• Hey Guest!
    British Car Forum has been supporting enthusiasts for over 25 years by providing a great place to share our love for British cars. You can support our efforts by upgrading your membership for less than the dues of most car clubs. There are some perks with a member upgrade!

    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Upgraded members don't see this banner, nor will you see the Google ads that appear on the site.)
Tips
Tips

TR2/3/3A Popped the top on the TR2

CJD

Yoda
Country flag
Offline
Got the tub off last weekend. Since the sills and floor are totally gone, I was not worried about welding braces. I figured that if it broke in half it would save time!

Interesting that the tub is very solid...surprised me!

C9B3BC13-210B-4F39-BC35-59A77704952D-11031-00000CA4E2D6CC9E.jpg


D3A0893C-B541-4C71-893B-4FBE0FCB553D-11031-00000CA49A5F54AC.jpg


5D5D00E4-7291-425C-AB3D-CBC7C5B05DC6-11031-00000CA52BFEAE83.jpg
 
Cool
 
You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din! I'd be totally overwhelmed about now ...

Shame about the woodwork in the dash; are you going to replace it?
 
I think the wood in John's scuttle would be best epoxied back together in place.
 
Yes...the woodwork is more complicated than I was expecting. The doors, as well as the scuttle, have a bends to the wood, so it will take some thought...and steam!?! Most of the old wood is rotted around the edges. But I have time to think (and ask you guys) about that.

Marv, I bet you are the only one out there thinking it looks "better", But then, I know you have seen worse! I still have not committed 100% to not parting this out. Once I have it all apart, with all the "surprises" behind me, I can make an objective decision about the best plan. I enjoy the challenge...but don't want to dig a hole too deep.if there is no hope. I tend to get attached to old cars, like stray puppies...so am trying not to get attached too early to this one.

The good news, once I got the tranny off, the engine actually turned over easily while I was removing the clutch bolts. So its not a boat anchor...which is a bonus. It did have a drop of antifreeze on the rear head bolt, so that will have to be investigated as it comes apart.

5A359823-D247-4D41-9D99-B57272AF0E29-11163-00000CD09AC1AC0B.jpg


I got word back from British Heritage. They lost the records for the car. I was kinda bummed...but guess that gives a free hand to decide how to put it back together. I asked if it is common for them to lose the records...they said "unfortunately it is fairly common with the very old cars".

I set the tranny aside. It seems to be locked in 2 gears at once. Someone even bent the shift lever trying to get it out of gear. It has clean oil in it, so doubt it's an anchor, but will save that surprise for a later date too.

10FAEF60-92E7-4024-9E11-41CC6BA810B8-11163-00000CD6ED1E95AD.jpg
 
That looks like a real project car, some of you guys are braver than I am. You can remove that piece of wood under the dash by cutting a few welds on the sides under the dash. After you repair the wood just push the metal back and tack weld in place. I may have some decent door wood if you need it.
 
John
From talking with you the other day I gathered that your pretty handy with fixing things, so your not going to have much problem with any of it, where the break point is will be a good question. I've got an early TR3 coming (more hub type wire wheel set up), body tub has been restored so I have your back up plan.

Marv
 
John,

In the last picture you posted of your son with a TR, he was much more formal and wearing shoes! I won't mention any differences in the TRs.

I have a non-syncro 1st gear transmission that seems perfectly useable, just waiting for someone to take it. It was a little under water at one point, but still had oil (mixed with water) when I drained it and checked it out -quickly, and refilled with (newer, waterless) oil. I would have used it but decided the totota box was going in the 3. -Just say the word, or drop by...

It looks like the passenger floor is only slightly worse than the drivers side. Maybe it's better. I wish you luck and will cheer you on, what ever you decide.
 
Don't lose hope just yet regarding build records. Folks like Lou Metelko might know better than I, but it seems to me that Bill Piggott and/or others in the UK's TR Register might have other records pertaining to the early cars. And please don't think about parting it out; these are far too rare at this point!
 
Thanks for the tips and offers...everyone! I'll visit each area in detail later. The order I plan to tackle is...

1) Frame restore. Several sections are shot and will need replacing, while it may need to be straghtened to.
2) Body. I plan to hack it to pieces and then rebuild (or rather, replace most of it) it on the restored frame.
3) Engine
4) tranny
5) Diff and other systems
6) paint

I figure each one of those points will be a good 3 months or so...so this will be a while. I'll definitly get back to you guys with the offers, though!

Thanks again...
 
Unless you can work on it all the time I would give yourself a year for the body.
 
Back
Top