Renault Estafette Van, Mk2 Cortina GT

[jonsey]

Mar 27, 2024 20:02:09 GMT redfirecracker said:

Mar 27, 2024 19:53:31 GMT jonsey said:

Thanks Mr Cracker. That is a brilliant help. I have no idea how you’ve done it but, thank you. Now, if you can just do it without the white pinstripe and all the rally stickers added that would be great 😊. Only joking.

Needs the pin stripes, for me....

Bl00dy hell. Thanks Mr Cracker. I’ll have to have a good think. I’m undecided 🤔

[generallee]

Pin stripe for me.

[glenanderson]

Mar 27, 2024 19:09:38 GMT redfirecracker said:

For what it’s worth, I think this version is definitely the better of the two. 

Cliché I know, and call me old fashioned if you must. 🤣

[jonsey]

Thanks everyone. Your opinion’s are taken on board. Anyone else want to put in their 2 pence worth

[danknight]

Black stripe ? I was going to put a pic up of adam milners mk1 just before you did

[teaboy]

Mar 28, 2024 17:46:22 GMT jonsey said:

Thanks everyone. Your opinion’s are taken on board. Anyone else want to put in their 2 pence worth

Paint flames on it, they will blend in when you are upside down on fire.

[jonsey]

Mar 28, 2024 18:24:29 GMT teaboy said:

Mar 28, 2024 17:46:22 GMT jonsey said:

Thanks everyone. Your opinion’s are taken on board. Anyone else want to put in their 2 pence worth

Paint flames on it, they will blend in when you are upside down on fire.

By the time I’ve finished building this MrT, I won’t be able to afford the petrol to put in it, so not much risk of fire.

[jonsey]

Mar 28, 2024 18:04:28 GMT danknight said:

Black stripe ? I was going to put a pic up of adam milners mk1 just before you did

I’m not sure about the black stripe, with the orange roof, but the orange mk1 is growing on me. Thanks for putting the pic up as it is a better angle to see the stripe👍

[npp]

as you asked for further opinions: with the orange roof it definitely needs an orange stripe, and I think I'd prefer the pinstriped version

whatever you do it's going to be great, really enjoyed the thread so far and hope you'll soon get to run the car in anger again

[metalshapes]

Another vote for the pinstripe.

Also, I really like the black hood ( bonnet) on the bubble arched car.

(although that might bring it too close to copying the car of the guy who sent you a paint sample).



Beautiful job on the car jonsey .

[jonsey]

Mar 28, 2024 19:20:36 GMT npp said:

as you asked for further opinions: with the orange roof it definitely needs an orange stripe, and I think I'd prefer the pinstriped version

whatever you do it's going to be great, really enjoyed the thread so far and hope you'll soon get to run the car in anger again

Thanks npp. It’s going to take a while, but we’ll get there.

[jonsey]

Mar 28, 2024 20:08:25 GMT metalshapes said:

Another vote for the pinstripe.

Also, I really like the black hood ( bonnet) on the bubble arched car.

(although that might bring it too close to copying the car of the guy who sent you a paint sample).



Beautiful job on the car jonsey .

Thanks Mr Shapes. I’m not to keen on the black bonnet, although Mrs Jonsey does like it.

[jonsey]

I had to go to a wedding party yesterday so nothing was done to the Escort. This morning I was a little delicate so again, nothing was done. This afternoon however, I did build up enough energy to get some things done. First off, I put the pedal box back in and also the steering column.

I then realised that I had not fitted the throttle pedal, brake switch and pedal grips to the box before hand. This meant that I had to do it in place, with my head in the footwell, leaning over the roll cage.😩.

Next I wanted to fit the MX5 stalks. Remember how I reported with some glee, last week, that they were a perfect fit? Well they still are, but not when the column is in the car. This is because some ape has put a roll cage bar where the stalks want to live





As they are now so high (even higher if I’d fitted the harness plug), the steering wheel won’t go all the way home. This was a bit of a bummer. So I thought I’d try them upside down.





That works. I even temporarily fitted the seat mount bars and the old bucket seat to see if it was usable, and it was (no car noises were made). They are quite far from the wheel as it has a really long boss, but the standard Escort stalk was exactly the same.



I also noted after all this, that when I fitted the pedal box and master cylinder, some brake fluid had sprayed over the inner wing, passenger outer wing and had even shot through a hole in the bulkhead and was on the tunnel and floor. It had probably been on there for over an hour before I noticed.

I washed it with soapy water and everything looks ok. Hopefully it will be ok tomorrow as it’s going to be an expensive mistake if not.

[teaboy]

Why do they have to make brake fluid out of paint stripper?

It's just rude!

Hope you caught it in time.

[jonsey]

Mar 30, 2024 18:48:49 GMT teaboy said:

Why do they have to make brake fluid out of paint stripper?

It's just rude!

Hope you caught it in time.

I’m hoping what ever fluid I was using, is the type that doesn’t damage paintwork 🤞

[jonsey]

Panic over! The paint was ok.



Mrs Jonsey asked me to mend the BBQ that guests use when they stay in the Shepherd hut. The lid was loose and it had gone a bit rusty. I sorted the lid then put some stove paint to warm up next to the fan heater.

I then refitted the wing mirrors to the Escort





I then heard one of the paint cans fall over



I guess that’s ready then.

BBQ painted I turned my attention to the petrol tank. I gave it a clean and bolted it in.



It’s got some scratches after it’s time on the floor over the last 2 years but I’m not going to repaint it. A new fill hose was fitted as the previous was not fuel friendly and had gone rock hard.

Battery box and fuel swirl pot were added too



I made the swirl bit out of an Audi air con accumulator.

I also got the driver door lock on. In doing this I learned an important fact.



The original door on the passenger side did not have a lock/ hole. That door was rotten so I replaced it years ago with another door. It did come with a lock but it did have a hole for one. But that was ok. The driver door was also rotten so I had replaced that with a mk2 van door that has a bigger lock barrel. The original driver door lock then went into the hole in the passenger door as I didn’t need it for the driver door. I forgot all about this until today.

So in short. I don’t have a passenger door lock. But I do have a hole 😩. But someone on FB mentioned only RS1600 Escorts with the brilliant Cosworth BDA engine, had the lock in the passenger door. Every cloud🙁.

[jonsey]

I didn’t get a lot done today. After food shopping with Mrs Jonsey, it took me about 3 hours to give the lawns and field their first cut this year. It was really long as I didn’t manage to get a late cut in last year due to all the bl00dy rain.

Once that was complete Jones Junior (the younger) nabbed me to sort the brakes on is bike, then finally I got onto the Escort. In order to fit the front bumpers I first wanted to paint the parts of the inner wing where the rotisserie was bolted.





I mixed up some paint and just brushed it on.





I also cleaned, lacquered and riveted the chassis plates to the front slam panel



One of the plates has got a hole in it where some numpty has drilled through it and the slam panel at some point in the car’s life. I welded up the slam panel but the hole will remain in the plate.

And that was that. Time to stop play.

[jonsey]

I had the day to myself so I sat in the house all day watching repeats of friends on E4. Did I eck as like. I went out the garage didn’t I.

The hydraulic handbrake (or the “bar” as it’s known in rallying) was fitted.



It will probably come out again to fit the carpet but I’m trying to get everything mounted so it’s ready to run new brake lines.

All the bolts in the cage got tightened as I’d had a delivery of washers and nuts.





I gave the front bumper irons a coat of paint after grinding off all the powder coat. They were new a few years ago but it was coming off in sheets. I really don’t see the fascination with the stuff. The anti roll bar brackets got a coat too





They go here







I don’t run an anti roll bar, but they may add a bit of strength. The aluminum plates hold the sump guard on.

The plate that covers the heater pipe hole got a coat of black, and a new foam gasket too



And that was that. Time seems to have evaporated.

[jonsey]

I was a day off today as I was on call Sunday. I had a whole day planned in the garage, but it ended up that Mrs Jonsey had a day off also, and garage time didn’t feature in her plans at all.

So after an early food shop, I did get a coupe of hours in the garage until 11:30.

Engine mounts were painted.



A mount got welded back on to the wiper mechanism



And paint added to that too



I then dug out the front quarter bumpers



These will not be used as my brother gave me a set of these, that came with a Gilbern GT that he bought.



Much more shiny. I did need the mounting brackets off the GRP ones though

And fitted



The mounts are bent all shapes after hitting cones / tires etc so the bumpers look wonky.

I then had to leave a to pick Jones Junior (the younger), from school as he had a dentist appointment.

On my return I fitted the motor to the wiper mechanism



And fitted it to the car with mm to spare





And cut and bent the bumper brackets until they sat better and gave them a coat of paint



They still didn’t fit great, but they never do, so why buck the trend

[teaboy]

You’re galloping along, Phil.