Back to work on the car; I ran out of time, money and space to continue with the body removal. Particualrly with the garage also housing the bike and Monaro, it would have been foolhardy of me to assume I could do the work and then have safety at the forefront of the project.
Fast forward to last month and after much "umming" and "ahhing", the Monaro went in to long-term storage. Now I have a monthly reminder (i.e. £100) of why the DeLorean needs to get done!
With 4566 having the garage to herself, I got busy.
I revisited each area I knew to need bolts, earths or pipes removed and found I'd missed a fair bit; the steering knuckle being a bigun! Secondly, the rear piping shrouds underneath would not come off; I had to cut, grind and drill the bolts out over two weekend to ensure they would be clear of the chassis.
Lots more space to work, and half a garage to put the frame:
Delorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Seats out (less weight, more access):
Delorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Unbolting the steering knuckle:
Delorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
First job I'd forgotten; bleeding the cluch and removing the pipework:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Easy to do, and ensures no mess. Doing this with the inlet on would be a horrible job.
The shrouds hid much of the handbrake cabling, so now they're free to be fed out of the tub:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Under the carpet, the two handbrake cables:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Air conditioning acculumator is attached the tub, but runs over the frame; leave this connected and something will break, so off it all comes (bone dry.. typical):
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
This is inside the tub (spare wheel well) looking at the rear of the acculumulator; this bolt was a royal pig to undo:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Pipes come off and are plugged immediately. UJsfeul? Not really in this case, but for maintenance on "good" system, a must:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Then on to some test lifts; front:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Again front; useful for acc bolts and access (being careful not to tear/rip/break anything else:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Rear; take note of the frame bolt and distance to tub, at the top:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Again, front, checking clearance (and that damned pipe that just drops out!)
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
And, today: Lifting the tub, as light as I can get it, with wooden planks - using axle stands to hold the body - again, a test to see if it's going to work:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
Another; stands in place:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
And finally, bricks lined up ready:
DeLorean work by
Dan Willis, on Flickr
So that's that. I need another pair of eyes; I have planks of wood ready and 20 bricks (which may not be enough.. we'll see) and I'm ready to get the frame out.
After that, I'll move it to the "spare" side of the garage, remove the engine and start stripping the remainder of the frame to have it refurbished. Then, engine, gearbox etc all get the same before I start on the tub. Lots to do, and I'll keep taking pictures!
A couple of notes:
Bag or refit every bolt loose - it'll never make sense otherwise. Label the bags, label any free cables.
Never throw anything out - it might be rubbish, but how do you know to replace it once you've forgotten?
The smaller the bolt, the less likely it'll come loose of it's own accord, or after repeated "oiling". Be prepared to make a mess and fix afterwards.
Use the manuals and other people; this isn't rocket science.
Oh, don't go any further than I did alone; safety first - more eyes, more trolley jacks!