Well, this could become quite lengthy, since I have a TON of pictures (possibly too many). I'll do my best to put together a coherent thread though, of the steps that I've taken to make sure my car NEVER rots out again.
Here we go, from day 1 of the project:
A few surprises I found during the stripping:
Found the original build sheet above the headliner!
No windshield channel rot!
Bad news on the driver's side:
Pulled out the old gastank, and the HORRIBLE exhaust the previous owner built for the car:
Built a quickie rig to roll it out of the garage:
Started on the undercoating removal (nightmare of a job, and very important since if moisture gets underneath it, the rot grows unnoticed):
Melted a grinder, so I had to get another one. 10 amps, and more torque than the 1.8 8v I plan to put in it!
Wobbly spots filled at the factory, very well hidden:
More holes, thanks to VWoA's inability to rust proof anything:
13" x 6" Chevy Vega GT steelies (got 6 of them!):
Built a tip-tisserie to work underneath properly:
A buddy who stops by to help every now and then. His GF gets along well with my GF...so that leaves us time to work on the car :
Sold my old flux-core welder for a proper gas MIG, best purchase ever!:
Traded the G60 from my blue Rabbit for a full Dellorto carb conversion for the resto project (yes, I'm nuts ) :
The seam sealer I coated the entire bottom of the car with:
My first set of carbs!:
Gave it a good pressure-washing, the neighbors certainly thought I was nuts at this point:
New rear arch:
90% done the undercoating removal:
90% covered in undercoating:
The previous owner chopped out the spare tire tub to run his horrible muffler, so I had to cut one out of a scrapped car, and fab up the rest:
More rust paint (POR-15, best stuff ever!):
New gas tank, and straps from a Dodge Omni (the second cousin of a Talbot IIRC. VW discontinued the proper straps, so I had to make some ).
Traded some parts for these:
Rust coated the floor, and started test fitting the foil insulation I will use for carpet padding, and sound deadening:
The final thing I managed to get done before it got too cold. I notched the frame rails for a bit more axle clearance...this car will be "hit with the stick" if I've interpreted the phrase correctly .:
Here we go, from day 1 of the project:
A few surprises I found during the stripping:
Found the original build sheet above the headliner!
No windshield channel rot!
Bad news on the driver's side:
Pulled out the old gastank, and the HORRIBLE exhaust the previous owner built for the car:
Built a quickie rig to roll it out of the garage:
Started on the undercoating removal (nightmare of a job, and very important since if moisture gets underneath it, the rot grows unnoticed):
Melted a grinder, so I had to get another one. 10 amps, and more torque than the 1.8 8v I plan to put in it!
Wobbly spots filled at the factory, very well hidden:
More holes, thanks to VWoA's inability to rust proof anything:
13" x 6" Chevy Vega GT steelies (got 6 of them!):
Built a tip-tisserie to work underneath properly:
A buddy who stops by to help every now and then. His GF gets along well with my GF...so that leaves us time to work on the car :
Sold my old flux-core welder for a proper gas MIG, best purchase ever!:
Traded the G60 from my blue Rabbit for a full Dellorto carb conversion for the resto project (yes, I'm nuts ) :
The seam sealer I coated the entire bottom of the car with:
My first set of carbs!:
Gave it a good pressure-washing, the neighbors certainly thought I was nuts at this point:
New rear arch:
90% done the undercoating removal:
90% covered in undercoating:
The previous owner chopped out the spare tire tub to run his horrible muffler, so I had to cut one out of a scrapped car, and fab up the rest:
More rust paint (POR-15, best stuff ever!):
New gas tank, and straps from a Dodge Omni (the second cousin of a Talbot IIRC. VW discontinued the proper straps, so I had to make some ).
Traded some parts for these:
Rust coated the floor, and started test fitting the foil insulation I will use for carpet padding, and sound deadening:
The final thing I managed to get done before it got too cold. I notched the frame rails for a bit more axle clearance...this car will be "hit with the stick" if I've interpreted the phrase correctly .: