Progress At last....

[mister2mk1]

Having bought my car last June - initially as a rolling project, it has become a full restoration!!

As anyone else who is restoring an MR2 would tell you its bl%%dy frustrating at time when all you seem to be doing is sheering bolts, removing rusty parts, cleaning restoring and painting.

At last I feel I have got some thing to show for my hard work and thought I would share it, as I know in the past seeing others work has inspired me on and hopefully this might do the same for others........or maybe not!!!

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/r ... C02199.jpg

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/r ... C02239.jpg

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/r ... C02167.jpg

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/r ... C02206.jpg

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/r ... C02234.jpg

Just gotta put suspension back in tomorrow........ AND then start on the nearside.......... Oh the fun.....It'll be worth it!!!!

[waynestoyotamr2]

hey mate, great effort! =D>

Anyone restoring a Mk1 always gets a big from me!

[kirsty]

Looks ace . . . I might be asking you guys for tips!!

You should come along to the next NW meet, be nice to meet more local mk1 nuts

[mister2mk1]

I have recently emailed ....erm is it John Redmond? about the march meeting. No reply yet....

I will however be in a VW BORA!! Boring !!!! as the 2 is under repair as shown in pics.....

But looking forward to entering the MR2 nut circle!!!

[kirsty]

Unfortunately I'll miss the March meet as I'll be at the Restoration show, will no doubt meet you at the next meet though!

[mister2mk1]

update.....

further progress for any one needing enthusiasm or inspiration to keep these great little cars alive......

[cartledge_uk]

very good!

I particularly like how clean it looks in this one



Don't forget to remove the small panel in the side just between the arch and windscreen (pry it with a screw driver) and put some waxoil inside the chassis, to prevent rust from the inside out!

[superbad]

Looking good, I'm in a similar situation at the moment with a loft full of car parts/panels and garage/conservatory full of painted parts!

Out of interest, what are you painting the suspension/brake bits with? I started doing mine with smoothrite, but found that it chipped really easily (not even back on the car yet). So I've been stripping that off and repainting them in 2 pack and feel much more confident that it's going to actually stay put.

I also notice from your pictures that you have one ball-joint spacer painted, I'd like to know if you had one for either side? I just had the one o/s spacer and can't work out why it has only one.

I keep meaning to start my own work in progress thread, your might inspire me

[mister2mk1]

On the components I have used various paint...

A coat of anti rust primer, then standard primer, silver hammerite then black smoothrite. Same as your self. I have just found that as long as you leave upto 72 hours for drying its been great. The brake caliper and mount I have done in High temp paint approx three coats (Halfords own)

As for the bottom ball joint spacer i'm not sure yet as I started on the off side and hopefully later today will be able to get the car down on 4 wheels again to turn it round and start on the near side....... I'll let you know!

thanks

[mister2mk1]

i have stripped the nearside today and not found a bottom ball joint spacer!! so i assume there only on the off side???

can anyone confirm this??

further progress on the o/s/r arch and strip down of front n/s........

[jimi]

Do you mean the spacer in this pic ?

[PW@Woodsport]

looking good,but your front brake discs need swapping,they are on the wrong side....

[Icsunonove]

Well spotted Paul!

And mister2mk1, good effort mate, looking really good!

(PS Do you fancy coming and sorting mine out for me? Mechanically it's very well sorted, but cosmetically, well, it's starting to look like a shed on wheels! )

[mister2mk1]

QUOTE "Do you mean the spacer in this pic ?"

So it should have one on each side then!!

QUOTE "looking good,but your front brake discs need swapping,they are on the wrong side...."

Ooops - thats worrying - thats how they have been fitted since i purchased the car........??? Albeit I havent driven the car hardly - the only reason I have decided to put them used ones on is because there drilled.... How can you tell there the wrong side?? Should the grooves go the other way??

[Icsunonove]

Correct!

[superbad]

I seem to remember another thread where someone had found only one spacer, but I can't find it.

In my case it only worried me because I noticed that my car had a slightly wonky look at the front (down at the o/s). At first I put this down to that side having no camber adjustment cam - the camber was a backyard out with about double the / \ on that side. I replaced this and set it to the same as the other side...It still looked to have a massive amount more camber than the other side.

When I found only one spacer when stripping the front suspension, I thought "ay aye", maybe found the cause...
Yesterday I took the strut assembly for that side apart in order to wirebrush it and found it to be knackered (it's flippin' bent! and won't return after it's been compressed).
So, hopefully I have found the cause of my wonky front end.

Steve, if yours looked straight before you took it apart, I'd put it back how it was.

[mister2mk1]

So your going to have to replace the shock? Let me know where you purchase from as I have a leak on my front nearside one.

As for the spacer....

In fairness I was going to take a trip down Mr T's to purchase one.... Will not having a spacer on both sides not cause both steering issues (over time) and additional wear on bottom ball joints?

[superbad]

It would be good to get a definitive answer on the spacer issue before I go out and get another.

I'll keep you posted on the shock absorber.

[jimi]

This spacer is a bit strange, if you look at the pic I posted ( which is from the BGB ) it shows 2. However when I look in the EPC I can't find any mention of it

[mister2mk1]

its even more strange that at least two of us have only got one on the offside????':-k '](*,)'