W685 KRM - ( the ) Dominatrix

Foobar

Club Member
Jul 30, 2017
2,845
2,370
Great Yarmouth, NORFOLK
Spent some time today to do a sort of 'photoshoot', here are some of the results and wannabe entries for a calendar competition. I found that there is a tendency to try a few 'arty' shots, or to get a little distracted by the background, but most of these are intended to showcase the car.

Oh, and Dominatrix ? Well as the 3rd owner to 'slave' over the needs of this thoroughbred, it seemed kind of appropriate. It demands attention and has its own way of letting you know what it wants - ouch ! :devilish:

I hope you like the pictures...

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20190921_164314.jpg I love this one...

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More to follow...
 
She's a gorgeous car and I'm proud to have helped (in a small way) give her the future that she's earned.

You're the best owner she could ever have asked for, and your pictures tell me just how much you like her.

Incidentally, that NSR shot with the railing shadows is fricking awesome. Did you get that posted in time for the 2019 calendar?
 
Thanks Chris, I've got my fingers crossed anyway - don't you mean 2020 calendar ? I was having that problem myself. Unfortunately, I've only just got back after about 10 days at Addenbrookes with Elaine. She got rushed in due to a cranioplasty infection which had to be removed and is now going to need another op to replace it in 3 month's time. Anyway, we're still here and live to fight another day...
 
Yes, I did mean 2020!

Warmest regards to Elaine (and of course to yourself and the rest of your family). Fighting onward is part of the self, but wonderful hospitals like Addenbrookes make it possible.
 
Foobar, i'm not the biggest fan of bodykits but heck that's a fine looking Cougar, she looks so sharp and superbly photographed, V artful. The wheels really add to the sharp look.
Sorry to hear about your better half, fingers crossed for a fight back.
 
I've noticed you've added a spoiler but hadn't mentioned it on the basis of 'if you haven't anything nice to say, don't say anything at all'. It's not my personal cup of tea, but that's irrelevant as she hasn't been my car for quite some time now.

Overall, she's looking in fine fettle and I'm extremely grateful to you for keeping her that way.
 
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Spot on my man ! Actually, it was already in Melina and you just can't see the scratches in the photo ! ( honest version ).

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Fair enough Rich, I value your opinion and taste ( for obvious reasons ).

I must say that it was originally intended for KGV, that now sits there looking a bit ignored and wondering which bit I'm going to swap off of it next. Even then I was torn between looking like a 62 year old toy boy racer and just having a great looking car. But to be honest this has turned out to be more than just that. It really does look like its meant to be there and that this car actually should have one, almost needs one, and to be complete and to be itself. Its hard to explain until you see it, but it really looks just right, not what I had envisaged I might add, its a different shape to some, like Al's Roush, but it just looks right now that its there. I think that is because it is a very basic, simple shape and looks mainly functional ( although probably isn't in the slightest ). Others may disagree, but I'm very pleased how it has turned out. Here she is before and after :-

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Front Bumper Replacement on KRM

I've been a busy bumble today. KRM on the drive, chocked up and jack + 2 axle stands at front, couple of ramps underneath for good measure. I needed to remove the cracked bumper after our encounter with 'Bambii' and see what else needs sorting underneath. The Roush kit front bumper will make a reasonable substitute whilst I try and get the original repaired. Oddly enough I was speaking to a local farmer only a couple of days ago about footpaths, he mentioned he is now having to cull deer due to an increase in their numbers and several accidents locally. I removed the 'arch liners and headlights, front bumper and a few other bits and bobs.

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I didn't have the anticipated issues with wing/bumper attachments. They were old and crusty and liberal amounts of plus gas had been administered yesterday and again today. I made really sure that any sockets / spanners fitted well and fully onto the bolts before starting. Despite taking it easy and progressively undoing and retightening to clear the threads, as well as wire brushing at the start, all but one sheared off. Still, they came off which is all that mattered. Biggest removal issue was those front bumper stays, the wretched captive bolt / spire nut thingies were a right Gobi Paratha.

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I was toying with the idea of making some stainless steel plates up and finding some stainless bolts to tack in and grind the heads off. However, the ones that came off look like they just need a wire wheel and a coat of something to last another 10 years. So I will reuse them after I replace the bolts. I also encoutered my first sponge, at the top of the NSF wing, but there wasn't one the other side. Then there are closed cell foam 'trays'(?) vertically at the back of the wings to stop water I guess, under the 'arch liners. Do they constitute foam or are they something else I wonder. I.e. I guess they must go back.

Both headlights need rubbing down and brightening up. So that's part of the same job. Although I noticed that one of them has moisture in by way of condensation, its threatening to ruin the silver dip coating ( that doesn't actually do anything except look pretty ). I managed to get that lamp out and to the greenhouse where it was dry by the time I cleared up tonight. I assume it is due to heating during the day and sucking in cold damp air at night. Not sure how I could test them for airtightness without risking getting water in. Pumping them up and holding them under the hottub seems a bit risky.

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The NSF 'arch liner is damaged, as is the horn and the A/C condenser. In fact that looks amazing, it is now curved in the middle where it droops and the fins are falling off. Funny thing is the A/C still appears to be working. I also lost a foglight, but now have a choice of about 7, including a pair with melina covers on ! There is also the cracked plate issue on the side of the gearbox. It looks nasty, but not sure if it can be replaced ?

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I can't see anything else too serious, although the subframe has a fair ding to a bracket where the radiator sits on and the horn is kind of wrapped around its mounting bracket. The white 'buffer' under the bumper seems unscathed. The NSF 'arch liner is totalled, I can't see a way to fix that. Does anyone have a spare ? I'm also short of a few clips and things that either broke or were already a bit sick and I finished them off by removing them. All the nuts and bolts will be replaced by stainless if I can source them at my local fastener place. I will also change the washers for SS and a few more I've spotted around the engine bay, where the bolts are already stainless, but have rusting washers under them for some reason.

However, the biggest issue seems to be tinworm in the sills. The bodykit has done well to keep these covered, but as the pictures show the wings and fronts of sills are bad. My local garage spotted these soon after I acquired the car, so it wasn't a suprise. I'm not sure how the side skirts are fastened on. There is a screw at front and back, but there seems to be something under the paint below the doors. They rock along the Tiger Seal line, but don't actually want to pull away and I don't want to damage them.

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I think my solar panel is not providing enough volts to charge the battery. I had the radio on all day and perhaps the boot lights were on. By this evening it required a full charge that was running at 19 Amps. I took a look inside the solar charge controller, but no little twiddle pots to play with and it has a PIC chip in so little chance of finding the voltage setting components. I'll look on eBay for an adjustable one.

Tomorrow is another day though and is set to be a good one I think. Maybe I'll do the headlights first...
 
Dont worry about the cracked plate on the side of the gearbox Noel there all like that, most of them have that chunk missing completly !
 
Noel, there is a NSF arch liner in the forum spares.

The cracked plate is on the end of the shaft which carries the reverse idler gear and it looks like the last time the wishbones were changed someone took the easy option and put the bolts in upside-down; you might want to check on the clearance between the top of the right-hand bolt visible in the photo and the bottom of the gearbox casing.
 
Foobar if I were to number your pictures from 1 to 7 Starting at the top of post 14.
No 1. Whatever that addition is to Fords design is fine by me, from the angle you show at least.
No 2. I don’t dislike that either, I’d need the profile to comment further although looking again I prefer the subtle lip spoiler in 1 to the larger in 2 but that’s maybe because I have neither.
I like the ST badge. As a 58.5 year old toy boy I understand your concern. ( Yippee I’m not the oldest around here ! )

Oh and I can heartily recommend the toy boy bit. I reckon most of the world has got it wrong, me and Foobar know this to be correct.

Into post 15.
No 1. Please tell me you polished that engine before you took the picture.
No 2. 230V lead being used outside of the equipotential bonding zone. No doubt you have it protected by a 30mA RCD so I‘m sure it’s fine.
No3. Saggy heat exchanger. I don’t have that, (yet). Although I did treat and Hammerite that base rail a few years ago. I’m not sure I’d go far with that sag. I observe also the bent rad support bracket, I wonder how that happened.
No 4&5. Strange. In my limited experience I’ve not seen that. Others say it’s fine, no doubt they know but I’d be looking for a replacement, Ford or otherwise. If it fails will it empty the gearbox of oil?
No 6&7. Bottom of the wing gone. “ That’s fine Sir they all do that” not MOT failure and can be fixed with welding and filler.

As to the wing liner, if the one available from Quicksilver ends up on KRM it’ll have done a few miles off car to get to you. I reckon the vertical foam thing that protects the A post is worth it’s weight in Gold so please refit them.

And if you need the wing / bumper brackets fixing as I did to mine then chuck em in the post. They might not be pretty but they’ll work.
 
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Not much progress today. I was going over the Wife's Vectra for the MOT tomorrow. One little snag, there was a thin slice of tyre sidewall dangling down, where the wheel had been kerbed. Nothing that would materially affect the strength of the tyre, but hanging there it was going to attract attention. I spent ages trying to glue it back in place so as it didn't notice - but it did. However, I challenge him to pull it off, I used professional chemical buffer and vulcanising cement - see Rema 'Tip Top' products. I need to find a muddy farmyard before the morning...

However, the moisture in the headlights. I thought I'd dried this out, but when I came to move it, it ran 'round to the front glass. So I carefully put that one back to bake a bit more. Moving to the other one I examined the little 'reservoir' below the lenses where it seems to settle, that one was dry. Then I found a possible cause, the wiring on the back, or at least where it should perhaps be routed. It looks like the grey plug was originally in the rear cover, that leaves a 1" diameter hole ( which unfortunately you can't see in the photo ).

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I'll look at tidying that up before I refit it and maybe mount that 'CANBUS' resistor in a better place, or maybe even get rid of it. I have made progress with the 'Bulb Failure Module' that I got from Chris' Tiger. When I get a moment I will update that thread with some photos so you can see what I found.

I then broke out the wire wool and started to rub the lens down. This was going quite nicely at first, probably beacause I went for the yellowed area first. I found that as I moved further down the lens, that the existing coating was incredibly tough to remove. Whether this is an original coating or a previous refurb I'm not sure. I'll probably change over to 'Wet & Dry' tomorrow if I get a chance...

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Foobar, if I were to number your pictures...

Hi Mabo, I couldn't find a profile picture, but there's always this one. From that angle it really seems to belong, to my eye ay least. :-

https://forums.ukcougar.club/thread...r-2021-entries?p=603489&viewfull=1#post603489

BTW - Yes, I am a little closer to retirement than you are !

Post #15 - 1 I have a strong desire to claim its hairspray for some reason ! Of course, it used to be called hair lacquer and lacquer is like a varnish. But no, its just a liberal coat of good old WD40. Btw again, that is currently on half price offer in Tesco - £2.75 for the big can.

Post #15 - 2 Yup, RCD plug at the other end of the extension, which is 3 core. Plus another in the consumer unit. I am also blessed with a C&G 2377, so if I get electrocuted the insurance probably won't pay out.

Post #15 - 3 Sagging A/C Condenser. I started finding strips of the fins on the drive before I realised where they were coming from. Its definitely doomed, but the A/C is still working. They were relatively cheap, so a little job for later. At least the main cooling rad behind it is ok. All of this happened during my 'Bambii' moment - the deer got away but I clonked the central reservation, kerb and barrier. I was only doing about 30 at the time, leaving a roundabout. There had been 5 other accidents on the same road that day. Its a new(ish) bypass called the NDR or Northern Distributor Road in Norwich. It is a hiddeous blackspot at the best of times. I suspect the asphalt was watered down with something ( diesel ? ).

Post #15 - 4 & 5 I wonder how complex it is on the inside ? Perhaps a new one could be turned up and refitted. Or maybe the whole works would fall out of place and make that impossible. I have a couple of spare gearboxes if someone would like to experiment.

Post #15 - 6 & 7 I must confess I did wonder if I should have grabbed the two silver wings when I picked up the body kit. At least they would have been in better shape although the wrong colour. As you say - weldable. However, there are holes in the sills, at the front at least and they were made with fingers whilst the side skirts were in place. I am dreading taking those off ! ( When I've figured out how ).

I will, as suggested, de-crud the vertical foam things and refit. As for the plates, I'm going to get myself a proper wire brush for a bench grinder I have hidden away in the shed. It looks a bit like that radiator support atm. I don't know if it whizzed across the back of the car or was bent when I bought it, but needs some tlc to one of the covers. I'll see how I get on and if not I'll be grateful to accept your kind offer.

Got a couple of meetings tomorrow and its going to be a busy week too. Hopefully I'll get some more done before the weather breaks / lockdown returns. Cheers - Noel