[Srini76]

Hello All,

At the outset , its a pleasure being on this forum and I must admit that all the ideas for this restoration project are from this forum from the numerous threads which I have read.My car is called required a major face lift and I decided to spend on her as she had clocked only 52 odd thousand Kilometers in the last 10 years and she was my first car hence the love affair !!!

Previous work done on the car,

1. Gear Shift cut by a few inches and the thread welded back to suit the factory fitted gear knob (Liked the way it matched with the standard interiors) and a M1000 gear lever boot fitted. This was done about 7 years back. The console unit was sourced from the open market.

2. Basic Pioneer Head unit with 4 speakers and two tweeters. Rear speakers mounted on the Boot Door with a plywood and the front speakers (Kenwood) borrowed from the Esteem (small speakers) which fit in the Dash Board of the M800.

Current work done on the car:

1. Rubbing & Polish with bumpers, mirrors painted white,the grill and Headlight garnish painted white.

2. K&N replacement filter installed - We have removed the regular casing and put in a sheet on top and bottom thereby giving it a 360 degree suction. (Sorry no pics of that and the car is Chennai and i just got back to Bahrain where I work). not to take that pic !!

3. Window frames and the B'Pillar encased in Vinyl Stickering.

4. Suspension and clutch overhauled.

5. Starter motor replaced, all rubber belts replaced.

6. General tinkering and service all around with odd parts being replaced etc.

Next Steps :

FFE required but still not zeroed down on one a few fellow BHP'ins are helping me out with this , I was in chennai for 3 days on business and could not meet with them will do it the next trip.

Checked a few sports steering wheels but decided against it as I am happy with the existing stock steering.

I shall look forward to hearing from all you gurus with any feedback.If anybody could come up with a suggestion for a economical FFE along with any other economical enhancement for the car I would be more than glad. I am in contact with a few BHP'Ians for the FFE also. My car tops at about 110 currently (takes a while to reach there) any ideas to improve that or will a FFE automatically improve that?

The Alpine sticker is there for a while and did not have time to remove it additionally it also covers a small dent in that part of the Bonnet.

Administrator: Since I got the entire inspiration from Team-BHP I would with your permission have the Team BHP logo on the car, please post the logo in one of your replies.

[Jaggu]

A very clean job and well kept car, to improve your top end you will have to design the header to pull the power band to higher revs, but this will affect the low end grunt a lil bit. I would suggest to go with a header which will enhance low and mid end, thats what a city car like 800 needs, this car was never designed for very high speeds (atleast safety aspects wise).

In short pursue perfection with the plus points of the car.

[Srini76]

Thanks for the inputs Jaggu, Yes a low and mid end FFE it will be. Automech is around 9 k and I am also in discussions with fellow Bhp'ians to check any custom exhaust can be obtained for a lower cost. Electra Performance in Chennai is supposed to be really good but its a little expensive. Having already spent a bit on the car I am a little short for the FFE !!!

Could anybody suggest if there is a body kit available for the M800 ? as in Side skirts etc ? I know that a spoiler does not help for the speeds that the car can do but ws interested in the MUL regular spoiler for the rear , its small nice and compact.

[salilpawar1]

I suggest you get clear lens lamps and paint the wheels matte black, if alloys are out of budget.

[Cyrus43]

Salil, I have told you too do that too!! Since a long time!! Srini, Nice car. Needs a Matt Black Bonnet!! And a nice Black Exhaust tip.

[Srini76]

Thanks Salil and Cyrus for the feedback, Yes the wheels will be taken care of in matt black. Cyrus, once the FFE goes in (as I zero down on a vendor) the exhaust tips can be made black. Matt Black Bonnett ?? Let me try it out in Photoshop and update you pal.

Thanks for the feedback.

[desigNation]

srini76-beautifully restored car,congrats,few suggestions,1.please remove the alpine sticker and if u still need something to cover the said dent there,go for a small suzuki sticker in same blue color,2.change the number boards,3.if finance permits put mag wheels.otherwise a great looking car.

[Srini76]

Thanks Designation , The Alpine Sticker has to go as you rightly said, I shall state the problem please advice, The Sticker has been there for a almost a decade now and the paintshop tells me that they have to literally remove the paint to get it out , is that true , for then it will have to go for a paint job and a small patch will blotch it up. I quiet don't know what to do about it. Number plates , yes no questions about it has to go. New ones are in process should be a day or two max. No Mag wheels for me buddy my purse just does'nt allow it.

[agspins]

Nice car mate but //////Alpine...sucks.. remove it

[humyum]

Nice car bro..!!Get clear lense tail lamps.1100 for an original linda pair.Can do wonders for this car in the looks department.

[abhi1309]

1. Remove that Alpine stickering.
2. Throw away the bumpers that you have they are more white than the car itself and look fake, as in 800 never had white/body colored ones. Stick to black which is better and original.
3. Get clear lens headlamps, probably the ones in the newest 800. Front and rear.
4. Get rid of the white grill outline that you have.
5. Get a new license plate. The old license plate yells and says, this car is a restoration job.
6. And yes, paint the rims black, if you aren't spending on the alloys. Better still, stick to wheelcaps.

Remember, restoration is a correct balance between originality and mods. The more original it looks, better the restoration effort is.

[Srini76]

Hi Abhi,

Thanks for the feedback shall work on getting rid of the Alpine Sticker in Front and getting new license plates !!! Incidentally how good/bad are Wheel Caps ? Cosmetically they are fine but is there a functional issue with allowing sufficient air for the Disc Brakes in front Etc? i would drive about 60 : 40 between the city and highways and the highways should be fine even if the wheel caps hinders airflow but would you feel its ok for the city drive as well ??

[mridul]

Hi Srini
Good job with car and looks simple, just a suggestion may be you can tone down the tint to a lighter shade which would give an airy feeling.I think we had spoken on getting a free flow done, I guess you had told me that your cousin would get in touch. Replace the number plates to a smaller size which would give a sporty appeal.Keep in touch

Cheers

Mridul

Originally Posted by Srini76

Hello All,

At the outset , its a pleasure being on this forum and I must admit that all the ideas for this restoration project are from this forum from the numerous threads which I have read.My car is called required a major face lift and I decided to spend on her as she had clocked only 52 odd thousand Kilometers in the last 10 years and she was my first car hence the love affair !!!

Previous work done on the car,

1. Gear Shift cut by a few inches and the thread welded back to suit the factory fitted gear knob (Liked the way it matched with the standard interiors) and a M1000 gear lever boot fitted. This was done about 7 years back. The console unit was sourced from the open market.

2. Basic Pioneer Head unit with 4 speakers and two tweeters. Rear speakers mounted on the Boot Door with a plywood and the front speakers (Kenwood) borrowed from the Esteem (small speakers) which fit in the Dash Board of the M800.

Current work done on the car:

1. Rubbing & Polish with bumpers, mirrors painted white,the grill and Headlight garnish painted white.

2. K&N replacement filter installed - We have removed the regular casing and put in a sheet on top and bottom thereby giving it a 360 degree suction. (Sorry no pics of that and the car is Chennai and i just got back to Bahrain where I work). not to take that pic !!

3. Window frames and the B'Pillar encased in Vinyl Stickering.

4. Suspension and clutch overhauled.

5. Starter motor replaced, all rubber belts replaced.

6. General tinkering and service all around with odd parts being replaced etc.

Next Steps :

FFE required but still not zeroed down on one a few fellow BHP'ins are helping me out with this , I was in chennai for 3 days on business and could not meet with them will do it the next trip.

Checked a few sports steering wheels but decided against it as I am happy with the existing stock steering.

I shall look forward to hearing from all you gurus with any feedback.If anybody could come up with a suggestion for a economical FFE along with any other economical enhancement for the car I would be more than glad. I am in contact with a few BHP'Ians for the FFE also. My car tops at about 110 currently (takes a while to reach there) any ideas to improve that or will a FFE automatically improve that?

The Alpine sticker is there for a while and did not have time to remove it additionally it also covers a small dent in that part of the Bonnet.

Administrator: Since I got the entire inspiration from Team-BHP I would with your permission have the Team BHP logo on the car, please post the logo in one of your replies.

[Srini76]

Hi Mridul,

Yes we did discuss the custom built FFE, my cousin is currently in Canada and I shall have him contact you as soon as he returns. The general thought process is the FFE can be made and I can have it installed as I return to Chennai for my holidays. IN the event that I arrive there earlier I shall meet the gentleman who does this work.

Thanks and best regards,

[desigNation]

srini76-like some mentioned,a clear lamp would really change the looks,and i totally agree with mridul on changing to a lighter shade window film.