Thread: My first series 2a project

Originally Posted by Chops

So Carlos, if the 109 is running and whole, albeit in pieces now, what are you going to end up doing with that?
Is the S3 literally only motor and chassis, or is it nearly all there? Pics?

A well timed question! Here is the answer

Top find Carlos, looks to be in very good nick overall, even looks very similar to mine
I couldn't have the sound up, so I may have missed something you've said in the video, but is this a S2 body on an S3 chassis, or is it all S2 ?
Those seat coverings, I'm not sure as I haven't seen them up close and personal, but I wonder if thats the "Elephant Hide" pattern they talk of (?). Hopefully one of the more knowledgeable-ies will be along soon to wise us up.

That looks like a real nice original shorty. Should be much easier to whip into shape.

Chops - to clarify, I was only looking for a 109 chassis to replace the one I got, which happened to be from a S3. However, the owner of said chassis had this 88", so I took this home instead of the chassis. I will also be adding a 2.25 diesel, again from the owner.

To say I am super happy would be an understatement. This 88" is a suffix B (makes it a 1965??), lots of original parts (even the Lucas headlights) and the bulkhead and chassis are very sound. The foot wells on the bulkhead have had some work done in the past, and looks like the chassis has been taken care of with what looks to be not too old paint.

Of course there will be little surprises along the way, im sure there is again rust on the top of the bulkhead where it meets the windscreen frame, but that is nothing compared to the poor old 109. So the 109 will be the donor vehicle for bits, like seats, heater and other bits. Both bulkhead and chassis will be junked when its stripped.

So far, I stripped the roof and tub off, in 1 day. Its amazing how much easier an 88" is compared to a 109", even fits in the garage which will allow me to really get through the work during winter.

Cheers,

I wont be posting every progress vid here, but some that may be more of interest here. If you seen the condition of my 2a 109 chassis and bulkhead, then you would appreciate why I am super happy with the condition of my newly purchased 2a 88

So I now have a Oct 1980 build 2.25 Diesel (3 brg). The first thing I checked was the condition of the oil and also pulled the rocker cover off and checked rockers etc. One thing that I noticed is the oil being very black and thick. In the rocker area, the oil is set, thick and requires a rag to clean off completely. So given the oil condition, ill drop the sump when I can and have a look at the big ends and pump.

Is there anything I should be looking for/doing/prepping given the oil condition (at least it has some!) and the unknown history? The water channels on the pump end look very dry and dusty, so it would of been some time since last run. Currently my plan is to:

1) drain oil and remove sump
2) inspect and clean the oil pump filter
3) Remove water pump as there is play - although im not sure how much play is normal
4) Remove rocker cover and rocker assembly to clean and inspect (the petrol one had the oil holes blocked with gunk). Also do they have valve caps?
5) Remove glow plugs and test
6) change fuel filters and oil filter

Not sure about removing injectors to test, would this be a worth while thing? Then once all this is done I will plumb up the radiator etc and try starting it...

Any advice greatly appreciated

You mentioned checking the big eng bearings, i would also check the main bearings. On my diesel the big ends were new. The mains were worn through the copper coating. The PO had done the big ends but not the mains. He also did the rings (5 ring pistons) and lined up all the ring gaps in a straight line...(dickhead), see my betsy build thread...(going slow atm). Anyway have fun with it. I had trouble getting one injector out due to a leaking copper seal which carboned up the injector into the cyl head. Fun getting it out i can tell you.

Cheers Rod

Thanks Rod. Dont tell me about the injector issue, I had to write off a 300tdi head because injector #2 decided to get well and truly stuck and the attempt (not by me) to remove it caused the lower injector housing to remain (like a sleeve in the bore).

Ill check these then, better to replace the copper washers anyway