SWU - Matt's 1976 Sprint Auto

[dollyman]

I actually need one due to having had back surgery Matt, which caused my left leg to be weak. On the whole i find them really good, the only i think is "revvy" is my Stag, the Dolly is great to be honest and is ecconomical at around 34mpg. Most people once they have had an auto never go back to manual Unless its me getting old
Is it going to be your daily or a sunny day and weekend car?

Tony.

[RSi]

It's the auto I have and I love it, I prefer it over the manual.

[Matt Cotton]

I actually need one due to having had back surgery Matt, which caused my left leg to be weak. On the whole i find them really good, the only i think is "revvy" is my Stag, the Dolly is great to be honest and is ecconomical at around 34mpg. Most people once they have had an auto never go back to manual Unless its me getting old
Is it going to be your daily or a sunny day and weekend car?

Tony.

Not quite sure yet Tony. Most probably 'high days and holidays' but I also have a 1500HL to use too. I will get it back on the road and go from there. I am looking forward to it though.

[yorkshire_spam]

I actually need one due to having had back surgery Matt, which caused my left leg to be weak. On the whole i find them really good, the only i think is "revvy" is my Stag, the Dolly is great to be honest and is ecconomical at around 34mpg. Most people once they have had an auto never go back to manual Unless its me getting old
Is it going to be your daily or a sunny day and weekend car?

Tony.

By necessity our household modern car is an auto and was also a requirement when getting our second classic (Binny aka RUK) so that we could both drive if we wanted. BUT I really do love the manual in the Spitfire when thrashing it across the moorland roads, I really wouldn't want an auto for that.
I was really worried about the 3 speed auto in the 1850 before we got her, but one test drive down at James' when we went to see her totally changed my mind, it's a great car, engine, gearbox combination.

[Carledo]

I actually need one due to having had back surgery Matt, which caused my left leg to be weak. On the whole i find them really good, the only i think is "revvy" is my Stag, the Dolly is great to be honest and is ecconomical at around 34mpg. Most people once they have had an auto never go back to manual Unless its me getting old
Is it going to be your daily or a sunny day and weekend car?

Tony.

By necessity our household modern car is an auto and was also a requirement when getting our second classic (Binny aka RUK) so that we could both drive if we wanted. BUT I really do love the manual in the Spitfire when thrashing it across the moorland roads, I really wouldn't want an auto for that.
I was really worried about the 3 speed auto in the 1850 before we got her, but one test drive down at James' when we went to see her totally changed my mind, it's a great car, engine, gearbox combination.

Most of my most recent (last 20 years) daily drivers have been autos, partly because SWMBO (who is disabled) only has an auto licence, partly because modern autos are not the power sapping, slow shifting, trouble prone, gas guzzling horrors they were when I was young and partly because modern driving conditions and traffic levels mean that opportunities to exploit a good manual car to it's utmost are rare indeed.

SWMBO has her own automatic car, Pablo the Picasso and I have kept (and will continue to keep) the Carledo as a fun/trackday weapon for the forseeable future. But the whole ethos behind the Dolomega project is to produce a car that is at home on long journeys, powerful yet reasonably economical and a lot less "raw" than the performance oriented Carledo. A cruiser, rather than a cafe racer with a full complement of seats, soundproofing and creature comforts like electric windows, central locking and a bangin stereo! To that end it has the auto transmission that comes with its motor, a 4 speed, ECU controlled Aisin Warner unit with an overdriven 4th gear which also locks for maximum efficiency. So SWMBO can also drive it in case of need.

Steve

[Matt Cotton]

The last week or so has been quite productive in the garage.


The propshaft which I mentioned last time has been refurbished by Dave Mac in Coventry. Turnaround was a week and they have replaced the centre bearing and carrier, fitted 2x new uj's, balanced and painted it. Very good service.
Last weekend, Richard Old was visiting, so we whizzed it back on with new bolts and nyloc nuts.

As I am working in a single garage, I was then able to drive the car out (carefully as I was sat on an old box!) and turn the car around, reversing back into the garage so as I could work on the offside.



I have now replaced both the n/s and o/s front lower wings with club panels. The originals were cut off to facilitate the cill fitting, I kept them but they were quite rotten at the bottom. The new ones fitted well (as expected) and I butt welded these on once I had carefully marked them up against what was left of the wing. I did ponder on using Tiger seal at the bottom, to allow the panels to be painted and reduce the risk of rust, but in the end I plug welded them and will thoroughly preserve the area with Waxoil/Dinitrol/Dynax..
A skim of filler and paint now required.










Today, I set about welding the o/s rear arch repair panel in place. I had previously cut it to size and toddled the wing and fixed it with self tappers. So I just made sure it still lined up ok and started to tack it in place. I used some 'cold front' putty again to try and prevent any distortion, although I believe because it was joddled (joggled?) that reduces the risk. On the nearside I was brave and butt welded it to the original - I think I prefered the joddled wing just for added security.
Anyway, it went ok. I then dressed all the welds with a flapdisc/ belt. I then applied some epoxy primer, then a light skim of fibreglass filler over the welded seam just to seal it up followed by a sand down. I will then fill the area and shape it. I've never been that good at sanding filler, but will take my time and hope it looks reasonable. At least it is solid and perhaps one day it can be prepared and painted properly.







Next jobs - windscreen corner repairs and headlamp panels.... aided by James' resto pictures - these have been very helpful many times.



TTFN

MC

[dollyman]

Hi Matt, a quick tip for getting filler/fibre glass right when rubbing down is to spray a thin coat of black paint over it. You will then see the high and low spots when sanding back.
Nice work so far as well Matt.

Tony.

[James467]

That looks superb Matt, great job!

[Matt Cotton]

Thanks both. Appreciated. Good idea Tony on the guide coat.. I'll do that and take my time! I'm looking forward to putting some blue paint on now!

[Matt Cotton]

Hello all.

Just a bit of an update on SWU.

A few weeks ago I had a visit from Scott, the mobile welder I have been using. I decided to ask him to repair the windscreen scuttle area as this had rusted quite badly,especially the offside (although wasn't visible initially under the filler). I cut off the tops of both wings to facilitate access and Scott made a good job of fabricating a repair in this area.




We rust treated the internals before he welded it all back in place, I will then spray some Dynax in all the cavities in due course. The area is currently epoxy primed until I get round to filling/priming and painting.

Otherwise, I have been concentrating on the n/s rear wing panel. Filling, sanding, priming, guide coating, sanding.... it goes on! It is nearly there now, just a little more prep before I can finally apply some more primer and paint. I need to finish a repair to the inner arch first to close off the cill.

I've been using Upol filler products:


It is a long time since I have used much filler - probably 20 years or so when I used it on my 1st car - a 'rusty' old Vauxhall Nova saloon. It certainly has come on in terms of ease of use compared to the old P38 isopon I used to buy. The Dolphin Glaze is especially nice to apply and sand for small imperfections an undulations.
I guess the proof of the pudding (quite literally) will be in the eating, so I look forward to putting some blue paint on soon.
I have one more patch to let in on the inner wing first before I apply the final coat of primer.

Fellow club member Mike Groom recently put a request out for a bonnet/boot to practice using his new electric polisher on. I was more than happy for Mike to practice on my bootlid as it is very oxidised, scratched etc. Mike did a superb job, working through various compounds and polishes which have restored it to a mirror shine. There are some microblisters in the paint, but I'm more than happy with this. If the rest of the car responds to this level of treatment it should look reasonably presentable. I may purchase a polisher for myself and have a go on the rest. See the pictures below 'before and after'. Great job, thanks Mike!








I have also filled and painted the tops of the cills near the treadplates. Scott seam welded here when the new cills were fitted, however to keep cost down and make more use of his time, I have done all the linishing down and final prep. It is nice to see some blue paint now in this area and I will stonechip and satin black the lower cill area in due course as per original..


I have had the paint mixed up by this company: https://auto-paint.co.uk/
The match is really good, the cans lovely to use and very reasonable at £7.95 per aerosol. I will paint the wings etc with this in due course.

Other than this, I have refitted some interior trim near the bonnet release (recovered in vinyl) and generally been tidying up a few areas. I intend to take the car to the NEC resto show at the end of March to undertake some more work with the aid of some of our resident experts. I have a long list of jobs, so hopefully some good progress can be made.

I look forward to seeing some of you then.

Till next time.....


MC

[dollyman]

Looking very nice nice Matt, your mate did a great job on the boot If you buy a polisher for yourself? Make sure you get a dual action one, the do a much better job and you can change the size of the buffing pads right down to 1inch in diameter. I bought one and it makes life so much easier even for rubbing down filler as you can buy sanding discs for them as well.

Tony.

[Matt Cotton]

Cheers Tony. Good advice on the polisher - I had overlooked the benefit of sanding, so this would also be useful.

[dollyman]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16-Piece-Dur ... SwAcheJXEp
This is the one i bought Matt, i dont know how much you want to spend? But it is a good starter kit as it comes with most things including variable speed which you will find is great, if you buy one.

Tony.

[Matt Cotton]

That does look a good kit Tony and you get a fair bit of kit there. I'll have a ponder!
Thanks very much for the link.

MC

[Reg]

Fabulous work Matt! You are spot on about the new paint..that lovely blue is a great motivator to getting the car done.

Hopefully, I will get to see it in the flesh this year! Another one on the road can only ever be a good thing.