General polishing the mk1 - results..

[Rob-mint-mk1-uno]

Here we are lads a few more pics of me car when i started polishing by hand, look at the colour difference..
Got a long way to go to get it spot on but im up for some hard work.
Oh and alex the seats you see in the pic are the same as the seat cover i have..

 

[electricmice]

Looking good. It will take a while to get back and a lot to keep it there. I'm going through the same but it's worth it. I needed to spend a while 'back to blacking' the plastic too. Reckon you got that to look forward to.

You're missing a B-pillar adhesive on your passenger door. I could do with a set too. Might see if I can find or make any.

By the way Alex if you need any advice with seat covers, I've just changed a set and know how to do it. You need to patch the foam too.

Keep posting the images Rob. She's getting there................M.

 

[oldskoolmk1unoturbo]

keep polishing and you'll have it looking like mine

 

[Jai]

very very nice work....brings a tear to me eye....

 

[Rob-mint-mk1-uno]

Well got the colour back in all the panels, every one shines.
As you can see the bottom of the door is in yellow primer but appart from that the only other bit is the drivers wing has rust just above the bumper.
For some reason my camera shows my car as orange but it is rossi red, ill try get my phone to take some they look pucka on there but you can see that shes shining..

 

[Rob-mint-mk1-uno]

Sorry here they are

 

[Rob-mint-mk1-uno]

Been replacing the brakes today and bleeding them up, while i was underneath i had a good look around, im totaly amazed.... its mint not a plate in sight and even behind the bumper is mint, i just cant get my head round it..
All i need is a drivers front wing and a door as mines got rust in it so id rather replace it then its done.
Still got the side light fault thou... help

 

[alexGS]

Interesting thread

Rob - LOL at the colour difference on the roof!
Nice work there, an amazing difference. Suddenly it looks cared-for, you saw the potential and went for it. I'm sure you got some exercise too!

Those seats are not the same style as mine, unfortunately - mine are plain black (almost 'corded' material) with red FIAT five-bar logos. It would be interesting to see if your door panels also have the herringbone style but sadly your camera appears to have struggled with the interior exposure... and the engine bay... in fact I'd say your camera isn't doing your work justice - sorry to be harsh

electricmice - thanks for mentioning: did you get original-style seat covering material? Where from? The Mk1 Turbo seats have usually fallen apart many years ago.

oldskoolmk1unoturbo - <<melts in front of the computer>> ummm... is that original paint?

Rob - again - good to know there weren't any repairs underneath. You've been very positive throughout this, haven't you... a useful skill for a FIAT owner to have We might have different definitions of 'mint', I'm pleased that you're on the way to mint condition, but if I'd bought something advertised as 'mint' but that had a huge hole in the rear turret and yellow primer on the driver's door, I'd be crying I'm sure you'll have it finished and 'mint' soon though! (oh and what's wrong with the driver's front wing, it looks 'mint' already?)

-Alex

 

[Rob-mint-mk1-uno]

Hello alex...

Firstly my camera is total crap big time i took a pic of me mrs and she came out a funny colour to, lol thats what u get buying knocked off goods....
I put my name down as mint because thats how i want it to be when im done, i enjoy a challange but i was lucky in the fact that i got one that hasnt been plated or welded any where, the rear turret is all done and filled and sprayed so u cant tell the difference there.
The door cards are the same as the seats,ur lucky u have the early mk1 seats with the 5 red bar fiat logo all over them they are so cool, i think after 88 they used my seats and i heard the later cars got a stronger gear box.
I think for all the spares i got and the general condition of the car i got a mint bargin at 250 quid, the paint work is the only thing that needs attention then it will be mint as.
I got heaps of spares with it, got a digital dash,2 normal dash boards,3 air flow meters,pipes hoses,2 ecu's,spare engine-gearbox,turbo,books the list goes on i tell ya.
I got all the hand books and service books and even the original purchase receipt and the warranty form and book, 1 previous owner i think its mint... :slayer:

 

[alexGS]

Yes, I think you got a great deal too my Uno Turbo cost me almost four times that.

And you're right, it's certainly on the way to being 'mint', keep up the good work!

Mine being a 1988 has the later gearbox as well, I think it's a big improvement over the earlier 'box, and I re-made the shift linkage using rod-ends, threaded bar, and rose joints all available from a bearing shop (three rose joints placed side-by-side with a few nuts in between replicate the strange diamond plate thingie, it was the most satisfying reconstruction I ever did, as it stopped the gearchange from clanking like a ball and chain!)

I like my Canon Digital IXUS 400, bought more than three years ago. The 500 is a bargain (about a third the price that I paid), but the 750 (half the price) is a svelte little camera. Canon have accurate colours and an intuitive interface. The performance with the flash is not great (the flash tends to wash-out the shots) but the night mode is fantastic for those evening sightseeing tours, and the macro mode great for countless close-ups of FIAT parts (I have thousands of photos...)

You always get what you pay for with cameras, but even the more expensive models like the IXUS seem to have plummeted in price (i.e. the IXUS 750 is the equivalent of my IXUS 400 when I bought it, yet it's half the price). If you could find an IXUS 400 for sale, it would probably be less than a hundred pounds now. As you might guess, the 400 is 4.0 megapixel, 500 is 5 megapixel, and the 750 is 6.1 megapixel if I remember correctly. I leave mine set to 640x480 (i.e. 0.7 megapixel) because that's all the resolution you need for reference material or forum posting, etc.

-Alex