Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [7]

After a few days off, I continued the cleaning of engine parts. The pistons took a fair bit of time removing the carbon build up but they have come up pretty well. The cylinder head was next & I have cleaned it before removing the valves. Other parts such as the bearing covers, engine mounts, rocker cover and pulley wheels have been wired brushed. I have a stud on the inlet manifold (not yet cleaned) that has to come out & that may be a bit problematic.
Last week, I also ordered some new parts (rings, bearings, fuel pump, welch plugs) from Autobarn, Macgregor and they arrived today. I find them very prompt & can get the gear really quickly. So I have got most of the important parts ready to put it all together once everything has been cleaned & painted.

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [6]

Cleaning was the order of the day. I spent hours cleaning the block, pistons & all the various engine parts. Some had a considerable build-up of muck which required scraping off. Then with plenty of degreaser & the Karcher, I water blasted them as clean as possible. The rings were removed & the pistons cleaned up with a wire brush on the drill but they still need more work. I haven’t as yet got to the valves as they need a fair bit of de-carbonising. When I am happy that everything is as clean as possible, they will get a few coats of black engine enamel but that will be next week as I need to do other things for the rest of this week.
If you enlarge the second picture (double click), the engine number is stamped at the top (front) in the middle. This engine number matches the ID tag indicating it is the original block.

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [5]

I spent most of the day on dissembling the engine. It was a mainly a good day but a little accident caused me to say a few choice words but more of that later. A quick look over the block produced a few surprises. Firstly, the large rear engine welch plug has been leaking (minor) and it appeared for a long time. There were no leaks from the rear engine oil seal. Another side welch plug had the beginning marks of a small leak and the front oil seal had been leaking. The amount of muck indicated that the block had not been touched for quite a few years.
The hardest part was removing the torque converter from the flex plate. The four bolts were in really, really tight. I ended up putting a bit of heat onto them & them locking a big box spanner into the holes on the flex plate & finally cracked them with my long handled socket. The bolts holding the flex plate onto the crankshaft were also pretty tight but not too bad. Next the sump came off & the pistons popped out pretty easily. There was lots of carbon build up on the top & no markings were obvious.
It was then that I had my little incident. I was trying to move the engine slightly on my little trolley when suddenly, IT TOPPLED OVER & FELL ONTO THE FLOOR!!!! I usually have the crane attached but I didn’t this time and after a few choice “s " words were said, I realised that I was very lucky that it had not fallen onto my foot. Thank goodness I was standing on the other side!  A quick look & everything seemed OK but then when I was lifting it back up, I saw that the distributor had taken the main impact & the case was broken right through. More choice words! Everything was going so well! Where the hell was I going to get another dizzy from? Fortunately I knew there were some club members with a few spare parts so I was prepared to accept my fate. All the other bits came off OK & I removed all the welch plugs. Here are some more pics but I am a bit sorry I didn’t take one of the block on the floor! (One of the pics shows the cracked dizzy!)

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [4]

After a few days doing other things, I got back into it today & was determined to get the engine out. I decided to take out the torque converter with the engine & see what happened. I just had to undo the bolts from the engine to the transfer case & the engine mounts. Also I placed a support under the transmission and jacked the car up a little. When I went to attach the chains for the crane, I realised there was nothing to attach them to – I must have kept the head on when I removed the other engine. Using the two short head bolts, I attached the chains & that seemed to do the job. The engine & transmission separated easily at first but then the sump became caught on the cross member. Lowering the car a little solved this & then the engine was able to withdraw fully. Initially, I was concerned about the height under my house but this was not a problem with heaps to spare. As usual, this type of thing causes fluids to run everywhere & there were pools of water, oil & transmission fluid all over the floor. I seem to be very messy in this respect. The engine crane certainly makes this task much easier. So, today, I feel much happier but this is the last time that I will ever attempt this. Remind me – never again!
(double click on the pics to enlarge)

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [3]

Today was not a good day. In fact, I had the axe & sledge hammer out ready to do the Capri harm but as my back was so painful, I don’t  think I could have done much damage
I started out very keen and assembled the engine crane ready  for the job & decided where I was going to place the car. I have limited head room under my house & I wanted to be able to garage other cars as well as work on the white one.

Everything was going well until I tried to undo the drive/flex plate nuts. Firstly, they can only be accessed through the starter motor hole, one bolt at a time, with no room for a socket but a ring spanner is OK. Secondly, they are really, really tight! Bloody tight, in fact! So tight that I couldn’t undo them. They are not in a great place and lying on your back trying to undo them, only helps the physio! The bolt is shown in the pictures below.


Time for some internet research – very useful for any restoration project. The first thing I realised was that I was not alone in having trouble trying to undo these nuts. I have gained a few tips which I will try when my back regains some good feeling! Secondly, I can take the torque converter out with the engine if one takes it carefully. That maybe is the way it comes out but I will give those nuts one more go with a great deal of RP7 & perhaps a little heat. I also tried to buy an extra-long ring spanner but with no success.
So after a couple of days recovery, I will give it another shot & I hope I can get the motor out to start working on it. It is all fun! I forgot how much fun it really is lying on your back, getting oil & green water all over you.

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL [2]

14/10/13
Well, today I really got into it. Firstly, out came all the coolant hoses & the radiator. Next the oil & filter. Why do I always get drips all over the floor? Then the air filter, all the small water hoses that operate the choke & then the carbie together with all the connections.  The heater hoses were a bit stubborn so I left them for a while. Then the inlet manifold which presented with a little problem. I could not get the middle bolt completely out so I left this until I had removed the cylinder head. Next, off came the extractors without any dramas. Then the tappets & cylinder head – again, no major dramas which is always good. The inlet manifold bolt was secured in a strange way & I may have done that quite a few years ago & I will have to get the bolt stud out for a better fit. Then the mass of heater & water hoses came out easily. I also removed the fan, alternator & starter motor ready for removing the engine. Thankfully, no major difficulties but I can’t get over how dirty the engine is & how much carbon build up there is on the valves & tops of the pistons. Next is getting the engine out & then there is a lot of cleaning to do. I used the camera many times today. I have found it to be indispensable in these restoration jobs.

Capri - Restoration (2) White 1972 1600 XL

For many months I have been contemplating doing a major renovation of the white Capri. It is 10 years since I had it repainted and did all the work on it. In that time I have never done any serious work on the engine. Many bit & pieces have been replaced or sorted such as the Webber carbie & various electrical components but I have never done anything to the internals of the engine. It has always been reliable, never holding me up, but is a bit of a slug.

Several other things need some work e.g. the engine bay needs a good tidy up, the front left hand strut needs a good work over, a few very small rust spots have appeared on the right rear guard, the instrument pod cover needs recovering and the headlights need replacement (reflectors are rusted).

So, today was the day (10 October 2013) & I actually started. I am a reluctant starter at times as I know these things take time & it could be several weeks before the car is back in one piece. I asked my good neighbour, KH, to help me remove the bonnet & to do an engine compression test, just to see if my concerns were justified. The bonnet came off really quickly but it really takes two people otherwise paint will be damaged. The compression readings were not very good: No 1 cylinder – 120; 2 – 80; 3 – 50; 4 – 80. This in itself suggests a makeover is warranted. I think that when I did the same test on the green 1600, the lowest reading was 100 with the others being around 120. So, it will be interesting to see what condition the internals are really in and it explains why it is a bit of a slug.

I have developed a list of things to be done in this renovation:
                1. Engine reconditioning (valves & rings, fit electronic ignition)
                2. Repaint & clean up engine bay
                3. LHS front strut bumper stop
                4. Bonnet rubber stops & rod holder clip
                5. Bonnet under dash release handle
                6. Remove rust spots on RHS rear guard
                7. Replace front headlights
                8. Recover instrument pod
                9. Replace front seat belts with inertia belts
                10. Replace window felts
                11. Renew chrome wheel nuts

When these have all been completed, the car should be in really good condition for another 40 years. I will also document progress on this little project.

Capri - All Ford Day, Brisbane, 6 Oct 2013

Unfortunately, I was only able to attend for a short time but the event showcases many outstanding Fords. The oval was completely covered with Fords of all descriptions. Falcons dominate the scene but all the models are represented.
There were 8 Capris this year - a few less than last year. We had 3 V6s, one V8, 3 very rare RS3100s and my 1600 Deluxe. One of the RS3100s had driven up from Newcastle for the event.
There are always some beautiful cars here & I spotted a beautiful, big black Zimmer (photo attached). I guess it must have a Ford engine. This day always shows how much money & effort goes into keeping these classics on the road.



(click on photos to enlarge)

Capri Trunk/Boot Alignment

Ever since I have restored my green Deluxe, I have never really been happy with the boot alignment, especially where it curves over at the end of the boot lid. The left side seemed to be slightly higher than the right but both were 3-4mm above the body of the car. I have tried numerous time to adjust it by using the points where the hinges attach to the boot (mainly for moving back & forward) and where the hinges attach to the body (for height).
The rubber boot seal seemed to be too high on the back curve & that prompted me to try the seal from my white XL as the boot sits really well on that car.
Using that seal, the boot on the green one fits much better so at a recent car show I bought a new rubber seal (suitable for Capris & Escorts), thinking that would solve the problem. I even took the old one to ensure we got a better fit.
However, after fitting the new rubber, which was supposedly not quite as high, the boot did still not align as I would have liked.


These are the before & after shots and show how the LHS just sits a little too high.
After another attempt with the old rubber from the white Capri & adjusting the hinges at both places & shifting the latch plate, it seems reasonably good - not exactly as I would like it but as good as I seem to be able to get it.
I then fitted the new rubber seal to my white car & guess what? The boot won't shut! So, I have one with a good fit & the other car with no fit at all. I am going to see if I can get a very low rubber seal as that appears to be the major problem.
I would appreciate any ideas if you have had similar problems.