sortedford Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 So I thought I'd get me a S1 as I've had a S2, FRST, stg3 Saph, and various other ZT's and other RST powered cars, but longed after a S1.I picked this example up, its been garaged the last 13 or so years, low mileage and low owners. I've had about 3 months of use out of it before the bits of rust on the drivers wing, and both inner wings have bugged me, something all too common on a S1. After making the last show of the year at Ford Fair I decided to take the car off the road over winter in order to freshen up the usual bits; I did plan to replace both inner and outer wings, battery tray, and there is a bit of rust on the fuse box panel so I will likely replace this too. The wings look really quite good to be fair under the body kit, but they need to come off to do the job well. The sills look like new so I will leave them as they are, and although I was 'only' going to do the inner wings and battery tray I am thinking about getting the rear arch trims off to check the condition. The car has been waxoyled from new, and its helped keep the car as good as it is, but as with everything when it comes to a certain age bits start to deteriorate, and start to need attention. I need to repair the dash too, as it would be criminal not to do it whilst its out. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1684b_zpsbabeb3a3.jpg So the car was parked up and systemically stripped down.The first purchase was 2 sets of axel stands from Costco at the cost of £15 per pair - excellent build quality - great ratchet movement and unbelievable value for money: A recommended product. So carefully off came the body kit, the seats, dash, and rest of the interior, all bagged, tagged and tucked away ready for refitting to the car later on.Rust on the battery tray, and you can maybe make out the previous repair on the inner wing.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1758_zps102d8ebc.jpg Inner wing on the other sidehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1757_zpsa28a95a1.jpg To my surprise the wing looks good behind the trim, which usually hides a multitude of issueshttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1756_zps5cf41e57.jpg The front panel has held up well, although it will need trimming as the lip has been bent at some point to avoid the intercoolerhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1761_zpsdc7de5fc.jpg Dash out and door off in order to remove the welds from the rear of the front winghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_5165_zps4f7d124a.jpg First assessment of the floor is for an old car its pretty good. Some repairs needed as expected, but we won't need to replace any of the floor panshttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_5167_zps89762a99.jpg The first time I had seen the underside or the car properly and it’s looking nice and clean, so very happy about that. Also looks like it’s got a new gear selector which is a great bonus.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_5164_zps44e0da0c.jpg Next off came the passenger wing to inspect the condition of the inner wing rails. I could have got away with replacing the rear section of the wing rail (where the hinge fits) and cleaning up the front, but I'd rather do things right and keep it good for many years to come. Wing off (cut it off along the top in the end due to the fact I am going to remove the inner wing top panels) and again I'm happy with the condition of it, a few holes as expected from the battery tray.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_5173_zpscda03f92.jpg The dash, with the usual crackshttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_5158_zps6a9e4696.jpg Progress on the repair and inspection front was slow, although spending picked up a bit and I came across these, the best wheels you can put on a S1. Plans are to paint the inserts in anthracite to help bring out the polished part, oh and of course some tyres.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1/IMG_1797_zpsbcafdcac.jpg Being unsure if the rad had a slight leak or not I opted for a new alloy item from eBay seller 2fast2cool for a grand total of £85 inc next day delivery, the quality is top notch. Nice welds and visually awesome. Spending continued with http://www.rallyandrestorationpanelsuk.com/ who are renound for supplying the best quality parts for the S1's. I treated the car to a pair of outer front wings, battery tray and repair panel, fuse box repair panel and inner wing rails. Service was great and I would recommend other owners getting in contact for panels they need. 10.11.12Managed to get a few hours on it in the week and a good amount of time today. The bad news is - its worst than expected - bits have been repaired before, but not well, and caused more issues :wall:Good news is its been found now, and well on its way to being sorted :approve: Inner wing on the pass side has had a bit tacked on at some point, then bent over and stuck on with some type of sealant, not well.(sorry this is sideways)http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1861.jpg and the state of it insidehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1862.jpg Another view of ithttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1860.jpg Being preppedhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1867.jpg Cut out and being preppedhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1869.jpg New tray placed in for checkinghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1863.jpg Tacked in, ready for the welding tomorrow, then grinding flat.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1873.jpg You can also see other bits have been inspected and cleaned backhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1872.jpg So a bit more work than expected, but the poor repairs have been removed, and this side is well on its way to being sorted. Hopefully Sunday will see this corner back together Then onto the drivers side. I'm expecting the same. The bonus is that the rear is pretty good for it age, so will need minimal work, new arches will be fitted for good measure and I have decided that an all over restore and full paint to help with the different shades S1's seem to pick up over the years is now the way I am heading, with a target of being finished and back on the road before Central Show next year (April). 11.11.12So hour 14. New panels made and fitted today. We also managed to find the time to strip the tailgate, and all the sound deadening from the floor pans and the boot, as well as finishing off removing the rad etc from yesterday. Glass out, spoiler off, rear lights out.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1879.jpg Glass ready to go to storagehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1884.jpg Inside the tailgatehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1888.jpg Drivers floor - not looking too badhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1892.jpg Part way through fitting new panels we madehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1895.jpg Looks more like ithttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1896.jpg Nice not to have to look at poor repairs any more http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1898.jpg A bit more time flatting the welds and will be good to get the wing on and move to the other side. Jobs to do:Sound deadening – plain pads needed 60x30cm x5 Renew brake lines – green colourRemove running gearRemove under seal & re-applyMaybe have underside parts powder coated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mess Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Looks like you're making good progress mate, really love the S1's, in fact any Mk3. Out of interest, what power has it got and what's the mileage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidrick Posted November 14, 2012 Share Posted November 14, 2012 Nice thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted November 14, 2012 Author Share Posted November 14, 2012 Cheers Sid, I thought it would be nice to keep a proper progress log of it. Mess- I'm unsure on power, I wouldn't expect anything big though. Miles is cira 87k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lee grout Posted November 14, 2012 Share Posted November 14, 2012 Definitly one to keep an eye on. Good work, that wing looks pukka. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hezz Posted November 15, 2012 Share Posted November 15, 2012 lots of work to do but it'll be awesome when finished! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 17.11.12 This week I have been to view a tailgate but it wasn't quite as good as I expected, so we are going to repair mine (it only needs a new seam in the corners for the rubber but we thought we'd found a mint one). Then Saturday morning we made a trip over to look at a pair of doors, which did turn out to be mint, so I snapped them up. They need minimal work, mostly its going to be a case of paint and swap the bits over, put the electrics in etc.... so that turn out to be great. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1928.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1931.jpg Next off we popped to Machine Mart to pick up a twist knot wire cup for the grinder in order to carry on removing paint and under seal - these work a treat and don't damage any good metal. I ordered the rest of the bits I need (1mm cutting discs, 100mm twist knot wire cup, 100mm twist knot wheel, flap wheel and 80 grit belts for the small sander) from eBay as they worked out to a fraction of the price of Machine Mart. I sent about 3 more hours on the car, and removed the drivers wing and the panel in front of the A pillar which from having done the passenger side we knew would be shot - and it was. There had been a leak coming in which I suspected was the fuse box panel, so gave it a good poking and removed the sealant from it to find it gone in the corner, but this isn’t where it had been leaking - I expect i'll find this when we take the engine out and can see the bulkhead better.I cleaned up a fair few bits of metal around the holes and removing the rusty metal with the wire cup, and also removed most of the underseal from the passenger wing.Fuse box panelhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1916.jpg Boothttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1915.jpg Fuse boxhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1917.jpg Drivers A pillarhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1921.jpg 18.11.12I spent only an hour and half on the car today and removed the rest of the wing rail, as it wasn't looking great or worth saving. I inspected the doors bought yesterday and still very happy with them.I also ordered some more reproduction stickers for the car inc the slam panel sticker, wiring stickers, service sticker etc... from Isaydingdong.co.uk which although a basic website provides good quality stickers at very reasonable prices and low postage costs. Wing rail removed, waiting to tidy up, but it got to dinner time so I called it a dayhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1933.jpg Bits of the car lolhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1908.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1909.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hicksy Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Youre definitely going to be giving this car a new lease of life arent you! This is a topic ill be keeping a close eye on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Its one of them If it needs doing it may as well be done the right way and ensure it lives for a long time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyb0127 Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Some nice work there mate. Nice to see it being done properly, replacing what needs to be replaced. Keep up the good work mate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted November 19, 2012 Author Share Posted November 19, 2012 Cheers Andy, means alot comming from someone who does bodywork Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted January 2, 2013 Author Share Posted January 2, 2013 http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_1933.jpgSo work has continued, albeit at a slower rate over the last few weeks, but still good progress has been made! and lets face it who wants to work when its cold and wet! The fuse box panel has been cut out, and the new one welded in, the new lower panel in front of the A pillar has been made and fitted to the driver side, and the few bits inside and in the boot have been done!http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2007.jpg The front end now requires only minimal welding, and the wings spotting back on as per factory.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2005.jpg All glass has been stripped out, including the sunroof and the roof lining.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2000.jpg The car (or whats left of it) has been put back onto its wheels and moved to another location, ready to have the rear arches cut out and replaced.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2072.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2070.jpg In her new temp home to have the running gear and engine removed before replacing the rear arches, and then prep and off to paint.http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v206/sortedford/S1%20Restore/IMG_2075.jpg Things left to do are:Fit new rear arches.Repair the bottom of the A pillar, and the rear glass seam in both corners of the tailgate.Clean up the metal and flush down the welds.Fit the new doors & put the bonnet back on.Spot the wings on.Prep for paint.Clean and paint running gear.Protect and paint underside.Paint interior.Paint car.Refit bits So this weekend will see all the engine and running gear removed so that the underside can be stripped off to bare metal and inspected, cleaned, treated and repaired if needed. I'm currently looking into different solutions for protection of the underside, so will be writing up on the chosen ones soon. And I've made an excellent contact who is going to start producing carbon VIN and colour plates. Samples should be with me soon, so news on the when I receive them. I'm not on the look out for bits to put back onto the car, its looking like I want:Parcel shelf supportsPlastic sill trimsDash :/Drivers seatTyres for my new wheelsBoot and side decals There's now light at the end of the tunnel, just got to decide what shade of Diamond white its going to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stoney Posted January 3, 2013 Share Posted January 3, 2013 what about frozen white........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt86 Posted January 3, 2013 Share Posted January 3, 2013 some serious work going on there.....but well worth it, seriously love S1s! Great work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sortedford Posted January 4, 2013 Author Share Posted January 4, 2013 I think I want to keep it original-ish Stoney, just got to decide how white/ cream its going to be. Thanks Matt Pics now added Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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