C124 refurbish

[del320]

Dee: the rubber seals were in very good condition and just required a clean.

Derek: a wee man in the depths of Slateford/Moat just replaced the piping. He just 'appened to have a matching leather off-cut.

The job's fine but I don't think I'd want him to do a whole car...

 

[SilverSaloon]

my piping is ok (mb-tex ) but i do have a mark on the mbtex at the very front of the armrest and a couple elsewhere that i'd like to sort. probably not the right guy for me then.

 

[The Boss]

great job!

 

[EDZ649]

Del

A couple of questions please.

1. Do the doors on a coupe have to be removed to gain access to the wing bolts in the door recess - it looks very tight ?

2. What did you use to clean your plastic grill before painting it, and what paint did you use ?

3. What did you use to clean the top (very thin) rubber strips on the claddings, or did you buy new rubber strips and glue those on ?

Thanks David

You don't need to release the door check straps to remove the wing bolts, all you need is a 1/4" drive ratchet with a 10mm socket and extension bar. You will have to remove the plastic trim on the outside of the bottom of the door to get to the lower bolt though but this gives you enough room so that you don't risk damaging the door paint.

I removed two wings today from the 300e I'm breaking using the above method.

 

[Ajenks]

Thats a really nice looking car, great job

 

[kth286]

You don't need to release the door check straps to remove the wing bolts, all you need is a 1/4" drive ratchet with a 10mm socket and extension bar. You will have to remove the plastic trim on the outside of the bottom of the door to get to the lower bolt though but this gives you enough room so that you don't risk damaging the door paint.

I removed two wings today from the 300e I'm breaking using the above method.

I have since found on the coupe you do have to undo the door strap.

Probably explained by the fact that from the scuttle backwards the coupe and saloon/estate are different designs.

Windscreen is less deep and more rake etc with coupe doors totally different .

 

[del320]

Quite so!

Following EDZ649's post I went out to have a look. You ain't gonna get a socket in that gap without serious risk of chewing up the edge of the door.

Anyway, it's not that hard to knock out the pin.

 

[djwazza]

I've been through this excellent thread and I apologise if I've missed it, but how do I get the sill cladding off? The under sill self tappers are obvious, the rest of the removal process seems mysterious. What am I missing? I have the standard nearside rust on the rear jacking point and corrosion on the remaining 3, I'm now starting to obsess about fixing the rust and keeping it fixed. Is it worth worrying about before the sun comes back out again and can I expect disintegration if I don't get on it immediately?

Great looking car by the way.

 

[del320]

The remainder of the fixings are visible only after the plastic lower body panels are removed. The inner beige cills also must be removed - just lever them off.

Your jacking points have been quietly disintegrating for 15 years - another winter won't make much difference - but prepare for some unpleasantness.

 

[djwazza]

Thanks Del

I have a window at the end of the Christmas holiday to get it prepped and welded, I think I'll wait a bit and do it properly.

Basically I have to take all the plastic off the car in order to treat the sills? That sounds like a week long project in itself, although I assume the car is still drivable in its 'nude' state?

Would it be worth doing the front wings (with pattern parts from Beevers potentially) at the same time? I can get them prepped and ready to go prior to the sill work.

Dave

 

[del320]

This is what the wings, bumper and wheel should look like.

I thought I'd post here as an excuse to "bump" the thread but also to keep this topic within the body of the whole refurbishment story.

So... The wheels were sent to Spit 'n' Polish for a diamond cut refurb back in July. Yes, I know they receive very mixed views - but what's done is done.

Eight months and 2500 miles later, all four wheels showed evidence of milkiness round the bolts and on several areas of the rim. Furthermore I've done only 300 miles since the middle of December - the car was never out on wet roads!

Despite S+P only offering a six month warranty, they were returned for a gratis repeat refurb. Rocco at JRM Coachworks kindly provided me with a set of temporary wheels.

Now, after a couple of weeks, Rocco has today explained the reason for the delay: Until they got an expert's view, S+P were not keen on doing another diamond cut as, in their opinion, there would be insufficient metal left on the very fine rim. A second opinion reckoned the wheels would take another diamond cut. Mmmmm...

Meanwhile, they reckoned that because the wheels are 15 years old, there may have been pin-holes on the surface in which moisture may have been trapped, thus causing the signs of lifting lacquer.

After some discussion with Rocco, we acknowledged that whilst a diamond cut finish looks superior, longevity is not its strong point. (He is, apparently, paranoid about getting his M3 wheels wet!) I have therefore agreed to have the wheels painted.

I suppose it's a disappointing outcome, but in fairness to S+P they appear to have looked into this reasonably, although they concede that corrosion in the diamond cut could quite likely reappear.

Views, anyone?

 

[74merc]

Did they not heat the wheels when refurbing, to remove any trapped moisture?

 

[Will]

Del,

I think for a durable finish, paint or powder coat is probably the only way to go.

New/refurbished wheels with a diamond cut finish always go milky after a while - perhaps some longer than others but it's only a matter of time

I think that one of the reasons why they tend to oxidise is that they can't use an etch primer as it is a clear lacquer that protects the bare metal finish. Our resident wheel-refurb Guru (stats007) reckons that the salts naturally found in the alloy wheels also passivate which can't easily be avoided either.

So - IMHO, there's no point in diamond cutting again as the finish won't last any longer than before. And then you're back to square one.

See if they can use a high-sparkle/dark chrome type silver which will more closely match the bare-metal finish than the traditional plain silvery-grey type colours used?

Neat, nicely refurbed wheels will always look better than the original diamond-cut finish once it starts to oxidise.

Will

 

[del320]

Got my wheels back yesterday. One small "pip" on one wheel but otherwise fine.

It's all a bit of a pity but, personally, I don't think diamond cut is worth the hassle - even if they did look superb. (see above)

Although this picture was taken on a dull day they look, in comparison, a bit "flat".

Now I've got to get the car ready for tomorrow's GTG.

 

[SilverSaloon]

Looking good. shame you couldnt of kept the diamond cut but they still look great, in fact similar to mine - when they are clean mine have been painted too but the spare is still original.

i look forward to seeing them tomorrow anyway.

derek

 

[carlsson_dude]

looking good

 

[Kix]

Beautiful car

This is such a beautiful car.

 

[sopgeo]

What a fantastic car. I passed a Nissan dealer today and laughed myself silly at the price of a Micra. I think you have spent your money wisely and I'll follow suit in the near future. Personal preference and all that, but I never liked the diamond cut wheels, even when they were new and think they look much better painted.

I salute you and wish you many happy years with your car.

 

[Shane10010]

Fantastic machine. Would be proud to have her on the drive!

 

[Silentdeed]

The car is looking great!