1991 Ford Granada Dorchester Limo - Amsterdam / Nurbergring

[deanflowers]

Bought this a couple of weeks ago with a few mates for travelling to and from the pub and some road trips. Gave £500 for it with MOT for 8 months.
Drove it back from Bodmin to south wales and was very pleasant.



The back end is sitting low and we did spot that the air suspension arm was detached so reconnected that but still no joy, we believe that someone has fitted stock granada springs with helpers so hopefully should have them replaced very soon.

Found a suitable keyring:



Other jobs completed:
paint removed from all lights using thinners - couldnt tell when they were on
Manifold down pipe gasket replaced
Swapped a tyre.

She has 7 seats and a privacy screen, everything appears to work except 1 window.

The 2,9 efi is silky smooth and pulls well

Bodywork has seen a bit of action

It went for its first outing to town and then a sunday drive for icecreams and didn't miss a beat.

Future plans:
Maybe a boomerang for the bootlid and a lot of laughs

the s-class is no longer the biggest in the collection

[deanflowers]

Can anyone help source some rear suspension springs as i have emailed colmon milne without any success and also tried all the motorfactors and people breaking them on ebay with no joy.

I can get a set made if i know the spec or if anyone knows where i can buy some then that would be awesome

Need them for a road trip soon

[gazz81]

Can you not measure the existing springs then get some similar size van springs that will be longer and harder?

[deanflowers]

I think that is the current plan. They must be the same as something else though its just figuring out what. Ive got the colmon milne part number but can't match it to anything.

Part number is 4114235

[ianmk2]

This is amazingly cool for larking around in, can't help with the springs I'm afraid, although I have a normal Granada with a similarly saggy

[jomfun]

Practical these, apart from trying to get them into parking bays. Me n my bro in law bought one for my stag-do transport back in 2009. Bought it from a funeral director down in South Wales. Road trip down there and back to Sheffield. We tinted the Windows and added the cossie alloys. It then seated 8 of us in leather clad comfort down to newquay. We got our money back on it a month later. Sold it to a guy down south who was Gona banger rally it to Barcelona. Wish we'd have kept it.

Sorry for the hijack. What's your plans for it? Would make a smart camper

[deanflowers]

We bought it from bodmin then last weekend went to Newquay and this weekend it is going to exeter so. Just having some jollies in really and some weekend road trips out with the boys.

Also anyone of the group can nominate a driver if they are lucky enough to get a date apparently.

[deanflowers]

Not much to update on the limo

It had a new set of plugs and rotor arm as it went down onto 5 cylinders.

Also the rear suspension air system is now working (sort off if we hard wire it) so the rear goes up to stock height.

It got a few miles before RR Gathering when the prop fell off though so had to be towed an hour home

[deanflowers]

Well we took the big length to Amsterdam and then to the nurbergring,

Didnt need to lift the bonnet, didnt need to add any fluids and didnt need to open the tool kit - what a gem

She managed a 13.29 minute lap, 7 up with tools and luggage which was kind of scary in all honesty. Flopping it into the carousel was probably the worst part. A good friend who knows the track piloted her. (we did it get the lap filmed by a car following)


The police did pull us over on the way back up the M25 heading back to wales because apparently 'it looked like a puller and the rear camber didnt look safe'

A quick explanation of its outings over recent months and them checking every MOT advisory it had for the last 3 years and we were on our way again. I think they wanted to keep it for themselves.

[njw]

Awesome! I'm only up the road in Beaufort so I shall have to keep an eye out for you when I'm out and about.

[strikey]

great tale... dread to think how much go-juice you got through hauling all that manhood around!

[deanflowers]

She did about 250 pounds of fuel so wasn't too bad. Our fuel gauge doesn't work though so every 150 - 200 miles we would stick another 40 euro back in to be safe. It holds about 70 pounds of fuel in total and does about 300 miles to tank roughly

[njw]

The fuel gauge never worked in my mk3 Granada, I knew when it was running low when the fuel pump starting getting louder, I doubt you could use this method as in your case the fuel pump is slightly further away than a standard Granada and you may not hear it!