I said that I would never buy another Fulvia ....

[simonandjuliet]

Nearly finished stripping the bronze car - it isn't just raining , we had the most amazing thunder and lightening display last night , then 2" of hail ! So still can't get into the vines to finish pruning

As you say , David, it is good to see that these surprises still turn up, however I am still waiting for my barnfind-Bugatti .....

If any of you Fulvia-istas are looking to make a supersuperleggera (or super leg-over as my mum used to call the Flaminia) then the ally bonnet will be perfect.

Neil, I think the bonnet is beyond repair, it is buckled and the frame has gone as well , but if anyone wants to try, you can have it for the cost of the postage. There was only one subframe but it is not rusty and still has the top drain holes. I refitted the subframe to the white one today so it can be moved around easily

Re parts, current thinking is to use the doors and bootlid on the HF along with much of the chrome/stainless trim because it is better than the HF's. The door handles on the bronze car are not pitted and have some nice wear on them so they will be used instead of the new repro ones I bought earlier. The wing mirror needs a new reflector but will go to the white one

The bronze car really is beyond reasonable repair (although Norm may think otherwise !!) the back end is excellent, but the floors , cills and subframe mounts are rotten. It looks as if it was parked pointing downhill with the boot undercover. Tomorrow I am going to paint-strip one of the wheel arches to see if they are original, because they have been very well done if they aren't

ps More Fulvia berlinas, Chris ?

[frankxhv773t]

The bronze car is what I call a "parts mine". It's often the best way of getting a load of useful spares.

[nthomas1]

It looks like you've made a good acquisition Simon.

Ref your comment "The bronze car really is beyond reasonable repair (although Norm may think otherwise !!) the back end is excellent, but the floors , cills and subframe mounts are rotten.", I think my welder could have both cars back on the road in no time.

Seriously though, I do lie awake at night sometimes thinking how much easier (and cheaper) it would have been to buy one of the many rust-free imports from Italy that are now on the market!  However, a big thing for me was achieving a lifelong ambition to rebuild/restore a car doing as much of the work as possible myself - and it's good to be keeping a right hand drive UK-spec car from the breaker's yard!

 

[davidwheeler]

On the next update of Google Earth your Fulvia farm will be visible from space.

[simonandjuliet]

The Google Earth satellite won't see much now, the white one is on 4 wheels again and has been tucked away and the bronze one has, I'm afraid, gone the way of the crow road. The middle of the car was a lot worse than I had anticipated, but it will provide lots of bits for the white one (and the HF)

If anyone has a set of black front seats for the Rallye S , I would be interested !!!

To the HF, it is back up and running. I did the final few bits and pieces and took her for a blast - gently at first

The wiring was cleaned of all its overspray and underseal and refitted using new loom clips, purchased at huge cost in Italy. All the earths, bulbs and light units were carefully cleaned along with finding and fitting bootlid bumpstops and boot lightswitch. A newish petrol tank sender was sourced and the petrol tank cleaned and flushed with WD40.

I used a closed foam seal under the petrol tank lip instead of the original dumdum putty, made an underlay and cleaned and fitted the boot rubber. The Autoglym bumper cleaner is brilliant for all things rubber and vinyl. I used it on the spare-wheel cover as well as it has a mild solvent for cleaning.

The spare-wheel cover has a nice detail - an embossed Lancia badge in the middle. It all looks nice when it's back together

I have not gone mad cleaning the paintwork because it is all coming off in the future, but I have cleaned all the chrome and stainless steel before refitting.

I bought a new , beautifully reproduced stainless steel number plate surround from Jai Sharma. It came with the separate corners and correct Phillips set screws and fits perfectly - would recommend !

The number plate lights are quite pitted so I am on the lookout for some better ones and the rear trim is not perfect so will fit a better one once the bodywork has been done

Happy with the ride height and the way it all feels, the knock has gone and the exhaust note is much nicer with the new system, but it needs a slight fettle now it has settled in because it knocks on the rear skirt on big bumps

Now need to use her again and resist the temptation to remove the front subframe ......

[simonandjuliet]

More .....

[williamcorke]

Looking terrific. Have you decided what colour it will be (since the repaint sounds like a definite plan)? Excuse me if I missed this earlier in the thread.

I will soon be trying to revive the original 1950 ribbed black rubber mats that came in the B10. Would you recommend the Autoglym product for this, and if so, is it their 'Bumper & Trim Gel'? I know some people swear by 'Son of a Gun!', but would love to know your favourite way of dealing with tired and dry-looking old rubber.

[simonandjuliet]

Hi William
I have never tried (or heard of) Son of a Gun, so can't comment !

I use Autoglym products because I find they work - I should get a commission for the amount I use !! But for cleaning rubber mats I use a variety of first steps depending on the initial state - a degreaser if necessary, often with a jet washer if they are not torn , interior cleaner or vinyl/rubber care for finer stuff , and usually finish with the bumper care. It seems to revitalise and nourish the rubber. Once it is dry you can buff it to a satin finish as well

I am sure there are lots of other favourite "recipes" but I stick with one range of products because I think that there is less likely to be interaction - I may be wrong ......

[lancialulu]

Looking terrific. Have you decided what colour it will be (since the repaint sounds like a definite plan)? Excuse me if I missed this earlier in the thread.

I will soon be trying to revive the original 1950 ribbed black rubber mats that came in the B10. Would you recommend the Autoglym product for this, and if so, is it their 'Bumper & Trim Gel'? I know some people swear by 'Son of a Gun!', but would love to know your favourite way of dealing with tired and dry-looking old rubber.

William I have son of a gun in my cupboard having been introduced to it by Brian Cates who retrimmed my HF seats some 10 years ago and delivered them to me with the head rests looking like new. I said (in my niavity) that I did not want the headrests recovered. They he told it was only SoaG which was new to me...
I am also a fan of Autoglym. I suspect that all their different vinyl/rubber products are much the same with different fragrances. I spent Thursday sorting out my B12 mats (original!). I used a rag with thinners to wipe clean and smooth the surface of the old mats then applied Autoglym tyre dressing. I am well pleased with results.

Looking great Simon BTW!

[nthomas1]

The car is looking good Simon!  Would you mind elaborating on a couple of things please.  What exactly is the “closed foam seal” that you used on the fuel tank surround?  Is it in sheet form and you cut it to fit?   Also, can you expand on the petrol tank cleaning and flushing.  Did you just pour WD40 in and slosh it around or was there a step before that.  I’ve read about people using pebbles or even bicycle chains to remove loose rust and then coating the interior with a product that is not affected by ethanol.  Was yours judged to be in good enough condition to not need these steps? 

Finally, your advice on treatment of rubber is most useful as I have a pile of rubber parts to clean up.  Have you ever had to repair tears/rips in rubber parts like mats?  I have a full set of rubber floor mats for my Fulvia which are in good condition overall but have tears in some places.  I was wondering whether to use thin rubber sheet patches glued underneath to repair them.  I’d need to find a suitable adhesive. I recall the little tubes supplied with bicycle tyre puncture repair kits being very effective on rubber inner tubes.  Have you ever used any particular adhesives for this purpose (car parts that is, not bicycle tyres!)?

[DavidLaver]

This stuff?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/STP-GST97211EN-300ml-Son-Protectant/dp/B0046BZ79I

[lancialulu]

This stuff?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/STP-GST97211EN-300ml-Son-Protectant/dp/B0046BZ79I

that stuff yes

[DavidLaver]

Am sure will be gorgeous in its original colour but I must say I do like it in that blue...

Any close ups of the loom clips?

That spare rather fills the boot !!!   Am guessing the cover is an HF part to fit that size tyre.  Great to still have items like that on a car this age.

[simonandjuliet]

As requested , David ! The new , repro clips are made of soft rubber and can be removed easily without damage, whereas the originals are a harder plastic hat is difficult to remove without breaking or mashing up

Re tears in rubber, I have used superglue successfully on the furgoncino. A smear along the tear and then taping together until it is fully set.
I have glued a rubber back onto my Aprilia floor rubbers as well, but still protect the brittle rubber with carpets. The rubbers I have had most difficulty with are the Fulvia cill covers. If you put a backing on they are too thick and black tape (glued as well) still leaves an edge that you catch. I will replace mine with new I think
 
Happy Easter everyone

[simonandjuliet]

And now to anorak's corner , literally watching paint dry ......

I wanted to get a nice S1 rocker cover painted up, so here are the steps:

Bead-blasted rocker cover (not by me)
No further prep, but kept dust free and no oily fingers`
3 heavy coats of VHT wrinkle black - 5 mins apart - initial gloss shine
20 mins later - wrinkling starts
1 day later
After oven curing in the oven for an hour at 100°C and finally a close up

Curing causes the wrinkles to subside a little

I have always like crackle-black finishes and find this product very easy to use so long as you follow the instructions .....