I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

[dancedj]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

I have to say it looks amazing mate & I think I have the handbrake part no you need I'll PM you Even I wouldn't go to that extreme to fit my door rubbers but they are perfect!

[zygalski]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

One of the very few cool white cars

[gte 16v]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Thats dedication for you, the strips look top m8, very nice motor indeed, always used to like mine smooth, but the original stuff has deffo grown on me since starting my re- build again

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

I have to say it looks amazing mate & I think I have the handbrake part no you need I'll PM you Even I wouldn't go to that extreme to fit my door rubbers but they are perfect!

Thanks John, got your PM and replied... Yes I tend to go a bit overboard on preparation but I needed the twin grove aluminium channel for another little job on the horse box and had a sort of eureka moment ..... but as we both know these door strips are more precious than gold dust so anything to help steady my hand had to be a good thing :-P ......... I'm not sure they are perfect but I'm pleased enough.

One of the very few cool white cars

Thank you. When I bought it I only knew White & Red (the Jim Russell Racing School ones ) oh! and a Maroon one with leather int ... must have been a Champ that I looked at before finding mine all those years ago but I do like white ........

Thats dedication for you, the strips look top m8, very nice motor indeed, always used to like mine smooth, but the original stuff has deffo grown on me since starting my re- build again

Thanks for the nice comment, yes I toyed with keeping it smooth (when I thought I may not get the remaining bump strips) but now they are on its back to its original look in the same way that I have aimed for on the rest of the car. Smooth is a good look for lowered car in my opinion but we all see things in a different light (thanks goodness or it would be a drab old world).

Laurie.

[gte 16v]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Totally agree, as iv got older iv tended to gravitate back to original, when i first started i thought nothing of chopping bits off, and sticking things back on now i cringe when i think of the things i have done to be different, not so important to me any more it seems, but then again aint been to billing for a good 10 years so who knows what will happen lol

[zygalski]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

I think the question of original vs modified depends on what your intentions are.
With the best will in the world, as a daily driver I felt my hand was forced with regard to swapping the OE hedge-finders for the 15" champ alloys & 195/50 tyres. Lowering the car a little on gear which isn't too harsh also gives me the confidence to properly enjoy my redtop on public roads without fear I'll end up facing the wrong way on a regular basis
Original might be perfect for shows, but for everyday driving, Vauxhall simply got a few basics wrong.

[gte 16v]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Oh well looking original on the outside, and running standard suspension and brakes as well is deffo an aquired taste, i think when i talk returning to original, i definately only would do it on the outside, most of the inside stuff gets done when things need replacing like sus, exhaust, bushes, braided fuel lines, better disks and pads plus sometimes the cost of orig/upgraded parts comes into what you opt for as well.

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Yes I can see everyones point but its very rare that I ever drive the car at speeds that exceed the cars handeling (well I have been over 40mph once or twice lol ) but I' never had any issues or scares when I was using it as a daily driver back in the late 90's but as I say I usually go fast in straight lines not so much on corners and I'd always been brought up on old cars and bikes with not the best of handeling ....

So maybe I should check my AA recovery is up-to-date before the Late Summer Bash http://www.astra-mk2.com/forum/showt...-Sept-2nd-2012 just incase I decide to chance my hand at a bit of fun !!

To be honest my car is no way a "show car" and is not intended to be, I think I'm just putting it back together and trying to at least "replicate" how it looked and drove when I bought it in the mid 90's it was smart, good fun and served me well then

It's always a bit of a shock when I look back and see what I paid for it back then ... thats back when IT programming was a booming business obviously lol ....

Recipt.jpeg


Laurie.

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Well at the risk of repeating myself (from another post)

This afternoon had the wipers off and took them apart (removed the aerofoil), grit blasted, etch primed then top coat with satin black ...... popped the aerofoil back on with a couple of rivets and job done .........



Stripped bare with the Clarke grit blaster


Drill out 2 pop rivets and get access to the hidden bits


Etch primer ......


after a few coats of primer and many more of satin black a couple of new rivets and hey' presto!

Not brilliant but there is only so much you can do with rattle cans, powder coat would be a better option but the home powder coat kit is a bit of a big outlay for a few small parts .... Maybe one day


Yesterday I fitted a pair of front speakers as the ones in there had started to fall apart and I also (dare I say) went around with cotton buds and dash cleaner in the air vents etc ......

Ordered some new mats (paying an arm and a leg but they are the premium ones and having the large GTE logo (I hope similar to the original ones .. or better)). Still seems like there are 101 little jobs that need doing .... Looking forward to a good drive rather than just fixing and cleaning things.

Laurie.

[DarrenH]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

nice touch.

where are the mats from ?

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

nice touch.

where are the mats from ?

Thanks, only ordered last week so I will hold judgment till they arive but having had a live conversation with the guy I'm hopeing for something good, I tried a couple of bespoke mat firms but some said sorry the GTE logo is copywrite and just offered a basic font.

This guy was happy to use my image
MyGTE_logo

but believes he has the same in his stock of logo's

http://www.justmatz.co.uk

I've opted for Anthrasite mat with matching binding and a LARGE (approx 5") logo in RED. Hope they will be here just before Billing (fingers crossed) ..

Laurie.

[Ian T]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Great thread, Laurie, I spent quite a long time last night reading this and like your attention to detail. My kind of car. :-)

Ian.

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Great thread, Laurie, I spent quite a long time last night reading this and like your attention to detail. My kind of car. :-)

Ian.

Thanks Ian,

Shame many (if not all) the forum embedded pictures went missing some months back but I intend to reload them "externally" one day when I have chance.

I've really enjoyed getting mine back to where it is now. Joining this forum last year and remembering how good these MK2's look when tidy inspired me to restore rather than just do enough to squeeze through an MOT test

Laurie.

[mrdezzer]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Be interested to see the mats when they arrive they sound excellent. Impressed with the project the door trims really finish it off

[easytrans]

Re: I suppose its only fair I share my 16v GTE part restoration with you all

Be interested to see the mats when they arrive they sound excellent. Impressed with the project the door trims really finish it off

Thank you, and yes I will get pictures or the mats as soon as they arrive .....


Laurie.