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Post by joe on Jan 28, 2010 18:16:54 GMT
Still the only production car to have changed from front to rear though Not quite, funnily enough the same company decided this was a good idea again. And sold only about 400 or so. A Renault 4 would be one of my all time dream cars to be honest. I've never seen a cheap one for sale here though. They seem to all be quite expensive since they have such a low survival rate this side of the channel. However go to the more rural parts of France and they are still absolutely everywhere!
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Post by dafdaffer on Jan 28, 2010 19:36:33 GMT
returning to the 55 coupe, i managed to find the picture in PC (ten years ago now!!!) sorry removed details as it was a long time ago. the number plate is no longer recognised by DVLA
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Jan 28, 2010 20:43:51 GMT
It could be the same car it was that colour plates where gone though. The body was a lot worse than in that photo looking where the holes are in the front wing there where holes there but a lot bigger also another leading from the trailing edge of the rear window. I suppose if it had sat outside for a further ten years it could have looked like my one did. It was in Drefach, nr Llanybydder I cant imagine you would have gone down that road on that length of journey but as its only about 20 miles from Aberystwyth you might have done.
Paul
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Jan 28, 2010 20:45:36 GMT
Still the only production car to have changed from front to rear though Not quite, funnily enough the same company decided this was a good idea again. And sold only about 400 or so. A Renault 4 would be one of my all time dream cars to be honest. I've never seen a cheap one for sale here though. They seem to all be quite expensive since they have such a low survival rate this side of the channel. However go to the more rural parts of France and they are still absolutely everywhere! A more common example the Rover 75 standard I believe was FWD but my uncles MG thing 75 with an Mg badge was defiantly RWD
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Post by howard on Jan 28, 2010 22:15:13 GMT
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Post by littlebelter on Jan 28, 2010 23:28:16 GMT
Show us the pics, please!
Pete H.
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Post by littlebelter on Jan 28, 2010 23:32:25 GMT
(The pics of the Indian 4 WD that is !)
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Post by Patrick on Jan 28, 2010 23:33:34 GMT
Je adore Renault 4's. Had three in the family, or two and a half we bought one to use the engine in another. It might have been worth saving - but a trip up the road and the suspension arm nearly leaving the wheel behind promoted as the ideal (engine) donor. Our earliest one was a '68 six volter. With full sunroof - we had an entertaining evening once driving from Croydon to Kent in strong winds and heavy rain. So that's lights, demister and windscreen wipers and we weren't getting much power through to the battery! Every now and then the lights died and the wipers went extremely slowly and the engine kept trying to cut out too 'cos it was so wet. I was quite small at the time - so it was one big adventure - I think my Mum was petrified though. The footwells would regularly fill with a good three inches of water! Whether it got blown through the fresh air vents or just through the side of the sunroof will remain a mystery. It was, though, one of the family cars we made a profit on - Bought from a friend to use whilst my Dad was converting our gen-u-ine Fiat 850 from left to right hand drive, it cost about £80, and I think we sold it for about £150 - This was about 1975.
The one the engine went into was a 77 S reg in about 1983. That lovely light metallic blue, this TL had 80,000 on the clock having been all round Europe apparently. Then it seized solid and nothing would shift it. So it had a transplant and hung around even when my family disintegrated and big brother got a car of his own a couple of years later. We still had it in 1986, and it wasn't too well again then - but we sold it on and a year later whilst moving house it came zooming around a roundabout at us. According to DVLA it lived for another year (presumably) with it's then J reg engine.
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spunkymonkey
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Post by spunkymonkey on Jan 28, 2010 23:40:13 GMT
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Jan 29, 2010 13:10:21 GMT
My French isn't good enough to work that website to find cars Howard but one that I would like if I were making the move to France is a Peugeot 404.
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Jan 29, 2010 16:16:31 GMT
My French isn't good enough to work that website to find cars Howard but one that I would like if I were making the move to France is a Peugeot 404. use the bable fish translator tool Back to the point of the thread I now have working electrics and a lot of the wiring was shocking and in my opinion dangerous. the list of repaired Indicator tell tales Headlight NS Sidelight OS 12V socket Rear demister heater fan. still broken Choke light temp guage
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spunkymonkey
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Post by spunkymonkey on Jan 29, 2010 18:01:58 GMT
The choke light is probably the switch on the cable - they're known to fail occasionally. Either do without it or pull it apart and invent a repair. Obviously, check the bulb first but they don't get a lot of use and I've honestly never known one blow.
For the temp gauge, disconnect the wire from the sender and short it to earth. If the gauge shows very very hot then the sender's faulty, if it doesn't move then there's a wiring problem.
If you were digging behind the dash for the indicator tell-tales it's also possible that you knocked a couple of connectors off, but only if they're "new" snags since you were in there.
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Post by howard on Jan 29, 2010 18:21:55 GMT
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Post by howard on Jan 29, 2010 18:29:38 GMT
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Jan 29, 2010 23:27:37 GMT
You're a top man Howard! Remind me to come visit you when you move to France, I think it'll be a fly drive holiday (i.e. the flight will be one way and the car will be the other). ;D What a top selection and pick-ups too. Loved these ever since I started seeing them in Morocco and Tunisia. How's your french?
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Feb 1, 2010 16:37:09 GMT
Play time is over:'( All dash lights and gauges now work I never got around to welding was having too much fun slamming a K10 micra into the ground and general playing around. Area 52 play days are more than recomended. Journey there and back was good both with annoying little niggles. On the way the triumph got a little hot under the collar in bristols traffic but I know the radiator is see through and it cooled when moving again. On the way back I had the opposite problem it was very cold and the engine wouldn't get up to temperature it would move a 5th of the way up the dial when doing a sustained 70 which as Joe will tell you has the engine running quite fast. But if the speed dropped to say 50 for any period then it wouldn't even register on the dial. Pulling away from a junction after 12miles at a steady 40 (snowy road) caused the choke to be required, so I think I have a dodgy thermostat which I will be looking at when the manual I bought of evilbay finally turns up. Paul p.s. I now have shiny wing mirrors for free courtesy of a very nice man of retrorides.
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spunkymonkey
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Post by spunkymonkey on Feb 1, 2010 17:21:09 GMT
I'd be quite surprised if a stuck thermostat got it running that cool on one of these - especially if it goes up noticably in traffic. I ran my old one without a 'stat in there for a good few (winter) months and it still warmed up fully - just took longer.
Assuming you're not actually losing water the first thing to do is give it a good flushing - including reverse flushing the radiator. The thermostat is (should be) under the housing where the top radiator hose connects to the engine - go gentle if you decide to undo it. They're not as bad as A series but they can break the studs which is a PITA when it happens.
Once the cooling system is right, they should warm up within about 5 or 6 miles and sit pretty steady somewhere around the 1/2 way on the gauge at any speed / load and drop slightly if you turn the heater on.
Don't worry too much about the need for choke until you know that the cooling system is right - the chances are, coming from Adam, that the carb isn't set up quite right but you must have it at a steady fully-warmed-up temperature to get that right.
Also, make sure the timing and valve clearances are right before touching the carbs - those engines are very sensitive to timing (hence the twiddly adjuster on the distributor and the official dealer manual saying to make the final adjustment on a road test)!
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Feb 1, 2010 17:33:10 GMT
;D ;DAu contraire Paul, you have bought a British classic car, play time is just starting. Enjoy!! ;D
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Post by howard on Feb 1, 2010 19:48:21 GMT
My French is improving, and to be honest, I'm mostly up for challenges although at times I can be PAINFULLY SHY if I don't know what I am going to be saying, or if I am talking to someone that I cannot understand. Face to face is much easier than phone calls in my experience!
Next time I've over (end of March) I'll take some pictures of an ASTOUNDING car collection I stumbled across. No DAFs that I could find, but pretty much everything else!
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Feb 1, 2010 20:12:59 GMT
I meant my free workshop access weekend was over. One thing I will say is that after 2 or 3 beers the angle grinder and welder where beckoning what great fun go to area 52 Howard you have no excuse its in bristol. Next one is 20th of feb and there doing a fiber glassing workshop + you get to play with the hustler sport project.
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Feb 1, 2010 20:36:57 GMT
I've seen the pictures of Howard's workshop and I'm very jealous. That's would work as a good excuse for me!! Still, the Hustler project looks interesting, bit far for me though!
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Post by howard on Feb 1, 2010 21:01:56 GMT
Fibreglassing?? My days of Scimitars are long gone - and what's this "Hustler"? The only Hustler I know was a Mini in the shape of a greenhouse (didn't "comedian" Eddie Large have one?).
Interesting!!!
My workshop will be even nicer when I get rid of all the crap in it (NB NOT DAF or Saabs!)
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pauldaf44
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Post by pauldaf44 on Feb 1, 2010 21:17:48 GMT
One on the right is the Hustler 6 six wheeled mini based greenhouse, On the lift the Hustler sport group project and below is the fugitive which is @£$!@%$@$£ scary. Both Hustlers are mini based and in my opinion cool as a penguin with frostbite. Paul
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Post by howard on Feb 1, 2010 23:05:00 GMT
Oh my, it IS those damn things! I'm not wholeheartedly sure that I agree with your coolness rating, Paul!!! Please don't think I'm being unfriendly - they're simply not for me.
Then again, feel free to throw cabbages at me for declaring that my dream cars include a Panhard CT24, Renault R17, Vespa 400, Autobianchi Eden Roc, Goggomobile 250TS Coupe...........need I go on?
Future cars I expect I will own include a Renault 4 and 12, and a Peugeot 304 saloon. Wait and see......
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Feb 1, 2010 23:10:44 GMT
Ooh Howard, I've just spotted the '77 Allegro in your sign-off. Now that's uber cool. Photos please!
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Post by howard on Feb 1, 2010 23:18:37 GMT
It's in a glorious Antique Gold colour - a 2-door 1100DL.
I bought it in 1995 with 18,000 miles on the clock for £250 I think. I drove it until it had done 38,000 then sold it. Everywhere it goes it keeps coming back. It needs a new home because some bloomin' kids jumped on the roof and turned it into a swimming pool. It deserves so much better - it's outside at the moment. One of the driveshafts has popped out but that's all that's wrong really. Starts and drives fine - the engines delightful. I don't want to sell it to the Mini guys though........
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Post by Patrick on Feb 2, 2010 0:03:57 GMT
In 1984/5 My brother bought a 1973 Allegro 1300, two door, cloth roll back sunroof that had outlived two little old ladies. it had around 30,000m on the clock - and though we'd never been fans of Allegros - It won us over. A truly delightful car - comfy, a happy motorway cruiser - and so much better by comparison with the MkIII Cortina 1300 that we'd had a few years before. Unfortunately it was the motorway travelling that was it's unravelling, as it developed glazed pistons, a sign of too much hard work/regular usage after 12 years of pootling to the shops and back again. It went back to the garage who had dealt with it all it's life and was sold on when an inheritance and more motorway travelling meant we needed a newer car. Sadly it then fell into the hands of a youngster who covered it in go faster stripes and ran it into the ground. It proved a point though, that you can't be prejudiced towards a car until you've tried it, and this one changed my mind about Aggies. There was a rather lovely Allegro (and there are two words that don't go together often) on ebay a couple of years ago. It had basically been stored away from the showroom and was, really was "as new". According to DVLA it's been 'exported' following that sale - I'd love to know who's the Allegro fan abroad!
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33grinder
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Post by 33grinder on Feb 2, 2010 0:09:29 GMT
I've always had a love for the underdog and you don't get much more so than the Allegro, mainly (I think) because it suffered from the bad press of the 'jacking points' rumour (is it true)? Having said that it inherited alot of good mechanicals from the Austin 1300 and was a good driver, especially the 1750!
I think it's the right time for a 1970's classic car revival too.
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Post by Patrick on Feb 2, 2010 0:25:16 GMT
I used to buy "Car" Magazine from the late seventies to the early nineties (when they got taken over by emap publishing and turned into a teen magazine.) Before that though they were the tough to please writers of the magazine world, and the first ones truly give their opinion about cars - in a 'publish and be d**ned' way, if they didn't like it they laid into it. However even they were prepared to eat their words, and most famously they once tested the Lada 1300, Skoda 120 and Reliant Robin and changed their minds about them all - well, nearly. They were responsible for the headline that Skoda famously used in their advertising later when they said the Rapid was as much fun as a Porsche 911 at a fraction of the cost. They also, more importantly liked the Austin Maxi. They liked the Allegro, they loved the Triumph Dolly - though they cursed the "Unhappy chassis engine mix." Back then they were about the only honest magazine, though we won't mention their hatred of the mainstream Japanese cars! I think of them when I see the likes of Clarkson lay into British Cars. Because they weren't as bad as everyone has been prejudiced to believe. In my humble, I would say that many cars were unreliable in days gone by because garages, and the affordability of garage servicing meant more people Did it themselves - hence the increased 'unreliability'. The famed argument (for instance) about the Marina being the 'second most scrapped car in the UK' meaning it was rubbish - How do they work that out then - when the most scrapped car was the Cortina! I think it just proves that it was a popular car. Sorry for straying widely off topic btw.
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stefan
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Post by stefan on Feb 2, 2010 8:53:33 GMT
grinder it true Paul it is a Hustler Huntsman, well thats what the sales literature calls it
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