Rob's late Toledo restoration

[triumphtoledo]

Sorry for the delay... here's a quick update on affairs. No pics at the mo but they will follow, when I can sum up both enthusiasm and energy:

MoT overcome.
The very bent and filler-laden rear panel has been chopped off and replaced with a new-old-stock panel. (£5 from TDC stock!). The inside of the boot has been resprayed in body colour
All exterior trim has been removed.
Door trims and rear seats are out (a 10mm spanner was found inside the offside rear door)
Fuel tank has been removed. The bottom had slight surface rust, which has been both painted in epoxy mastic and reinstalled.
Bumpers are now off. The rear one is both rusty and bent. A new 3-piece replacement will go on.
Engine has been cleaned of black sludge and its crank bearings changed.
Engine has had a full service and new ignition parts fitted.
Nasty dent (and rust hole) in the nearside rear quarter panel, which was covered in filler, has been pulled out and welded up.
Old tyres stipped, rims shot blasted and repainted. New tyres fitted.
Offside and rear paint prepared for paint, covering my garage and utility room in filler and paint dust.


Cockups made:
Put a dent in front of the immaculate roof, thanks to me kneeling on it to get to a shelf in the garage. Most popped of it out but filler had to be used.
Scratched the nose badge badly - goodness knows how. I have a reasonable second-hand one but could fit a new one if the paint finish comes out well.
Somehow put a dent in my fresh new rear panel. Again, I know not how. Had to fill it but, thankfully, it was shallow.

Plans:
Get the nearside prepared for paint.
Etch prime any bare metal spots.
Tax the car on Feb 1st
Drive the car to painters for filler priming on 2nd Feb.
Collect the car on 5th Feb
Prepare the car over Feb.
Have car painted in very early March in top coat.



Phew!

R

[DoloWIGHTY]

Bloody 'ell Rob I feel knackered just reading that - let alone doing it!!!

Excellent progress, pure dedication to the marque, I would expect nothing less from you!

[triumphtoledo]

Thanks Alan; nice comments help! As does constructive critisism.

The big killer is photographing every dratted step - it is part of my living nowadays, so it all gets 'shot'. That means that work has to stop, the pic has to be framed and taken, then work starts again. It just takes so much time. Certain parts of this job are typical to most cars and will be appearing within the classic car press shortly.

Thankfully, the no-mans's land between Christmas and New Year managed to provide me with a few days to devote to the Toledo. Now I am finishing work at around 5pm, then starting on the car for 4-hours or so a day, within the warm garage.

The next restoration project is waiting in the line-up though - that one will be much simpler...

R

[VYO 372M]

Sounds as though it's coming along nicely Rob, keep up the good work.

Steve

[Purplebargeken]

Nice work Rob, you are getting there.

Great mag work too I must add.

So what is the next project? Have you got hold of a Rapier then?

All the best.

Ken

[triumphtoledo]

Not quite yet Ken, although the SAAB is providing me witha nice distraction away from Triumphs.

Now that the BX is sold, I need to find a nice practical modern car. Top of the list so far is a Ovlov V70 D5.

R

[triumphtoledo]

With the second half of January quietening down a lot, work-wise, I've had time to crack on with getting the car photographed and prepared for paintwork; so, here's some pics...

First, this dent (and hole) in the side panel was discovered...



...which was pulled out and welded up:


...and treated to a light skim of filler:


...before being primed at home and guide coated:



Next, I worked out that it would be more effective to replace the bent and filler-laden rear panel:



So, that was cut out…


…and replaced with a new one. However, they are spotwelded on extensively within the boot, so it all had to be sealed up afterwards…



…and, to keep the boot looking tidy, I painted it back in body colour, using an aerosol.




Most of January has been spent rubbing the car down and sorting out those little dings and dents that any car picks up over the course of 35-odd years. Most of the paint was original but it had been touched up (badly) by a combination of aerosol and minor bodyshop repairs.

Once all that was done, the lights were refitted and we embarked on the 70-odd mile journey to its mother-city, Coventry, to the paint shop that resprayed my green Toledo several years ago. It is residing there at the moment and will be painted towards the end of this week/early next. The car will then make the journey home, where I will prep it, ready for the top coat. If all goes to plan, the top-coat will be on for early March.

Here’s some pics, taken yesterday, at the paint shop, while I was doing the final jobs:












R

[VYO 372M]

Taking shape nicely Rob, I really wish I had your bodywork talent.

Steve

[DoloWIGHTY]

Bloody brilliant.

[sprint1976]

excellent job done bet you cant wait to see it with its new paint

[NickMorgan]

That looks fantastic Rob. Just what I needed I have just sat down with a beer after a stressful day at work and thought I would look for some pictures of Toledos to relax!! Hopefully I will manage to do something similar with my Toledo later this year. Certainly wouldn't consider driving it just now with so much salt on the roads, though.

[Matt Cotton]

Great stuff Rob, you have some lovely cars in your collection. GDV looks lovely on the front page of the recent D.M.

You mention that it will be painted at the end of this week/ early next...I presume this is in primer for you to prep and return for final coats? I just wondered what prep would be required if it had already had a number of colour coats prior to the 'final' coat.

[tinweevil]

That's really nice work, wish I could do bodywork like that. I bet you're glad you don't have to go near Ghyll farm (if memory serves) any more.

[triumphtoledo]

Thanks for all your kind comments - it is a good 'perk me up'. However, providing that you have a pair of functioning limbs, there is nothing that I have done here that would confound any enthusiast that has the will to 'have a go' and see the job through.

Seriously, it is part of my job in the classic car press to convince people that they can do these kind of jobs at home. I will be covering metal repairs in future issues of Classics Monthly magazine, some of which will feature this car. Although fixing the Toledo is an interest of mine, it is part of my business and the point about doing the car is to encourage others to try it, regardless of their vehicle make/model. Should you wish to see any process covered that would be of use to you, or give me any feedback, I would really welcome your comments.

The plan is to prime the body, from the bottom of the windows in green filler primer, as the roof is in good condition. I will then drive the car back home and rub it all down. When it is ready, it will return back to the paint shop, the front and rear 'screens will be popped out. The roof will be primed in a wet-on-wet primer, which will be applied just prior to the top coat. This is to stop the new top coat from "sinking", as the original paint is quite soft. 3 or 4 coats of Pimento Red paint will follow. If I was a perfectionist, I could have the car ‘mopped’ afterwards but this just adds to the cost and I am not doing a ‘concours’ job.

I did not want to remove the doors but the painter, being a perfectionist, wishes me to do so, as for an extra 2.5 hours work, it will make for a much better job. I am not keen to do this but I may change my mind...

If all comes together, it will be ready for Stoneleigh.

Thanks for your kind comments Matt. The DM pic was take last year, as I was finishing GDV. She will be returning to the road later in the year. LDV, on the inside cover, is providing me with daily transport until I find myself a modern.

R

[triumphtoledo]

Progress has slowed sadly but the car returned from the paintshop (after covering about 130 miles to Coventry and back, with no problems), suitably filler primed.

I have flatted most of it down; a few additional repairs are needed on the offside doors and offside front wing. It is around 70% done.

Depending on my workload this week, I plan to get it back to the paintshop within the next fortnight.

Pics:








R