Talking B____X

[Philip Chidlow]

Couldn't resist, I had to sponge it down at least. It's still dirty (and the interior is in need of a lot of TLC) but ten times better to look at. Before, it made me feel ill

Before:




And After an hour with a non-stick washing up sponge and some fairy liquid

[kermit the frog]

Hi Phil
You weren't kidding when you phoned me and said it was dirty.
But as you said it's cleaned up rather well.
Looks a very good starting point for the Challenge car project.
Amasing what a bucket of water and a big dob of elbow grease does to years of neglect.

Regards Kermit

[Philip Chidlow]

Thanks,

What needs doing?

Well, this isn't a definitive list of course, as I am yet to take out the interior, get it upon ramps etc...


But it seems the issues are:
A burnt exhaust valve.
ABS light stays on (but given the amount of crud over anything, that might not be more than a dirty sensor or a blown brakelight bulb!)
Rusted filler neck (but the panel's OK)
Rust in the rear n/s corner of the boot, and exhaust hanger area (..."they all do that, sir"...)
Rusted hinge securing area on A pillar. (..."ditto"...)
Cracked front bumper: repairable (but there's a spare in vgc in the boot!)
Interior needs a lot of TLC, but certainly not unreasonable
Rust (1" patch) at the point where the o/s/sill meets rear arch (another "they all do that, sir"...)
Suspect HT leads and plugs
Ropey aux belt (but new-ish cam belt, although that's academic as the head's coming off, so new bits go back)
Stiff gear selection: but so much of that could be put down to it having seen so little use over the past 5 years or so - although I am told the clutch has only 30k on it
Needs new tyres all round
Small amount of non structural rust: n/s front arch leading edge, sunroof...

Don't knows:
Sills generally (what lurks behind the side trims?)
Electrics. Although wipers, main lights, horn and dials seem to work OK...
Condition of return pipes and HP pipes, fuel line. (LHM will need changing - I'll give it a flush)
Gaiters, and hoses, although the car isn't dropping LHM, water or oil.
and so on...

Good points:
Body is remarkably free of damage.
Interior is complete (Monza trim)
New-ish starter motor, radiator, clutch, rear arm bearings, front brake discs.
Alloys are in good condition considering.
Spheres all good.
It runs and rises up very well; smooth and quiet.
It's white

More news as I delve deeper...

[scarecrow]

I'm not a fan of white, but that does look rather fetching

[kermit the frog]

Hi Phil
Just looked at earlier pic's of the engine bay.
S##T Thats bad but not unrecoverable.
I expect if you remove all that crap the car would weigh about half what it did with the jurassic forrest slowly decaying all over it.
It has a big amount of potential in all areas and i think the layer of crap has protected it rather well.
Loads to do but i am looking forward too getting stuck into the engine.

Regards Kermit.

[Tim Leech]

That will clean up a treat, white always does, remember this!

http://www.bxclub.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10990

[Mike E (uk)]

That's got to be a bargain.

Get a pressure washer on it, and blast off that green.

The interior: take it out & steam clean it on a hot summers day so it can dry out quickly.

I would keep it looking standard, as 16Vs are rare enough these days.

Is that 3 off 16Vs planning on France next year then?

Mike

[Philip Chidlow]

Apart from some white Ronal/retro-style alloys which I fancy, and some Hella spots I have lined up on the front (like the Green Hornet had), it will be pretty standard. There might be some induction/exhaust stuff going on, and,for the Challenge a major smattering of BX4TC graphics, but essentially it's for a common-sense regeneration.

And it will be one of maybe three valvers on the Challenge...

[docchevron]

what lurks beneath the body kit? You probably wont want to know Phil!

If it's ever got muddy I imagine the fornt and back ends will be rotten, it's rare to come across a body kitted BX that isn't a bit flaky there..

Either way though, looks a million times better already, and for the money, utter bargain!

[Philip Chidlow]

The sill trims will be coming off in the warmer weather, and some serious poking around will be done all over. Main thing for now is to arrest the deterioration over the winter where possible. A quick visual however has revealed much less rust than I feared.... but I'm prepared for it to be there, hidden, in sufficient quantity to keep us busy!

[toddao]

That looks great Phil - bit of a bargain - and you're lucky to have the skills of Kermit to hand for its re-hab!
I also had similar fungal growth on my 16v from where it had been sat for years. I don't mind a bit of patina actually but yours was starting to resemble camouflage!
I'm sure it'll be fettered back to glory soon.

[Philip Chidlow]

You know what I said about a quick visual check... well this morning I stripped out the interior up to the front seats, got poking around the whole body as well as flash-photographing the underside, stuck a screwdriver through dodgy looking areas of inner wings... you know the sort of stuff...


And...

Reality check time. Body's in a poor state. So it's future as a complete car is in the balance.

More news later.

[docchevron]

not surprised TBH Phil.
Most BX's are getting frilly in those areas little screwdrivers dont reach now.

Time to get handy with the MiG, or QuickSteel!

[Philip Chidlow]

It's not so much the bodywork as such, it's that it suggests so much else will need repairing, or replacing... pipes, fuel line, hoses, etc.

Main area of concern at the moment are the sills, strut tops, and rear suspension components - the cylinders look bad especially. Engine, ancillaries, gearbox, clutch, and brakes are the least of my worries.

I need some time to reflect and consult methinks!

[Tim Leech]

Bugger

I hope you work it out Phil, if push comes to shove I will be happy to buy some bits IF you break it.