What am I letting myself into? (Project car)

[sniperpenguin]

No windy gun here - one of the TWO things Im sorely missing (Torque wrench being the other)

ANd thanks for the words of encouragement... These things are not quick to put together and to know its still being read makes it worthwhile....

Kinda makes up for me being a rubbish Rep

[Rob Bell]

Just catching up with this - great work Nigel!

What's the latest - is the head back on the Panda - and does she live?

[sniperpenguin]

Well, people....... below (as readers of the other thread may know) I got quite a bit done today.

First all - a note to Oil Filter manufacturers...... you may fool oil filter wrenches, but we are an ingenious people, us welsh



Managed to blag (free!) a Sump plug washer from a Motor factors, but I'm getting surprised how few parts for the K-Series are being stocked at places now - This must mean that these cars are becoming "classics" and therefore I should look forward to paying £37.50 for the same washer next time from "Joe Bloggs & Sons classic car parts"

So, topped her up with Oil, and after reconnecting the pipes and filling the coolant system with just water(didnt want to waste coolant if it all went wrong!) I bled the coolant system and put in the plugs + fresh leads.

.......... I've never taken so long to turn a key in my life! I knew that it was all put together, but so much had been changed...... so much to miss.... so after I hand turned the engine, I hooked up the jump leads from my TF and synced the fobs (so far, so good).

*SERIOUSLY* - I was expected this to stutter, give me a shudder and hoped that whatever problem presented itself made an easy next step. Instead, I got this (click the image for a video)...




To say Im happy, is well.......... a little understated. The war is not over by a long shot.... An MOT is still required (and will no doubt present some more scares) but for me.... this is a HUGE step in the right direction.... Thanks for taking it with me

[Mykel]

GREAT, NIGEL! Congrats, and well done

If you managed to get that VVC engine running again, sorting the rest for the MoT will be a doddle for you. And you have all Sunday left!

<clarkson>A magnificent, magnificent job done here.</clarkson>

I'll have a drink in your honour RIGHT NOW!
Mykel

[Rob Bell]

Great stuff! Panda lives!

[MaddAussie]

Awesome stuff have yourself a cold one

[sniperpenguin]

Awesome stuff have yourself a cold one

One of the rare occasions for a cool, crisp corona I think

Next step is a battery, figure out with the engine fan isnt coming on, and try to draw up the courage to close the bonnet again after taking 3wks to open it!

[Pinson1971]

No windy gun here - one of the TWO things Im sorely missing (Torque wrench being the other)

ANd thanks for the words of encouragement... These things are not quick to put together and to know its still being read makes it worthwhile....

Kinda makes up for me being a rubbish Rep

Torque wrench available at price (cuppa tea) if you ever need it...

[sniperpenguin]

WOW - I guess you guys are due an update

Following the successful engine rebuild, I was able to turn my head towards the other "niggles"...

1. The tyres were not staying on pressure.
2. The bonnet wouldnt open
3. I wanted to update the interior
4. The rear window is ripped

As is always the case, things never happen in the correct order, and whilst tackling these another project car (Hermes) came and went, I got sent to Iceland for 4 days and my TF got sent to (and is still in) the bodyshop for a new bonnet and sneaky upgrade.

*INTERIOR*

Meanwhile, I came across this bargain interior:


The wood wasnt my taste, but thats not the point. I had landed leather seats / cards, rear speakers and mountings / TBar, 16 wheel nuts, and a box full of bits for a lot less than I should have - SCORE

Leather seats / cards have now been fitted (wood caps have been traded for Alloy ones), and rear speaker pods have been installed - The metal bar on which the pods are mounts is actually slightly different to the "non-pod" one, so I swapped it over as an entire unit.



This has brought about the old "noise deadening layer no longer bloody fits properly" issue to PANDA - I can see a stanley knife appearing in the near future....

*BONNET CABLE*

Determined to get this car on the road before its MOT expires, I set about the bonnet cable - Apparently the "lie under the car swearing for 20min" method for opening the bonnet is an MOT no-no!

I will put together a Moron's guide on .ORG as a HOW-TO (The Reg doesnt tend to store HOW-TO's on its forum) and include the link here, but here is the standard route of the cable. Starting at the back:


...coming out of the engine bay on the drivers side...


...running down the back of the cabin...


...alongside the drivers seat...



...out of a grommet under the bonnet (missed that pic) to its final destination


After all that, it STILL didnt work.... finally had to adjust the bonnet to an unnatural angle to get it lined up and working, so an adjustment with a big spanner (which I dont have) and a replacement catch (which I cant afford) is on the cards

*TYRES*

Bit of a last minute bit of luck on this one. The fronts on PANDA were Eagle F1's in good nick (unusual on a project car) but needed pumping up to proper pressure. passenger-side seems OK but the drivers-side had a metal valve-cap that appeared glued on. Finally managed to attack it with a screwdriver...


The side effect of this was a tyre that next morning was flatter than an X-Factor contestants voice - No effect from the tyre inflator (just a hissing) but a trip to a local tyre place showed through the mega-technology of "sticking it in a bath of water" that the rim was leaking air. Cost of repair? (paste, new valve, balancing and tyre check) - £20 . I'll keep an eye on the other side and may through it to them for piece of mind anyway.

*Rear Window*

Found a new guy in Liverpool who does a plastic window mail replacement service (like the old MGFMania days) for £59 delivered. I'll give them a shot on PANDA once I bring up the confidence to break the window rivets (dont laugh!) and post up the result pics....

Take care guys Hopefully my next update wont take as long!

[Rob Bell]

Looking good Nigel - and yes, I think that the Register should do more "how to"s on the forum! So thanks for starting this one off

[ErikB]

Great thread !!
I love these kind of projects and write ups.

You did a top job on the engine and I am sure the interior would look great in the white F. I bet you have made some good money from the wood effect parts. What about a one off with some white details in the interior as well (door capings, triangular footwell thingies, etc...). Afterall, PANDA must have a black and white team.

[sniperpenguin]

Thanks Erik - knowing people are enjoying reading the thread is what keeps me interested in writing it. And if they manage to pick up something without making the mistakes I did, then all the better

Regarding the white paint - this is already in my mind Just need to choose a paint code / manufacturer to keep it constant, and decide which pieces to attack!

Centre console and and door caps are the obvious targets (would like to keep the door leather black), followed by gear gaiters and maybe even the dial cowling if I can find one cheap!

[Stan_B]

Good to see you are still making headway. I always find reading haw much fun other people are having with their cars spurs me on when I've got one in bits.
Yuo would need to think carefully about white trim in a car like the F, the steeply raked screen may cause irritating reflections at night.

[Rob Bell]

I love the idea of painting the door caps white to suit the exterior, but I think less is more often with these things. But emulating a Trophy 160 interior using white as the accent colour is great! I wouldn't do the main intrument cowel though - but the centre dash panel is a definite maybe!

Regarding the gaiters - some very cheap options available on ebay. I got black leather/ grey alcantara to match the seats for the gear and handbrake gaiters. Unfortunately the colour match isn't ideal, but it is good enough, and is a real lift to the interior. See whether you can get white alcantara/leather over black, and I don't think it will be too OTT

Keep up the Panda theme Nigel!

[RobboMC]

I also got to the bottom of this thread!

I noticed when bolting on the cam ladder that the camshaft oil seals wetre already in place, or were they.

Do you use the special tools to fit the camshaft seals or just ease them in with a large socket?

I am about to replace my cams so will be removing the ladder and replacing the seals while it's open.

Also, what trick do you use to hold the cams in place to torque up the pulley bolts?
I managed to get them loose my clamping a big spanner to the engine mount post
with the arm of the spanner sticking through a pulley hole. Seems a bit 'butcherish' though.

[Rob Bell]

You drift in the new seals with a large socket. I can't remember the size I used... 32mm??? I've a memory of a goldfish...

You'll find that the ladder is sealed with an anaerobic sealant - you'll need to remove the old stuff before replacing it with new. Tim used the non-serated edge of a hacksaw blade to do this.



To torque up the cam bolts, use the cam locking tool (cheap as chips from Draper, available on fleabay). So long as the other pulley is still there, it'll work a treat, locking the two cams relative to one another.

[Barred]

Great work! Always a pleasure to fire up an engine you've done heart surgery on! Of any sorts. The new interior looks good. Keep up the posts.... please.