And then the real horror/family sized bag of dicks...
I drained the coolant and replaced the rusty brown stuff with some fresh...
two weeks later after I saw a drip of coolant on the sump and a dropping of the coolant...
and found that it was coming from this...
excuse the
**** image I had to get the phone in there but think you can see the issue! There was no sign of this when I bought the car (Im sure we have all discovered nasty stuff we SHOULD have seen when we bought a car so Im really not after any criticism and am aware I should have found it) and I reckon you can see a smear of JB weld over the crack on the block that could have been holding for years before I made the mistake of properly maintaining my vehicle and replacing the old coolant that was of indeterminate age.
So, the question is, what to do next with the block. For now Ive put a bottle of K-seal in there and have some JB weld to re cover the crack (which is holding ok at present even in the cold weather) so I can use the car locally while I figure whether to have this block stitched (as far as I know its the original block form the car, but would take advice if anyone knows a way to confirm this) or to find a replacement block. Any experiences of having a block stitched gladly received too. This has put paid to my hopes of driving up to leafers in her, for this year at least
And that's where we are up to right now. My eventual plan is to keep it as a drivable project eventually ending with a re built engine and box that will one day end up on a galv chassis (and maybe bulkhead depending on how that is by the time I do the chassis), re painted, the whole nine yards and intend to do as much as is possible myself.
I intend to keep this thread as a document of ongoing work, maintenance and renovation. And despite all the above I love my Landy. Here is how she looked on her last drive at the weekend,
**** block and all.