Saturday, 18 August 2012

The heart of things


The engine bay, showing the Ford Zephyr 2553cc engine derived from the 4 cylinder 1703cc Consul.

The motor in this Mk3 is undoubtably the original. No obvious works have been carried out, yet it starts first turn every time ( so long as the battery is strong enough) A slight tappet noise is the only detraction - an easy fix that will be attended to when it goes for a tune up after everything else is sorted.


Note the "T" on the vacuum pipe for the trailer vacuum pipe mentioned earlier. This is one of the few parts to be replaced to return the car to original. There is still an intermitant vacuum leak some where though...

It is tempting to get in and clean, renew, polish and paint all the tired parts in here. That won't happen while I own it. Ralph will be preserved as is for future generations. Easy I guess. Easier than countless hours of cleaning and repainting, etc. Still there are many dilemnas. Do I, for example, change to a spin on oil filter conversion?
The radiator hoses are in poor condition. I have 2 new sets, so I will replace them - pointless preserving the car if you seize the motor by ignoring basic maintenance and then have to change a heap of parts.
The spark plugs have been replaced and the leads and distributor cap will also need renewing. I will, however, keep the perished rubber caps.

Ford Zephyr mk3 motor

The horns on the right were full of wasps nests and don't work. Does anyone have a couple of spares for sale? A set of tacky air horns will have to suffice for now.

Wednesday, 8 August 2012

Power to the Zephyr!

Since deciding to keep the Mk3 Zephyr authentic and as original as practical and the battery was getting weak (from jump starting too many friends and neighbours!) it was time to visit the guys at Ariel batteries. Located in Clifton Hill, this place really is a time warp. Etablished in 1947, you have no problem believing the truth of this - most of the equipment still in use is from 1947! Not much has changed in 65 years. The best part, though, is real service from an age gone by. Finding an old style 12 inch rubber case (brand new) was not a problem and my battery was ready in a few days.


The battery even looks alot like the one shown in the original manual.


This sure kicks the motor into life quickly.

 A battery clamp had been made from scrap lying around and it didn't look too bad. As the chances of finding the correct clamp seemed unlikely I had spent a bit of time making it look good. However, the right one did happen along, and after selling a lung to fund it, I have the perfect way to hold the period battery in place. Detracters might say it's a bit rusty, but painting it will only make the rest of the engine bay look even worse! As it is the clamp fits in like it has always been there. I can't ask for more than that.
 Due to a return trip to NZ for a holiday and then getting a really bad flu from my daughter (sharing is caring, right?) I have fairly well written off July. August has started strongly, though. Another Globe mag wheel is now polished and will be painted black as soon as the weather improves.

Saturday, 21 July 2012

1963 Ford Zephyr Mk3 Barn Find Progress Report

Rear View of the car called Ralph.

In this shot taken last night, the newly repainted bootlid can be seen reflecting the evening light in a way the rest of the car doesn't. The poor colour match is not so evident in this light, but at this angle the panel work below the right tail light is quite obvious. No history of this car is known, so exactly why each side has a dent in this particular spot is a mystery. Over all, though, this is quite a flattering photo. The Hustler mag wheels on this side have not yet been polished, but still suit the car.

One of my favorite views of the Mk3 Zephyr, a pose I plan to turn
 into a work of art one day soon. Watch this space...

Out with the camera last night for some twilight shots of my project car, "Ralph", the mk3 Zephyr barn find car that is currently being recommissioned for road use.

The repainted bootlid fitted temporarily to "Ralph"
whilst the other bootlid gets a meticulous resto.

I recently found out the hard way that access to the boot from inside the car is not too difficullt - having fitted the temporary bootlid and slammed it shut, tight on the old rubber seal, I tried to reopen the boot for a little fettling. That's when it became apparent that the newly fitted lock did not engage well with the opening mechanism! Try as I might, the only way to get the lid up again was to be from the inside. Lucky that the rear seat is easy to remove! This was likely the first time in it's life that it had been out. No secret mesages hidden in there from factory assembers of days gone by, though - damn!

An odd shot - the neighbours roofline doesn't sit well with the overall impression.

Tuesday, 17 July 2012

The Road Worthy Condition Cert. (RWC)

 A permit was obtained to allow Ralph, my Mk3 Ford Zephyr, to be driven on the road so that a RWC could be carried out. The underside has been cleaned with degreaser and nice condition black paint was found over most of the floor. The old English car oil leaks have a use after all! Electrical earths were improved. Positive earth of course. The wheels were changed as the Hankooks that came with Ralph were perished and the treads cut on two of the four.



The muffler off the last Z.

 The muffler was also replaced. It was no where near as bad as the one off Z no.3 (above), but the 12 inch "Hot Dog" had a split in the weld that attached it to the pipe at the front. Yes, I know it could be welded, but I also know that these repairs are notoriously unreliable because of all the soot in the crack. This car is for the family and their safety comes first!
 Trying to find a muffler under $100 was not easy. Some were on Ebay, but postage took care of much of the saving. I had planned to fit the muffler myself. The one that was on the car was held on by clamps - too easy! Eventually I arrived at a local workshop and a suitable muffler was not in stock. However one could be ordered in. It was only $60. Then the proprietor had a look underneath. He wasn't really happy about such a small muffler, saying it would be too loud. I like the sound a Zephyr makes. It has a unique bark at certain revs as one accelerates up the gears. The 12 inch straight through muffler was a little loud, OK, quite a bit loud, but then it meant that lovely tune could be appreciated behind the wheel. So a 12 inch it was going to be.
 While looking under the car again, I again spied the clamps. And a few more clamps  - five in all from just in front of the rear axle to the rear tip. As a throw away comment, I asked how much for a new curve over the axle and one piece welded pipe/muffler all the way to the rear. When the reply came back at $100, I couldn't say "do it" fast enough!
 The result was a great job and was even finised with a chrome tip. I was very pleased and it does sound fantastic, like the sort of sound a sea lion bull makes when being sat upon by an elephant.


The Globe alloy wheels fitted with Hankook Optima 225/65 R14 tyres.


Before and after polishing.

 The Globe wheels were in a bit of a state, see above. I polished out the worst of the surface pitting and painted the wheels in a less obtrusive black finish. They will be fitted with a very tidy set of tryes I picked up off Ebay for $110.
 Ralph was sent in to be checked wearing the Hustler alloys that were purcahsed for Z no.3. Shod with Yokohama 215/60 R14's, I figured there was a chance it would pass.
 But no. Eleven faults were found. The prop shaft UJ's were too worn, as were the front shocks, though the tester did say he would let this go. The seat needs work, but more on that at a later date. The pedal rubbers were too worn, the steeering wheel needed to be centred and the pesky earth problem raised it's ugly head again - just once - this time on the front left indicator. The brake fluid failed! I would naturally have this changed anyway, as a matter of course, but that was a bit of a surprise rejection. The Yokohama's had too much wear, too. Pity, as they are a really good looking tyre on the Hustler mags and do suit the car well. They will eventually get fitted with an equally smart looking tyre and go onto the car for every day use.


Spare prop shaft sripped and ready for paint.

Parts such as the pedal rubbers and new Uj's were quickly obtained and fitted. The spare propellor shaft got a paint strip and de-rust job. I coated it with a shiny black ultra tough finish, however, now I'm thinking I'll repair the original one, but leave all the dirt and patena on it. One can't recreate originality...

Monday, 16 July 2012

So what's with that boot lid? (trunk lid)


 
So glad you asked. The previous owner is doing a V8 repower. Lucky he didn't find this one first! His car had been rear ended at some time and a lot of repair work was needed to fix a poor panel job. He has done a great job, but, understandably, took the easy way out when it came to the boot lid. Same story with the front bumper.


Back to bare metal, again as it turns out.


Knowing Ralph came without a good boot lid, I sold the black Z without it's bootlid. Sure it was far worse condition, but at least it meant I had something to put on while I repaired the green lid...


After a bit of work, including working out quite a decent dent that had been poorly repaired, it came up to a standard that would suit the car temporarily.

In Stark Contrast


More bodged electrical. Blue tape everywhere.


Vacuum tube in the engine bay where it squeezes between the exhaust pipe and steering idler!
The rubber vacuum tube again



The lenses, tail light and indicators, have been replaced, even though the old ones may have passed a RWC. Perhaps they will go back on later, as the new ones were only installed because some were available. New just doesn't quite look right.


Boot floor is amazingly tidy.

Unlike the previous Zephyr, the black one, the rust in Ralph is minimal. The boot from Z no.3 was more akin to swiss cheese. While this is more like chalk - quite a contrast. The boot drip lip is perfect in this one, too. Best not to mention the state of the lip on the black car...


Did I say it was tidy?

.

First Impressions

Although the last owner is Victorian, the car previously came from South Australia. One can only assume it spent most it's life there. First impressions once delivered did not disappoint. The car was infact better than expected. The carpets are absolutely useable, the doors close easily with one finger. No major dents and only surface rust where Ford Australia failed to apply enough paint when new.




Obvious fail points for the roadworthy Cert. will be wiper blades, 49 years of oil seapage along the underside (hence no rust on the floors!) and maybe the dodgy trailer wiring is why the indicators are so dull and slow. Yes, that is a bakelite 240 volt 3 pin plug under the rear valance! There is also a rubber vacuum tube and 3 core electrical cable running the length of the underside... WTF? Luckily all is removed with no major tell-tale marks left behind.