1967 MkIII

Thanks all for your comments.

Front suspension goes on again.


Engine back in place, and I finally drove Lucy again after 17 long months. I managed to mix up the seats so I had the passenger seat on the driver rails, which left me seated pointing out. Imagine a road corner with camber the wrong the way. Well I first gave her a run up and down (on the mechanic's private road), then burn rubber on a curve and almost threw myself out of the car! One second behind the wheel and I'm smiling


Back in my garage at long last


That's all pics for now, more to follow along with questions as I try to put the 6 or 7 boxes of parts back inside her :)

Loose parts. The windscreen frame & boot frame were done first back in January. Couldn't do much with them except take photos:


Boot next, February.


Doors, March:


At last I could bolt something back together. Door internals except for glass:


A few bits I did myself with wire brush in a drill, sandpaper & can of spray:

Pedals ready for another 47 years of abuse:


Petrol tank

My Dad's Panda proves surprisingly versatile, taking bonnet to sprayer:


Bonnet primed, sanded, beaten, primed, sanded, beaten.....


Worth the effort?

Tub being prepped & primed for spray




And sprayed:




Boot tub:

Pics.

Engine bay stripped almost bare:


Then stripped completely bare:


And finally sprayed:

Time hasn't allowed me to keep this thread updated as I've been recording progress on the facebook page. All the paid work has now been done:
- panel beater replaced rear nearside wing, all wheel arches, boot lower lip.
- sprayer just about completed everything but I'm taking the bonnet back as the underside has reacted and bubbled up
- engine is back in with new clutch kit, refurbed carbs & some ancillaries, hoses, fuel pump...
- lots of £ spent on parts, with my €€'s buying less and less ££ each time :(

Now the car is back to me to be put back together again. Some piccies to follow

Almost done with the pulling bits apart and soon get to bolt together again.

The brake calipers have been roughly painted black at some time in the past, which is now half peeled off through dripped hydraulic fluid etc. In order to refurb them:

1) How much can I dismantle without breaking anything? One side came off easily, the other was a tough pull to get it off the disc.
2) what is worth replacing as amatter of course (got new pads already)
3) can I wire brush the outsides with a drill, and later clean with an air hose
4) then just spray it with a high temp spray, masking off where the pads go

Thanks
Steve

Thanks all for your help, hoping no respray will be needed :)

Just realised I don't have the "sound deadening pads"that stick to inside of the door skin. Do these actually do anything? and if yes what material could I use instead?

Thanks
Steve

Thanks all for your help, hoping no respray will be needed :)

Just realised I don't have the "sound deadening pads"that stick to inside of the door skin. Do these actually do anything? and if yes what material could I use instead?

Thanks
Steve

This weekend I'll be putting the doors back together after a respray. As I dismantled them a year ago, is there any particular order to fit the parts in?

I was thinking
- channels
- door latch mechanism
- window winder mechanism

Obviously I want to avoid putting something in place, bleeding knuckles etc only to have to remove it to fit in something else!

Feels great to be finally bolting bits together again after a year with the car in bits!

Thanks
Steve

This weekend I'll be putting the doors back together after a respray. As I dismantled them a year ago, is there any particular order to fit the parts in?

I was thinking
- channels
- door latch mechanism
- window winder mechanism

Obviously I want to avoid putting something in place, bleeding knuckles etc only to have to remove it to fit in something else!

Feels great to be finally bolting bits together again after a year with the car in bits!

Thanks
Steve

Excellent thanks all for your help
Steve

Hi All,

My Spitfire Mk3 has a 1500cc engine fitted. Problem is I don't know from which model or era it is. The engine number is... misleading.

Since I need to order some parts this is proving problematic. Parts catalogues refer to an early or late 1500. How can I tell the difference? Which parts are definitely one or the other?

Main parts I need to order are timing chain & fuel pump, the rest are basic like seals gaskets etc.

Any ideas appreciated.

Thanks
S teve

Agree with the others, put them where you see best. Also suggest you steer clear of bullet type mirrors. they look the part but offer a very small field of vision. When I tried them on the doors I could see so little that I moved them about 1/4 to 1/3 way along the wing.

Then again, depends how much you use them.

I'm still not happy with them and (when the resto is eventually done) will seek the larger rectangular type that clamp to the door.

Cheers
Steve

Agree with the others, put them where you see best. Also suggest you steer clear of bullet type mirrors. they look the part but offer a very small field of vision. When I tried them on the doors I could see so little that I moved them about 1/4 to 1/3 way along the wing.

Then again, depends how much you use them.

I'm still not happy with them and (when the resto is eventually done) will seek the larger rectangular type that clamp to the door.

Cheers
Steve

I took the old foams & metal structures with me and asked them to cut the foam based on the old. seems to have worked well but I have not yet received the new seat covers, so time will tell!

is there an upholsterer or mattress or cushion maker near you? I went to a mattress maker and tried all their foams until I found one I liked (their firmest).

I could have taken a big piece to cut at home but asked them to do it and they obliged. Still have to glue them all together though.

Thanks Shaun but I don't speak modern technology. Just got a new laptop an cant get to grips with Windows8.

I was born too late. I would have been far happier as a caveman. a caveman with a Spitfire of course :)

Pics are too large to post here. send me your email in PM.

cheers

will dig out pics tomorrow mate

Hi

I've got inertia belts in my Mk3 and have no problem with them, though touch wood I've never needed them.

Colin is right they do lay over your shoulder. I don't know if a collision would pull it against my neck. But the lap belt is fine. Mine are bolted to the body the top and bottom of the wheel arch.

If I were to replace mine, i'd go for a harness type belt but that's due to the way I drive :) My dad's MGA has lap belts only and I find them a tad scary in today's traffic - there's nothing between my chest and a hard steering column in case of front or rear collision.

cheers
Steve

Excellent news indeed! always great to keep an old girl alive :)

I'm no help at all on timing I'm afraid, mine's gone all modern & electricked.