob

Hi Rob,

Having worked on cars that have been stored for along lenth of time I would check the following.

Change all fluids, oil, brake fluid , coolant. When doing this check all hoses and check the cooling system is leak free.
Check battery terminals and any earths on the car.
Now I would be tempted to change all belts as the rubber will be getting old and you dont want a cam belt to snap.

Once all thats done and its running with no problems then go onto the running gear, suspension bushes , tyres , service the brakes, I would stick new pads on.

Hope that helps and good luck

Tom

[rpm]

Hi Tom

Thanks for the response. Looks like I've got a busy few months ahead! Good idea about the earth points.

I guess the only way I'll know about the state of the cooling system hoses is to get the engine up to temperture and wait for something to burst :-)

I'll post again when I've made some progress.

Cheers

Rob

[Rick McRick]

Welcome!

Wow, pretty rear to have a car with just the one owner!
Look forward to seeing the story unfold.
Any chance of some pics?

[bill hulme]

the petrol pump can stop working, the petrol turns to jelly.
Bill.

[Dudley Dell]

the petrol pump can stop working, the petrol turns to jelly.
Bill.

Don't I just know that!!!

[rpm]

Thanks!

I don't have any pictures yet but I'll post as soon as I take some.

Rob

[rpm]

Thanks Bill. I'll bear that in mind when I try to fire her up for the first time.

I was hoping I'd swap the radiator, change the cambelt and I'd be able at least to get the engine running.

Looks like it might not be that easy :-(

Cheers

Rob

[mk1 dal]

hi rob , hi have had a few long term parked up mk1's , as bill has said already fuel pump fubard every time on all off them . i am breaking a car with a good pump and tank if yours is seized this should help you out . also the injector seals will need replacing , these go like a hard plastic if left parked up and will come back to bite you if you don't change them ( fire ball ) . if there is no rot ( being in a garage all this time and dry ) its a simple recommissioning , change all fluids , pads , fuel seals and check water clips . before you start the engine pull the ht lead off so it wont fire to pump the oil around the engine first . where are you ,there are members on here only glad to help you get this car back on the road .
good luck and if stuck don't hesitate to ask .

welcome to the club

gary

[rpm]

hi rob , hi have had a few long term parked up mk1's , as bill has said already fuel pump fubard every time on all off them . i am breaking a car with a good pump and tank if yours is seized this should help you out . also the injector seals will need replacing , these go like a hard plastic if left parked up and will come back to bite you if you don't change them ( fire ball ) . if there is no rot ( being in a garage all this time and dry ) its a simple recommissioning , change all fluids , pads , fuel seals and check water clips . before you start the engine pull the ht lead off so it wont fire to pump the oil around the engine first . where are you ,there are members on here only glad to help you get this car back on the road .
good luck and if stuck don't hesitate to ask .

welcome to the club

gary

Hi Gary

Thanks for that. Especially the bit about the injector seals. The words "fire" and "ball" sound rather scarey!

Also the tip on starting the engine for the first time. I was thinking I might have to turn it over by hand to get some oil into the bearings, but your suggestion of cranking with the starter motor and no HT connection sounds much easier :-)

Given yours and Bill's experience, it sounds like the fuel pump will almost certainly be knackered but do you know if there is there any way to test it in situ without removing the tank? Can I stick 12v across it and wait for fuel to appear somewhere?

Another thought on the fuel 'going off' and destroying the pump: have you ever found any other related problems like clogged pipework anywhere else in the system or is just the pump that's affected?

I'm in Cannock in Staffordshire, so not a million miles from you. And I work in Derby which is even closer.

That tank and pump that you have sounds interesting too, once I've convinced myself that my pump is dead.

Thanks again for your help

Rob

[tommo]

How you gettin on Rob?