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 ).
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...
- - - Updated - - -
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