fiestaturbo.com

[heeman10]

I'd rather not slap Hammerite Red onto the Fiesta with a brush! I would be fairly happy sorting almost all the problems, the problem is that bodyshops don't like spraying on top of other people's prep work. I'll smooth the rear bumper strip and fill in the imperfections, then spray it from a tin as I did with the front bumper, but again, it'll only be a temporary finish to have it looking okay at shows. It needs handing over to a bodyshop, though I'd far rather be involved in it all myself. I rang a bodyshop owner who I know fairly well, who works on his own and is winding business down and heading in a different direction, but even he wouldn't let me work side by side with him to prep and perfect the car before letting him spray it. It just seems to be one of "those professions" where they either do it all or do nothing, and I can empathise with that

[Brammer]

I put mine off for ages but when i got it done it was definatly worth it and tidied the car right up, whats the underneath like on yours???

[heeman10]

I put mine off for ages but when i got it done it was definatly worth it and tidied the car right up, whats the underneath like on yours???

Only just seen this, sorry for the delay! Sorting out and protecting the undersides of these cars is so crucial if you want to keep them, but definitely something that begs to be put off Mine's actually not as bad as I thought it'd got over the last two years. I MAY put it in for an early MOT, so if any welding needs doing (one potential hole at the rear I noticed a while ago), I'll get that out of the way THEN seal it all.

Update

Nothing major, but I had the car out for a blast yesterday - new video here:

http://www.heeman10.wefixtech.co.uk/Mossyandheeman.avi

(Please see the top of Page 1 if you have any difficulties playing the video.)

Also, I've decided to smooth the rear bumper, plus sand/fill the odd chip/scrape (two large scuffs from when the clutch ratchet broken, and my mate's dad strapped a sofa cushion to his quad and pushed me 15 metres up a hill!!!) then spray it to match the front bumper It won't be extremely soon, but soon enough for it to be done for FITP.

[filtra]

Excelent as always looked like you two had fun

Top drive

Heeman - <3 the popping!

[MarkRS2K]

cool vid dude, nice flame spitting

[heeman10]

Cheers boys! I had no idea the flames got that big sometimes till I saw them on the video! Don't want any Phil Candy/Guide Dog incidents!

Yeah we had a laugh, but I'm still waiting for a good day to get the tripod and headlight camera out on a good road with at least one other car, combined with the new video editing footage I'm hoping will arrive soon. Cue some geeky effects and more interesting/arty stuff!

[dsgtrain]

Some nice vid's there!

[jimmyesh]

Good vid James!

[heeman10]

Thank yar!

I decided to attack a couple of bits and bobs yesterday, just to clear up some niggles. We all have them! A few parts of my interior resonate at certain engine speeds, due to my stiff gearbox mounts: Steering column trim, centre console trays and handbrake button. I removed the steering column trim and lined the creaky bits with some fabric. The trays and handbrake button will be seen to at a later date

The alarm showed the first signs of malfunction last week, after two years (two YEARS!! Can't believe it was that long ago I fitted it!). I armed it, and it beeped to alert me that there was a zone error, then the proximity sensor chirped a few times, then the siren sounded. After a chat with Rhinopower last night I decided to do an event recall, which only showed the boot/bonnet triggers as the last eight reasons for the alarm going off. So I unplugged the proximity sensor, and the alarmed armed and operated fine. Plugged it back in, and all is now well!

So, naturally, I had to try out my anti-vibration mods! It was a really nice, clear evening last night, so I went out for a run.







And I took these two cheeky pics just over a week ago






And what kind of update would this be without a video?!

http://www.heeman10.wefixtech.co.uk/TripodTrip.avi

[HawkeVIPER]

Looking good as always James.

[D.J]

How hard/ long did you have to drive it for to get the manifold/ turbo to glow like that?

I've seen pictures of them glowing on dynos, but never actually in cars....

[heeman10]

How hard/ long did you have to drive it for to get the manifold/ turbo to glow like that?

I've seen pictures of them glowing on dynos, but never actually in cars....

I actually planned to give it a good long blast for at least 20 seconds before turning into my road end and getting a photo immediately after. Unfortunately traffic prevented me from doing so, but it had a good ten second burst of full throttle. I'll be able to get a far better photo though, particularly when I've replaced my bonnet catch for one that will pop the bonnet properly, first time!!

[p4blo]

Only you James could get a turbo to glow PINK

But seriously, nice video as always, and some good pics there too

[heeman10]

:lol::lol:

[fiestasiphil]

cars looking really nice mate!

[heeman10]

Thanks Phil

Update

A friend of a friend offered to come up to mine with his Porter Cable and various swirl removal products to make my car look as good as possible with its current paint (for a small fee), so we got started yesterday morning around 8:30am, starting off with a washing and claying:





Now for about four years or more, there has been a rust bubble on the driver's door shut, right on the angle where it meets the rear quarter panel. Four years ago I flooded it with as much rust treatment fluid as possible, and dabbed over the broken parts with touch-up paint. I've been babying it since then (2003), and made it very clear to Mr Detailling Person that I don't even touch it - I trickle water over it but that is IT. While he was claying the car, he swiped it straight over the bubble and took a chunk out of it So now, rather than a red bubble, it's a nasty brown/black scab



It was one of two "major" imperfections on the bodywork that made me want a respray (along with the colour mismatches of various parts), and I was planning on getting it through just one more year of shows before putting it into a bodyshop, but I can't even do that now! So...the plan has to be to take it back to bare metal as much as possible, rust treat it, fill it, then somehow try to get a good enough colour match to blend it into the original paint. I really don't fancy my chances, but all I can do is try to make it look better than it currently is. Not what I had planned for the 2007 show season

Anyway, whilst trying to put that to the back of my mind for the whole day, we continued with the PC and Poorboys SSR products, attacking each panel and successfully removing all sorts of light scratches and swirl marks. The roof was the most satisfying. It started to oxidise around 2004, and I'd never been able to fully clear it by hand, but the machine did the job yesterday, so I'm happy about that





The passenger side of the car had a lot of light "drag" marks, as though it'd been too close to a hedge at some stage, but pretty much every panel (bar the roof) had scratches in one form or another that needed removing.

Passenger side:





At work on the driver's side:



Random shot:



And a shot from above. The overhead lights by this time of the day (7pm), the dirty windscreen and the condensation forming on the bonnet didn't really show what I hoped I could show, but it's all massively improved:



Plans before FITP are:

1. Sort the rust scab
2. If I do a good job, I'll then sort the dent next to the passenger side roof rail.
3. Smooth rear bumper strip, fill any imperfections then spray it
4. Possibly respray front bumper a better colour
5. Possibly sand/respray wing mirrors
6. Possibly refurb wheels

If I do that lot, to a good standard, I'd be far happier about taking it to shows

[Xr_Dub]

cars looking very clean i like like

[HawkeVIPER]

That rust spot aside, the car looks beautiful.

[mike_wall15]

Can't wait to see it again in the flesh
I understand the bit of rust now... hopefully it can be sorted to a better finish than it currently is

[heeman10]

Thanks Just had to move it back into its garage place...in the rain Been waiting all day for it to stop, but it didn't I can't find my rust treatment fluid either, so will have to get some from Halfords...on a sunny day, so I can take this car and see if there's a decent colour match available for that part of the car.

[Excursion]

That rust wants looking at mate, for the sake of the panel. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if its already though.

[heeman10]

I don't think it's gone through...it's all black, which is the colour it goes when you apply Kurust. I'm hoping it's largely localised at the surface, but it is a large patch now. Fook knows what I'll do if it has broken through, the only string in my bow is GRP!

[ianFRST]

dam the incompetant people who cant put the seatbelts away properly

[chris-fiesta]

looks mint james... tbh id get the rust scab done by a pro as rust is a b!tch to work with!!

[heeman10]

Ian - Exactly Damn all people who don't look after cars!!

Chris - Nah, the respray is when it'll be given to a pro. I'm all for cleaning the car up as best I can when I take it to shows etc, but it's not a concourse car. For now, I'll make it look as good as I can, then spend the money on fully sorting the bodywork so it's immaculate. I've learned with engines and other areas that there's no point spending money till you're going the whole hog

[Brammer]

Plans before FITP are:

1. Sort the rust scab
2. If I do a good job, I'll then sort the dent next to the passenger side roof rail.
3. Smooth rear bumper strip, fill any imperfections then spray it
4. Possibly respray front bumper a better colour
5. Possibly sand/respray wing mirrors
6. Possibly refurb wheels

If I do that lot, to a good standard, I'd be far happier about taking it to shows

Not really a problem with your car mate as you use yours how they should be used really.
Not like mine, it normally only see's sunshine and to be totally honest its a waste of money having it sat their looking pretty doing 700 miles a year, i want something i can use the way you do with yours its really what owning these cars is all about, so don't worry about a few scabs

[heeman10]

I know what you mean (even though a certain someone will still tell you I don't abuse mine as much as I "should" ), but I still don't want to turn up at shows and cringe when people walk past certain parts of it. I want to be able to polish it all up and be proud of it and maybe see some people appreciate its condition instead of getting the odd squeak from the few people I take out in it! Still chuffed you're coming down, the stand's really beefing up now!

[Sphinx]

Maybe you shouldn't take mice out in it.

[Superal]

Look at the shine on that...stunning

[heeman10]

Maybe you shouldn't take mice out in it.

Yep, you've definitely lost me now!

Al - Yeah, definitely a good plan doing this to see it through its final year of original paint and mixed colours with bumpers and bonnet etc. At least the mismatched panels will be shiny

[HawkeVIPER]

instead of getting the odd squeak from the few people I take out in it!

Maybe you shouldn't take mice out in it.

Yep, you've definitely lost me now!

Make sense now?

[heeman10]

Yes, now it does. Tragic that it takes a French person to clear up a language issue these days

[HawkeVIPER]

Yes, now it does. Tragic that it takes a French person to clear up a language issue these days

Coming from a person from cumbria, that's a little rich.

[heeman10]

I'm not a little Rich I'm a big James!

[HawkeVIPER]

Touche sir, touche!