:: Diary - August 2004 ::

:: Sunday, August 1, 2004 ::

Added "todo" section to the site - list of jobs including those completed so far. This is a bit daunting, to be honest, as the list of jobs to do seems to get longer, with little sign that the car is showing the benefit of this ongoing work.

Never mind, I'm getting there. I think.

:: Tuesday, August 3, 2004 ::

Finally got the 4 wheels sent away, after carting them about in the boot yesterday but not getting a chance to keep still long enough for a courier to collect them.

:: Tuesday, August 10, 2004 ::

Passing visit to the mecca that is TVRs factory in Blackpool. No factory visits at the moment though, apparently they have been getting out of hand. I have to order a £35,000 car to see it being made. Em, no, not today...

Nice display of TVRs through the years though - apparently, according to TVR, there were only 110 S3 and S3Cs ever made, so there can't be many like mine left. Maybe 50-ish? This is at odds with Steve Heath's TVR S "bible" which says over 400 were made. I need to check which is right.

I have renewed heart to get on with the jobs I have to do on mine.

:: Friday, August 13, 2004 ::

Reserved a pass for the Callendar Classic on 29 August. Hopefully an indian summer will appear over the next 2 weeks. Huh.

:: Saturday, August 14, 2004 ::

No wheels. Despite being promised delivery today, they ain't here. I am somewhat disappointed.

I discovered that, in the heavy rain while I was away, the boot has let in quite a lot of water. Because the front is raised on axle stands, any water landing on the back, runs to the rear of the boot lid, where there are two drainage pipes to take the water away before it overflows into the boot. I pull out the wet carpets and remove the two drainage tubes. A poke out with a wire coathanger, and then rinse through in the bathroom (one end under the washbasin tap and the other end in the bog) dislodges a lot of crap from each tube.

Also, while I was away, one of the local kids has written in the dust on the bonnet. Not too bad, but their belt buckle or zip has scratched the wing, which will need a bit of careful polishing out. Gits.

:: Monday, August 16, 2004 ::

Wheels arrived today. They put the wrong postcode on so the courier put them on the wrong van. Great.

They look good - obviously the lacquer is much thicker. I put the valves on and load them in the other car.

:: Tuesday, August 17, 2004 ::

Tyres fitted and balanced. Another £30 spent.

I also put a tin of fuel injector cleaner into the fuel tank, then have a test drive. Superb!

:: Saturday, August 21, 2004 ::

After 2 weeks of piddling rain, today dawns bright and dry. A TVR tidying day I think.

First, paint the trailing arm that was welded in May. This proves to be difficult because my red Hammerite has been stolen and replaced by quick-setting strawberry jelly. Nevertheless I persevere, spreading the jelly on in two layers with a brush that is also past its best. The ensuing finish is just fine!

A quick wash to remove 3 weeks of dust.

I then get carried away, cleaning the engine and underbonnet components with a sponge and brush. I then polish the hoses and plastic components, including the washer bottle, coolant tank etc. After this orgy of fiddly cleaning, I find that the bootlid hinge bolt has come loose so I realign the bootlid and tighten the hinge.

The weather demands a TVR drive. When I get as far from the house as I intended to go (about 20 miles) I notice that the temperature needle is climbing when I am sitting in traffic, and I can't hear the cooling fan. I compute a route home that doesn't involve stopping, and a check confirms that the fan isn't working at all.

While this is something of a nuisance, it is not as worrying as the fact that the nearside front brake is grabbing - obviously sticky after the car has been sitting with the wheels off all that time. I remove the caliper, batter it about a bit, put it back on and it seems to work better. I am going to have to replace it before very long.

I am off to diagnose what's wrong with the cooling fan.

:: Still Saturday, August 21, 2004 ::

The cooling fan. After a careful study of the wiring diagram, I deduce that the fault is exactly somewhere between the front bumper and the back one. I therefore resort to the age-old technique of switching it on and using a bit of bare wire to short out connectors until the fan bursts into life. Further sparky connections narrow the fault down to a faulty connector at the front of the chassis. I pull it apart and it's rusted to wossname. I don't have another one so I clean it up as best I can and put it together again. It works (for now).

:: Sunday, August 22, 2004 ::

Spent most of today cleaning and polishing the car in preparation for next week's Callander Classic show. Meguiars 3-stage process applied - paint cleaner, then polish, then a layer of carnauba wax, applied and buffed with an orbital polisher. The car is shinier than a shiny thing that's just been dropped into shiny stuff. Nearly.

And this has also finally removed the finger-writing marks that happened while I was away on holiday.

:: Friday, August 27, 2004 ::

I get home from work and oh joy! The polish fairy has been!

The scuttle and bulkhead has been polished to a shine. When I go indoors I discover that my son has been busy at the car today, which takes the magic away a bit. Still pretty amazing though!

:: Saturday, August 28, 2004 ::

I remove the stupid metal battery clip, and replace it with a webbing strap, after cleaning the battery of course. The underbonnet area now looks really good!

See? Compare with the state of the engine when I got it.

:: Sunday, August 29, 2004 ::

This is the day. After all that polishing and cleaning, this is the day that my wee car will be looking its best at the Callander Classic car show. I'm all excited!

'Cept it's pishing down.

Undeterred, I set off early, braving wind and storm and starvation. I resolve the last bit by stopping for breakfast with most of the rest of the club regulars at a hotel in Callander itself. And a jolly good breakfast it is too!

When we arrive at the show, the field is already turning muddy. We take up stations and the rain comes on. Alistair has brought a lovely gazebo thing to keep the sun off. Some chance. It's not waterproof either. After the shower passes I have a wander about and look at all the nice cars.

Click here to see pictures of the day.

By 2pm the rain has done its worst so most of us leave at that point. Our convoy home is curtailed by the fact that I (at the back) ran out of petrol. Of course the others turned round and rushed to my assistance, didn't they? Aye right enough.

The rain abates by the time we get half way home so we have a roof-off blatt the rest of the way.