Black 16i restoration help/opinions please.
I bought an A reg 16i yesterday, its black and build code 'DS' so one of the last made.
Its mid restoration, and is basically at the body work stage now.
Structually it is very sound, has had very profesional and sympathetic welding repair to inner wing, battery tray, front wings, floor and rear rails.
The body is one of the cleanest i have seen, one small 2" ding in the door where it looks like its been opened onto a kurb and a bit of a very mild concave impression in the boot where the button has been pushed to hard. not an issue but when the light shines on the black paint it is noticable.
Sunroof is basically as new, the roof is flawless and the tail gate doesnt even have and surface rust or little worm casts!!!
I think this may have something to do with the fact that it has been tucked away and off the road for 10 years
Car is basically complete, i may be missing a few plastic trim bits and a few clips but thats pretty much it. In fact only items i can instantly recgonise as missing are the 4 spoke wheel (its got a 3) and the finned cover (which im buying one form someone today hopefully)
Engine has apparantly been apart to check for wear and treated to a new gasket and cam belt, but the seller warned my the chap who did it he fears reused the bolts. So for the sake of £150, I will give it a new gasket and bolts, check head and skim if needed and also regrind in the valves and treat it to some valve stem oil seals and a gasket set
Car is running dizzy, but thankfully the last owner kept the full twin coil set and sensor wire so these will be going back on!
Car is totally HPI clear, even the mileage didnt show a discrepency, ive got a nice ford leather handbinder full of service info, mots and handfulls of recipts over the years, user hand book, audio book etc.
Now heres my question, I know its up to me at the end of the day, but I thought id get a generall concensus.
My last S1 I restored over a 3.5 year period, and you could litterally eat your dinner
of the underside, but the problem was (and part of the reason I sold it) every time i took it out i used to cringe and ended up resenting the car.
After only 3 months on the road, I even stripped the bottom again and repainted it!
The 16i is the ideal base to make a very very good working concourse standard car, and I feel as if I should honour this, but also I plan on keeping this one for some time. (Which no one believes, as my mates think im a car whore ive had 15 in the last 6 years, not to mention work on mates projects also
)
Id love to do it with the dove grey and black over spray, bolt and zinc bolts, green pipes etc.
But also after all the work that has gone into the welding repair, i feel as if i should give it a heavy coat of the body black and then a few liters of waxoil so im safe in the knowledge its all protected.
I plan on using it quite a bit in the summer on weekends, and as you know the british summer has a lot to answer for
What would peoples opinions be on this. Like I said I plan on keeping this car for quite a while, but also i am aware the 16i if fast becoming a classic (if not already) and is also getting rarer buy the day it seems, especially one with a clean history like mine. So also i can not ignore the investement side of the car, if at some point down the line i come to sell for something else.
So what do you think?
Pics to follow as soon as i get a minuite
