Practically Classics Forum

Nugget (1994 Vauxhall Corsa) has only done about 3,000 miles between MoTs so we did expect it to pass without too much trouble. We'd addressed the advisories from the last MoT and found a few other jobs to attend to but overall, this little car was happy to soldier on whenever required and has served very well as a useful back-up car. It was decided by Mike that Nugget should be rewarded with The Works.



When I bought the car back in January 2015 I was happy it didn't want much beyond a bit of cosmetic titivation, whatever that noise was (more on that later) and generally being looked after. For the most part, that was the case. Mike wanted more, he likes things to be just so and given how reliable and useful Nugget had been he determined to fit a new timing belt, water pump, tensioner, ignition components, fuel filter, starter motor... you get the idea. To begin with the old belt came off.




It was okay, but a replacement wouldn't hurt. You'll have to imagine a picture here of lovely new belt, water pump and tensioner fitted, the parts you can see in the first picture above. Even though I thought the ignition components were perfectly serviceable, Mike fitted a new rotor arm, distributor cap, leads and spark plugs. He plugged them in too, he didn't just leave it like that, he's a professional.


The funny grounchy noise the car had been making all the while we owned it had been narrowed down to a starter motor or a flywheel. No damage was present on the flywheel but there was some nibbling on the starter motor and since that was easier to replace it was given a shot. You know what, that cured the issue, the car is now almost silent on starting up.


The old fuel filter came off...


... and a new one fitted.


Mike said this car had a pollen filter and I scoffed, believing this car to be too old and too basic for such modern fripperies. I was wrong.


It was certainly due!


This also meant Mike found out the windscreen is delaminating. That along with the inclusions in the glass on other areas of the screen mean it's likely the next 'big spend' on this little car as this screen has clearly seen better days.


The rear brakes had been proving troublesome. Mike sourced and fitted some brand new adjusters and now the brakes are really rather good.


Presented for the MoT and passed with no advisories at all, and so it should with all that care and attention and parts lavished on it!

Today I turned my attention to the Rover once I'd got some work out of the way and a deadline met. It's turned into a stunner of a day today and I didn't want it to go to waste by being trapped at my desk all afternoon. So, off to the unit we go to tackle some of the scabby bits on the Rover that I've left alone since buying the car. Just a quick blast with the flapwheel, a dash of rust convertor, a bit of primer and some fresh red and lacquer. It's not show winning stuff but it's better than it was.

Mainly, I wanted to tackle this bit on the back door which looks warty and unpleasant every time the car is waxed. The back corner and bottom edge also needed a bit of attention at the same time. Here's the before from back in July 2015.


Here's the after. This car is already about four shades of Flame Red anyway so the slight mismatch doesn't bother me. Also gave the bumper edge of the rear arch a fresh tickle as it had a couple of spots coming through.


Before again.


After.


Happier with that. I tackled the front wing on the opposite side too, namely the big blister at the front edge of the arch which is now a hole and the ugly obvious lacquer peel. This is even more of a rushed job because I've got a better wing to finish the welding on - gas regulator still hasn't arrived - so I can get that fitted. From this distance you could see the peel and the rust but you can't see the very quick repair so I'm happy with that for the time being. I also finally cleaned up the centre caps and fitted the Rover badges this side.


I spent some time getting the front end straightened out again. One of the under-light trims clips is snapped as is the side clip on the indicator. The headlight had been pushed down and that had deformed the bottom bracket slightly. Annoyingly, my bonnet is now twisted and I couldn't get it twist back the other way. My bumper also looks like it's got bent bracket on the driver's side. I'm really not thrilled about this. Luckily the headlight just needed unbolting and reseating, as did the grille. I'll get the bonnet and bumper sorted eventually, fiddly stuff that takes forever and only really annoys me.


You'll notice the car now has a nose too. I think it was MrBenn on Autoshite that sent me that badge, I'm not sure, it was a while ago and I can't remember. Anyway, funny thing is the badge looks too big up close but when you see the car across a car park it looks about right. It can stay for now until I make up my mind on whether or not I like it.

In other classic news, the Princess was investigated today and after going through all the ignition and fuelling side of things and finding it all actually does check out, I stuck my nose over the filler neck. I was assaulted with the smell of bad fuel so I guess my running issue is that the fuel has gone stale. I'll try running from a fresh can of fuel to see if it wants to cooperate.

Tomorrow, if things pan out as they ought, I'll hopefully be getting the front brakes on the Renault sorted which is essentially adding new parts and seeing whether or not the calipers and master cylinder actually work. I know the rear brakes work quite well which is one less thing to worry about.

29th May 2016
Today it was decided to make a proper effort on the front brakes.  Luckily, my brother turned up because it was one of *those* jobs as it happens.  Is there a reason French cars have to have daft brake set ups?  It's really annoying.  The front discs on the 6 are sandwiched between the two halves of the hub.  It's a very silly design and does not make changing discs easy, I was not happy about this job.  The wording in the Haynes book was also less than good (as has come to be expected of it) so some improvising had to happen.  The advise is to remove three of the disc retaining bolts and put in some longer bar and then the bolts to push the two halves of the hub apart.  You can't use a hub puller as there's nothing for the arms to attach to and you have to split the hub to get the disc out.
 
We started by trying out some what should have been toughened bolts with the heads chopped off in place of the rod suggested in the book.  That just resulted in a small amount of movement and bent threaded bar.

 
Then we found some better, longer bolts and some nuts and devised a method that actually worked.  We removed all of the disc retaining bolts so it could be pushed back off the hub face, then put a longer bolt through with a nut on the back.  Three bolts were used in total to push the hub apart, it worked very well.  When the bolts proved to be a little too short we improvised using some closed-end wheel nuts that had a flat seat one side and a dimple the other, rendering them perfect for the job.

 
Then one of the replacement bolts decided it didn't like being threaded any more so we had to rejig with just two.  Much slower going and with a great deal of care taken but we did get there in the end.

 
With the outer half of the hub off it's really easy to replace the disc but we found it very difficult to keep the bearing, driveshaft and hub halves lined up on the car so removed the hub and put it all together on the workbench before sliding the whole hub back home onto the drive shaft and ball joints.  Surprisingly easy to bolt back together and now we know how not to do it, the other side should be much easier.  Nice to see shiny things on the car.

 
In no time the old disc was heading binwards and the new one was sitting pretty on the car where it belongs.

 
Next was the caliper.  The piston was seized and over extended but otherwise complete and in good order.  We were particularly surprised when the bleed nipple and flexihose unbolted from the caliper without difficulty.  The old brake fluid that came out was a less pleasant surprise, smelled just like rat wee.  I was surprised there was any fluid in the system at all.

 
The second set of brake pads I bought were correct, happily.

 
They were also very needed.

 
The caliper was taken apart as much as it would go and with some persuasion the piston was convinced to move again.  Another pleasant surprise that.  Before reassembling the caliper we wanted to make sure fresh fluid was getting through the system from the master cylinder.  Filled up the tiny reservoir, which is a challenge because of the various cables that run over the top of it.

 
Gave the pedal a few goes and nothing.  Cracked off the brake lines from the master cylinder and... nothing.  Cracked off the big nut on the end to see if it would at least let all the fluid in the reservoir leak onto the floor but nope, nada, zilch.  That'll be a dead master cylinder then, which is hardly surprising.  I need one like this which has two outlets on the top and one outlet on the driver's side.

 

 
Tidied up, put the wheels back on and left it at that for today.  As an aside, I had difficulty pushing the car today to get it where I wanted it to go, just wouldn't budge!  Guess which moron had left the handbrake on?  Still, at least half the brakes work.

2nd June 2016
Today I stole a few minutes while having lunch and commandeered Mike into helping replace the master cylinder that arrived this morning.  A fiddly job, made more annoying by a lack of access and, for the lower bolt and pedal plunger assembly needing two people to keep it all lined up and frustration at a minimum. Old (right) and new (left) on the bench, thankfully it is the correct part and they are identical apart from condition.

 
Cleaned the pedal plunger bit up because it looked a bit worse for wear before putting it all back in the car.

 
The brake fluid reservoir was fitted with a new copper crush washer to replace the old one.  Refitting is slightly more fiddly than removal, there's very little space to actually get tools, let alone hands, into the gaps around this part.  All three brake lines reattached without any bother at all.

 
Pedal side of it all went together fairly easily and was given a new split pin.  Pedal actually feels to travel properly now even without fluid in the system, it feels more as a brake pedal should where before it was just sort of floppy.

 
We bench tested the starter motor and it sounds all kinds of broken.  The solenoid isn't activating, the bearings sound like they're made of gravel and it's spinning pretty weakly when it does bother to actually work.  Only had enough time to refit the points but not to gap them yet.  I'm hoping to find some time over the weekend to get the front brakes finished.  Starting the engine is still going to have to wait a while.

3rd June 2016
I had an unexpected half-day today so spent my spare time on the Renault, it's rare I get the luxury of bonus car time.  Decided the best thing to do would be to get the brakes finished and take some pictures to illustrate how the front discs are done.  After removing the wheel and putting it on stands, put the car in reverse to undo the hub nut if you haven't someone to help brace the wheel and then undo the nuts holding the disc to the outer hub.  After that, put some bolts through the holes in the hub so the end of the thread rests on the disc face.


I had three bolts I could use and this makes life easier.  Fit a nut on the bolt between the outer hub and the disc brake.  Working on one bolt at a time, tighten the bolt with a spanner holding the nut to ease the hub apart.  It's steady going, but quick enough really.  Changing discs is hopefully not a job you do that often.


You do need to get the outer hub to move quite a long way and my bolts weren't long enough.  I spaced them out with some sturdy wheel nuts that have a solid dimple in one end and  good flat face the other.  This allowed me to remove the outer hub completely and safely.


With the outer hub off, you remove the old disc, put the new one on and refit the outer hub.  I was quite lucky on this side as the hub halves went together very smoothly.  A little bit of hammering was required to knock the outer hub home but once you've got enough driveshaft thread through you can put the bolt on and tighten it up.  You might need to use the hammer to help a bit as I did on this one but eventually you get the hub safely back together and can then bolt the disc in place.  After that be sure to tighten the hub nut.


With both discs now renewed, the new pads could be fitted.  It's a bit of a faff and I found the best way was to bolt the carrier to the hub with the pads in and then fit the caliper and shims and pins in situ.  The last thing to go on was the dust shield and then the brakes were bled pushing out lots of air and a bit of really disgusting contaminated old brake fluid.




The old pads that came out were very dead.


After getting the fronts bled the brake pedal felt quite good and my brother and I jacked up the rear end to see if they worked on the pedal.  I knew the rear brakes did work on the pedal when it came off the trailer over a year ago but hadn't tested them beyond that.  Happily, both wheels stop satisfactorily on the pedal and the handbrake works, whether it's good enough for the MoT remains to be seen but I'm satisfied that we now have functioning brakes on all four corners.

But wait, there's more!


The filler work on the roof was completed and the paint put on.  I've gone for a unique approach of layering different coloured aerosols to make the repaired areas blend in with the rest of the car and not jump out.  It's so effective I'm running with it for everything.  Some dents are left in on purpose because they're part of this car's story and will be a talking point when I get to using the car, I'm sure.  The camera has mostly picked out purple on the passenger side but there's red, blue and beige over the green and blue paint already on the car in this area.






The small bit of damage that was welded on the rear wing was given the same treatment, to good effect.




The driver's side got the filler work finished and the final coat of paint on, orange instead of purple on this side until the orange ran out.




Of note is the small peep/overtaking mirror that I got for very little on eBay.  It was originally destined for the Princess but was far too small so became a neat addition for the Renault.


I think the next job is likely removal and refitting of the windscreen so the reversing light wiring, headlining, rear side windows and dashboard can all go back in as that's the biggest job on the list.  I will attempt an engine start when I have the help available which might be this weekend.  I'm running out of jobs to do, which is very nice.  I have very little on my shopping list too, just two generic exhaust clamps, the headlight and a set of tyres.

are you going to repaint it? my father ran a renault 6 back in the 70's & i think there were headlight adjuster levers sticking out underneath the headlamps.. or was i dreaming

There are adjusters on the back of the headlights, your memory has not failed you. They're to switch headlights for LHD friendly driving. The paint I'm putting on is as much of a repaint as I plan to give it, there's a couple of pristine examples in the UK so there's not really any point me making this one anything other than the little bruiser it is.

4th June 2016

Crumbs, another busy day on Crapaud. I bought some new spring clips for the sill trims so I could get those back on. The old clips had rusted out for the most part and were a nuisance to remove. The new clips were even more of a nuisance to fit but I persisted and got there. Cleaned off the rust and flakey paint on the sills and then popped one trim on which fitted well enough, pushed the end caps home which have seen better days and this side was done.


The other side it turns out the trim strip is considerably shorter than it should be. I only found this out after fighting with all the trim clips because I'd foolishly assumed it would be the correct length. Never mind, it doesn't bother me, just part of what this car is all about.


Windscreen was popped out. This has to be the easiest windscreen I've ever removed. The seal had some sort of sealant gunge which meant the top wasn't sitting flush with the frame and allowing water to get trapped. The driver's side had loads of sealant for no real reason and the passenger side practically none. The windscreen has been out before as the green repaint was underneath everything. The whole surround and the seal - which is in surprisingly good shape - were cleaned to get rid of the sealant and rust and so we could make a start on the next job...


Fitting the headlining. After popping all the rods into the relevant holes, the rear tension was set by putting the special plastic piece into the grip rod and then pressing the grip rod down where it was lifted from the previous headlining removal. At the front, a little bit of good strong adhesive was applied before putting the tension on and holding it all down with pegs. It works exceptionally well.


Once it's all dried, the excess fabric and pegs are removed and then the side tension can be set.


There was a couple of inches of excess fabric to remove before I could tuck it away into the grip rods and to prevent puckering on the seams, the roof bow pleats were split (on the fabric, not the stitches) to allow the new headlining to fit smoothly. Here it is before trimming and after front-to-rear tension has been set.


I had thought some of the fabric needed to go in the rear side window holes as when I removed the old headlining that's where it was. However, the grip rod runs all the way to the back so I put it back in there which is much neater. It also reveals where the respray was done by masking off the old headlining but removing the rear side windows. To fit the fabric for side tension you get a large, blunt screwdriver and, working from the seams, push the fabric into the grip rods. If any of the grip rods (I've typed grip rods too many times, it's lost all meaning now) need it, gently tap them down to hold the fabric. It's a really, really fast way of doing a headlining, I like it.


Repeat on the other side until complete. The finished article is really satisfying and it's made the interior a nicer place to be.


With that done, attention could turn to refitting the side windows. I managed to fit this one back-to-front on the first attempt so it had to come out to be refitted, but it was done with a little grunt by my brother and I.


The other side got the same treatment. This went much easier when we found a length of suitable cord but it was still a difficult window to put in due to the shape of it.


Finally, the windscreen went in. It sits in the frame much better than it did before it was removed. I didn't have the special tool for fitting the chrome trim but I do have a tried and tested technique using fingers and a screwdriver carefully. I also found climbing onto the bonnet of Renault 6 from the side is very difficult because it tips much more than you expect.


With all the glass in and the headlining fitted I faffed about refitting the dashboard and then the mirror - which I cleaned the stem on since it had too much green paint on one side - and the visors.


Another shot with flash, so you can see the rabbits.


Mike was in briefly and ran the wiring for the reversing lights, we just need to wire up a switch to operate the existing ones or find some that work from the non-powered switch in the Renault's gearbox. The wiring is at least in for the reversing lights now which makes them easier to sort in the future. Happily running out of jobs to do now.

That is one very impressive bit of head lining fitting right there! It's a task that I would always have dodged somehow as the very few times I tried my hand at that, the results were uniformly dreadful.
It's nothing like as easy as it looks yet you've dived straight in and achieved a result that looks perfectly tensioned in every direction. I'm not wearing a hat but, if I were, I'd be taking it off by way of a congratulatory gesture about now.
Sure & the mechanical stuff is thorough, well thought out and elegant too, but that small sheet of fabric is my favourite part so far, especially as it features bunnies in a very unusual setting.

Thank you Fabric is one thing I do understand and to read a compliment like that makes all the effort seem worthwhile. Those rabbits feature in this update too!

No, I haven't got it running yet.  I did some other things instead, easy things since I'm just shattered today after the mega long, mega late stint yesterday.  Namely, for the first time in  while, Crapaud went back outside now that the weather can be kept out.  Very, very dusty little car and in desperate need of a scrub and clean out.

 
There wasn't really anything left in the boot; an exhaust system, a mud flap, the side trims.  It did need a clean out as it was full of filler dust and grinder dust and mud.  Same with the parcel shelf and supports, I still have the bits of carpet for the supports, they were just put safely out of the way when I took the picture.

 
I'm still delighted with the headlining.  It's settled out nicely now the fabric has had chance to relax out the few wrinkles there were.

 
Once outside I could get the hose and the soapy water and give the car a bath.  That probably seems ludicrous when you look at it, but it felt pretty horrible to touch with the chalky paint and all the workshop detritus.  I don't mind scruffy, but I can't abide dirty.  This did highlight the windscreen does have a couple of minor leaks, exaggerated by the cloth headlining wicking the water up.  I'm going to put some Captain Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure in as it seems to have a 100% satisfaction reputation by all who have used it.  I suspect the windscreen frame is slightly deformed which is causing this small amount of leaking which became apparent after I'd taken a toothbrush to clear off some moss on the seal and thrown really quite a lot of water at the windscreen and seal to find out how leaky it really was.  Interestingly, the leaks don't correlate with the corrosion I did find on the screen or any visible damage.

 

 
I tried out a few different cleaners on the seats but they were actually really clean, just sun damaged.  They got pretty hot when I was cleaning the car in the sunshine, there's a thing that brought back some childhood memories!  All the glass got the once over inside and out and the whole car ended up feeling far nicer and less inclined to transfer dirt onto clothing and hands.

 

 

 

 

 

 
I will get around to drilling out the old rusted bolts from the mudflap brackets so they can be refitted properly, I've got to cut through the one bolt holding the mudflap on wonkily to get it off the car.  The only thing I couldn't clean was the last of the mud out of the arches, I didn't have high enough water pressure at the unit and I didn't want to subject them to the terror of a pressure washer, just in case.  Instead, I screwed the washer foot pump back down and gave it a go.  I've never tested this, I didn't check the lines or unblock the washer jets, just tipped in some water to see what would happen.

 
Crikey, it works!  It's about as feeble as the wipers, but it works.

 
I'm sure you'd love to see a video of it in action.
http://vid845.photobucket.com/albums/ab ... 605-14.mp4
 
With Crapaud tucked up next to the Princess it seemed the perfect opportunity to get a picture of the whole gang together at last.