Oh yes, a fair amount of foam has already come out and will be blown out with an air line to clear it out. Would seem a but of a waste of time to have gone to all the trouble of cleaning the dash up and to not ensure there's no foam left.
Hadn't thought of reinforcing the dash heater opening. But that's a good idea. Wonder if I could 3D print something?
Yep, I think we'll just do the whole panel as the boot floor to rear panel has rusted along the seam, you can actually see daylight on the offside corner so makes sense to cut it all out and start again.
Meanwhile...
The most exciting update yet:
The little GL genuinely surprised us with it's peppy performance, especially the pickup from low revs. It actually made us laugh on the test drive, despite the two of us having owned 200bhp+ Mk2s in the past. However, the little low mileage 1.8 carb lump had more to give.
This will allow precise measurements of fuel air mixture levels allowing us to squeeze every one of the 90bhp from the mighty 1.8 carb. This will transform the driveability of this car, increasing performance and economy.
The T piece between the front and rear doors was just sat on its own with the vacuum pipes not connected. A bit of wiggling and in they popped and away we go!
You might want to check the panel against the original very closely. I bought a KLOKKERHOLM pattern rear panel since the "chassis end" bulges showed surface rust bubbles which turned into rotten holes. The panel moulding looked fine but when the welder cut the required patches out the contours didn't match very well...disappointing.
Good to know. Fortunately we have a mate who's a dab hand at welding who owes us a favour, so my just leave him to it and let him suffer the pain whilst we plead ignorance.
Next job, some may say pointless, I say worthwhile: Engine bay tart up.
Some grotty bits:
Who knew the early 1.8's had a metal top timing belt cover?
Scrub the plastic back and make it black again, rather than 35 years of dust and oil. (That's paint from previous spray jobs on the cardboard, the plastic hasn't been painted!)
Time to get that wire wheel and dremel out
Paint and rust stripped
The stuff used
I am not a painter by any stretch of the imagination and have a habit of getting impatient and applying it too heavily, but I resisted and it's come up pretty well. Some pitting still present in the worst affected areas, but as that's hidden I'm not overly concerned. It's still better than before!
New vacuum hoses too:
All back together and looks much better. Amazing what few hours of graft achieves. Shame the sticker on the rocker cover was lost, as I liked that. But I much prefer a satin black rocker cover to the rusty one.
Time for some more cleaning, this time in the form of the seats.
Everyone loves a pic of brown water after a wet vac, so I hope you're fulfilled by this!
Before:
Anyone fancy a pint?
Hard to determine the difference its made as velour hides the dirt well! But judging by the water it's certainly made a difference. Less farts and poo particles embedded in them now.