BX excess, can it be a success?

[citsncycles]

So much for reliability of low mileage cars.

and

Never sure about low mileage cars.

It all depends on where they've been while not being driven - you find one of those dream cars that that's kept in a nice warm, ventilated garage and it'll be fine. If it's parked on the road without moving for months at a time, you can get damp creeping in all over, playing hell with electrics and brakes in particular I've found.

[Tinkley]

Citsncycles said

'It all depends on where they've been while not being driven - you find one of those dream cars that that's kept in a nice warm, ventilated garage and it'll be fine. If it's parked on the road without moving for months at a time, you can get damp creeping in all over, playing hell with electrics and brakes in particular I've found.'

My first Athena was garaged etc 54k and threw a rod inside 1k Body was good until shunted and someone pulled out in front. I spent about 2k on it, going through it, got 63k out of it, still using parts of it and it is still a repairable, just about. At least it is easier to strip yjan current runner which is has more corroded 'bits', and even that was a garaged one - 10k in 5 years prior to my purchase. Not complaining though, still reasonably cheap motoring.

Anyway TB it is definitely possible to drop the Front Subframe with engine in situ, 'cause I've done it.

Be prepared to sacrifice the two brake pipe hard feeds though. Mine had rusted into the brass Y joint behind n/s of subframe and accessed only after unclipping and dropping the frame a little. I clipped the pipes off and undid with socket set. Wish I knew how to undo the nylon rod retainer a bit further back along chassis but otherwise it is pretty much as per the breakdown I listed before. Only other advice is just keep checking for anything snagging when you start to drop the frame, it's pretty easy to overlook something or miss a clip point. BYW the car height is sufficient for me to get under on my back and look behind frame etc not much more, but that was enough. If you have a pit/good ramp you will find it easier. BTW don't forget to tie up the anti roll bar and the steering rack with ropes prior to dropping.

[Thread Bear]

No time to do anything on Citroens last week really. Having to do 7 years worth of accounts on the family Estate which until recently I was assured was all in order , no prob, etc etc. Well its a mess. Pity I had not been given the task from the start as the reason for things ancient has become forgotten. Going to be a big argument as my figures done via accounting practice are going to be rather different from the existing ones done by inventing an answer and trying to prove it.

Meanwhile Gary continues to disappoint as it slowly looses facilities in limited use. Now the blower system has packed up, in time for misty start ups. Thanks for that. This is not helped by the previous owner being a smoker. I have not yet had time to thoroughly clean off the screens. For some reason the residue from smoking creates a medium that promotes poor visibility and an inability to get the moisture of the inside of the screens. Needless to say the cleaning materials are packed for the move that has yet to happen. Now on 5 months camping in an empty house. It is not good karma having other people run your life like this but I remain impotent to do very much about it.

Another electric window has now become inoperative. The fact is that the law of sod has inacted. The car needs time to chase out malingering issues and I have not the time to do it. I do not doubt if I had the time to do it there would be no malingering issues. So with Homer really not that far from being MOT able, I managed to locate a suitable tank strap to adapt to replace the rust disintegrated one, I think it might be quicker to attempt a solution with another car. Indeed it is tempting now Tinckley has swapped his front subframe without so much complications as many threatened me with, to get Walt out and do the same task. Otherwise he was working perfectly till trashed in the ford. That is dangerous talk for Gary as he then finds himself surplus to requirements and liable to have all the new bits fitted retrieved and be stashed or sold to someone with more time to kick his reluctant arse down the street!

[Tinkley]

Well almost swapped subframes just waiting for the correct return (the one I think you have leaking at rear of fr rhcorrector), from Mat, but otherwise wishbone bushes O,K pins OK, and greased etc etc.

Check the rheostat behind the blower control, mid panel. If I remember, its pull off the 3 rotators and a couple of screws behind. Another couple somewhere else but not too bad to access. The wretched rheostat part fails on that board. These often fail at advanced age. Try shorting straight to the blower which do not fail as often. Also sometimes the window motors are repairable if its corrosion between the steel shaft and the phosphor bronze bush ie it gets dry over time. No guarantee but the mechanism can be taken apart , not the actual motor part. Be v careful resetting the worm gear tension on reassembly, it is very sensitive.

Bad luck with your 'life woes' on family front. Fortunately my siblings and I never had too much argueing about any estate issues, and I got the job of selling the house which was a little nerve wracking for various reasons. Hope it works out, I'll update you on reinstalling the subframe as it should be complete in the next few days

[mat_fenwick]

Now the blower system has packed up, in time for misty start ups.

If you do decide to go down the road of fixing Gary's blower, the most common failure mode I've found is a poor earth to terminal 3 of the control board behind the fascia. A quick poke with a well earthed test lead will prove or disprove this as the cause. The second most common fault (and cure) is detailed here.

I hope that tinkering, when you get the chance, will provide a bit of welcome relief from the other stuff going on

[Thread Bear]

Indeed, and thanks. There are several good informative items on the blower. I managed to gain a spare motor assembly from Jaba should it be a simple motor failure but I suspect its one of the aforementioned suspects. Actually I think Homers is defective too. I might get the window back as I have not got round to cleaning and lubricating the channels. Now we have had rain it might have locked itself, I have not attempted to strain it but accepted the non function gracefully as it is a product of my own inattention really.

Seeing old house owner tomorrow. I used my strong arm to overcome the garage door lock to find the garage still full of crap, as is some of the garden. Getting a little bit miffed at the tardy removal of stuff. He is startled I opened it so easy and a bit embarrassed to be caught out I think. Its not an ideal workshop but its dry and out of the wind. Certainly do till I have built a better one.

[Thread Bear]

For all its irrational niggles I can forgive Gary X at times. Last night I had to collect a load of weighing/till machines and take them up to Blackminster, Evesham over the Cotswolds. There to see new chum and previous Bungalow owners Plant Nursery, drop of the fragile but heavy goods, and then nip over to The Fleece Inn for Clubnight. Ghaddon was there with his BX. Gary was on his best behaviour and despite a bit of clutch slip on Stow hill he bounded across country in BX comfort despite the load.
The return journey empty from 11 pm to midnight with a full moon was a classic. No idea of speed, no speedo and I could not see it if the was as the dash light do not work, but I pushed on. We found the handling limits of the cheapo tyres, which are real pigglets, squealing quite a long time before braking away. Pretty predictable when skidding but the poor clutch meant it was hard to catch. Clearly that sort of action will wipe them out in no time. The car responded to the greater input after about 1600 miles chuffing around at no speeds, still not as urgent as can be due to the weak clutch, by becoming more powerful on the turbo. So some coke chucked out of there. Roads I know well and several potential competitors miffed at being overtaken by an old crapper failed to keep up. I was really a bit disappointed on getting home. Now that's more like what I expected from Gary X. Efficient service with a bit of fun when you want it. So the performance is there I just need to create more time to get rid of all the silly niggles.

Having said that I want to try and get Homer back on his wheels today, if it manages to stay dry. I can then shuttle a couple of cars to where I can make a new but temporary workshop.

[Thread Bear]

A dry day and no other commitments but to get BX lined in the drive moved to remove the staircase into the old garage for reuse as the new staircase into the attic of the bungalow. Pleased to re use that as I helped my Dad make that as his first move into retired wood constructions specialising in curved and angled wood staircases using his aeronautical engineering design skills. Its no show-piece but it means something now he has gone.

Having rebuilt one hub for Homer it seemed only sense to pull the other one off while he had his 'arris s in the air on the axle stand. It was an an ABS hub on a none ABS car so must have been a scrounge in the passed. Makes sense as it is the n/s unit which you would expect to fail before the o/s unit as it lives in the gutter more. It was the o/s that had launched this work. I had found the s/h n/s replacement was packed with the wrong sort of grease which had gone hard and was not offering much in the way of lubrication. Striping this down but leaving the outer races in the hub you can clean up the whole assembly. In doing so I found that this unit has an original French SKF bearing in it so now have that companies number for the bearing. SKF 446451DD. Rebuilt well with new HT bearing grease. I decided to flip the sides as the SKF bearing while old is probably better than my composite bearing made out of the inner races of two scrap bearings.

I got sidetracked into sorting out wheels. Homer wants the best set of the tyres left for running for the moment. Another set of wheels with duff tyres on but good rims loose that I can restore for the new set of tyres in stock. I have some great crappers that have come off 'roadworthy' cars, frightening the risk folk take! That should leave the not so goods but with some life left for rolling the other car around on. This involved a far amount of moving wheels from corner to corner of another car to try and get the sets right and in the best place. Unfortunately somewhere in this action I confused myself and found myself a wheel short of a solution. So a bit more work to get one of the unseated tyres back on a rim for temporary use.

Hopefully I can get that done tomorrow. I need to fit my home made rear fuel tank strap and we are left with the exhaust. Yet to resolve that as I have not looked to see what is under the 1.6. If it looks original and good I am inclined to leave it where it is. Otherwise I think it gets lifted and I collect new parts for what is the better car.

We progress. Gooch, my Dalmatian dog, has decided to take possession of Gary X now that we are doing nearly daily trips between houses. This he counts as helping where as Tinks, Dalmatian bitch, prefers being on direct hand most of the time and has been known to join me under the car. They like the BX as its got a nice lot of room, rides smoothly and they seem to find prediction the cornering speeds easier than a hard sprung car. The only problem is the brakes which are, as you will know, really rather good. With them in the car I have to be a little more sensitive. My old dog, Monty, broke a BX screen when flung forward in an emergency stop on a roundabout when I got cut up. One of those occasions you wish you had not braked quite so hard and just tagged him for being a completely ignorant twat. Used to do it in my old battle scared Ducatto Van and generally these folk are oblivious of what they were doing and assumed everyone would get out of the way. Used to be quite amusing.

[Tinkley]

Almost got the subframe done TB. Just wishbones, droplinks and discs, oh and of course bleeding the brakes if I want to stop .

Putting it back in is MUCH easier with the wishbones off. Lots more access for sockets to front mount and other bits. I would say replacing the 'Squid' (Oil return Harness) was a lot easier with the subframe at least dropped a bit. If you are removing it (frame), I would definitely think about replacing it (Squid) and the Octopus unless you know they are good. Good thing about getting the frame off is also that you can grease all the bolts etc when they go back so if it ever has to be removed again it will come off. I was pleased to see that the car chassis had not bent and the anti roll bar nested up horizontally and everything aligned. There was so much distortion on the bent frame I did wonder....

Keep you updated. Good luck with your many projects.

[Thread Bear]

trysul mk12-1.jpg

Hmm picture attachment being weird.

All I was going to say was 'Pig in shit'. These are Mk12 Thundersley Invacar Mk12's of various models. Viewing with an eye to bulk purchase with bud. This is but half there number. On the way home we checked out a place with another 10 cars. Makes a BX look very sensible.

[Tinkley]

Blimey! All that fibreglass, reminds me of travelling in the old mans Zele (all electric Zagato styled beast). Which I have to say would be equally rare and probably a better vehicle. My Dad used to commute from Walton on Thames to Kensington in the Zele quite a bit. It was my introduction to electric cars (other than seeing milk floats) and used 24v truck batteries. Somewhat limited range was its main drawback.

[Thread Bear]

These are all Villiers powered versions. Electric start, start backwards for reverse, driving one rear wheel through a drive shaft with four speeds either way. All are two armed versions so one sided handlebar with brakes on the end, hand clutch by hydraulics. Big gearstick. Sliding seat, one sliding door and a wheel chair clamp. There are two AC Acedes which is the fore runner of the Type 70 I already have and the version most folk will recognise from the '70's and '80's. The plum is a Stanley, a very rare machine and going into my buds growing collection. I hope to brake one of the Type 12 into an electric Harper, which is also very rare. Need a Tippen Delta to complete the set I am looking for. Most of those were returned to depot, re-ferbed and re issued as electric. I do not want an electric. I really want the narrow early petrol version as it looks very odd. I think by getting a small collection of these cars now I will beat the market by 10 years. And I can have some fun in the lanes.

I have another 2 leads on sheds full of these. Some rare stuff amongst it so I might nibble them. A mezzanine floor in my remote shed could be becoming an unrestored IC collection as it is effectively free storage. Microcar enthusiasts are aquasitionists.

[Stinkwheel]

Are these invacars still able to be road registered and used?

I was under the impression they were banned for some reason or other now?

I remember years ago in the 80's there being a fair few around and still in use. Always fascinated me.

[Thread Bear]

Until about 4 years ago it was illegal to own a Government issued Invalid Carriage. They were allotted as an Appliance not a car. So like a Zimmer frame or commode. Privately bought ones had a different chassis number stamped on them. At that time any remaining cars were to be handed to the Government for disposal. You remember, the green Labour Government that started wars and sponsored chucking deleted uranium around the deserts. But hey, that's abroad, man, so its OK. Yep, they scrapped some 70,000 vehicles plus 10 years worth of spares rather than sell them to someone needing cheap transport, like India at the time. Its great being green . Remember it took a charity, Lady Diana and Heather Mills to get them to send used false legs to the poor sods who's legs were blown off by the West's land mines.

Anyway some survived by various, mainly naughty, means. Having closed down the offices that dealt with all this the DHSS, or what ever it is now, washed its hands of it by declaring the ones left can be owned and put on the road. Hurrah for nutters!

Problem - They are Invalid Carriages, however they do not meet modern regulations so cannot be used as such without notification. Ha, thought the bureaucrats!

Nutters decided this was wrong and thus some years of entrapment found DVLA having to issue valid registrations for ID able cars as PLG. Hurrah for nutters!

Cannot prove the ID as all cars had their chassis plates removed before scrappage, including most survivors that went out the back door. Ha, thought the bureaucrats!

Nutter holds up huge file of DHSS records freely obtained, well it was simpler than burning them, or leaving them on a train, way back before anyone wanted to drive these things. Its called archiving and Her Majesties Government will give proper Clubs and Registers records they do not want to store themselves. We can prove the ID of all but 5% of IC cars, with reg number and possibly even who it was last issued too. Hurrah for nutters!

Bureaucrats give in and have ginger biscuits and tea to get over it.

So you can register these and drive them as PLG. They can be Quads, if you want, and get into the London Iron Lung/Curtain/Wall thingy and belch two stroke everywhere . Well they are fresh out of Trabbis. You can drive them on the Motorway, law repealed as these officially 'do not exist' any more as Invalid Carriages ! You have an Invalid Registered Vehicle now, not the same. As far as I know no one has tried the motorway or they did not live to tell us about it ! To be honest only a couple are in regular use and doing much what they were meant for in transporting folks locally who have iffy legs and petrol-headed partners. One in mid Lincolnshire, where I sold it. Most are in collections and Sheffield Bus crowd have one at the old Tram workshops, for those in metalwork land. I understand it moves tools and batteries around the huge workshops and does the chippy run.

If you want one I might be able to sort one out. There will be a few spare ones, but needing work, unless you wait for me to do the work and give me lots of extra folding type stuff. I have found folk are reluctant to do that.

I can bore for some more if you implore.

[Stinkwheel]

Hurrah for nutters indeed, sounds like a nice little success story of sense over beurocrats there

And, dont tell anyone, but id quite like a fixer upper of some sort of villiers powered fibreglass bubble shaped invacar thing at somepoint in the future yes