Completely off topic from anything CPC related but hopefully someone can help.
After 16 years pretty much maintenance free, my MR2 is beginning to have a few small problems wetting itself...
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I'm not quite ready to get rid of her yet and buy a new car so I've been spending some money getting new weather seals for the T-bar fitted, the timing belt redone, water pump, fan belt, various pulleys (that haven't been changed in 16 years), the speaker replaced in the drivers door and it turns out the housing for my alternator had split wide open so that's been replaced. Drove it out to the gym tonight and feels great.
The next thing is the paint is looking very tired in places with white blotches appearing on the bonnet and front wings. According to the mechanic it was originally lacquered and the paint underneath has deteriorated so no amount of polishing it going to help. He said his cousin (everyone's related over here) who runs a body center up the road took a look at it while it was in his shop and said there should be no issues respraying it. The mechanic had his BMW 3 series resprayed a few years back and it still looks good.
So I took it up to him and he quoted me €1500 for the respray and to have a few parking dings and the seals where people have jacked it in the wrong place repaired.
However I apparently have a couple of options. As I understand it I can just get it painted or for a couple of hundred extra I can get it lacquered. The mechanic was suggested leaving the lacquer as I couldn't polish it because the lacquer would act as a barrier but I am wondering if the lacquer would afford me some more protection against stone chips being a low slung car.
Does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing who can suggest what my best option is?
I am hoping to take it in on Monday next week.
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If the paint job is done properly, then Lacquer is a good choice, it definitely reduces the stone chips which are common occurances on the roads you drive there. If the paint is done properly you shouldn't need to polish it.
Bryce.
P.s. I like the rainbow you managed to get into the picture... Supports the fake idylic image people have of Ireland. Add a Leprechaun and it's perfect. :D
I had a similar leaking issue with my car where the passenger footwell was getting very wet and it turned not to be the seals at all, but one of the plastic studs holding the door card in place was missing so water was trickling through the hole onto the wrong side and then down through the speaker onto the floor. The solution was to cover the whole with gaffer tape (or find an appropriate plug I guess!) and cover the speaker with some foam to deflect any errant water away from the speakers and down to the bottom of the door.
One thing I learned in this process is that car doors are actually designed to cope with letting water in as it's assumed the seals on the windows won't be 100% and there should be drain holes in the bottom of the door that empty on the outside side of the sill where they close.
Of course. Doors have a wet area and a dry area, hence the plastic curtain inside. The water is meant to pass through the door. When the drain holes get stuffed with gunk that's when the door starts the classic rotting across the bottom of the door.
Bryce.
Thanks Bryce. I am definitely fed up polishing the red paint every month so it sounds like lacquer could be the way forward :D
Are you trying to suggest Leprechauns don't exist? :laugh: That was the latest picture I had of the car and I got caught in a shower while building the raised vegetable beds you can see on the front garden. After the shower that rainbow appeared so seemed rude with that in front of me not to take the photo.
Thanks Ralferoo. Fortunately in this instance I could see the water dripping from the roof so I applied the patch, removed the plugs under the passenger foot well so the water could drain and waited for the new seals to arrive. I don't think the water is getting in from the door as only the foam around my speaker had perished - I tried to fix it once in the Summer which lasted a couple of weeks before it went again :( They would have had the door panel off to replace the speaker so I'll phone them tomorrow to confirm that there was no sign of water damage.
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After I applied the patch I was going to take it out to make sure it would hold while driving but it coincided with the local rush hour :(
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You're making me homesick :(
Bryce.
Here you go, this will hopefully get rid of that feeling.
It is definitely a bit bracing in the mornings at the moment :laugh:
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(actually I don't think those were raised vegetable beds I was making there, I think it was for that stupid looking arch in the front garden that looks completely out of place :laugh: )
Yup, that arch is certainly what I'd call random. :D What's with the scary looking kid in the middle?
Bryce.
I think it might not have looked so bad is someone hadn't decided to paint it bright blue but hey... As I work from home I have the pleasure of seeing it every time I stare out of the window :(
I also think the statue could be a really bad imitation of the Venus de Milo, so bad in fact that no one has bother stealing it yet :laugh: One day!!! I can only hope :D
Quote from: beaker on 23:49, 02 December 13
I also think the statue could be a really bad imitation of the Venus de Milo, so bad in fact that no one has bother stealing it yet :laugh: One day!!! I can only hope :D
It looks a bit like the kid from Sixth Sense, or Damien the Omen. :D
Bryce.
Actually, now you mention it... :laugh:
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Quote from: Bryce on 23:20, 02 December 13
Of course. Doors have a wet area and a dry area, hence the plastic curtain inside. The water is meant to pass through the door. When the drain holes get stuffed with gunk that's when the door starts the classic rotting across the bottom of the door.
Bryce.
Our micra got some of that rust action. A visit to the mechanic and now it's got some bits of metal welded to it :)
With Damien standing about 20 metres away in an arch, you are still wondering about the problems with your car?
Just look how the boy is turning his back to you and the car in order to avoid attention.
Madre de Dios! We need a priest!
How much you wanna spend on it ? ;D
If you're going for a full respray (and stripping the current lacquer off) you should invest in getting new lacquer or some sort of protective coating done. Wouldn't worry about polishing it, when its lacquered the paint can't fade so no more pink panels so you're just cutting thru the lacquer when you polish it up.
There is a classic car guy in Killaloe who does a good paint job. You may as well get inner panels treated with dinitrol or similar as well seeing as its a bit leaky ;D
Have a few classic Alfa's so rust/respray/leaks are all familiar topics for me !!
Quote from: The Last Bandit on 13:48, 03 December 13
How much you wanna spend on it ? ;D
The chaps quoted me €1700 with the lacquer - not sure if that's a good price? I've got to go into town tomorrow so I am going back to look at the mechanics (his cousins so you'd hope he's done a good job) BMW he sprayed to give me some idea on what I can expect. I was thinking originally it would be €5000 so was pleasantly surprised when he quoted me.
The thing is I hate it when something's not perfect - drives me nuts, so I want to make sure that grinding out the rust and filling it will bring it back to a showroom condition and last for a few years.
My friend in Australia was suggesting a car wrap using vinyl stickers but I'm not overly keen on the idea as I can't see it lasting in the country lanes.
Quote from: The Last Bandit on 13:48, 03 December 13
There is a classic car guy in Killaloe who does a good paint job. You may as well get inner panels treated with dinitrol or similar as well seeing as its a bit leaky ;D
Thanks for the recommendation, you don't have a name or number do you? :D I have a 1973 MGB roadster that's got to the stage where it needs some restoration and a full respray in the engine bay and outside, the chrome redone etc. I would love an old Alfa Romeo Spider one day :)
Jon is the guys name, Classic Car Workshop (http://www.classiccarworkshop.ie/index.html)
Would like a Spider myself and some stage but until then I'll have to make do with a GTV6 and a 2000 GTV :P
Fantastic - and it looks like he's worked on a good number of MG's :D
Damn, those are some nice cars - I bet that GTV6 is a blast on the country roads. I am jealous!
Car wrap only works properly on brand new cars. The paint surface has to be perfect and free of scratches before you put the foil on it, otherwise you'll see all the imperfections through the foil.
€1700 is a bargain.
Bryce.
Just got back - went around to Mike, the mechanics house to look at his red BMW Z3 Pakie, his cousin resprayed 5 years ago and looks great (without the lacquer). I think I'm winning him over to the MR2 - when he first started working on it 6 years ago it was a piece of Jap crap and now he's admitted that despite being 15+ years old and 95k miles, this one feels like a new car and is mechanically sound. Although he did say there was a lot of knackered ones around too :laugh:
Going to get it taken back to bare metal, any rust ground out, filled, sprayed and lacquered and baked in an oven.
I asked Pakie about the MGB and he's not interested. Apparently he had an old Merc in a few years back and it took him a year and a half to do the nuts and bolts restoration so he's never doing anything like that again so I am definitely using that place in Co. Clare.
This isn't your one is it :) What were they thinking...
Toyota MR2 For Sale in Cork : €5,500 - DoneDeal.ie (http://cars.donedeal.ie/modifiedcars-for-sale/toyota-mr2/6077348)
Most places won't touch classic restorations, really tough to get accurate quotes without stripping them down in the first place or have years of experience with them and still they can throw surprises at you.
I'd to send the GTV6 to the UK for a mild restoration a few years ago, had to go back to bare metal and rebuild from the ground up such was the extent of hidden rot and prior bad work - not cheap :'(
That is, although mine's NA.... the spoiler has been changed to the one used for my model and they stuck a diesel engine in it!!! I wonder how it performs and handles? The original turbo could do 0-100kph in 5.5s from memory... Not surprised he went with an aftermarket aerial, I got quoted €580 for an original one last year from the Toyota dealership so ended up with an after market one :laugh:
Sorry Bryce....
I just looked out of the window and saw this - a double rainbow!!! (apparently I may have gold in my front garden somewhere near Damien).
I think it's showing me visions of how my car will look when it's resprayed - looks one colour in the photo :laugh:
Quote from: beaker on 14:04, 04 December 13
Going to get it taken back to bare metal, any rust ground out, filled, sprayed and lacquered and baked in an oven.
If you want it to last, the rusty metal should be replaced with metal, not just bogged up with filler.
Quote from: The Last Bandit on 00:40, 04 December 13
Would like a Spider myself and some stage but until then I'll have to make do with a GTV6 and a 2000 GTV :P
I have a 1983 GTV6 2.5 in desperate need of a respray also, and a 2003 156 Selespeed Sportswagon which
was a replacement for my ex-Subaru Liberty wagon which ended up upside down in a ditch. All Italian for me now.
Quote from: Executioner on 23:24, 04 December 13
If you want it to last, the rusty metal should be replaced with metal, not just bogged up with filler.
I think it's only a small bit of surface rust rather than anything major so there should be plenty of good metal behind it. I did raise it with the chap and he thought it would be a waste of time to replace the metal.
The owner of the body shop is sending me photo updates to my phone... :laugh:
Isn't it always the way though, I plough my money into this an Macc lists some Spectrums I wouldn't mind owning on Amibay :(
Car's back just before Christmas :D Unfortunately it was too dark to take a photo when I got back but here's one the garage owner sent to me earlier in the day
That's not the original red is it? You chose a slightly darker one or is it just the picture / light?
Bryce.
It is the original colour :) although you're right, I am sure those point and click cameras probably change the colours to make it more punchy. I'll snap it with the D300 in RAW tomorrow and get the proper colour. I've not actually seen it in proper daylight yet as I only picked it up at 4:30pm