MGC GT Roof And More
January 17, 2024
Lydia has been hard at work over the last week or so on the roof of our 1969 MGC GT. First, she stripped the old
Body and Paintwork
Our Defender
January 17, 2024
Our 2010 Land Rover Defender has been undergoing some work in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop as Mauro has been painting the roof before polishing
Defender Improvements
January 11, 2024
The Bridge Classic Cars Defender has been having some work completed recently. Lydia sanded off the sharp edges of the rear bench to avoid any
Painting Cobra Parts
January 8, 2024
Mauro has been painting various parts of our 1975 Cobra Replica in black.
Prep And Paint
January 8, 2024
Our 1969 MGC GT has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with Chris. He rubbed down the primer on the car before moving it
Priming Our Spitfire
January 8, 2024
Bridge Classic Cars paint technician Alan has been working on our 1976 Triumph Spitfire. He prepped the polyester primer ready for high-build primer before applying
Repairing A Pillar
January 3, 2024
Our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup has continued its stay in our fabrication bay with technician Chris. Chris has been repairing the A-pillar as well as
Wheel Arches
December 21, 2023
Rob has welded the inner wheel arches back onto the bonnet of our 1976 Triumph Spitfire. He did this before the outside of the bonnet
Undersealing
December 21, 2023
Our 2005 Honda S2000 has continued its stay in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop. While in there, Chris has been undersealing the underneath of the
MGB Engine
December 20, 2023
After the engine of our 1970 MGB Roadster had its engine prepped and painted in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop, classic car technician Jonn reassembled
Prepping For Paint
December 15, 2023
Our 1969 MGC GT has spent some time in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop. While in there, it has been prepped for primer before going
MGC GT repair work…
December 8, 2023
Christian is assessing the corroded areas and getting the car prepared for the repairs.
Steering rack bracket
December 7, 2023
Monty has made up a new steering rack bracket to replace the existing one on our 1956 Jensen 541.
MG C GT – exposing the rust areas
December 7, 2023
Chris is currently stripping back our MG C GT to expose all of the rust and corrosion areas that will need addressing. As we find
Cobra strip down and preparation
December 7, 2023
Mauro is continuing to strip down the Cobra project in preparation for the primer stage. Whilst Terry is stripping down the front suspension and front
Triumph Spitfire Polyester Primer
December 6, 2023
Alan is refitting the rear lights to check the fit. He is masking up for polyester primer preparation. Body was first epoxy primed then polyester
Work Continues
December 1, 2023
Various parts of our 2005 Honda S2000 were in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop recently. Technician Chris stopped the paint on the engine cover
Odd Jobs
December 1, 2023
Classic car technician Steve has been completing various tasks on our Ford Transit MKII Tipper. The hand brake pivot bolt and rear brake load valve
Work Begins Again On Our Interceptor
December 1, 2023
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor Mk3 is back in the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication bay with technicians Chris and Monty. They have been fabricating new wing
Out Of Paint And Into The Workshop
November 30, 2023
Our 1970 MGB Roadster has come to the end of its time in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop. It recently moved into the main
Jensen Crash Bar
November 29, 2023
Part of our 1959 Jensen 541R has been undergoing some work in the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication bay. Technician Monty has been straightening the front
Polyester Priming
November 24, 2023
Our 1976 Triumph Spitfire has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop with technician Alan. Alan has been applying polyester primer to the doors,
Rebuilding And Improving
November 24, 2023
After being painted, our 2005 Honda S2000 was put back together by technician Chris. Once Chris had put the majority of the bodywork back together,
In Paint
November 24, 2023
Our 1970 MGB Roadster has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with technician Mauro. Mauro has been rubbing down the car after primer before
More Repairs For Our Devon
November 24, 2023
Our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup has continued its stay in the fabrication bay with technicians Chris and Monty. They have been repairing the wing, stone
A Fresh Coat Of Paint
November 22, 2023
Chris has been working on our 2005 Honda S2000 in the Bridge Classic Cars Paint Shop. After prepping it for paint, he then gave the
ABS Bracket
November 20, 2023
Our 1987 Mercedes 500SL has been the focus of classic car technician Monty recently. He has had the car in the fabrication bay and has
Devon Progress
November 20, 2023
Several technicians have been working on our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup recently. The wing has been repaired along with the headlight bowl. Multiple components have
Rear Bumper Repairs
November 16, 2023
Our 2013 Range Rover Vogue has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with Alan, who has been making some repairs to the rear bumper.
Honda S2000 Strip Down And Paint Prep
November 15, 2023
Our interior trim team have been stripping down our 2005 Honda S2000. After removing the front seats and all plastic trim panels, Brian loosened the
MGC GT Roof And More
January 17, 2024
Lydia has been hard at work over the last week or so on the roof of our 1969 MGC GT. First, she stripped the old headlining from the roof. As with a lot of materials from the 60s and 70s, the foam had disintegrated, leaving a sticky mess.
Taking the roof apart was challenging as it was not immediately apparent how the headlining part came off the exterior of the roof. Two hidden screws finally showed themselves after a thorough inspection. Lydia used the old headlining as a pattern and made the new one from a brushed nylon fabric. As you can see, it looks a lot fresher and plumped up as it should be compared to the old one. Whilst doing this, she also took time to renew the cover on the rear crash bar, which goes over the boot hinges. This needed a completely new foam underlayer and then new brushed nylon on top. She refitted the rear interior light back to this as well.
Next were all the parts on the actual car body. Lydia first cleaned off the old foam and used a scotch brite pad to prepare the surface. Then, she applied new foam to the sides to offer some sound deadening and a base for the headlining to go on top. After this, she had to put the frame and the outer skin of the roof on, and tighten the nuts to hold this on.
Afterwards, Lydia cut the headlining to size on the job, then sewed it where necessary, and glued it to the car. The edges were glued to the metal frame and finished with some top on edging. The front piece of headlining was looking somewhat bumpy, so she cut a piece of cardboard to size and placed this underneath. It helped to smooth out the bumps and give it a much better finish. Then Lydia replaced all of the items attached to the roof, wind deflector, rear view mirror and sun visor clips.
The doors and the bonnet of our MGC were painted before the car was flatted and polished.
Our Defender
January 17, 2024
Our 2010 Land Rover Defender has been undergoing some work in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop as Mauro has been painting the roof before polishing it too.
As well as the painted roof – for the rear panels, Craig chose a simple vinyl to match the existing interior colour, which really helped to brighten up the back of the vehicle as it was very dark. Lydia applied a thin scrim foam and then the vinyl, and stapled that to the back. She then refitted the panels and secured them with screws and cup washers. Lydia then had to refit the seat and the toolbox before Mauro helped her to attach the bolts to them.
Defender Improvements
January 11, 2024
The Bridge Classic Cars Defender has been having some work completed recently.
Lydia sanded off the sharp edges of the rear bench to avoid any future injury to passengers. She then sprayed the bare metal with black paint to finish.
While Lydia did this, Mauro primed the roof ready for paint.
Painting Cobra Parts
January 8, 2024
Mauro has been painting various parts of our 1975 Cobra Replica in black.
Prep And Paint
January 8, 2024
Our 1969 MGC GT has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with Chris.
He rubbed down the primer on the car before moving it into the oven and masked it up ready for painting. Chris then painted the car before painting the roof frame in DTM Satin.
Priming Our Spitfire
January 8, 2024
Bridge Classic Cars paint technician Alan has been working on our 1976 Triumph Spitfire.
He prepped the polyester primer ready for high-build primer before applying the high-build primer to the doors and boot lid.
Alan then masked and primed the body of the car.
Repairing A Pillar
January 3, 2024
Our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup has continued its stay in our fabrication bay with technician Chris.
Chris has been repairing the A-pillar as well as working on the nuts which are used for the suspension mount.
Our classic Devon will stay with Chris for a little while longer before moving on to the next phase of its restoration.
Wheel Arches
December 21, 2023
Rob has welded the inner wheel arches back onto the bonnet of our 1976 Triumph Spitfire. He did this before the outside of the bonnet was painted.
More parts are being cleaned and blasted before Rob electroplated them.
Undersealing
December 21, 2023
Our 2005 Honda S2000 has continued its stay in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop. While in there, Chris has been undersealing the underneath of the car.
MGB Engine
December 20, 2023
After the engine of our 1970 MGB Roadster had its engine prepped and painted in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop, classic car technician Jonn reassembled it.
He refitted the painted parts and ancillaries and refitted the oil pump with new gaskets (pump filled with engine grease to avoid cavitation). He then fitted the new main bearing nuts and washers and retorqued to 95nm. Jonn went on to pre-oil all moving parts before fitting the sump and securing it.
To get the engine back into the car, Jonn mounted the engine on the engine crane so he could rub it down and paint the steering rack and column. The engine was then put back into the car.
Prepping For Paint
December 15, 2023
Our 1969 MGC GT has spent some time in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop.
While in there, it has been prepped for primer before going into the booth and having primer applied.
MGC GT repair work…
December 8, 2023
Christian is assessing the corroded areas and getting the car prepared for the repairs.
Steering rack bracket
December 7, 2023
Monty has made up a new steering rack bracket to replace the existing one on our 1956 Jensen 541.
MG C GT – exposing the rust areas
December 7, 2023
Chris is currently stripping back our MG C GT to expose all of the rust and corrosion areas that will need addressing. As we find more often than not, the areas we initially see upon first inspection is not able to reveal the true extent of work required. It is only when you start to strip a car do you see a true picture of corrosion that has developed and what work will be required to put it right before we even look to repaint.
Cobra strip down and preparation
December 7, 2023
Mauro is continuing to strip down the Cobra project in preparation for the primer stage.
Whilst Terry is stripping down the front suspension and front brakes. He’s blasting off the dirt ready for paint.
Triumph Spitfire Polyester Primer
December 6, 2023
Alan is refitting the rear lights to check the fit. He is masking up for polyester primer preparation.
Body was first epoxy primed then polyester primed.
Work Continues
December 1, 2023
Various parts of our 2005 Honda S2000 were in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop recently.
Technician Chris stopped the paint on the engine cover before painting in wrinkle paint and sanding it down to expose the writing. The headlights were also sanded down with 800 1000 1500 3000 and 6000 sandpaper and then it was polished up.
Brian then refitted the plastic trims back into the car.
Odd Jobs
December 1, 2023
Classic car technician Steve has been completing various tasks on our Ford Transit MKII Tipper.
The hand brake pivot bolt and rear brake load valve adjuster were both seized and had to be cut off and removed using oxygen and acetylene torch. A new hand brake pivot bolt was fabricated using a high tensile bolt.
While Steve was doing this, Mauro was painting various components of our classic Transit in the paint shop.
Work Begins Again On Our Interceptor
December 1, 2023
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor Mk3 is back in the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication bay with technicians Chris and Monty.
They have been fabricating new wing patches and started the process of welding them in.
Out Of Paint And Into The Workshop
November 30, 2023
Our 1970 MGB Roadster has come to the end of its time in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop. It recently moved into the main workshop where classic car technician Jonn has been giving it some attention.
After removing the old coil, Jonn turned the engine over and aligned the timing marks. He then removed the old distributor and swapped over the distributor clamp to the new distributor.
Jon cut the wires to length and taped them up before soldering the new terminals and connecting them to the coil.
While following the setup instructions for the distributor, Jonn found that the engine code is 18GB and is not listed in the paperwork for the distributor, so he was unable to select the correct torque curve from the list.
Jonn set it to number 3 on the list – timing static at 7 btdc, stroboscopic timing at 17btdc. He swapped the HT leads to a new cap and connected. During a road test, Jonn stopped to adjust the timing a few times and to tighten the distributor clamp.
He then cable-tied the wiring before removing the rocker cover and adjusting the tappets. Number 7 appeared to have wear and valve clearance was large.
Further investigation is needed.
Jensen Crash Bar
November 29, 2023
Part of our 1959 Jensen 541R has been undergoing some work in the Bridge Classic Cars fabrication bay.
Technician Monty has been straightening the front crash bar before it goes back onto this beautiful (and nearly finished) classic Jensen.
Polyester Priming
November 24, 2023
Our 1976 Triumph Spitfire has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop with technician Alan.
Alan has been applying polyester primer to the doors, boot lid, and bonnet. The first stage of this was to reapply epoxy primer to give them corrosion protection. Then all of the parts were sprayed with polyester primer.
Rebuilding And Improving
November 24, 2023
After being painted, our 2005 Honda S2000 was put back together by technician Chris.
Once Chris had put the majority of the bodywork back together, Brian worked on fitting the roof and interior trim. To do this, Brian connected the electrical cables, fitted trim around the rear edge of the roof, and fitted the rear tray and centre console. He then fitted the plastic trims around the roll bars, fitted trims behind the seats, and fitted the seats before using mastic to bond the plastic trims together around the roll bars.
In Paint
November 24, 2023
Our 1970 MGB Roadster has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with technician Mauro.
Mauro has been rubbing down the car after primer before prepping it for paint. Once the prep had been completed, the body of the car went into the paint booth for a new coat of paint.
More Repairs For Our Devon
November 24, 2023
Our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup has continued its stay in the fabrication bay with technicians Chris and Monty.
They have been repairing the wing, stone guards, and the cab body. They have also fabricated a new cab brace that was welded in too.
Repair work has also taken place on the lower A and B pillar.
A Fresh Coat Of Paint
November 22, 2023
Chris has been working on our 2005 Honda S2000 in the Bridge Classic Cars Paint Shop.
After prepping it for paint, he then gave the car a fresh coat of colour, along with various components that will eventually be put back onto the vehicle.
ABS Bracket
November 20, 2023
Our 1987 Mercedes 500SL has been the focus of classic car technician Monty recently. He has had the car in the fabrication bay and has been making the ABS bracket.
Devon Progress
November 20, 2023
Several technicians have been working on our 1951 Austin Devon Pickup recently.
The wing has been repaired along with the headlight bowl. Multiple components have also been sent off to be re-chromed, while others have been sent to the sandblasters.
The doors have also been repaired in the fabrication bay.
Rear Bumper Repairs
November 16, 2023
Our 2013 Range Rover Vogue has been in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop with Alan, who has been making some repairs to the rear bumper.
Alan stripped out the rear light and bumper moulding, repaired the bumper and painted it as well as the bumper moulding.
The rear bumper and new rear light were then fitted.
Honda S2000 Strip Down And Paint Prep
November 15, 2023
Our interior trim team have been stripping down our 2005 Honda S2000.
After removing the front seats and all plastic trim panels, Brian loosened the metal bar at the bottom of the roof before undoing the roof from the rear and removing the complete roof and frame from the car.
Brian then removed the clips for the base seat cover, removed the cover & foam, and added calico material to the side of the foam to add strength, before glueing the foam into the damaged section. The new foam was then trimmed to shape before Brian re-fitted the base cover & foam to the seat frame,
Our S2000 then moved into the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop where Chris removed the required panels and prepped the car for paint. Several parts of the car were primed, while rusty components were removed ready to be replaced.
