Project Harry

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 9:27 am

I finally have some pics. This is the car in the condition I bought it in. It looks worse in real life. Smile

Bit of a ding here.

And here!

The wheels are in a terrible condition. Both this alloy and the spare leak air, so all five are getting refurbished soon.

Some bits of trim are trying to escape.

The boot is a bit manky.

The driver's chair has seen better days

Nearly 172,000 miles!

Nothing wrong with the oil pressure though!

One side of the roof lining is coming down.

Actually, make that both sides...

Who says cars aren't environmentally friendly? I have life growing in mine!

[homer]Mmmm... Five cylinder burble...[/homer]

Bit of seepage, but hey, you can't see it when the bonnet is closed!

So, at the moment, Harry (it's been christened) is on axle stands. I've had to put some wood between him and the stands as they were starting to indent the cills and so far it seems to be spreading the weight nicely.

Once the wheels are back I can start on the myriad of jobs which need to be carried out. I foresee lots of skinned knuckles and swearing but hopefully also some satisfaction along the way!

Stay tuned for updates. Smile

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 10:37 am

looks like a good starting point - should tart up nicely, this Very Happy

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:01 am

Nice to see that you're up for a challenge! Good luck - and keep us updated with progress.

At least it's got a full tank of petrol Wink

Alan

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:37 am

That didn't come with the car, unfortunately. Very Happy

I figured I'd fill it up as it will be standing idle for a bit as I work out what needs to be done, and obviously I can't drive it anywhere without wheels! Laughing

Will take this opportunity to look at the brakes as there's definitely some scraping going on somewhere.

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:27 pm

Looks like a good project, depending on what route your planning on going with it you could always source a darker interior from say a 20v or s2 if funds allow, the boot trims come up from time to time and are an easy swap.

Headlining, just take down the plastic trims and the boot section which screws on and use some spray glue to sort it out.

Engine is most likely the rocker cover gasget or a pipe leaking the oil so hopefully not that much to fix.

Site Moderator Joined: Jan 31, 2003 Posts: 9144

You've got them in the wrong place then.

Axle stands should be on the rigid chassis sections if supporting the car for extended periods

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:18 pm

Looks like a nice project Very Happy

You doing the wheels yourself or taking them somewhere?

Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:36 pm

I have neither the skill nor the patience to do the wheels, so I'm getting them done by someone who knows what they're doing! £60 per wheel isn't too bad, considering what a mess they're in.

Re axle stands, I had a look for the subframe mounting but was left scratching my head. Confused

Even the picture of the car's underside in the Haynes manual isn't clear, so rather than risk damaging something, I figured usual jacking points with wood to spread the load would be OK.

If anyone has pics indicating where axle stands should go on a 1990 Coupe, please feel free to post them! Smile

Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 8:49 am

I have a donor car which is the same colour as yours.
if you want a replacement wing, or any other panels, let me know.
Wink

Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 9:33 am

Dangerousd1, that is very generous of you, thank you very much. I will let you know! The bodywork is fairly far down the list of things to do though.

Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2008 1:17 pm

no worries i will have the car for several more months yet.
i'm having the 20v out and all the trimmings that go with it. will also have the seats as the cloth is the same as mine, however the rest of the car will be stripped to sell on so just pm me if/when you need anything. Wink

cheers
Darryl

Posted: Fri Aug 21, 2009 9:54 pm

Bad news.

Owing to the tax running out but my being unable to get a new disc as Harry failed his MOT (nothing terminal) I declared him SORN and parked him in a nearby car park, off the road. My wife and I live in the middle of town and only have one allocated parking space so I couldn't put him anywhere else.

Anyway, I went to attend to him the other day to find him missing! Shock

I rang the council to see if he'd been picked up as an abandoned car (he did look a bit scruffy) even though I'd put a note on the dashboard saying he hasn't been abandoned, he's awaiting repairs to pass the MOT before getting a new tax disc.

The council said they hadn't taken him but the lady said try the DVLA. I rang their pound nearby and they confirmed they took him. It turns out that off road isn't enough anymore, if your car is SORN it needs to be on private land and as I had parked in a local authority car park, he was fair game.

To get him back, it was going to cost £200 plus £160 surety plus £21 per day storage costs. Today, that amounts to £444. On top of that, it would have cost probably £300 or so to get him through the MOT so reluctantly I've had to disclaim him as my wife lost her job earlier this year and I can't afford that sort of money anymore. Sad

Very sad to see him go as he was a lovely car, and I hope to buy another some day in the future. I managed to retrieve my Haynes manual and the handbook so hopefully that will come in handy again one day.

If anyone else has a project car off road but not on private land, please move it somewhere safe. I'd hate to see this happen to anyone else's pride and joy.

Thank you all for the advice you have all given freely in here. I enjoy reading everyone's threads and have learned a lot, which I'm eternally grateful for.

Watch this space for a future Coupe purchase when funds allow!

Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 8:10 am

Bloody hell!
F**king council shits

Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 8:26 am

agree with the above Crying or Very sad

I know someone who had 4 type 85 coupe quattro's scrapped because the council threatened to do this and at least he got £100 per car out of it rather than having to pay £800 for the destruction of them.

Site Moderator Joined: Aug 11, 2008 Posts: 1652

fook thats a bit of bad luck m8. would it be worth paying to get it back just to even break the parts? and at least recoup the money to get it back and at least keep it out there?

Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2009 3:50 pm

There's three problems with that. One, finding the money to retrieve it in the first place. Two, ensuring I make enough money from the parts to regain what I've spent. And three, I have nowhere to put the car that's off road so the DVLA could come and take it away again!

Sadly, I'm better off saying goodbye to it. It is a pity but there's nothing else I can do.