GRIZZ’s ‘79 - 2WD BLAZER Challenge over in London, England. “~It’s not a Project~”

[Grizz1963]

16 years ago today I had my 1963 Ford Taunus Transit van delivered from Germany.



I added wheels, attended meetings and really enjoyed it for quite a few years.

There were some really nice ones from Germany as well.












I sold it at one point because I had stopped using it and fell out of love with it after having a fuel injected Ford Zetec engine fitted by very good friend Edd.

Would I have it again?

I think so.

Not sure.

It was great having it when I did.

[Grizz1963]

Adding the 16” alloys to Caddy should not be a problem.

Bolt on and go.

But……. My Caddy is a former WAV so the floor was lowered by a conversion company (not much engineering involved)
The rear shock mounts were relocated.
Perfect for the smaller original 165 width tyres and wheels.
So fitting 195/16” tyres and wheels were bound to be a possible challenge.

So Spacers and longer wheel bolts had to be bought. Another unnecessary cost of course, considering the original tyres were new, standard and perfectly fine.

Suddenly the wheels, tyres x2, spacers, bolts, VW centre cap badges etc added £380.00 to the van, and yet it did nothing differently to before.

Cars……. I guess many of us are doing that sort of thing daily.

So I removed one of the bolts to measure it.





I also started to look out for a pair of 10mm spacers to push the new wheels out as they were contacting the shock absorber on moderate to harder cornering.

Found some on Marketplace for £20.00 for universal fit, unused. 30 miles away, so drove and fetched them.



Wheel bolts came fast off EBay another £25.00 wasted.




So last week there was a cutting breeze outside and I chose not to change them.

Yesterday it was much better.

4 layers and a wooly hat saw me outside adding some diesel gifted me by a friend who needed to decommission a machine and needed to get rid of the contents. Thank you very much.



Next up……..

Lift the van, remove wheel, fit spacer, drop down. Result.

Chilly outside. Minimal breeze.



Waiting….



Clearly was not right.

Too close on cornering.



This way to hold the spacers in position failed.

I then got some duct tape and stuck the spacers in position on the actual hubs.

Much more efficient.



Both sides done and reassembled.

Hardly noticeable to the untrained eye.

But 10mm is 10mm

Not yet gone for a decent drive to test it.

BEFORE



AFTER



Once done I came indoors to warm up, clean the house and shower as mate Kevin and Teresa were visiting after 1.30

They loved the Astro and actually registered their interest in buying it when the time comes.
I should have tried to sell the green Peugeot 206 CC to them as it will be surplus. Well, it really is surplus, along with the Rezin Rockit and both should be sold on.

The heating was on and George seemed happy with it.





I need to get out for some food shopping later and will report back about how the Caddy feels.

Video:

https://youtu.be/QMnPJ6fiRt4?si=SnWeswYoehdAzByE

Later.

[Grizz1963]

Remember when I had the cambelt and waterpump replaced on the 206 CC

I added a sticker to the engine to show when the work was done, for future reference.



Same as someone had done for the VW Caddy.



This week I got a card from the Post Office, demanding £2.50 for unpaid postage.
Dully paid it via PayPal.

Delivered on Wednesday.

Contents: a printed version of the details of the 206 CC service.

Some nice people out there.

No idea who sent the sticker but Thank You very much.



In the mean time it is still -3’C overnight.
Winter has reminded us there are seasons but……….

[Grizz1963]

So after the mystery of the envelope with insufficient postage, we had a confession.

But there is a story attached to it as you will see in the pics below.

My very good mate Fil (Sparkplug) had printed the label and posted it out.

WITH A POSTAGE STAMP ATTACHED.

It seems the Royal Fail (Mail for patriots) changed the cost of postage so many times that they also issued completely new postage stamps with modern barcodes.

The obsolete stamps can/could be traded for new but clearly both Fil, me and many others were not aware.




So Fil posted his gift cunningly disguised with a printed envelope so I could neither recognise nor guess who from. And Royal Fail needed to get the extra few pennies postage had gone up in the mean time, sending out a card to say my tax for the transgression was to be paid before they re delivered. Bastards in any language.








So now at least the next keeper will know when the service was done and what was dealt with.

[Grizz1963]

So with winter interfering with some of the projects and progress of my random toys including selling some to make space, well, to regain space, rain, cold, storms have distracted me.

So back to the Astro van, which is still a “keeper” unless someone else wants it more than me.

33 years old and in amazing condition overall and only done 78k registered miles means that I have to look after it and continue to improve it.

One of a multitude of challenges and repairs I want to affect is replacing the expensive rear door seals.

Original reproductions are available. But when you add US Taxes, import duty, shipping and then UK VAT to it the expensive $340.90 base price, increases to an eye watering total.

So getting a look at alternatives makes sense but unlikely to happen.

Current status is as per pics below.
Certainly not fully sealed anymore it allows condensation to build as well.
This does not reduce the value but makes me want to improve it.










So now I need a suitcase space and baggage allowance in order to make it more affordable.

What we need.





Always money headed out ehhh.

But worth doing??

[Grizz1963]

Some days

Some days do start well.
This pic taken at 7.45 out the window with my iPhone, no filter before sunrise made me smile.

Amazing what nature can do.



Same evening I moved the Astro and Peugeot away from the fence as there was a storm and winds were up to 100mph or 160km/h
Next morning 4 panels blown out and another damaged further up.
Glad I went out at 10.00pm to move them as damage would really have angered me.



And during the day I received three unused batteries and a charger (free for cost of postage) for the action camera @nickwheeler gave me last year for my YouTube channel movies.



George being George,

Loves chocolate and will steal or insist on trying to get some when he can.

I let him have part of a Toblerone mountain to himself, the rest goes in the bin.



In other news, keeping busy, there is always work to be done.
Plum tree never got pruned in Autumn so did that.
Fell off the ladder while pruning the tree in October 22 but landed well by luck.

So I decided to cut it back real hard this year, robbing the wood pigeons of their nesting tree where they fledge two lot of chicks each year.



Next job, cut up all the thin stuff with a hedge trimmer and cut logs for the fireplace.



Today is a good day, breezy but said to be up to 12’C
Maybe take the Astro out for shopping.

LATER: Took the Caddy. Perfect.

[Grizz1963]

Had a few comments about the rear door seals on the van.

Took a few pics to illustrate what I have to work with.

Based in part on the insane prices of the seals, finding a matching profile to use or actually rebuilding parts, like this corner with the original piece and some silicone to recreate the profile, we may be in business.





The left hand, first to close door uses pins to secure and locate that door also an upper rain rail and seal in place.





Some parts of the seal obviously are a tight fit.



I will look at all of this in order to seal and repair all of what is needed.

Once again a nice way to start the day.




Plan is to wash and clean the van today and use it tomorrow for a breakfast meeting up near Gravesend for American cars.

Roads are clean again and as I refuse to drive the van on salted, gritted and wet roads, trying to look after it.

Maybe a few pics too.

[Grizz1963]

Every time I use any of my cars, but especially the Astro van, it makes me smile.
They are all very different in function and form but the Astro continues to be my favourite to look back at as I walk away from it.

It also changes depending on where you look from.
Fetching some fuel for my mower and a jerry can for the Peugeot 206 CC which had a reserve light on the van once again showed a different angle.



Having a breakfast meeting booked with KBM this weekend, meant a quick vacuum cleaner run through and wash outside.

I also fitted some new rubber floor mats over the carpets.
The floor of the cab area is quite small and complex due to the engine being partially in the cab and under the floor.
So custom shape is needed.

I am really impressed with these.






Sunday morning the drive to breakfast was great, including two different beeps and thumbs ups from other road users.

Copperfield



Food was great.

Coffee absolutely sucked imho.






After breakfast which ended at 13.00 and a lot of chatting in the carpark I drove down to my local Morrisons to get some food for the house as I had suggested that I would cook for Sally and Aaron my one lodger.






Dinner was meatballs on spaghetti with a nice sauce and some cheese.

Very very good.




Two meals in one report……

Spoiling you guys.

Driving all three of my cars over the weekend was great.

The Rezin Rockit has just become due for a new MOT test.

Amazed that its 11 months since I completed this awesome build.

[Grizz1963]

I keep lodgers to help with the mortgage payments.
Simple solution to one problem.
Then they come in Vito, Renault vans, Ford Edge, or a ****iff big Ford Ranger truck.
My rule is that I park up the alley to control access.
Still sounds good though.
Till you walk out and see this….
Guy is on nights so goes to bed at 04.00
Parks like a cnut.
Takes his car keys to bed so now I have to wake him.
Is it worth the hassle?
Found that my cutlery is in decline.
Found desert spoons in his cars footwell.
Just counted forks…… 7/12 left and three non matched items in there (part of a previous lodgers chaos)
FCUK !!

Problem with today problem child is he is super nice, kind, generous BUT a total animal and scatterbrain.

Did I mention FCUK ??

[Grizz1963]

Still got all of Sunday left to play with my toys.

Yesterday was the turn of the Astro to get out again.

Always a pleasure.

Farmers are out doing farmer stuff.

And took a pic for those who commented about the steering wheel being upside down.

In face, if you park with the wheels turned, you may find that illusion happening.








Today the Peugeot 206 CC is going on the sidewalk with some FOR SALE signs in the windows.

You never know when someone might have to have it.

Headed out in the van after breakfast.

[Grizz1963]

Nice weekend.

Driving the Astro and of course dayling the Caddy.

Put the Peugeot 206 CC on the sidewalk with some For Sale signs in case anyone wants or needs it in their lives.



Later I took the Astro and went for a random drive.

I continue to love driving it. Of course the fact that others like it is cool too. Like having a kid win an award or race.

Windy as heck out there but warm.
Maybe as much as 13’C which is hot for January.

​I also drove over to the Isle of Grain and parked up in one of my favourite spots for taking pics of cars.

Hard to choose just one pic.

Three with no filters








And one with a simple iPhone filter.

I really enjoyed the clouds and sun playing.




Weekend over, I still need to hand polish up the Astro.
It photographs well but polished will make it pop even more.

[Grizz1963]

So the Rezin Rockit has very much been on the back burner since summer.

Amazingly its a year since I took it in for its first MOT test which it passed straight away.

Not used much because I have 4 vehicles on the drive and when employed a company car that I use on the way home for groceries etc.

In preparation for this years fresh MOT I went though all the various things that I could check and test at home.
The one brake light did not come on.

https://youtu.be/s48unyqG0Y0?si=qzzy41qvRmf3BKoX


So I looked at the obvious, the bulb was fine, connecting seemed good.

Stumped. Easy for me to be stumped.

So I sent the video above to Nick Wheeler by text requesting his help. Of course he was going to come last weekend which turned into a ****show Literally.
So we cancelled.
Then he came yesterday and we ean through the usual checklist.
He checked the lightbulb and found there was no continuity despite the filament being intact.
Then dropped and smashed it.
I dug out my reserve bulbs, Nick checked and found one he liked.
We had already checked the rear light fittings and all was good.
So a bit of scotch pad and emery paper to clean up the contacts plus tensioning the fitting meant take 2.

Successful



Happy too.



So I washed and cleaned the Rezin Rockit in preparation for a hopeful MOT test on Monday if weather conditions permit and of course I need an appointment.

Fingers crossed.

Once I have a fresh MOT it will be up for sale as I do need the space.

.

[Grizz1963]

So I called the MOT testing centre and got a booking for 12.30

Headed out







Place was running on time with loads of vehicles waiting to be tested

Rezin Rockit went in and onto the ramps.





I chatted to a couple of people outside, one guys Astra came out, failed on some aspects.
Not encouraging to see

Later I heard the Jeep being reversed out of the building, it does sound rather nice even if I have to say it

Tester said “Nice car, all is good, let me do the paperwork “



So I went inside and paid for the test



MOT to 24 October 2025



Once done I headed outside where the car was waiting and headed home





Now I really need to get my finger out and create an advertisement and associated value for this little car to find a new home.


It was great fun to build and is no perfect trailer queen but I need the space.


.

[Grizz1963]

Quick video update.


Some of you may recall that I owned a Canta LX for a while last year.

Got to a point when I had done all the Grizzifying stuff I wanted to.

Had three guys all wanting to own it.

But only @glenanderson was able to pull the trigger.

So he delivered a lawn tractor for @craigrk up in Shropshire, to be collected and took the Canta to Dover as a father and son project.


Three videos.

Me finding it the day I bought it, and delivery that night.

https://youtu.be/Ny5UZP65TU8?si=wLWOOVASxyVwj3iP

And the day Glen and son Fin collected it.

https://youtu.be/PZ-K08G8gC8?si=NTsF7hzroGHxzvb3


Video sent last night.

Where Glen has got it to now.

Starting off ignition and lights working along with the correct drive belts.

https://youtu.be/uXdeW_9FXUQ?si=8OvVKoj86uX-tvSQ



This is an absolute smile generator.

Many more videos on my YouTube channel.

360cc big block fun.

[Grizz1963]

Been busy.

No job, market and placement agencies are also very quiet. Spoke to IQVIA my last employer of over 8 years this week as they had an oncology role with primary focus on lung cancer they wanted to put me forward for at Pfizer whom I had worked for nearly three years and won their top corporate award at, but the hiring manager is looking for lung experience and more specifically established contacts. So I bowed out.

I have declined quite a few potential opportunities for various reasons and unless you are actually walking in my safety flip flops I urge you not to judge my choices. There are jobs, companies and therapeutic areas that I prefer to avoid.
And I honestly can’t be bothered wasting my or a potential employer’s time and will also not allow a potential employer to waste my time when I don’t have the right experience or in some cases know they are looking for a rainbow coloured unicorn that pisses Bud Lite from its earhole.

I am always touched by those who have a genuine interest in my wellbeing and surprised of course by those who just have a morbid fascination with car crash TV.

I have been busy.

Every day.

Touching stuff.

Moving things.

Progressing.

No photos being posted as my internet connection has been dead again, thanks to Openreach who could not reach their own butt to scratch it, even if you gave them a spoon.
How these corporations survive despite atrocious service I don’t understand.

So……. What is progress??

My very good friend @CraigRK suggests that just touching stuff every day is progress. Sometimes physical activity and other times psychological.

So all the tools used for the Rezin Rockit build been cleaned, cleared, sorted and packed away.





And just look what I found.

Terrible sound quality.

https://youtu.be/x62zfyfLFGI?si=Ak5UQ64LOC41zoeH

I also pulled my 2006 R1200GS with 24500 miles and dry stored the last 5 years out, washed it and realised it needs to be sold on.

My welding table was cleared, cleaned and tools packed away.
Followed by more shelves, workbenches.
Then the floor where a pile of MX5 parts from the Rez Rockit build were still lying.
Next up a load of corporate junk from my last job.
I am not yet done inside the garage but the carport got a significant clear up as well.

During all this cleaning process I tried to give away stuff and realised nobody was taking, so I started listing on FB Marketplace at low prices and stuff started to disappear.
I made about £500 in the first 24 hours
Crazy yes. From “junk” that just needed to be gone.

FREE CASH in my mind. Stuff I neither wanted, needed or if bought previously, still making small profits.

Last night I counted the money and was shocked to find £875 in the safe. If tonights visit works, and a guy buys one item, add £135 and if he buys two, add another £50 to that.

Money already allocated to a next shall we say “thing”



Neither of the cars I have for sale have sold, possibly the fact that both are summertime cars does not help or maybe the prices are wrong but hopefully I will regain that space some time in order for me to fill it with something else.

So today I will carry on creating some more space and maybe list more junk that takes up valuable space in the garage and carport.

Weather seems to have improved.

[Grizz1963]

With stuff happening it was just a matter of time before I got back to the Astro van.

Well, John my old lodger and driving school instructor got going. I don’t know much about electronics and he loves it.

His driving instruction car was lightly damaged recently when someone cut across and pushed him off the road.

He was quoted £100 for a “repair” which took me about 10 minutes to do with some G3 compound and polish. I touched up a few other marks too.

Because he had cancelled his lessons he spent part of the day here and we started to look at and mess with the Astro’s 1.5 DIN radio that I always disliked, along with the dash that had been cut.

So he/we started to disassemble and try figuring out what the two amplifiers and speakers were doing.

Currently only the 6x9’s in the door work.



Of course because the radio hole is so shallow, one cannot fit a standard sized radio in there so I will have to go to Halfords to see if there is a suitable replacement for it.




The other thing that became apparent was that the replacement is a different colour.

But I will live with that.

I could repaint it like the lower sections that I did before.




So hopefully tomorrow is an easy day for the electrical stuff.

Fingers crossed again.

[Grizz1963]

So with starting on the Astro van radio @sparkplug and mate Martin in different ways immediately sprang into action finding me sources of short radios.

Some are crazy expensive and some are not.

Martin found a like new Pioneer radio with a load of auxiliary functions for £30.00 about 30 miles or 50km from home. Regular advertised price is £90.00

Mate Darren had “bought” my Cortina steering wheel from the Rezin Rockit that was advertised for £25.00 and was going to come collect it next week. His workshop is a mile from the radio seller so John and I decided to buy the radio for £30.00 and save £60.00 plus deliver the steering to Darren for free, though he absolutely insisted on giving me £10.00 for the “Free Cash” savings kitty. I then got into his skip and rescued a wheel clamp with two keys that I have given to mate Martin for his trailer as well as some solid wheels and an axle, plus some scrap steel for my stash, all free.

So a good day in the end, despite not making a load of progress on decluttering.

It was also miserable with the temperatures around 6’C and a nasty cold breeze cutting through our bones.

Called it a day by 4.45

Today John is back and trying to figure out the total clusterf#€k of duplicate and dead end wiring in the van.

I am at the garage, continuing the clean up.







More later.

Its 12.45 already.

[Grizz1963]

Saturday was a good day.

Not warm but the cutting breeze reduced to something more tolerable.

No rain.

John was back by 10.00 in the morning to carry on with deciphering the archaeological history and crap of 33 years of each new owner adding their stamp to the sound system.

This includes two amplifiers, a 720 and 360 Watt units. Presumably forva sub woofer and the rest of the system.
They both power up.
I do not have any need for a Sub. So bypassed that.

The rear door speakers have never worked since I bought the van.
Front door speakers were and still do but not great quality. So I will go get some subtle 6x9’s for the front doors and a pair of new 6’s for the rear doors, which work but I think replacing the whole system makes sense.

Once all the chaos was sorted, John started the van with a jump pack as ignition had been on all day and the van not driven for 3-4 weeks, only to find that on starting the van, the radio stopped working. Buggerrr.
So back to tracing wires and then all fixed.

It sounds brilliant with the four speakers all working and set to the way my ears like them.









Next job for me, will be to make a U-Shaped radio surround blanking plate to close in the 15mm gap under the radio in the replacement dash unit.

I think I have just enough of the Mazda Bongo/Friendee interior trim panel that I used for the rear door trim making left to create something that is grey and colour matching.




Video.

https://youtu.be/padjgRaJzso?si=A5We5VTZrxxACUd9

And of course it is still raining outside but I have dry jobs that can be done.

[Grizz1963]

Here’s a 7 plus day job update.

And I have only scratched the surface with this.

Too many photos of this lot but hey…… you can scroll faster ehh??

As mentioned before, a wise man once said that doing one thing every day is progress. Even if you just touched something that made you think about how you should proceed with it.

So the last 19 days, starting on 20 February I have been spending time in the garage sorting, clearing, cleaning, planning on how to take control of my life back.

As there is not much happening in the job market, partly because companies seem to wait for the end of financial year before they start spending money on new team builds etc. I know that when I am back in the daily slog and have limited time for hobbies etc. this job will be a nightmare to try achieve.
So getting my **** in order now while I have loads of time will make life easier.

Who remembers what they did at Christmas 2014 ?
That was 9 years ago.
The world was a different place back then.
Facebook remembers.
It also remembered that in March 2015 the Chevy was being torn down for a 6 month rebuild over summer.

So this was back then.

Of course a lot has changed since then.





Divorced
Made redundant
Travel and discovered America
Loads of car builds
Covid.
Distractions

Life goes on.

So I started by packing away and tidying the tools etc used in the Rezin Rockit build.
Changing layout and ditching stuff.
In order to make space I tried giving away some stuff.
Amazingly nobody wanted to collect anything from my house.

So I decided to put a price on stuff and suddenly up to 8 punters for a diesel space heater and yesterday 5 people wanted a £5.00 propane burner torch.

I still have way more crap than I need. 95% of my tools and junk are used but functional and not expensive but makes me happy.

The money I have made from the junk (some stuff is brand new and unused) is going into a savings kitty to possibly buy something stupid. We have to see how it unfolds.

Some of the stuff that’s gone is not represented in the pics.
But I have done a ton of preparation for when I get started with the 1966 C10 truck that has patiently waited for me.

I am still a long way from done with the tidy up, junk clearance and identification and sorting of the Chevy parts but it will happen.

One of the bigger jobs was to sort and arrange the parts that went with various builds and subjects.
Bodywork tools
Paint guns
Fillers
Paints
Rattle cans
Pneumatic tools
Electrical
Steering Wheels
And much more.

I cleared two cabinets to move a load of bodywork stuff into from inside the garage. This was two days work including regular daily stuff.

Bloody chilly at 4’C plus cutting winds.



Hard to see the changes.



Tools. Paints. Order. OCD?









One of the most daunting challenges facing me would be all the boxes of car parts etc on the shelving unit to the left of the cabinets.
During the clear out I also found 8 car and truck batteries. Two of which could be rescued. One went to John as a backup to an alarm system and the other was put on a trickle charger in my garage.
The rest went next door, along with all the wiring looms etc for Mickey to go weigh in for beer money at the scrapyard recycling plant.

And so far, excluding the stuff I have given away, sold or put on the sidewalk for recycling, I have junked about 12 double bagged 100 liter bin liners of junk for recycling.

By last night after John had done the Astro radio and sound system, this was where my tidying up was





Four more bags of heavy junk, plastic, wood, metal, three car radio/CD/tape players etc ready for next bin day.
The boxes all empty, waiting for me to arrange some of the C10 parts in there.



Not sure how much time all the junk inside the garage will take to process and sort out.
But it will get done.



Ultimately the C10 is waiting.

Yesterday it actually donated some audio plugs from what is left of its wiring loom to the Astro Van audio rescue that John was working on. @nickwheeler had come around for a coffee and a chat and moral support but was quickly roped into crawling into the C10 cab to rummage around under the dash, looking for these elusive parts that were not in my stash.
Many hands make light work and all that.



Battered and bruised but ready to be raised from the ashes.

I believe the truck will be back better than before.



Well.
With half the dy gone, I think I need to get my butt in gear and get down there and touch something.

Thanks for checking in.

[Grizz1963]

Did very little yesterday.


But still managed a couple of slow hours.


Visitors, ****ty weather and forums can easily suck up many hours.


I started on the odd little, custom radio surround plate that has to go in here.
There will still need to be some trimming to the mounting bracket that stands proud by 15mm





So I pulled out a bit of the Mazda Bongo interior trim that I had used for the rear door trim making.






Established that I had enough material to make it work.
Marked out, cut out and finished the plate.
Followed by cutting it to size to fit the radio face trim.






Cutting with a grinder is not ideal but a Dremmel was going to take too long




Some more finishing and the whole thing seems right

On the old cut up dash surround




I was pleased with it

Last job in the cold, some satin black paint






next job is to cut back the mounting bracket in the dash and to see if it all comes together



​​​​​​​Fingers crossed

[Grizz1963]

So final-ish part of Astro radio replacement.
Speakers will be done as well when I get to it.


Amazing how a little job 50 meters from the garage can take a bit longer than anticipated. This includes fetching tools, changing screws and various other things that kept reminding me that I should have reversed the van down to the garage.


I didn’t do that of course.


Another one of the jobs, after another good wash with some ammonia based cleaner (Jif, Cif, Handy Andy) to remove grime and get into grooves, was to treat the plastic plastic polish gel and wipe it down.


You can see the difference between before and after. Bringing it closer to the van’s original tone.
Keeping in mind my van is a 90 model and the donor was a 95.
GM quality control clearly could not manage their suppliers to even keep colours matched.






Next up was a repaint of the plate that @Westbay had objected to. Mainly because painting at 6’C is not advisable as the paint reacts differently to a warmer day.
Which had left the satin finish a distinct variation of matte black.
I wanted satin to blend in more.


The leather texture of the Mazda Bongo plastics came through better as well.





making the dash fit back over the radio and bracket necessitates a lot of grinding back and modifying.


Thank goodness for cheap, super handy tools.





In order to get the macking plate in and also to have the radio face where it needs to be I made some high density foam packing strips and used longer screws.
This worked really well.






Finally dash returned one more time to ensure factory fit established and screws added to keep it all together.





Last job, replace all the blanking plates to the dash and try out the radio



Success!! !!




I will be putting all the four mirror, aircon etc switches up for sake on the local UK Astro group as someone is bound to need something to replace a failed unit.


​​​​​​​Today it is back to clearing out and sorting more of the shelves in the unseen part of the garage.

[Grizz1963]

I give up on editing




So final-ish part of Astro radio replacement.
Speakers will be done as well when I get to it.


Amazing how a little job 50 meters from the garage can take a bit longer than anticipated. This includes fetching tools, changing screws and various other things that kept reminding me that I should have reversed the van down to the garage.


I didn’t do that of course.


Another one of the jobs, after another good wash with some ammonia based cleaner (Jif, Cif, Handy Andy) to remove grime and get into grooves, was to treat the plastic plastic polish gel and wipe it down.


You can see the difference between before and after. Bringing it closer to the van’s original tone.
Keeping in mind my van is a 90 model and the donor was a 95.
GM quality control clearly could not manage their suppliers to even keep colours matched.





Next up was a repaint of the plate that @Westbay had objected to. Mainly because painting at 6’C is not advisable as the paint reacts differently to a warmer day.
Which had left the satin finish a distinct variation of matte black.
I wanted satin to blend in more.


The leather texture of the Mazda Bongo plastics came through better as well.





making the dash fit back over the radio and bracket necessitates a lot of grinding back and modifying.


Thank goodness for cheap, super handy tools.





In order to get the macking plate in and also to have the radio face where it needs to be I made some high density foam packing strips and used longer screws.
This worked really well.






Finally dash returned one more time to ensure factory fit established and screws added to keep it all together.





Last job, replace all the blanking plates to the dash and try out the radio



Success!! !!




I will be putting all the four mirror, aircon etc switches up for sake on the local UK Astro group as someone is bound to need something to replace a failed unit.


​​​​​​​Today it is back to clearing out and sorting more of the shelves in the unseen part of the garage.

[Grizz1963]

How well do most of you know me??

How long have I wanted a Woodie?

Happened today.

More later

[Grizz1963]

How well do most of you know me??

How long have I wanted a Woodie?

Happened today.

More later

[Grizz1963]

Always loved a Woody.

Now some of you, who, like me, love words, will know that the word has multiple meanings.

Including in no specific order: erection, place with trees, a fragrance note, a taste in many things, wine, Whiskey, mushrooms, musical tone, an automotive style enhancement, a cartoon character.
The list goes on and on.

I went out to look at a car yesterday.

Well, it was not the first or second time, I really went out to see if it had been sold yet as it was introduced to me at around midday on 10th February.

But being in the unenviable position of owning not one, two or three, but FOUR PERFECTLY CAPABLE CARS it really had to blow my mind if it were to come home with me. Rules are after all rules. And the rule is normally two cars, a ****ter/project and a Sunday toy, with a company car out front. Unexpected Redundancy saw the company car being replaced by the VW Caddy as daily, The Astro bought in August before redundancy and the Rezin Rockit being an amazing build in 2022/23 equated the project. Then came the completely unexpected arrival of the 206CC and my current in process, unearthing of my 1966 Chevy C10 stalked restoration project which now will have to go ahead, once I have cleared the rest of the garage space and done an inventory of the 100’s of new parts and to be cleaned up parts. Then the build will recommence and maybe my YouTube channel will start having a more focused if predictable content stream.

Over time this changed somewhat.

I had already introduced it to you all before when I went to look and asked 101 questions.

The last 4-5 weeks I have been driving by where the Camaro was parked a few times like a masochist. Even Sally has reported a couple of times that she had seen it was still there.

But I have not been able to get rid of any of the existing fleet.

Admittedly I have not been trying very hard.

Yesterday I posted off a parcel and went home via a 5 mile detour to see if the car in question, the Camaro, was still there.

It was.

As was the son of the owner, and his sister in a big Range Rover Overfinch V8 Twin Turbo diesel.

So I reversed onto the drive.

Spent some time with them indoors being offered furniture and crockery etc.

We ended up speaking about the blue elephant in the room.

A Woody that the sisters kids used to ride in, her son is 21 years old now.
I showed interest and asked if the woody would be available for rehoming.

They agreed that if I was that interested it could go with me.

So I then got the owner to start up and show me the Camaro.

Took some videos and photos and found out one injector on the motorway is dead. It is accessible. And that the waterpump is leaking. Add to that, the four cracked up dead tyres that need replacing and I was feeling more and more that I needed an unloved model Camaro in my life.

Once done, the owner drove off to the council tip with his Overfinch loaded with the result of breaking up his parents’ furniture and throwing it away. Sad really.

And I got going with unearthing my yard find Woody.

As found.



Took a few minutes to unearth and remove the garden bed in the trunk. also many many snails.

At this point I did wonder if this pic was indicative of what the Camaro represents.



But of course being the man I am, I don’t shy away from a fight…..

Managed to load it into the Caddy and headed West.



Once back home it was unload and get it into the back yard.
Hosepipe in the rain and give it a quick wash and hose down

I was really happy.

These are rare AFAIK.

Love it.

I took it down to the carport and parked it next to the Rezin Rockit.




As for the CAMARO……

I did make a quick short video of it starting and running.

The exhaust note is really subtle and pleasant.

My Astro van is a bit more of a thug.

It also sports a 4.3 V6 compared to the Camaro’s 3.4 V6.

Getting into and sitting in the Camaro is akin to sitting down on a skateboard.
And I possibly felt like a tank commander when he directs his machine down the road.
I had no clue where to front and rear of the car started or ended.

Like sitting in a blacked out fishbowl.


VIDEO:

https://youtu.be/NRFCKsfUCiM?si=42L5YAnBfr7mcclY


And I still don’t know.