Well, good news today! Took the car down to Overland Cruisers for Julian to give it a thorough once-over and assessment of the vehicle before I get any further into the build. Basically, this was make or break for me and the LC...
Firstly, we took it for a test drive and yes, it was certainly down on power (or boost and fuel, to be precise). So JV made some tweaks to the fuel pump, both to the diaphragm side and the adjuster screw to pep things up a bit. It certainly felt perkier on the test drive, but it was on the 100 mile drive home I really noticed and appreciated the difference - the car is transformed! It's definitely a bit quicker, but more than that is how improved the driveability is! With boost now available well below 2,000rpm (where it kicked in previously) I can now make great progress down fast A-roads, no need to change down on long uphill sections...basically it is 100% better to drive from a power perspective.
Secondly, the suspension is tired - it's not hitting the bump stops, but after 22 years it's tired and needs replacing. Not a problem, as I was going to replace it anyway, but good to know it's that and not anything else - all the bushes seem in good condition, which is great news.
Finally, JV's assessment: one of the best 'standard' 80's he's seen in recent times, he was very pleasantly surprised how good condition the car is in, which is great news! It means I made the right decision buying a standard car to build up, rather than buying an already modified vehicle.
So the good news is I'm keeping it. I know once the suspension is replaced with some decent kit it will finish the transformation in terms of driveability, so that is my next job. Big thanks to JV and Overland Cruisers for their help and efforts this afternoon, will be back for some suspension soon I'm sure!
Firstly, we took it for a test drive and yes, it was certainly down on power (or boost and fuel, to be precise). So JV made some tweaks to the fuel pump, both to the diaphragm side and the adjuster screw to pep things up a bit. It certainly felt perkier on the test drive, but it was on the 100 mile drive home I really noticed and appreciated the difference - the car is transformed! It's definitely a bit quicker, but more than that is how improved the driveability is! With boost now available well below 2,000rpm (where it kicked in previously) I can now make great progress down fast A-roads, no need to change down on long uphill sections...basically it is 100% better to drive from a power perspective.
Secondly, the suspension is tired - it's not hitting the bump stops, but after 22 years it's tired and needs replacing. Not a problem, as I was going to replace it anyway, but good to know it's that and not anything else - all the bushes seem in good condition, which is great news.
Finally, JV's assessment: one of the best 'standard' 80's he's seen in recent times, he was very pleasantly surprised how good condition the car is in, which is great news! It means I made the right decision buying a standard car to build up, rather than buying an already modified vehicle.
So the good news is I'm keeping it. I know once the suspension is replaced with some decent kit it will finish the transformation in terms of driveability, so that is my next job. Big thanks to JV and Overland Cruisers for their help and efforts this afternoon, will be back for some suspension soon I'm sure!
