MOT Failure.

[Smallfry]

Oh well..........Ellie (the Rover) failed the MOT today.

Rusty front subframe. Sills.....both sides. Boot floor, and inner rear wings

I knew it would of course, so its not exactly a suprise.

At least all the lights, wipers, and the horn worked !

So what now ? Decisions decisions. Do I scrap it ? Do I leave it in the garden for ten years to rot ? Do I let the banger boys have it ? Or do I rebuild it ?
Trouble is paying a professional is out of the question, and I just dont have the time at the moment, what with a young family and all.

[Phil Nottingham]

Bad luck - sometime since I heard of a subframe failing although I had two go several years ago. Both on the rear cross member one with stress cracking around the torsion bar mounts, the other where the bottom rusted out.

The work you have to do is very time consuming - it would be better to look round for another and break yours?

Hope you can sort something

[Deleted]

hi dont be afraid and get on and do it.the one you bye mite be just as bad and yiu could spend alot of money on it.look around sometimes welding is not that bad and cheap

[Geoff Arthur]

Dont panic!

It might not be as bad as you think. Try and find a local repair shop who will give you a sensible price to fix it and then work out how to fund that and keep it going. The car you have is not neccessarily any worse than the car you might buy. Treat yours as worthless and then see what it would cost to get it through the mot, then consider its value at that point. A P5 dead is not a good thing so any effort to keep one going is worthwhile. Good luck.

[Smallfry]

WORTHLESS Geoff ? Bladdy cheek !

I have been looking at it today, and its no worse than I thought really. I have not taken the wings off yet, but as far as I can see, the front and rear scuttles are OK, despite the fact that Rover did not seem to actually get any paint inside the sections.

I tell you what puts me off, and thats having to have the whole car in bits to do it. Have you ever seen how much space you need to store it all ? It also takes a lot of time to label and bag it all too. In the past I have thought that I would be clever and just throw it all in a bucket and sort it out later, but after a year or two (or ten) you tend to forget where the bits go.

I just wish I had somewhere to store all the interior, and the doors, bonnet,and boot lid, and the fuel tank, and the rear axle blah blah blah. The bodywork itself is not a problem......apart from the amount that needs doing.

The other thing is, that once you start letting in new metal, where do you stop ? How do you gauge what is acceptable, and what isnt ? How far do you go ?Although I want it to be a first rate job, I am afraid it will end up whereby I will be afraid to use it in case it gets scratched or damaged. This is unfortunately what happens when you have invested your time, rather than just money in a vehicle.

I know at the end of the day its only a car, and millions have gone before, but its strange (stupid) how you get attached to them. I dont think scrapping it is an option, but I wonder if it will ever see the road again, or will it end up another "unfinished project" five years down the line.

[Deleted]

The answer to your dilemma is to only do one part at a time. Dont take off doors or boot lids that dont need it.
Taking it to a garage that specialises in chassis repairs is a good idea as they may be able see ways of repairing that does not need total replacement. Tell them that you will be getting the parts.

[glennr]

Reading into what you say you have my sympathy regarding the car. Especially with a young family, where your time and energy gets used up with them, and quite rightly too. They're only young once and you have to jiggle your time (which is probably precious little) against that of the car. My advice is don't rush into your descision, think it through then think it through again. Look at how you could get the car fixed in a suitable time frame. A decent mobile welding company might be a suggestion? Whatever your descision it will cost money and time. Good luck with your descision and remember it will probably be the right one.

PS. Sorry if I sound like an agony aunt

[stantondavies]

I would do just enough work to get the car through the MOT to KEEP it RUNNING. If you are too ambitious, however desirable, the car will never get finished because there are always other committments fighting for priority. And I speak from experience!

[Phil Nottingham]

I agree but be prepared to cut your losses if its too bad - there a loads out there some very good and very cheap but others total rubbish at high prices

[Smallfry]

I had in mind doing a bit at a time, take one wing off and fix whats underneath over a few winters, but the trouble with that is, each bit that wants doing is connected to another, and that makes it difficult.

The inner and outer rear valence needs doing, along with the panels that go between the valence and the edge where the wing joins, so you have to do both sides anyway. At the moment it is made from some beautifully sculpted aerosol foam and filler (along with the sills) so its all got to come off.

I am not really into getting someone else to do the work, as most of what I have seen leaves an awful lot to be desired.I don't like to have the finish the job off with loads of filler.......it seems to defeat the object. Apart from that, I don't like "chequebook restoration" either. It always makes me laugh when I see features in magazines with the owners chest puffed out with pride, saying how he has restored/modified the car, and when you read the text, it turns out that A did the bodywork, B did the paintwork, C did the interior trim etc etc.

I like to see cars where the owner has given a bit of himself to the job. I know we all have our limits, and sometimes the desire outstrips the skill, but in my book you have to at least try it.........you might suprise yourself !

As Glenn has said, I think I will sit on it for a while. Shame really, as I was going to try a set of his sill trims

[Deleted]

Are you sufficiently attached to the car to one day want to see it fully restored. Or, when its gone (sold maybe) will you have regrets in the future. One day you will have time and money and will no doubt hark back to the days when you owned the car and may search for her in vane.Surely, there must be a relative who could store some large items above their garage and you could work on the car over a period say ten years.Why not? My tip, keep it and waxoyle it like a car has never been waxoyled before.

[Phil Nottingham]

There's bits of myself in/over all sorts of cars over the years - the problem is that I like to use them as well - work I have done years ago has survived longer than it did originally but no amount of waxoyle prevents it from going again - the only problem is that I have left too many bits now and I am not particularly bothered if the car does not outlast me.

None of my cars will become abandoned restoration projects - they will either be fixed by me or broken to provide useful spares for another suitable one