Realistically, my new find presents me with significant logistical challenges. My house has no garage, no rear access to the property and no covered parking. The spitfire has a convertible frame, but no convertible top, not even a shred of an old one. It really needs some rust repair, and a new paint job. I personally do not have the facilities to handle this job.
First I had to convince my wife. Surprisingly easier than I every hoped. We were dating during the rebuild of the 1967 of my brothers, and she had definitely seen and remembered that beauty. She was bummed that it's a standard as she has never learned to drive one. I offered to teach her as she would love to drive it around. I really thought she would take more convincing but then again she surprises me all the time! It has to be love.
A little help from my friends! Not to let little things (no place to put it and no place to work on it for the stabilizing repairs needed) stop me, I enlisted the aid of my neighbor. He owns a decent sized auto repair shop with many bays, a paint booth, welding machine, etc etc etc. He also is one of the nicest people you will ever meet and does incredible work, going above and beyond to do it right. He offered to house the Spitfire inside until I can get a top on it. He also offered to help with the fix-up. I can keep the car there, as long as business obligations don't prevent it. He also offered to store it in his house garage for me. Needless to say I was stoked. I definately recommend his work, if you need work in the New Orleans/Metairie location please contact me and I'll let you know details.
The car came with a roll of veneer to redo the dashboard. My Father is a wonder with metal (aircraft, not auto) and wood. He is re-veneering and re-finishing the dash. Brother will be tapped for his auto connections, general automotive knowledge and any historical bits from his purchase.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Oh, the colors...
Under the bonnet near the Commission Plate, there is a sampling of the various layers of paint on the car.
This sampled image has what appears to me to be a mix of the pallet on the car.
This sampled image has what appears to me to be a mix of the pallet on the car.
- Black - Interior metal, except the original paint under the dash, engine compartment, under the bonnet, and in the trunk. As you can see from this sample, this wasn't necessarily cleanly done, with spattered spray onto the red re-paint. The area under the battery, brake and clutch master cylinder is also this color. Personally, I like this being blacked out, just maybe a little better.
- Red - I hope that this color is Signal Red. The outer body has been painted this color and it fits my LRR (Little Red Roadster) desires. From what I can tell, the outer shell, was taken to bare metal with the body on the car, primed and painted. The area under the bonnet where the bonnet latch catch and Commission Plate is located was painted but not brought to bare metal.
- Laurel Green - Original color of the car. A well-preserved section of the original color can be seen with the dash wood removed. Few bits of it remain in oddball places.
- Primer Grey/White? - From the nicks and chips I believe that this was the primer used on the re-paint to red.
- Primer Brown? - I am assuming that this is the original primer that was used on the car, it appears nowhere on the main body of the car that was repainted red.
- Rust! - This color appears at intervals throughout. I'll be featuring some of the exact problem locations in future posts.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Commission Plate
Well lets review what I think I know about the vehicle itself. Based on the Commission Plate, this Spitfire was born as a Laurel Green 1969 Mark III Spitfire, with Tan Interior? That's sorta an odd combination but again I'm no expert, far from it.
Lets break down the Commission Number, FDU4XXX3 L (XXX used for now to protect original owners and restorer of the car):
FD = Spitfire MKIII
U = USA Model
4XXX3 = the 4X,XX3th MKIII made of 65,320 produced
L = Left Hand Drive
Paint 55 = Laurel Green
Trim 13 = Light Tan/Biscuit
Based on information available at: http://members.cox.net/spitlist/
Based on a 5 day work-week with no holidays (If they made Spitfires all day, why would they WANT a vacation?), 261 weekdays were available in 1969. Based on the spitlist numbers, a calculated 79 cars per workday were produced in 1969.
With these very very crude calculations, my spitfire was completed around Mid-August 1969. The reference on the Commission Plate to April 1st 1969 Safety Standards supports a born on date past April 1st (April Fools Day date for meeting U.S. Federal Safety Standards I find highly amusing). As the title is for a 1969 model year so was likely sold before the end of 1969, dealers would often title cars in the year they were sold, not the year made or the model year. If this is all true, the car was made, shipped to the US and sold in about 4 months!
Restored once...
Often a sign of bad things to come. From the first time I saw the car, I was sure there were modifications and potential issues.
From the look of the car, the IDEAL Commission Plate codes would look like:
FDU4XXX3 L
Paint 32 Trim 11
Paint
32 = Signal Red
( I Hope it is Signal Red)
Trim
11 = Black
Lets break down the Commission Number, FDU4XXX3 L (XXX used for now to protect original owners and restorer of the car):
FD = Spitfire MKIII
U = USA Model
4XXX3 = the 4X,XX3th MKIII made of 65,320 produced
L = Left Hand Drive
Paint 55 = Laurel Green
Trim 13 = Light Tan/Biscuit
Based on information available at: http://members.cox.net/spitlist/
The first listed 1969 MKIII is 31305
The last listed 1969 MKIII is 51940
The last listed 1969 MKIII is 51940
Based on a 5 day work-week with no holidays (If they made Spitfires all day, why would they WANT a vacation?), 261 weekdays were available in 1969. Based on the spitlist numbers, a calculated 79 cars per workday were produced in 1969.
With these very very crude calculations, my spitfire was completed around Mid-August 1969. The reference on the Commission Plate to April 1st 1969 Safety Standards supports a born on date past April 1st (April Fools Day date for meeting U.S. Federal Safety Standards I find highly amusing). As the title is for a 1969 model year so was likely sold before the end of 1969, dealers would often title cars in the year they were sold, not the year made or the model year. If this is all true, the car was made, shipped to the US and sold in about 4 months!
Restored once...
Often a sign of bad things to come. From the first time I saw the car, I was sure there were modifications and potential issues.
From the look of the car, the IDEAL Commission Plate codes would look like:
FDU4XXX3 L
Paint 32 Trim 11
Paint
32 = Signal Red
( I Hope it is Signal Red)
Trim
11 = Black
Monday, December 28, 2009
History Musings
My first exposure to the Triumph line lay in a project car my brother acquired while he was in college. A pretty little red 1967 MKIII, missing many of the important pieces (I will try and get some pictures of it). From that point on I was hooked. While we never finished bringing that car completely back to life, it remained fixed in my mind that one day, I would own my own little red roadster.
Flash forward many years to the present and I found myself in a situation to acquire another Spitfire. My brother bought a 1969 MKIII Spitfire in acceptable condition from someone in Arkansas, USA. He purchased the car and brought it back home. It needs work, but has all the interesting bits left in place. It's a previously rebuilt car and needs allot of TLC to bring it back to full life. It's not the year he wanted, not the color he wanted, not the condition he wanted, but you know how some of these things are. Hard to find the exact car your looking for, when your looking for it.
Bought to fix up for his wife, the car was doomed, err well that's a personal opinion, to be painted powder blue. Powder Blue!?! well it was supposed to be for his wife... Fate stepped in and he found a 1967 MKIII in useable condition, already light blue at a price he couldn't pass up. Now, comes the problem. The '69 is in too good of shape to simply be parted out, but he doesn't need two project cars at the same time. This is where I enter the picture...
I am a particular person, I don't care for the MKI, or the MKII, and I personally find the 1500 series unattractive for me personally. While they are all cute and fun, nothing does it for me personally except the MKIIIs. And of all the MKIIIs, I prefer the dash modification in the 1969 MKIIIs. The thought of owning anything made in 1970's just makes me upset to my stomach... So My Ideal Spitfire is a 1969 MKIII. When I first saw the car, I started sizing it up, looking at the more obvious imperfections (to be chronicled later in this Blog). The car was not for sale at the time but my car lust was perked.
After being introduced to the blue '67, I inquired about what the plans were for the '69. I was pleased to find out that he was going to sell it and I expressed my interests...
Next Posting to chronicle: I'm way behind on my research! Finding out more on this Spit and how am I going to handle the acquisition, housing and preparation of the Spit.
Flash forward many years to the present and I found myself in a situation to acquire another Spitfire. My brother bought a 1969 MKIII Spitfire in acceptable condition from someone in Arkansas, USA. He purchased the car and brought it back home. It needs work, but has all the interesting bits left in place. It's a previously rebuilt car and needs allot of TLC to bring it back to full life. It's not the year he wanted, not the color he wanted, not the condition he wanted, but you know how some of these things are. Hard to find the exact car your looking for, when your looking for it.
Bought to fix up for his wife, the car was doomed, err well that's a personal opinion, to be painted powder blue. Powder Blue!?! well it was supposed to be for his wife... Fate stepped in and he found a 1967 MKIII in useable condition, already light blue at a price he couldn't pass up. Now, comes the problem. The '69 is in too good of shape to simply be parted out, but he doesn't need two project cars at the same time. This is where I enter the picture...
I am a particular person, I don't care for the MKI, or the MKII, and I personally find the 1500 series unattractive for me personally. While they are all cute and fun, nothing does it for me personally except the MKIIIs. And of all the MKIIIs, I prefer the dash modification in the 1969 MKIIIs. The thought of owning anything made in 1970's just makes me upset to my stomach... So My Ideal Spitfire is a 1969 MKIII. When I first saw the car, I started sizing it up, looking at the more obvious imperfections (to be chronicled later in this Blog). The car was not for sale at the time but my car lust was perked.
After being introduced to the blue '67, I inquired about what the plans were for the '69. I was pleased to find out that he was going to sell it and I expressed my interests...
Next Posting to chronicle: I'm way behind on my research! Finding out more on this Spit and how am I going to handle the acquisition, housing and preparation of the Spit.
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