Dear all, work completed so far is as follows - all door and door closure trim parts are fitted. As old parts were completely worn out including mechanisms, brand new door lock assemblies and brand new window winders suitable for quarter windows have been fitted (yes, I am fortunate, my shopkeeper seems to be quite motivated by all the business he is getting, he telephones people all over Mumbai and collects parts for me. I collect many things from Nasik also). Glasses have been fitted. Used but quite good condition quarter windows have been fitted as new ones are just not available and the old frames are corroded badly. As I did not want to dismantle the original quarter window glasses, new glasses have been fitted, old ones will be preserved. Front and rear windshield glasses have been fitted. New door trims have been made and are fitted using the aluminium reinforcements which came with the car. As original door handles do not match new winders, new handles have been fitted (I will keep originals safely). New heat insulator has been made and fitted inside the firewall. It covers the original Italian fuse box from the back as this fuse box is now just a dummy, I will be using Maruti 800 fuse box for all the new circuits like headlights due to the Bosch relays which I will be using for my 140 watts headlights. I have added 3 wires to the harness going to the back, one for the electronic fuel pump and one for a new idea for the engine immobilizer which I will be trying for the first time. The harness has been taped completely. A brand new roof trim has been fitted. Old headlights (one is broken), original aluminium tail lights (lenses need to be changed), small lights and original round side signal lights have been fitted temporarily as the complete electrical work is remaining. Battery, battery holddown bracket, battery cables have been fitted. A temporary but fully taped wiring harness has been made to enable cranking, starting ignition and charging systems to operate till the full wiring is in place. A brand new front PU seat has been purchased and it is being re-upholstered today. The original rear seat is alsao getting reupholstered. The original seat covers were there inside the rear seat, although spoilt quite badly. I will keep them at home. They are in light and dark grey combination. The fuel tank was painted, a new tank shield was obtained after a great deal of difficulty and the tank has been fitted. A new Ucal Facet electronic fuel pump has been fitted alongwith Maruti van fuel filter. New fuel pipes are routed to ensure perfect operation and clipped as required. The degassing tank was painted and fitted, using Maruti Zen heater hose clips. The original radiator, which was modified for recieving the degassing tank circuit was painted and fitted. Degassing tank pipes have been clamped as required. Original front and rear bumpers (the thin ones, the rear being the long one with original side supports) were polished and have been fitted. It took around 3 hours to align the long guards perfectly. It is a painful exercise but the end result is worth it. A new 3 mm thick aluminium sheet plate powder coated in white colour was made for the number plate, which was then hand painted and fitted below the front bumper with new brackets. I am trying to salvage the original rear number plate with my painter painstakingly removing the old haphazardly applied painted paint (and cursing me for it) but it seems 50/50 that it will be successful, otherwise I have a new aluminium plate ready. An absolutely original aluminium grille (I have 4 of them) was polished and fitted using M6*1.0 fasteners. Radiator side covers were fitted after fitting the grille. Brand new wiper wheel boxes of Lucas TVS have been obtained. They will be fitted shortly alongwith a brand new wiper motor which is being obtained from Chennai. New engine oil was filled. The engine fired on the first crank and idles / accelerates properly. A brand new steering gear has been fitted, alongwith a new firewall rubber. 220cc of SAE140 oil has been filled in it as per specification. A new gear lever is being obtained as the old one has rusted badly. All gears operate perfectly. The rear suspension has been overhauled but I have not touched the original leaf springs (tapered leaves) as ride comfort is very good.
I do not think there is anything left to do now except fit the seats and get the electricals done, which in any case takes a lot of time. First drive this Sunday - hopefully! Photographs after completion.
Best regards,
Behram Dhabhar |