Panels.

I have finished stripping and repairing the engine lid, right guard, spare wheel door and the right rear guard. These panels are in primer now awaiting some colour. The rear panel, rear and front left guards are stripped and are off to the panel beater today for some repairs I know I am unable to get right.

 Repaired and primed.

 It took a long time to strip this panel.

Rust repairs on panels.

So far I have stripped 3 panels back to bare metal being both right guards and the rear panel. The front right guard has a rust hole at the bottom where it meets the sill which is a common area for rust on the 8's and 10's. Welding in a new piece of metal in the hole was difficult due to the original thin metal used.
Surface rust is lurking behind the bitumen sound deadener on the underside of the panels. I removed this to find the metal never had any paint on the metal from the factory and the deadener was put over bare metal. The underside of all the panels will be treated with POR-15 then primed and painted the same as the top side.
I have completed the fitment of the heater controls, so all I need now is my harness back to complete the dash area.

 Bottom section of front guards. A common area for rust.

 A new section of steel welded in. Rust proofed and awaiting some filler.

Surface rust lurking beneath the sound deadener.

All panels treated with POR15 on the inside to prevent rust.

The most frustrating job so far!

With the arrival of more parts yesterday I decided to install the heater hoses and fan. This is by far the most frustrating job on the car so far. It would have been much easier to put the hoses in without the suspension and steering in place and the car still on its side. I eventually got the hoses in place and found while fitting the heater fan body there was not sufficient room to fit it with modern hose clamps in place. Some modification of the fan body was required.
The control section where the cables connect to the temperature and flap controls was never designed to last for over 40 years and it has broken where the cables clamp down. I removed the broken pieces and repaired them with Araldite. I hope they will work OK when installed.
I've been stripping all the body panels and a couple of the bad ones will be taken to my panel beater for repairs. As paint stripper doesn't work well (if at all) on enamel paints most of the stripping is done by a rotary sander and finished by hand. Dirty and dusty work.
I hope to have some painted panels on the car in the next couple of weeks.

Panels and Parts.

If you have been watching my resto for a while you might be thinking, when is he going to start on the panels? Well you'd be right in thinking I've been avoiding them! Being on holidays now I have no excuse not to get them done. I hope to strip and repair one panel each day and then prime them all together. I have done the rear right rear panel and spent some time making sure the fit is good. The rear of the panel is where the trouble always is and this was no different. Small repairs meant poor panel fit at the back, no mind I think I have it now.
The parts I ordered from Belgium arrived today as well- front heater hoses, caliper kits etc so I will fit them up soon as well. I fitted the lights up front and the new Renault diamond as well so that section is looking good. I took all the radiator panels to have sand blasted yesterday and I hope to have them back early in the week ready for a coat of RFU gloss black.

Starting to look like a Gordini again.

 Awaiting the sanding machine and paint stripper.

Stripped and waiting for a few minor repairs and primer.

Sydney all French day.

We headed down to the All French Car Day in Sydney today to check out some Gordini's. It was good to be reunited with my old car and to see all the others on display, 5 in all. I also met up with a one time owner of my car being Andrew Kubienski who sold it to Ara Vartoukian in January 1982.
Enjoy the photos.

 Jason Emmelkamp's very original R1135.

Steve Kozak's 1135. 

 

 James Coleborne's 1135 in 1969 Monte Carlo livery.

 R1134.

Dashboard

I finally got the dash back and it looks good. The finish I think is very close to the original. I'm about to start 2 months holidays so I hope to get a fair bit done on the car, hopefully it will look good for those coming along to the Gordini parts sales day later in the year.
I also got a price to have a set of 3 piece racing wheels with  GOTTI centers made at 13 x 5.5 inch. $2,600 for a set of 4. I would prefer a set of Cosmic Ribsters though.

 Refinished dash.

 Click on the photo to get a better look at the finish.

Waiting for the wiring harness to come back so I can plug it all back in.

I have to get the instruments rebuilt as well.

More parts on the way.

I have ordered more parts from Belgium to keep the project rolling along. Caliper kits, heater hoses etc. I have also sent the wiring harness to Victoria to have it checked, re-built and re wrapped.
I took the dash to the local Powder Coater's last week. They have a textured finish that replicates the original finish almost exactly (much better than the spray can wrinkle finish). When I went to pick it up yesterday I was not happy with the finish near the Speedo hole so I asked them to do it again. They were less than happy with my request stating they were trying to save me money!! I quickly told them I would not accept a half arsed result and things should be done properly the first time (good business sense). They had the hide to complain that it would now cost them money. It should be ready by Thursday.