Project #2...Nissan Figaro

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Hard to see but it was actually 3 layers...I decided to repair from under the arch as access is very difficult inside the car.

It's hard to see but the bottom pic shows the wavy bit which is the boot floor lip...then the bit on the left is actually a separate piece.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

All sorted...bit of a faff but got there in the end.

I'm not putting the plate back on at least for now. If it turns out that it is needed then I can add it back but can't see why it's there...other than to trap dirt and water!

I don't think the other little plate is used either....decided to leave it in but cleaned off all the sealer and will reseal.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

While I was there I also sorted this small bit too...luckily the member underneath was still ok and cleaned up.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I did use weld-thru but forgot to take pic...here is the final repair with some etch primer.

 

[jpmillermatic]

I think your repairs are clean and neat. do I see improvement?...I think so...its inspiring for sure. nice job!

Jp

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Cheers JP...yea it's definitely getting a lot easier to judge what needs cutting out and how it needs to go back together too so in that regard I think it's getting easier. I still have days where nothing goes to plan of course....all part of the fun I guess.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

With the boot repairs mostly done I decided to move back to the floors. Managed to hack off the factory sound deadening...underneath the floor is actually very good. Just one small hole which I fixed near the front on the join...sorry the pic isn't great.

 

[HopefullySoon]

do you still have figgy 2 to start on after this ones done ?

if my MG comes out half as good , id be made up .

Malc

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Cheers HopefullySoon...yea Figgy2 is still patiently waiting...I'm really hoping it won't be as difficult but to be honest I think it will pretty much be the same in terms of rust. I managed to lose the jack point reinforcement plate so had to dig through the scrap box...man is there a lot of rusty bits in that scrap box. I saved all the bits I cut off...I might set them in resin or something .

Figgy2 mig end up being a little different as the missus wants something more custom....have to wait and see....sounds more interesting to me...de-chrome maybe?

I also have a track day MR2 roadster to build...

 

[HopefullySoon]

if i can ask pd2 why a roadster for the track ? .... seems a bit of a waste of a soft top when i assume ur going to roll cage it . wouldnt a tin top be better ?

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Well now you're asking....so I bought it as a donor car as it had a load of nice bits already on there like the hard top, leather interior, super street suspension and loads of body bracing. I suspect the guy who sold it had been trying to make it into a track car....except I suspect he forgot about a baffle in the sump so the engine went pop!

Roll on a few years....sold the original roadster which was going to be the recipient of the donor parts along time ago and now I'm left with the parts car!...and a replacement engine I bought for it! Have to do something with it....the other option is to pull off the "stupid bits", sell them and turn it back into a normal road car.

I did fancy dropping in the celiac 190 engine but dunno if I can be bothered with all the fettling...

Totally agree....track cars should have tin tops ideally but I've seen quite a few roadsters as track cars.

 

[HopefullySoon]

makes sense .... nothing wrong with a soft top for the track , its just not the norm .

never swapped out an engine in a mid engined car , guessing you drop it down .

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I haven't done an engine swap either on a roadster....from what I've read the easiest is to drop the engine out with the rear cross member and the suspension straight out the bottom. I think it'll be a fun car to work on....and it's your favourite colour too...they are good looking cars I think especially with the matching hard top. Best of all the soft top looks like it's never actually been used!

I literally bought the car and parked it...never actually played with it....grrr

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Small update...made a new sill reinforcer, the original was well past it's use-by date! This is made of thicker steel than the original which seems to do the job of preventing the sill lip from folding when jacking up the car...it's actually quite a neat idea which I might copy for my MR2 sills.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Also refitted the "new" door...it actually fitted pretty good after a bit of tweaking. I'm pretty happy with the lower gap too. I'll be working on the drivers side next and getting that door back on too.

Once I'm happy with the doors then I'll fit the outer sills. Reason for doing it this way is that the sill gap can be tweaked to look right....be alot harder to tweak with it all welded up!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Couldn't resist trying out the boot lid...I did the rear welding without a lid to align to so this was definitely a brown trouser moment...

Bolted it in and it literally fit almost perfectly right away...will need a little fettling but it's maybe 2mm out. Very lucky indeed and alot better than when I got the car...ditching the old boot was definitely the way to go!

 

[Swift&Bold]

There is something strangely appealing about these cars which I cannot put my finger on.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I know exactly what you mean...for me it's the retro styling rolled into a modern car...cool without the compromises!

Been busy today but just with odds and sods...grinding welds, chipping off that horrible sound proofing and checking the floors for holes.

Once it's MOTed this will be a rolling restoration over the winters...am planning to get the underneath stripped completely eventually but for now I just want to make sure there are no holes in the floor...that makes life easier for future me as will be mostly wire wheel work.

The factory underseal is very thin...and failing. This is typical of what I'm finding...just a case of wire wheel, power file, treat, paint...repeat. So far I think I've got to it in time as no holes .

Does make me chuckle when I see owners who are so careful over the top of the car but don't even think about the underside....out of sight out of mind!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

This is where I ended up with the floor... reckon this bit is now good to go. I will likely wire wheel it and then paint it followed by some new sound deadening.

Been pondering what to do next. I reckon I may take a look at the roof drains. I was going to work on the sills but I'm going to save them for last as I would really like all the panels back on before I fix the sills in place.

I may also have a little wiring to sort out too ...also literally as I was finishing and tidying up I spotted a bit of corrosion on the centre tunnel so will have to grind it back and treat/repair as needed.

It really does feel like I'm making progress....slowly. I'm trying to get all those little nagging jobs out of the way so then I just have the drivers arch and the sills to focus on.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Made a start on the roof drains...passenger side cleaned up quite well. The drain hole had some rot which I've repaired. It's quite tricky getting in there...no room for a grinder so all done with the trusty B&D power file. Still need to drill the hole for the rubber bung but very happy that it's all solid.