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Note plain wheel trims and wing mounted mirrors and aerial. Standard flying B radiator mascot fitted here. engine bay was in a very poor condition. The car was suffering from a miss fire due to faulty ignition leads. On road test we were unable to select 3rd gear. Poorly routed heater pipes really let the engine bay down. The old York type A/C compressor dominated the bay.
The car had been restored at least once previously. The trim work was incorrect and poor. With the wood removed we found only one area of ash frame that required attention.
Note unsightly radio & under dash A/C unit. The dashboard had some sun damage. It was to re-veneered with "star burst". The steering wheel was heavily cracked and the gauges were very tired. The general condition of the exterior panels and chrome work was poor.
Many reference photos were taken at this point and they have proved to have been invaluable.
With the wood & trim removed we now had access to remove and refurbish all gauges and switches.
Doors will house electric windows with period style switches.
All mechanical parts were logged and sent away to be sand blasted.
The chrome parts were also logged and sent.
The glass was sent away to be reproduced in Sundym.
The body quietly overlooks its chassis being beautifully repaired. Fabrication work here was excellent and invisible.
Note the chassis had been completely sand blasted.
The chassis returns from being galvanised.
More fabrication required to replace the fuel tank mounts.
Dozens of litres of paint stripper were needed to remove the years of paintwork.
Old repairs were exposed but the overall condition was good.
A jig was made to prevent twisting of the body.
This was then mounted on wheeled trolleys to aid manoeuvrability.
The boot panel floor had perished and therefore a new panel was fabricated and fitted.
Aluminium panels were welded in where necessary and the car was given a guide coat in grey to give the painters an idea of straightness…... it was right first time…. well done to the bodyshop.
Meanwhile, the engine was back from machining and the gearbox was overhauled and ready to be mated.
The engine/gearbox unit was fitted to the chassis without a hitch.
The Special 6 branch manifold and sports exhaust system had been specially fabricated and were now ready for fitting - a complicated process!
The engine was then test run and the gears and clutch tested.
Note: The engine fired on the 2nd revolution of the 1st crank!
Malcolm in action compressing and fitting the front coil springs.
New friction surfaces were fitted all round and the Harvey Bailey handling kit was installed to the front and rear suspension.
High speed tests were done one sunny afternoon.
(The chassis was pushed to the bodyshop at 2mph in persistent rain to be reunited with its body).
With the body now on, finally all the chrome, glass and trim could be fitted.
BC30C looks like a car again.
As the finishing touches we have hand made spats with the 'Mavroleon Wavelet' and also chrome strips incorporating the door handles for the waistline and also for the sills and spats.
Finished within 15 months of starting the project she has taken two trouble free trips. Firstly from London down to the Cote-d'Azure in August 2005 and secondly up to East Lothian in October.
