New Beginnings

This week, along with my friend Paul (used to own Heralds in his youth) decided that I should really get the car up to scratch for daily use and that this should be doable on Wednesday evenings instead of going to the pub.

The plan is that we would spend a couple of hours each wednesday, taking on a small task and have a couple of beers out of the home stock.

Wednesday just gone and has planned, Paul came round. I think is was one of the coldest evenings this autumn so far.

Whilst having our beers, we planned the work ahead and the tasks to be completed are:

Before any work can commence;
1) clear sides of garage of garden equipment - Steve
2) Install portable heater in garage for cold nights - Steve
3) Install small fridge for beers - Steve
4) Buy more beers - Steve (Paul you can contribute here, but no stella crap please)

Jobs to be done (these will planned before work commences and we can try out beer stash)
1) Bleed Clutch system
1a) Drink Beer
2) Recover existing drivers seat or replace with tastful seat
2a) Drink Beer
3) Complete service
3a) Drink Beer
4) Empty Herald's boot of all crap and stop using it as a dustbin
4a) Drink Beer
5) Sort out Fuel Gauge
5a) Drink Beer
6) Make car weather proof from extreme weather conditions
6a) Drink Beer
7) Install a working speedo
7a) Drink Beer
8) Try and sort out door closing mechanisms
8a) Drink Beer
9) re-Lay car carpets and install car mats
9a) Drink Beer
10) Tune engine
10a)Drink Beer

History - Part 10 - End of the History

Well after renewed vigour (3 blogs in the last day), I thought it was about time to bring you all up to date with the latest status.

After the Summer of 2003, I drove the car a couple of times during the bleak months whilst the sun was shining and then laid the car up for the winter and true to form that is where she stayed to this day.

During this time another problem developed, the drivers seat collapsed and to keep this going for the summer I tapped the base of the seat with black duck tape to try and prevent any further loss of foam.

I still go into the garage at least once a month and start her up, which she still does, no problem. However, I do have the car connected to one of those Draper trickle chargers all the time.

I thought I would get another MOT this summer, but when I went to get the car out of the garage, the clutch pedal went straight to the floor. There seems no visible evidence of fluid anywhere, but someone as suggested that the slave cylinder may be leaking, any further advice here would be helpful.

As if I didn't need it, another reminder that this car is meant to be driven.

I have decided this autumn/winter to complete the service that I started in summer 2003 and basically do a general tidyup, sort out the clutch slave cylinder and drive her daily in the spring and summer (even in the wet - gasp!)

I do need to sort out the drivers seat though, so if any one, has a spare going cheaply, please contact me.

I will need to take some more photos in December for the insurance. When this is done I will post them on the site.

History - Part 9 - Some photos for insurance December 2002

History - Part 8 - Prove to work colleagues that car does actually exist

I was like a boy with a new toy the first time I showed off Hattie to my work colleagues and promised that they would be seeing more of her in the car park during the rest of the summer.

Catastrophe !!!!! only the very next morning I went to get the car out of the garage and whilst reversing out of the garage I depressed the brake pedal and it went straight to the floor, pissing brake fluid over my trainers, but the car was still rolling backwards down the small slope towards a neighbours fence. Fortunately, I forgot about the wet trainers and pulled on the hand brake. Bloody master cylinder !!

You can imagine the family's joy when I dragged most of them out onto the drive, still in their night clothes to help push the car back into the garage.

To my credit and against everyone's advice, I purchased a master cylinder repair kit. With Sean's help this was successfully repaired and the car was able to be driven again.

I did drive to work a few more times that summer, noticing that car was boardering on overheating on the 20 mile journey, but I had also by the end of the summer had also changed the spark plugs and the HT leads.

History - Part 7 - Isn't about time you moved that skip from the garage

God doesn't time fly - not only have I not posted for 6 months but the car sat in the garage until the August 2003.

It was during this summer that I discovered a neighbour (Sean) owned a classic car workshop and was willing to take on some of the tasks to get Hattie back on the road.

He also offered a corner of the workshop and his tools and knowledge at my disposal to check out and refurbish a spitfire gearbox that I have sitting in the garage also. To this day I still have not taken him up on the offer and the gearbox is still sitting there ready to 'smack' your shins every time you need to get at the house fuse box.

So after charging the battery, making sure there is sufficient fuel, oil and water sean took the car for a week.

He completed the following;
1) Replaced Heater valve (goody, I can now turn off the heater without pissing water all over the place)
2) Replaced Starter solenoid (this fixed the problem, that everytime I turned off the engine, I had to wait at least half an hour before the car would restart, this was particulary amusing when I stopped for petrol)
3) Replaced nearside Universal Joint
4) Refurbished Propshaft
5) Replaced very noisy straight through exhaust pipe with a stainless steel semi sport exhaust from triumph six club
6) Added 2 lap belts to rear seat (Liz will now allow the kids to sit in the back.....bugger)
7) Get brand new MOT !

All I had to do now was complete the normal service items and Sean would then tune the car for me. See further posts as this has not happened to date.

I think the car is ready to drive to work (on dry days of course)..................................or so I thought.