restoring and modifying historical cars

[biker in a suit]

Hi Folks,

I am gradually getting my feet under the table here and thought maybe I should tell you a little about my current and past projects involving all sorts of cars of historical importance...I have big hopes for Delorean ownership too but I am going to be patient.

I also hope that as time passes my experience of building / restoring and modifying cars will come in handy here. I have carried out ground up restos on several cars and been lucky enough to win a couple of concourse events. I tend to get a little OCD with them which drives the wife mad but hey ho!

I have also been, and still am, a technical advisor for a number of specialist cars clubs (Toyota, Triumph, MG Rover) and some UK car manufacturers (Ford, MG Rover, LDV and Bentley Motors). I have some great trade supplier contacts which might prove useful too.

some of the cars I have restored or modified are a 1973 BMW, a Triumph Stag, a 1975 Golf, a 1974 Spitfire, a 1973 Granada 3 litre, a 1982 Celica Supra (modified to 420Bhp), a mini 1275 (modified to 160bhp) and more recently my own MG ZTT diesel which I worked on with the owners club to source spare parts and develop tuning mods (450 Nm torque and 180bhp). I have built a few Rover V8 engines too with the view to using them but ended up selling them to kit car builders.

when time allows, I love tinker with Motorbikes...the most powerful was a 230bp Gsx 1100 turbo which I built about 10 years ago...recently I have just sold my Triumph Bonneville so the garage is looking a bit empty.

I hope I can be of some use...what sorts of cars have you folks had?

regards to all. Jamie

[Chris Williams]

Man after my own heart, as another BL MG Rover fan (as are a few on this forum) I have also owned a good few of the cars you mentioned (Stag/spitfire and worked on plenty of Rover V8's) also owned lots of BL/MG Rover stuff my car being one of the last ZS's from the factory full factory body kit Etc. Shame it's all show and no go being a 1.8! :wink:
Chris

[biker in a suit]

Chris Williams Wrote:Man after my own heart, as another BL MG Rover fan (as are a few on this forum) I have also owned a good few of the cars you mentioned (Stag/spitfire and worked on plenty of Rover V8's) also owned lots of BL/MG Rover stuff my car being one of the last ZS's from the factory full factory body kit Etc. Shame it's all show and no go being a 1.8! :wink:
Chris

Nice one Chris...there are some heavily modded ZT's, ZS's and ZR's doing the rounds at track days, they are very quick...this battle is epic... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVJfNWecFWE


I had a huge amount of affection for the MG Rover group, I served my time in the late 70s in a BL garage, the irony is in those days I detested the cars and now I look back all dreamy eye'd. I had all sorts from metro's to an 827 vitesse before moving onto the more recent offerings.

The loss of the factory, much like Delorean was an utter disgrace... apparently Gordon Brown later admitted deep regret for not bailing them out, there were massive repercussions across the entire industry and an astronomical bill for the tax payers to pick up. There was a documentary on the collapse where they said collectively around the country ( suppiers dealers and the factory) 30,000 lost their jobs.

It still gets me cross!

[Rich Hanlon]

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[Rich Hanlon]

Couple of my previous projects, both barn-finds.

[biker in a suit]

Rich Hanlon Wrote:Couple of my previous projects, both barn-finds.

was the allegro the 'equipe' or did that have twin headlamps?...I still have the massive socket for re-shimming the ball joints !

Nice Maxi too...as I recall the front seat laid flat to make a double bed, I wasn't sure who that one was aimed at?! Reps or grass lane sweethearts? he he

[Chris P]

I think the Equipe had a orange side strips that went right over the roof.

My friend had a new one and a few days later it stopped, thinking it had run out of fuel, he tried to put some in and discovered that the tank had collapsed on its self, due to the vent being blocked! Build quality!!

[Rich Hanlon]

Indeed, equipes were all silver but on 2-door shells with 1750cc twin carb setup. They still had the rectangular lamps though (quads were on the HLS). Also bespoke alloy wheels and single-piece black bumpers.

[Darren C]

Nice one Rich,

I repaired and repainted an Equipe in 1982 after an accident at the coachbuilders I worked at. (insurance job as it was not even a year old) I remember putting the orange circular equipe stickers on the rear quarter!

Welcome to the mad house Jamie.

You said you had worked on "cars of historical importance" what were they?

[Manxmann]

Loved my ZT 260 one car I wish I'd never sold.

[Chris P]

Lovely car and Number.

[biker in a suit]

a pre face lift 260....very chic 8)