Mister Towed on the road...

[Mister Towed]

Back on the road today after a three week refurb in preparation for its third MOT in July.

It's now wearing: an alloy rocker cover, new wheel bearings all round (no pun intended), a new drive shaft to replace the knackered one, uncut 180lb Spitfire springs with Gaz ride/height adjustable front shocks, fresh oil, coolant and brake fluid and had its plugs cleaned and gapped.



I've also sorted out the wiring loom under the bonnet as it was a bit of a disgrace - I just bodged it up two years ago to get it on the road and figured I'd sort it sooner or later - so I spent most of yesterday shortening and properly insulating all the electric string feeding the lights etc, and fitting some quick release connectors to the lights to make bonnet removal a bit simpler in future -



It now feels really tight, there's no 'clunk' from the drivetrain any more and it's driving better than ever -

[Scottie22]

Well done Mr T, all looking good there!

[phil9]

nice too see you back on the road

[Mister Towed]

Cheers Phil, we'll have to arrange a run up the coast one weekend when the weather's nice.

[phil9]

any time off work all next week ....just ring if you about

[Paul L]

Mister Towed – Good to hear you are back on the road.

[Mister Towed]

Originally Posted by phil9

any time off work all next week ....just ring if you about

Cheers Phil, I'll give you a ring.

Some friends asked me if I'd drop their niece off at her high-school prom last night, so I duly obliged.









(not me at the wheel but proud dad - just another Mitchel bruv)







And I'd asked my teenage son to get some video of the car on the move so this is what he came up with (click the pic) -



I'm enrolling him at art college where he'll study minimalism.

[8 Valve Ed]

Originally Posted by Mister Towed

I'm enrolling him at art college where he'll study minimalism.

A pass with distinction I would say! LOL

[reneanglia]

Just watched the vidio but i am a bit dissapointed...........
Installed myself on the couch with a drink,chips and a good cigar and clicked the photo................
Now i am searching for a porn movie to finish the drink,chips and the cigar..........

[Paul L]

I remember trltone taking his daughter to the Prom in his Spyder, a very nice way to arrive.

Shame everyone didn't get into the spirit of the event...



Range Rover with ribbons - Check

Tradition Land Rover (well you do live in the countryside) - Check

Hot Rod - Obviously check

Spyder - Coolest car there.

Then WTF? - Did the guy behind you turn on his yellow lights on to make it a special trip?

[Mister Towed]

Actually Paul, apart from a dog-sled in the shape of a VW splitscreen camper pulled by Huskys (yes, honestly, my lad didn't get a picture but if you look above the car behind the blue van behind the van behind me you'll see her standing Boadicea like in her chariot), we were the last vehicle to arrive (fashionably late as requested by the young lady in the passenger seat). Everything behind us was just stuck in a traffic jam.

Almost all of the prom kings and queens made an effort to arrive in style, there were some cool cars (Ford Pop directly ahead, '57 Chevy etc) and some 'king expensive cars (Lamborghini Murciolagerwhatever, a fugly Cayenne, Roller etc), plus an assortment of fire engines, mobility scooters and tractors (which just happened to be passing). There was even one of these -



...which inevitably plopped a pile of pony poo in the road right in front of us.

Overall it was a good fun event.

[Mister Towed]

Grand day out at Cadwell Park today with three Spyders, two classic Triumphs and a now classic mk1 MX5 making the journey North from King's Lynn -













Wonderful.

[phil9]

was a great day towed ...was your drive back ok ....all the guys say thanks see next time.......

[Mister Towed]

Originally Posted by phil9

was a great day towed ...was your drive back ok ....all the guys say thanks see next time.......

Drive back went well Phil, light traffic and my sat-nav took me around the jam in Boston.

Car ran faultlessly thanks to your emergency cable tie so thanks for that.

Hope you all made it home with as little stress as we did.

Looking forward to the next road trip, there's something really special about travelling in a convoy of classics with like-minded people.

[Paul L]

Mr T: - I always like seeing photos of the "Three Amigos" lined up.

And it is good to see the video clips getting slightly longer too.

Enjoy, Paul.

[Mister Towed]

Nice trip down to the Italian Car and Bike day near Bedford today.

One of my neighbours has a Delta Integrale and we travelled down together, meeting up with a bunch of other Italian car fans on the way and continuing in a convoy of about fifteen assorted Fiats, Alfas and of course Lancias -



The venue was The Sharnbrook Hotel, which is very posh -



I had been a bit worried that I wouldn't be allowed into the display area as I hadn't registered with them in advance (I only found out about this show yesterday), so I thought I might end up having to park amongst the Mondeos in the public car park.

Wayne (the chap with the Integrale) had sent the organiser a picture text of my car though, and they not only let me in, but had reserved a space for my humble Sammio Spyder. Pride of place right in the mouth of the main entrance next to a stunning Fulvia Zagato -



Less interesting cars got shepherded into a field further into the grounds -



If you love Italian cars you'll love this low-key show. There were lots of massively expensive exotics, modern Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Maseratis, but the real stars of the show for me were:

...the row of proper Fiat 500 jelly moulds -



...a pristine Beta Coupe Volumex (supercharged 2 litre twin cam) -



...and an exquisite Lancia Fulvia saloon -



The Fulvia saloon was way ahead of its time with disc brakes all round, a wonderful scrolling drum speedometer and 70hp from its 1100cc V4 motor, but it did cost almost as much as an E-Type when it was new.

The owner has driven it all over Europe, across France and around Italy and clearly loves his car. I'd love to do the same with mine. One day maybe. One day...

[Paul L]

Mr T - Looks like another nice day out.

I'd be interested to know what the feedback on your car was at an event like that.

I'd hope people were impressed with the Lancia "look" of your car, rather than disappointed it wasn't a multi-million pound original.

Cheers, Paul.

PS
Let me know if you are planning to return next year as that is within easy reach from my house.

[Mister Towed]

Originally Posted by Paul L

Mr T - Looks like another nice day out.

I'd be interested to know what the feedback on your car was at an event like that.

I'd hope people were impressed with the Lancia "look" of your car, rather than disappointed it wasn't a multi-million pound original.

Cheers, Paul.

PS
Let me know if you are planning to return next year as that is within easy reach from my house.

The response was all positive Paul. I don't think many people twigged it wasn't the real thing, I heard comments including "that's eligible for the Mille Miglia" and "you can keep your fancy Ferrari's, that's the car I'd like to drive home in" I even got a positive response from those who asked about it when I told them what it really was.

It was a very pleasant day out, I'd have shouted up on the forum about it but it was a very last minute thing as I only found out about it yesterday myself.

[Scottie22]

Very good stuff Mr T!

Loved the " Less interesting cars" bit!!
Half-a-million-quids-worth by the look of them!!

[Mister Towed]

Sorry I've been a bit quiet lately, but I took the decision back in mid July to garage my Spyder and wait patiently until the end of summer.

That might sound a bit strange given how much I love driving it, but there was method in my apparent madness: When starting my build in June 2011, my on-the-road target was January 2012. As pretty much any part-time amateur car builder will tell you, target dates are as easily achieved as a Euromillions multiple rollover win.

This left me finally completing my build in July 2013, which meant my annual MOT test was always due bang in the middle of summer. As there always seems to be a list of jobs that need sorting prior to the MOT, I've found it a bit of a pain to have to take the car off the road and dismantle it just as I want to get out in it and enjoy the warmer drizzle that the great British summer inevitably brings.

So I decided that I'd put off the MOT this year until the end of summer. After the Italian car show the MOT lapsed and my Spyder was put back in the garage for a rest.

It didn't get too lonely though, as I thought I'd make a few changes that I'd meant to do for some time but hadn't got round to as I'd been too busy enjoying the car.

First up, an advisory on last year's MOT was to tidy up (somebody else's) welded repair panel on the chassis. Thankfully, a friend of mine has bought himself a proper hydraulic lift which he very kindly let me borrow, so no more grovelling around on the garage floor trying to weld with my face pressed against the concrete -



He bought the lift as he's a bit of a classic fan himself. He restored a lovely MkII Jag last year and has just finished his latest project, a jen-you-whine (American accent required) WWII Wyllis Jeep -



Next job was to remove the tired old Stromberg CD150's that came with my donor and fit the pair of CD175's that I bought about a year ago. I dismantled one of the 175's first as I wanted to see if they needed a rebuild before fitting, but they look like new inside, which was a bit of a bonus.

Tired old 150's



Shiny 'new' 175's



Which are too big for the bonnet to close



...so it was back on with the tired old 150's.

Oh well, I'll squirrel the 175's away for a future project and save my pennies for some reconditioned 150's.

And finally, in my rush to get the car on the road in 'only' two years, one of the things I neglected was the wiring loom. Under the bonnet was a bit of a mess of straggly wires but I sorted that in the spring. Far, far worse was the crows-nest of dangly bits of electric string randomly drooping out from under the dash. It wasn't just unsightly, I also enjoyed a (thankfully short lived) pyrotechnic show when a live wire I'd not bothered to insulate managed to find a route to earth while I was climbing in one day...

So, a full day was spent yesterday stripping out redundant circuits, like all the feeds for the stereo (not necessary in a car like this after all) and tidying everything up with insulation tape. I've also removed the hot air hoses and socket vents from the heater - I've kept the heater as it's really useful for additional engine cooling when stuck in summer traffic jams and keeps the occupants nice and toasty on winter drives, but I've never liked the cluttered look I ended up with when I fed the hot air into the footwells.

Oh, and I then spent most of today rectifying the electrical faults I'd introduced by tidying up the under-dash wiring...

Anyway, before -



...and after -



The red wires sticking out of the hole in the side panel have now gone, while I've made some leather pads to cover the holes left by the speakers which have now been shelved for a future project.

So, the car's now back in the garage and will be MOT'd at the end of next week ready for the Snetterton vintage sports car festival on 27th September, which is well worth a visit if you're anywhere near Norfolk that weekend.

http://www.snetterton.co.uk/40908.aspx

See you back on the road next week.