1991 Eunos Roadster - On the Road Again…

[cianha]

They hosted a round of the Hillclimb championship, so there were timed runs as well! At one stage they had Paddy Hopkirk and Alec Poole out for a couple of laps in Minis, and those lads don't know the meaning of 'parade lap'
Here's some footage I took, it's not as good as the other one, but you get an idea of what was running:

[cianha]

Not a lot to report after the weekend, replaced the front water temp sensor without any drama, and took her out for a spin on Sat night. Also found another spare Vee belt in a drawer in the office, so that's gone into the boot for now, just in case.

We are booked in for a track day with Octane on the 9th of Sept, so I'm just checking that everything is OK for that.

[cianha]

Bought some of this a couple of weeks ago : sugru.com
Mouldable when you open the sachet for about 30 minutes, yet cures to a silicone-like finish. Thousands of uses. I fixed sunglasses, shoes and plugged the holes in the soft top with it. Comes in a variety of colours, but as I had opend the white for the other repair jobs I decided to use the last of it here. I think a quick blast of Halfords Matt Black should improve things…


Also stopped the gearknob from spinning and stuck the Nardi badge back on again. I'll be using it to mount the MiniDV cameras I ordered today to the style bar and RV mirror.

[cianha]

Track Day checklist:
Passenger CG Lock fitted
"Tow Here" arrow fitted
Reg plate relocated (completely unnecessary for TD, but I felt like moving it)
Mini DV cameras charged, tested and ready to go.
Random stickers applied.
Cowshite washed off.

[cianha]

Oh man, what a day! It took us 2 days to recover, but it was great. We managed about 150 track miles, and apart from a slight off, had no major issues, that car was flawless. Drove the long way home (via Enniscorthy) for a 500 mile round trip.

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[montythemole]

Nice photos, looks like a lot of fun. Must get around to doing a track day in mine.

[cianha]

If look at the LHS rear 3/4 panel you can see a ding as a result of Mr V's gravel/barrier interface at Turn 3. It popped out easily enough, though the effects of the gravel trap on the paintwork aren't pretty. It looks like it's been sandblasted with pebbledash.

There's a couple of dozen stone chips all down the left of the car and on the bonnet, which already has a chunk of laquer peel (thanks to some cat vomit last year.) I don't think touch up paint is going to sort it out, so I'll have to start looking at getting that sorted.

My insurance expired on Friday, so it's going back in the shed for now, and time to start owrking onthat list of "jobs I said I'd do"…

[thebaron]

Battle scars to be worn with pride

[leigh]

Looks like a lot of fun man!

[cianha]

It's Monday morning, there's still oil under my fingernails, the slight whiff of white spirits lingers in the air, and I've more skinned knuckles than usual. And I'm smug. It's that that what I did was particularly challenging, I just did it well, and I'm very happy with the results.

First off I changed the oil and filter, and checked the air filter, which was still ridiculuously clean. I insepcted the boot and noticed that the paint under the battery tray had started to flake. This is pretty common on the Fives, the OEM bettery is vented, and a drainage tube usually keeps the area dry. My battery had been replaced with a sealed unit, but in the few years I've had it, condensation has run down the battery, under the tray and you can see the results.






As it's only surface rust I decided to try out this stuff (wire brush just out of shot)


After a good scrub down, I laid on a couple of light coats, dabbing it in where the metal was most pitted.



It stsarts to go black in about 15 minute, and looked like this after an hour or so:


I left it overnight to cure, rubbed away the excess then gave it a couple of coats of Halford's Finest, but you'll have to wait till this evenig to see that, as I've no photos yet…

While I was at it, I decided to re-varnish the handbrake handle, as the original laquer was flaking off, and the wood underneath had gone grimy. There's only one clip holding the handle in place, so with a quick twist and a tug (quiet down the back! ) it was off.



And a few coats of 'Ardcoat from a pre-warmed can…

Good as new!



I also gave the hood a coat of Matt Black, it had faded quite a bit, and other cleaning and blackening efforts hand't really done the job. I rushed that job somewhat, leaving the odd blob where the paint had run, though I managed to clean it up with white spirits and finally soapy water. I'm happy enough with how it turned out, it should do the trick under I replace the hood, I'll grab a couple of photos this evening.

96,000miles and still going strong…

[cianha]

The Recommisionning continues. Next up is the wallpaper for the windscreen; Insurance, NCT, Tax.

Now that the car is 21, I decided to put it on a classic policy. After a little digging about, the main providers in Ireland are Axa, and Campions Insurance, who act as broker for members of IVETA (The Irish Vintage Engine and Tractor Association). My Father in Law is a member and has all his tractors and Rover P7 insured with them fairly reasonably. So I checked their webiste last week, sent off the completed proposal form, IVETA membership application and two cheques.

NCT day today, but no insurance disc yet. I had booked the test in Ennis, where I work, about 45 minutes away form home. Driving with no insurance is verboten, so I had to wait at home until they opened at 9am.

Luckily, they understood my predicament, and were able to arrange cover over the phone, once I re-sent the proposal by email. Sorted!

Big thumbs up to Campions Insurance in Portlaoise.

The first time you take a car out on the road after a long storage is always fraught, every smell and sound is suspicious, and I was convinced it was going to spontaneously combust out of spite after its hibernation. About halfway to Ennis, I heard a "PINGPingping...", joined by a raspy note from the exhaust. Boll0cks!

I pulled up and looked udnerneath to see a bracket or clamp type thingy (technical term) waving in the breeze. I was already late for work at this stage, I had to leave it until lunch before heading out and taking the car down to the nearest main dealer. I asked the service manager for a favour, who stuck it up on the ramp, and came back to me 30 seconds later with the rusty remains of the forward heatshield clamp. Not a threat to the NCT, so it went into the bin. The rear clip is good and the heatshield is secure, so I'll rummage in the jubilee clip drawer at the weekend.

Back at the office, nails now worn to stumps, waiting for the 16:50 test. At half four, I can't take any more, so off I go, roof down, shades on, best foot forward.

No crowd about, so in it goes, and 30 minutes later I'm handed a fail sheet, for worn pedal covers (which I didn't even know they tested!) and no light from the center high level brake light. At least it's passed on the serious stuff, and as these are visual retests, it won't cost me to come back again.

On my way back through town, I stop at the lights, and a pedestrian saunters across, grey mullet flowing in the summer breeze, umbrella in one hand, carrier bag in the other and a glint of lunacy in his eyes. A Man Of The West. I'm looking at the sky, at the lights, at my mirrors, anywhere but in his general direction. And still he manages to makes eye contact. Over he comes, I can see the thoughts form across his face as he prepares his bon mot. He leans in, I can see the whites of his eyes.

"That's... a sexy car!"

With that, he's away, striding along the footpath to new adventures.
By now the lights are green, the cars behind have had enough, so with a dab of oppo, I'm off too...

Back at the Ponderosa, I open the boot, and check the wiring for the 3rd brake light. You can tell it wasn't part of teh original design, the wiring is prone to flexing at the boot hinge, even more so when some monkey (me!) has cable tied soem of it to the hinge itself. Pulling it out was enough to break it, so back inside I went to arm myself with soldering iron and heatshrink.

Tin the wires, curse the wind, wish for third arm, and solder on. Eventually I get a decent connection. The heatshrink is too narrow, and won't fit over the repair, so I rely on electrical tape to cover the job.

Inside at the PC, I log onto a few MX5 sites searching for pedal covers, trying to avoid the temptation to buy shiny shiny things, like that weighted brushed metal gearknob, or those driving lamps. Another time, perhaps?

And so I type, the soft rain pattering down outside the window. Wait, rain? The roof! I've left the blody roof dow...

[cianha]

Small update. Removed the aircon pump, thinking it was the source of some screechy noises from the beltal area.



Turns out, I was wrong. Spent another 30 minutes recheckign both belts to make sure they were OK. Tonight I head for Mizen Head the most southerly point in Ireland, tomorrow we head for Malin Head, the most northerly. Out round trip of about 1000 miles, in 48 hours, possibly the most driving I've ever crammed into a weekend.

[cianha]

I'm still too tired to do a ful write up, but here a re few photos I took along the way…

[mdh]

Cool car and in the best colour too.

I might be biased though ;-)

[cianha]

Early Christmas pressie. Might as well keep it on the road over the winter now!

[cianha]

Arrived at a Cars and Coffee event yesterday, and parked my green-with-a-silver-top next to a silver-with-a-green-top. The inevitable happened…

[zircon]

Now that is what is excellent about cheap sports cars - the people. Saved you a painting headache!

[cianha]

Old plate failed NCT, but passed under a retest (JDM plates can be smaller to fit in the recess, something which the first tester, Cpt Measuring Tape, seemed to forget)
And then it fell off, and I had to replace it with this:



At least I'm all road legal again, now to start planning for RRG!

[cianha]

It's that time of year again. The absence of updates really highlights how trouble free these cars are. All I've done this year is a service, removed a few badly failing stickers, and put a few more miles on the clock.

Failed the annual NCT on a few items. Bashed foglight, non functioning 3rd brake light, front light out of alignment, perished and leaking tyre valves. And a hole in the sill big enough to get your thumb through.

Luckily, a friend recommended a colleague of his who's a wizard of welding. He happens to live only a few miles away. I'd seen some picture of a few cars he had built in the past, and he was able to do it at the weekend. I left the car into him on a Satuday, collected sunday evening, and I was amazed. The chap is a craftsman. He took a few progress pictures for me:

This is what lurked beneath the outer skin:


A fine collection of FeO2L


All grot cut out , Kurust applied:


View from below:


Inners welded in and sprayed.



Back in the Shed:


Liberal dose of rust eater into the welded area, as it's been exposed for a few days.


Water bath for the sprayer. Note the Kettle, warm Waxoyl is a LOT easier to spray! Did both sills.


Novice filler application. My Isoponics could use more practice.


The foglight had been bashed off the ramp getting on the ferry to RRG last year, and I'd put it on the long finger ever since.
While they're not a requirement for the NCT, if they're present, they need to work. Rather than just ripping the rest of it out, I thought I'd try using one of the reverse lamps as a foglight. I used Tamiya Translucent red, which look spink going on, but is a good match for the rest of the glass once it dries:






(Which reminds me: get an "After" shot!)

She's also got a new set of tyres on the older 14s, so fingers crossed for the retest this weekend!

[cianha]

…Aand, it's a pass, I'm road legal for another 10 months!