T464 PNB - "Smokey Joe"

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Awww guys you're making me blush.


Anyway, some pictures as promised

Poly bush and lack of midbox



Cut and shut flexi joint - I forgot to mention getting the cat off was a nightmare and getting it back on was even worse; the nuts were so rusted that the studs came out instead, damaging the threads in the process. Luckily I had some spare studs left over from a previous job on a Jaguar and they were the same. It still took about an hour to get it back in though.



30mm spacers and the stance that they provide





Also I forgot about this




Need to get the old panther black out again.
 
Today I shall mostly be polishing. A good wash; engine bay, door shuts the lot, followed by AutoGlym Stage 1 and Stage 2 then a healthy dose of T-Cut. That should bring the paint back to life. I'll do a before and after shot to see if my labours pay off, and also how long it takes :D
 
Well i finally finished! At first I thought it would never stop raining, but i soldiered on anyhow



So there I was happily washing away, getting equal parts spray from the jet wash and rain from the sky, when lo and behold my bad luck struck - some of you may have come to expect all my jobs to be fraught with disaster, and for good reason - as the jet wash hose decided enough was enough and did this



So out comes the hose pipe to finish off.

Once inside and all nice and clean I started to strip things off, like the aerial, wipers, scuttle and washer jets. I took this opportunity to spruce up the scuttle and wipers, going for matt black on the scuttle and gloss black on the wipers.

On to the buffing, the most laborious and boring job I can think of, but it pays off. All was going well until, you know, bad luck and all. The machine polisher had given in and just packed up, which it has done many times before, so I stripped it down to have a gander, but no loose wires or burnt out motors this time, it's just kaput and for no good reason. So I was left staring at this with the dread of hand polishing running through my mind



All I had left was the area beneath the swage line on the door and rear wing, which just so happened to be the worst part of the body work with a big scuff I was gifted by some tool who got too close the other day.

But all was not lost as the pneumatic DA sander came to the rescue, and I finished off the buff with that. Thankfully I could then do the stage 2 as well, as I was certainly not doing the entire car by hand.

After this everything went strangely smoothly, with no further mishaps, the sun coming out to play a frankly blindingly good job of the paintwork (it's all in the products :lol:). So I eventually got it finished after 7 hours of hard graft, cleaning or repairing virtually everything in sight, leaving just a little bit more interior work to keep me busy tomorrow morning once we've all piled onto the stand. Mind you I did forget to 'smoke' (paint black) my rear fogs, which are the nasty UV faded milky red colour right now, but that's just a small thing.

Overall I'm really happy with the end result, and it amazes me every time just how well the paint comes back to life, even after all these years and dodgy resprays. It was difficult to get a good picture as we were hurrying to get packed up at work when I'd finished, and besides many more photos will be taken tomorrow, not to mention those who'll see it in the flesh, but here's one for posterity



In all honesty you can't even tell I've put blood, sweat and teabags into it all day but what the hell its there.

Anyway I moustache and get to bed, as I'll be up at 3am to hit the road down to FordFair.

See you there (if you're going)

:eek:k:
 
Well Joe and I made the 270 mile round trip with little issue, obviously some oil has been consumed (1 litre) and I had the old heaters stuck on hot problem, but only after I'd stopped for a nap on the way home did they get stuck, so it just makes no sense as it's totally random.

Apart from that I had a blast, got to meet some new faces, some familiar faces and see some cracking motors, although I think I've seen enough Focus STs to last me a lifetime.

A better picture of the boy



The whole stand (minus trublustu - couldn't fit you in the shot sorry)



It looks overcast in that, but i took it quite early on and the sun came out later and it turned into a blazing hot day, as my wristwatch tan line will attest.


So what's next for the Puma? Hopefully nothing and I can save money :lol:
 
Wow! 4 months since my last update. Well, true to my word the car's not done much since FordFair, as I bought the Civic just a few days later. I've had it out for a run every month but like I said I needed to save money so it's sat gathering dust for most of the time. Now i've SORN'd it too it's purely ornamental, hopefully not for too long though.

Anyway I am now entering the first step of the transformation, as I finally got the insurance company to allow me to swap the engine for a 1.7. So i'm on the hunt for the final piece of the puzzle - the engine loom. It's an MHA engine, single lambda type from 1999 so if anybody has a suitable loom that would be smashing, I already have the ECU, transponder ring and immobiliser chip from the donor, but for a reason I can't remember there was no wiring with it. I'll make an ad in the wanted section too.

Once I get my hands on that it's just a matter of finding the time to do the swap and then getting down to it.

So, watch this space :D
 
Good luck Tom, I hope everything works out ok with the change and at least you're not too far from Ian G if you need bits.
Barry
 
Well seeing as my last post was in December and I hadn't even driven the car since early January, I thought i'd take advantage of the terrible weather and get Joe out :lol:

Everything went smoothly and he showed no signs of being sat for nearly four months, so that was nice.

The only downside was that now I have a yobbo exhaust on the Civic I want one on the Puma, so some searching down the back of the sofa may have to be done. Or I might consult my sensibility (the girlfriend) and not spend money on something that's not even on the road :roll:

Anyway, here's to the next four (probably more) months of procrastination until I finally find the time and cash to get the 1.7 lump in, then I'll be spoilt for choice of what to drive :grin:
 
Well it's been three months and bugger all has been done, as usual. Still without cash and staring a bike test and holiday in the face, once again Joe has taken a back seat.

However, never one to let a bargain pass me by I snapped up a set of Yellowstuff front brake pads from moondustka (thanks Ben :eek:k:) for less than half the price of new, which crosses an item off the list for when I eventually get on track (literally and metaphorically). Once the engine is in it's more or less ready to go. I'll fit the ARB poly bushes whilst the engine is out and get some braided brake lines, and probably invest in a better suited exhaust (ie not a crap one).
 
No physical progress has been made, but I have come to a decision for Joe's destiny; full time track monkey.

I want to get a proper exhaust system with tubular manifold and whatnot, and the complications with the cat make it too much of a PITA for me to get it properly road legal.

So between that, the fact I have a daily driver already and the car is begging to be used to his full potential, it only makes sense to go full track. So i'll be ditching anything unnecessary in the pursuit of lightness.

I want to get myself a mk5 Fiesta ZS as i've always loved the way they look and i'm really pining to be in a Ford, and a car with a bloody manual gearbox! Then I can transfer the goodies from Joe into that, ie. the wheels, spacers and interior bits, as most FZSs have horrible coloured interiors and I like simple black stuff.

Anyway, i'll stop rambling now. As always money is holding me back and i'm still not in a position to strip the car where it is, but hopefully i'll have a place to live soon enough, and I can get it stripped in the car park. At least if I get the engine out i'll feel like there's some progress, and I can put my mind to properly getting the new one in, unless it's seized from being sat in storage since September 2014 :roll:
 
Give me a shout if you need a lift with owt, Fella. I'm only up the road after all.

Oh, if there's oil in the engine it shouldn't be seized. You'd be surprised, my Capri fired up after not even turning over for ten years.
 
Well 2017 is the year I'm going to pull my finger out! I have finally made a plan and worked out how to get Joe both road legal and track-worthy, without costing more than I can afford. In short it involves a lot of eBay scouring, a donor car and some hard graft, so nothing out of this world. My aim is to have him on the road and looking like a purposeful machine by the end of July, so as that I can get down to FordFair this year, and hopefully get a track session in too.

And if all else fails I'm itching to have a clean, presentable show Puma (like what Joe used to be) that's not compromised and is just for road use again, so if Joe's not ready I hope to have something Puma shaped to get to FF in.
 
Good luck Tom, look forward to the updates!
 
Thanks guys :eek:k:

It's going to be a slow process due to money restraints, especially this month because the Civic needs an MOT and I owe my dad some money. However I've got a monthly budget and estimate I should have all the parts by the end of April - as long as I can source the correct brakes for the rear, as I'm going for a 253mm Focus set up instead of the ST170 kit, as I feel that's a bit overkill. May should see a donor car taking up another space in the car park and then I can use the warmer and brighter evenings of summer to get the work done!

That's the plan anyway...
 
Hi Tom
Just 2 small points about the ST170 rears. They will fill out your 17" wheels more and you don't need to attack the rear beam with a grinder to stop the handbrake pulls fouling on it as you may with the 260s.
Barry
 
I'm rolling 15s Barry, so there's no issue with filling out, and if there is fouling then I'll work it out.
 
Well the first lot of parts have arrived in the last few days, and it's safe to say the girlfriend was not happy :lol: Something about not having enough money or whatever.

Anyway at least it's a step in the right direction :eek:k:
 

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