Unusual because of the low miles and protection she received with the original owners. (I thank you, Bob & PK!) The original dealer tag (Albuquerque, NM) is still on the turtle. She spent most of her life under a cover in a garage or carport, and amazingly enough, there is no major corrosion under the battery.

The car was inoperable on acquisition in March 2000 as she hadn't been started in 3 years because the ignition module was burnt out. It was the second to burn in a year, and at $300+ per the previous owners were not going to spend any more money on it.
The only major work ever done (as far as I know) was a clutch replacement. I have nearly every receipt for parts and service ever spent on the car. During disassembly I took the bell housing off the transmission and found no seal to keep gear oil in the gearbox. This explains why the bottom of the car is nearly totally covered in oil and has NO RUST! Best I can tell, the seal carrier was malformed in manufacturing, would not hold a seal, so the seal was omitted during original assembly. This is rare, eh? All the gear oil on the bottom of the car has protected the pan.

In the photo below, the arrow at the crescent indicates end of the cut that should go all the way around. Close examination reveals the casting is obcentric, tho the cut is aligned with the central opening.

So I spent 25 Bucks to get a replacement and when I attempted to drive the pin in I did this! Dang!

So I put the original back in with no seal to keep it uniquely British.
This next photo was taken the evening she was delivered.

The wheels looked like this.

The first things done that Spring 2000 were:

1. Cleaned and painted the wheels. (Took 6-8 hours each.)
   

   In Nov. 2006 Joanna in Ireland asked about the process of painting the wheels, so here's three pics in sequence:

   After 5 years of weather and neighborhood dogs, the wheels were getting a bit "rustic."
   

   With tire removed on a hot sunny day, I hand-sand the entire thing, wash with soap and hot water and let it dry thoroughly, primer gray the whole thing, let the paint dry, then spray the interior and back of wheel black, and when dry again, the front face gets silver, except where it will be black. A bit of overspray is no problem. Because I have no baking oven I depend on sunlight to bake the paint. It doesn't cost me any extra because I own the rights to the energy of the sun.
   

   I have no pics of the masking tape and paper, but it's a process of applying blue painter's tape (the adhesive is good for only a few days) and lots of newspaper around the outside so the black only goes where I want it. You'll notice a bit of black between 2 and 3 o'clock, but it was easily fixed with a spritz of silver.
   

   Back to the first year (2000) of work:
   

2. Changed all the fluids, save the axle
3. Replaced the distributor with an older point ignition
4. Bought a new battery
5. Replaced the turn switch in the steering column
6. Cleaned and painted the heater core and box
7. Cleaned and painted the firewall
8. Two new tires
9. Rubbed in 6 coats of Classic wax (Left over from a trip thru the '60s)
10. Put uncounted applications of Armor All on the Rubber bumpers and interior.

In 2001 I:

1. Thought about changing the tie-rod ends (I bought them anyway.)
2. Put one new end boot on the steering rack
3. Changed the front brake rotors and brake pads
4. Painted the front wheel wells (Thanks, Jeff!)
   
5. Installed new brake shoes rear after turning the drums
6. Installed new brake slave cylinders rear
7. Replaced the brake and clutch master cylinders
8. Rebuilt the clutch slave cylinder
9. Replaced the clutch flex hose
10. Installed air horns in the nose (a toggle under the dash lets me switch to one of the original horns)
11. Re-blackened the lower side panels, vanity panel front and visible front end suspension parts
12. Cleaned and painted the fuel tank exterior, parts of the axle, rear chassis and suspension.
13. Rubbed on 5 more coats of Classic.

Spring of 2003 I pulled the engine for cleaning, paint and a new clutch. Then I went to the Green River in Utah.

Here's the engine and chassis with 24 years of dirt and oil:

The timing chain cover has a little rust, but otherwise the engine
is in great shape. I estimate maybe 40,000 miles total.

The engine freshly painted, other than I got the wrong color paint on the valve cover
I later painted it silver.

Work performed in 2003:

1. New fuel pump
2. Gaskets, seals and paint on engine and tranny
3. Lap valves in head
4. U-joints and paint on the driveshaft
5. Tie rod ends and boot for starboard steering rack
6. Change hypoid oil
7. Clean and paint chassis
8. 45DCOE Weber with K&N air filter
9. Header
10. Mallory dual-point, centrifugal advance distributor

... and cleaned up a tray of miscellaneous parts.

SUMMER 2004 and I'm nearly done with this project.
6/20 (Solstice) I pushed her out into the sunlight for cleaning, vacuumed a bucket of cobwebs
and spiders from underneath, and washed the oil from the chassis.

Engine compartment after hours of cleaning and paint.
Notice the air horns at the top of this image. They are SO
much louder than the original.

The tunnel. See that flange back there, the one with 4 holes in it?

I had to ream the holes inward to fit the flange on the driveshaft.
Probably came that way from the factory. Possibly two different flanges as models changed.
It could have been an error on the part of the guys that changed the clutch.
The original bolts were damaged and were replaced.

7/7/04 The engine is back in!

8/2/04 Started and ran the first time since March 2003.

The throttle cable and fuel filter are still not installed in this image.

The Lucas alternator was replaced because it was only putting out 6.5 volts,
and the Weber carb now has a K&N filter rather than the supplied velocity stacks.
Also replaced were the radiator and all hoses. The reason you can see the battery
is because I did not reinstall the heater box.

Every part I touch, no matter how small, gets cleaning and paint. I enjoy this part of it as
much as driving, and it's a lot less dangerous, unless you consider the brain damage from
breathing solvents, dust and paint fumes. But hey! My wife and daughter say I'll never notice!

Which one of these two Brit cars would YOU rather have?

Last updated 12/18/07

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