VA969 Mike's Early Sprint Restoration.

[newguy]

Dedication and wanting something is the key you have that i see and this will be a excellent resto to keep tabs on.

I love pics Of action etc.

And welcome to the forums i ain't seen you round before

[DoloWIGHTY]

Mike well done for taking the commitment of this restoration on board!

You are in the right place that's for sure. There are many experienced owner/restorers on this forum and the club has an excellent supply of both repair panels and service parts so I am sure this will keep the motivation moving.

[SprintMWU773V]

I do rather envy anyone who carries out a full resto. I'm planning in the next few years giving my Sprint the full works treatment. Having seen a few very nice ones I'd like to get mine that way. Good luck and keep posting plenty of pics.

[Paul Geering]

Great thread Mike.

Any advice at all just ask. Good luck and ENJOY!

[sprint95m]

You are starting from a good place, ie a complete original car.
Do you know the engine, gearbox or diff numbers? These tend to be all over the place (because they made cars in batches?).

My 1850 is WF 10,000 something, engine WF 5 or 6,000 something, diff 9,000 something (the gearbox is covered in oil).
The Sprint I ran in the 90s was VA154, engine 283, diff 246 (don't know the gearbox number now) and it was registered on 1/8/'73 as the owner waited to get the new year suffix (M).

Sadly, I think if it was me, I'd probably be running the car as it is .

[sprint95m]

By "sadly" I take it that you think I might be going OTT with the car. It's like a lot of the pictures that we see, Cars can look better in photographs.

By "sadly" I meant that I lack your dedication. Structural repairs or mechanical stuff I am fine with (enjoyable really). The rubbing down and preparation stuff is an ordeal for me.

I agree, cutting a repair section for the roof from a donor car is the best option. (Any Dolomite is suitable.)
From my experience, when you set about the sills, you will find corrosion (all the way) along the join of outer, middle and lower. I repaired this on my car by doing the lower/middle section a bit at a time (so as not to compromise the rigidity of the shell by cutting too much out) then fitting a TDC outer sill. It is strong but clearly not original.
In your case, I think it will be wise to brace the shell with suitable tube or box section before you start.

[TahitiSPRINT]

Hi Mike, great thread! And very interesting to follow

The restoration of my tahitisprint is progressing very slowly, but the bodywork is allready done. The edge of the roof has also been replaced by a part from a donor car, see pictures on triumphowners.com





Good luck with the restoration

Cheers,
RONALD

www.triumphowners.com/tahitisprint

[DavePoth]

I have the rear window overhang from a car that someone from the club (it might have been Bruce) gave me a couple of years back, which I can bring to TDCIR if you want it, or pass to someone else to get it to you.

[tinganting]

hi nice to see a car being restored to former glory and for me esspecially a sprint.. but i do have one observation about the interior being original... the tunnel carpet would as you probably are aware not have had a plastic lever or a tray..

[DavePoth]

You want a "Blanking Grommet". It's a standard size (although very big) so you should be able to find one from a regular blanking grommet supplier.

[Mad Mart]

Excellent write-up Mike. I think this is going to be one hell of a Sprint.

Not sure about 969s axle, I thought they all came with the extra bit. I'll check BFR later.

Presumably you haven't fitted the tab washers to the hub bolts as you will be taking it apart again for the final paint finish?

[straylight]

Mike, great thread, fantastic read and thorough. As with lots of resto's, it is great to hear how other people go about things and the ideas get stored away for when the time is right. Thanks for taking the time and effort to record your work.

best wishes for the resto, i'll be watching every step from afar

stu

[sprint95m]

First big mistake was buying what I thought was a new "bumper centre" from Rimmers and "re manufactured" early number plate light. Ouch....




Well; it's a late centre with new holes drilled to take the earlier number plate light. My first early lesson. Early sprints have visible "chrome coach bolt heads" and number plate light recess holes without slots at the back.

That rear centre is for a very, very early Dolomite (1850) and also 1500 FWD, I believe.
I would imagine the brackets will be different to the more common type used on Sprints.

[sprint95m]

Now; a question for the boffins. In the following photographs there are two Sprint axles. The one without drums is 969's axle VA1281.
The one with drums fitted is my spare early axle VA1853. Both have been scrubbed & cleaned to the same extent -




Can you see that VA1853 has some additional metal at the back of the swing arm brackets. They have obviously been there since the axle was manufactured but I've never seen them on any other axle. Has anyone ever come accross them before? Any idea what the might be?

Your axle (VA1281) is correct.
The extra brackets are some sort of reinforcement? Why?

I am very impressed with your work .


Also, I agree with you about the petrol tank being a replacement (Austin Rover label). I have not seen a drain tap on a Dolomite tank. To make it easier to remove the tank in future (if I ever have to), I fitted a longer length of fuel hose (about 6''), which can be clamped near the end allowing the tank to be lifted sufficiently for a second clamp to be fitted closer to the union (ie inside the boot), then just remove the first clamp and lift away with hopefully no petrol loss! I fitted 5/16" kunifer pipe for the fuel along the driver's side of the car instead of the meandering route the original takes. On my 1850 this means the petrol pipe does not go above the exhaust, but as you are going to fit a standard Sprint exhaust it would still run close to the OS silencer box.

[sprint95m]

What I do know is that Rimmers wouldn't take it back when I changed my mind.

I believe you are within your rights to ask for a refund/credit, whether or not it was supplied or ordered in error.
You may find that if you ask for the correct number for the bumper, their catalogue says "NLA use alternative......"

Maybe, you can't argue too much in case they decide to blacklist you as a customer .