WHAT'S A FAIR PRICE? RESTORATION PICTURES NOW ADDED

Martin · Post by **Martin** » Sun May 31, 2009 9:04 pm

It can be such a variable. I paid £120 about 6 years ago for 1 Riva wing and paint. good enough job. If the quality of the work is good then you don't mind paying. I would tend to employ a restoration specialist ( as I did for my '78 1500 saloon) because they have a passion for their work and pride in getting it right rather than the local guy "down the arches" who can tack two bits of metal together with a view to getting it through the MOT without thought for the longevity of the repair.
£700 for 2 wings & paint sounds ok. How much extra to spray the whole car?

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 7:11 pm

Well the two new wings and front valance arrived today. Problem is one of the new wings has slight surface rust around the wheel arch and also on the inside seem.

Is this normal with new panels? I don't want to spend a fortune putting it on if it will just come through.

Martin · Post by **Martin** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 9:48 pm

Aye, fling it on with rust attached! If it's only that powdery surface rust it'll come off when rubbed down for painting. back to bright metal then immediately apply a good primer/filler. Best done in warm, dry conditions.

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 10:06 pm

Thanks Martin. That's what I wanted to hear.

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 3:43 pm

Well the car has spent six weeks at the restorers. Two new front wings, new front valance. All trim off and resprayed all round.

Picking it up on Thursday. Had plenty of pictures taken throughout the restoration and will put them up for anyone interested.

Looking forward to getting it back.

Moscow_wolf · Post by **Moscow_wolf** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:18 pm

Congratulations on the Lada, she has a lovely set of wheels and a Towbar so well worth 200 smackers which is what these days, a few days shopping in Tesco?

Some things I noticed, the old chrome wing mirrors look like DESMO wing mirrors made in Pensnett, near Dudley in the West Midlands and were very popular back in the 60's & 70's. I used to have a few of them on my Lambretta.

My guess is that these along with the wheels were fitted once the vehicle arrived from Russia much the same as the retrofit to Niva Cossacks etc.

I guess there were 3 mirrors, one door and two wing to compensate for towing or, maybe the door mirror was added later.

Is that model not based on the old Fiat 131 with the twin headlights or am I mixing it with another Fiat?

Why only one fog/driving light under the front bumper, is there a hole for one the other side that has maybe been lost?

Is the chrome aerial the original, but don't tell me it is a retractable? Audi main stealers wanted $300 to replace my chrome retractable on the Audi 8 even though the motor worked a treat, just the age and bad weather destroyed the top part of the retractable aerial.

Can we have some piccies of the interior please just for interest. Is it four or five forward gears, but I guess four.

She should be nice motor when you have her all sprayed up and polished, but I would want to fit a sunroof, (don't ask why, I just like them).

Are you going to do any engine tuning as those oldies invite it and benefit from a bit of vrump work?

Good buy, good luck.

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:33 pm

The mirrors have been removed and replaced with two original chrome mirrors supplied by the factory. They bear the 2103 part number on the underside. I was lucky to find these as new mirrors are only made in matt black.

Retractable aerial is manual operation so will not be expensive to replace if needed.

I intend to keep the car original. If I do upgrade anything it will be the gearbox which is only four speed at present.

Interior is very good apart from top of back seat which has suffered from sun damage and needs replacing. The front driving light has now been removed. It was a later addition and did not work anyway.

Will put the photos up (hopefully) Thursday.

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Thu Aug 13, 2009 8:21 pm

Got the car back today and very very pleased with the restoration.

Too dark tonight to take photos of the finished job, but these were taken at the garage:

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 1:59 pm

GadgetBoy · Post by **GadgetBoy** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 2:03 pm

Stunning.

eveshamsteve · Post by **eveshamsteve** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 2:08 pm

It's come a long way since coming out of that garage where it had been stood for ten years.

The car's not completely immaculate but I am very pleased with it. The alloy wheels are letting it down and I need to find a back seat due to sun damage.
Think I will go and give Alan a ring now and see if he can find one.

Hoodoo · Post by **Hoodoo** » Sat Aug 15, 2009 5:50 pm

Very, very nice. Well done!
Regards,

crb247 · Post by **crb247** » Sun Aug 16, 2009 7:46 am

MMMMMMM shiny

Zelandeth · Post by **Zelandeth** » Sun Aug 16, 2009 7:01 pm

Stunning looking car. Any chance we can have a peek inside as well?

Seeing the photos earlier with the wings off has proved useful for me as well - confirms for me that I really do need to get them off my Riva before I go any further, and tackle the rust in there.

Still can't believe how little was actually needed for the MOT...If I had a list like that on a car which had been in regular use I'd be happy!

Surely can't be more than a few of them left on our roads now?

Martin · Post by **Martin** » Sun Aug 16, 2009 7:27 pm

Looks like I've got some competion!!! Well done Steve. Will you be at Blaenavon? I'm going on the Sunday.