Author Topic: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!  (Read 129408 times)

Blicj11

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #60 on: December 17, 2014, 10:06:44 PM »
Nice start to the Holidays.
Blick


elagache

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It ain't over til . . . (Re: Billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #61 on: December 18, 2014, 10:53:06 PM »
Dear Blick and WeatherCat admirers of "mature" automobiles,

Nice start to the Holidays.

Well, yes and no.  I just got a call from the engine builder proposing that the crankshaft be repaired by welding, instead of replaced.  I'm not metallurgist, but doing any sort of welding on an engine crankshaft just seems very wrong.  So I vetoed that proposal.  I can see it is going to take some prodding to get this engine finally built to my standards.

Also according to the builder's plate, Biquette was assembled between May 3-7, 1965.  At the rate this project is going, odds are really slim the engine will be back in the car before May 2015.  Kinda sad that the car won't be operational for her 50th birthday.

Oh well, . . . . 

Edouard


elagache

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Dear WeatherCat Automobile enthusiasts,

According to the builder?s plate, my trusty wagon rolled off the Fremont, CA assembly line the first week of May 1965.  The first work-week of May 1965 ran from May 3-7.  So somewhere between today and Thursday, Biquette will be 50 years ago.  Alas, this is what she looks like and will remain this week.





There is hope.  TA-Performance is in the process of reassembling the engine and hopefully it will be headed back for installation by June or so.  Still as the months went by, I could see that Biquette?s 50th birthday was going to end up like this.  Definitely a really low moment for me . . . .  :(

Edouard

Blicj11

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #63 on: May 03, 2015, 10:47:06 PM »
Cheer up Dude. Except for the engine, it looks great! Look on the bright side, you are all ready to go with a new air filter as soon as you get an engine upon which to put it. The body work looks amazing. Let's hope this time the engine is ready to roll.
Blick


Steve

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #64 on: May 04, 2015, 02:45:19 PM »
Happy Biquette Birthday! :) My MGA just celebrated its 57th last week, built April 29/29, 1958. Our cars are quickly approaching our own age, percentage wise.  [biggrin]
Steve - Avon, Ohio, USA


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elagache

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A "few" things left to do. (Re: billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #65 on: May 04, 2015, 09:26:05 PM »
Dear Steve, Blick, and WeatherCat automobile enthusiasts,

Happy Biquette Birthday! :) My MGA just celebrated its 57th last week, built April 29/29, 1958. Our cars are quickly approaching our own age, percentage wise.  [biggrin]

Yes, with these "mature" vehicles odd things can happen.  I have dated women younger than my car!  [biggrin]

Look on the bright side, you are all ready to go with a new air filter as soon as you get an engine upon which to put it.

Well, that's a story on to itself.  The big-block engine is a bit "bigger" than the engine bay was designed for.  The engine does fit, but a standard 3 inch filter is so tall that the wing nut was going right through the hood insulation and was very close to the underside of the hood itself!   I discovered this shortly before the engine failed and visited my local auto parts store.  It turns out there are filters that are the same diameter but only 2-1/2" tall.  That's why that filter is so clean, it was hardly used before the engine failed.

However, to make a story longer, I need to replace the hood insulation that was damaged by that, and obviously, it would be good to do that before the engine comes back.  However, I've - still - not finished the headlight relay wiring.   So it is something of a race and at the moment - I'm losing!

The body work looks amazing.

Well, not quite there either.  There is a ding on the driver's side door and some trim that needs to be upgraded.  So once the drive-train is working, she'll have to pay a visit to the body shop . . . . . .

It just - never - stops!!!

Cheers, Edouard  [cheers1]

elagache

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IT IS *ALIVE*!!!! (Re: Assertive billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #66 on: July 03, 2015, 10:07:39 PM »
Dear WeatherCat Automotive enthusiasts, . . . .

I got a phone call late yesterday from the new engine builder.  The engine has been finally run and passed with flying colors!  HURRAY!!  [cheer]

Because of a flaw in the way I try to block calls while driving, I didn't get a chance to speak with him in person and we are in the middle of a long weekend to commemorate United States Independence day.  On Monday, I'll hook up with him, get all the details (including the bill ), and do whatever it takes to reunite my trusty wagon with her now working engine!

Stay tuned!!  . . .

Cheers, Edouard  :)

xairbusdriver

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #67 on: July 04, 2015, 01:13:11 AM »
Quote
whatever it takes to reunite my trusty wagon with her now working engine
Maybe you can use PoE!
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF COUNTRIES
Those that use metric = #1 Measurement system
And the United States = The Banana system


elagache

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You MUST be joking!! (Re: Assertive billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #68 on: July 04, 2015, 11:14:53 PM »
Dear X-Air and WeatherCat "power freaks" . . . .

Quote
whatever it takes to reunite my trusty wagon with her now working engine
Maybe you can use PoE!

After your experiences with it . . . you MUST be joking!!  :o

Besides, what I recall of the PoE specs, 500 horsepower seems a bit much to run over PoE!

Cheers, Edouard  [cheers1]

xairbusdriver

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #69 on: July 05, 2015, 12:42:40 AM »
They just have to be very small horses...
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF COUNTRIES
Those that use metric = #1 Measurement system
And the United States = The Banana system


Blicj11

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Re: IT IS *ALIVE*!!!! (Re: Assertive billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #70 on: July 05, 2015, 03:49:51 AM »
The engine has been finally run and passed with flying colors!

So pleased to hear that. I know you are relieved.

Maybe you can use PoE!

Love a man with a sense of humor.
Blick


elagache

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Sad news and jinx? (Re: Billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #71 on: July 25, 2015, 11:19:31 PM »
Dear WeatherCat Automotive enthusiasts,

There was some sad news at the shop that is putting the finishing touches on the repaired engine for my trusty wagon.  The father of the owner died suddenly last weekend.  He was struggling with a difficult cancer, but it appeared he was winning the battle.  He sat down to watch some television and was found dead shortly after that.

Obviously that isn't making it any easier to get this engine finally out the door.  There is another odd coincidence.  The father of the first engine builder also died while the engine was being built the first time.  This engine sure is having a run of tough luck.

Oh well, . . . . Edouard

Blicj11

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #72 on: July 25, 2015, 11:47:43 PM »
That engine is a killer.
Blick


xairbusdriver

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Re: FYI: I'm getting one assertive billy-goat station wagon!!
« Reply #73 on: July 26, 2015, 01:00:57 AM »
Quote
This engine sure is having a run of tough luck.
Uhmn... I hope the thing gets back to you soon, but I doubt you will ever find another firm to work on it!!! :o
THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF COUNTRIES
Those that use metric = #1 Measurement system
And the United States = The Banana system


elagache

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One tough cookie (Re: Assertive billy-goat station wagon!!)
« Reply #74 on: July 26, 2015, 10:25:49 PM »
Dear Blick, X-Air, and WeatherCat automotive enthusiasts, . . .

That engine is a killer.

I sure hope not!  I'm supposed to drive my wagon with this engine!  However, jinxed this engine may be, Biquette is one amazing car.  In 50 years of service, she has never failed leaving us on the side of the road and never had to be towed anywhere.  The first time she was ever transported was after the accident of November 2010 and it was more a matter of handling a car of her "mature years."  Of course once she lost her engine, she also had to be transported home.

Even so, she somehow manages to get to a repair shop before things go wrong.  When I took her for the first time to Orinda Motors in 2010, the guys complained that the left-rear door wouldn't open.  It has been hard to open for decades, but it didn't fail - until she was at the shop.

Even more amazing, while the new engine did lose a bearing, she made it to Orinda Motors under her own power before the problem was discovered.  This wagon is one tough cookie!

Uhmn... I hope the thing gets back to you soon, but I doubt you will ever find another firm to work on it!!! :o

I hope this time, this engine lasts 50 years!!  That is what it was supposed to do!!

Cheers, Edouard  [cheers1]