bristol 411 restoration

Going Back Together – 1970 Bristol 411 Reassembly

July 28, 2022

The workshop at the Bridge Classic Cars HQ have begun the process of getting the interior of the 1970 Bristol 411 following its in-house LHD conversion.

The trim team recently installed the carpet set into the floor of the classic GT car, and from there the workshop team could start to put the seats and all other pieces into the car. Along with that, they can start to align all the panels as part of its aesthetic work and finish off getting the trims and wiring/plumbing routed in the engine bay.

Put Back – Dash Reassembled and Hoses Back in the 1970 Bristol 411

July 22, 2022

The 1970 Bristol 411 which is in with Bridge Classic Cars to have its left-hand drive conversion done has been worked on by the workshop to complete some of the smaller jobs.

The team have reassembled the dashboard with the various dials and switches fitted back into the wooden surround.

In the engine bay, the team have fit up several new hoses to the classic Bristols V8 engine. The first is the new power steering hoses for the PAS system as part of its left-hand drive conversion with a custom-made steering rack. The hoses for this were made by a local specialist company who we have a good relationship with and have all been properly tested before being fit to the car.

Next, the team could route the new radiator hoses. This were changed over as standard procedure and some small changes to routing due to the PAS system.

Capped Off – New Dashboard Panels for the 1970 Bristol 411

July 19, 2022

The 1970 Bristol 411, which is in for a left-hand drive conversion by Bridge Classic Cars, has had its dashboard finished off by the in-house trim team.

The team have made new dashboard caps for the underside of the classic Bristol’s wood and leather dash. These were trimmed and shaped by Brian before being trimmed in matching black leather and fitted to the car. Also, the team have installed the glovebox light back into the car.

From the Inside – Painting the Battery Box on the 1970 Bristol 411

July 13, 2022

While the 1970 Bristol 411 was in the Bridge Classic Cars paint booth, the team finished off the painting jobs by finishing the battery box, hidden away in the inner wing.

The floor of the battery base had been replaced by the team previously as part of some corrosion repairs. This was then prepared and primed by the paint and body team, before being finished in deep hard wearing black to finish off its look.

Keep a look out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page very soon for more updates on the 1970 Bristol 411 very soon.

Underside – Painting the Sills on the 1970 Bristol 411

July 12, 2022

The 1970 Bristol 411 had some work done to repair some areas of corrosion on its sills. The Bridge Classic Cars team cut out any of the questionable areas and replaced them with hand-fabricated pieces which were then welded into the car.

Now, the whole car has moved in our in-house Paint Shop for the paint and body team to treat, prime and painted the sills on the classic GT car. The team were careful to mask off any areas where the paint was in perfect condition and only work on the bare metal areas.

Small Details – Fitting Pieces Back into the 1970 Bristol 411

July 6, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been fitting back and wiring up some of the smaller features in the cabin of the 1970 Bristol 411.

The team have wired up the headlight switch on the floorboard of the classic GT car and all of its wiring carefully routed beneath the carpet set.

Then, the team could fit the beautiful wooden glovebox back into the dashboard

Stopping Power – Overhauling the Rear Brake Calipers on the 1970 Bristol 411

July 5, 2022

The 1970 Bristol 411, which is for restoration and left-hand drive conversion at Bridge Classic Cars, has had its rear brakes completely overhauled by the team in the workshop.

The technicians at our Suffolk HQ have completely gone through the rear callipers on the car before getting reinstalled back on the classic GT. After double checking the tolerances, the team confirmed everything would work on the classic Bristol.

In & Out – Fitting the Sound Deadening and Cabin Vents to the 1970 Bristol 411

June 29, 2022

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on the interior of the 1970 Bristol 411 which is in for its left-hand drive conversion.

The team have fit new original-style sound deadening into the floors and tunnel of the classic Bristol as part of the restoration side of the project. Also while fitting the sound deadening to the car, the team refurbished and refit the cabin vents which sit in the footwell kick panels.

Underfoot – New Rear Carpets on the 1970 Bristol 411

June 20, 2022

The trim team have been working on making the brand new carpet set for the 1970 Bristol 411 which is in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for light restorative work and left-hand drive conversion.

Brian, one of our trimmers, has carefully taken the carpet set under the rear seats out of the car and up to our in-house trim shop in order to template and remake the pieces.

After they had been cut out of new material, the pieces were taken back down to be fitted into the car. The carpet panels need to go into the car in a specific order to sit correctly and fit perfectly inside the cabin of the classic V8 British GT car.

In Place – Fitting the Oil Filter, Power Steering Pump and Servicing the Brakes on the 1970 Bristol 411

May 20, 2022

The workshop team have completed the next round of jobs on the classic Bristol 411 in for a left-hand drive conversion at Bridge Classic Cars.

The first stage was to mount the oil filter housing to the opposite side of the engine bay after the conversion. The team have made sure that each component will not interfere with each other and also have enough space to be able to be safely worked on during the service of the car in the future.

Then, the team have carried out the final test fit of the power steering pump to the engine of the classic Bristol using the specially fabricated brackets. These will be taken off the car and finished in matching black to the other bracketry in the engine bay.

Next up, the team will be performing a full brake service on the classic GT car with a full inspection of seals, lines and pistons.

Mounted – Securing the New Power Steering Pump on the 1970 Bristol 411

May 20, 2022

The restoration team in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ have begun to fix the position of the new Power Assisted Steering Pump as part of the carts left-hand drive conversion by our workshop.

With the pump in place, the team could begin to inspect and assess the areas around the pump to make sure that the all-important belt isn’t interfered with or is in the way of anything else. For this, the team have made a custom set of brackets to hold the pump on the engine and perfectly in line with the other pulleys which will drive it.

Unseen – New Hardura for the Firewall of the 1970 Bristol 411

May 18, 2022

The interior team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on finishing the firewall/bulkhead on the 1970 Bristol 411 which is having its left-hand drive conversion done at our Suffolk HQ.

The firewall and under dash area of the classic Bristol has been finished off, for the most part, which means the interior team can begin its finishing work. The finishing touch for the modified firewall is the hand-cut and edged hardura panel. This, has been templated and made specifically for the Bristol to work around the various changes which have been made by the restoration workshop.

Key Points – Progress on the 1970 Bristol 411

May 17, 2022

The restoration team in the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ have been making progress on the 1970 Bristol 411 in for its left hand drive conversion.

The team have begun the work by rebuilding and fitting out the modified firewall/bulkhead with the necessary systems moved from one side of the firewall to the other. This has been done for the next stage where the team have fitted up the heater hoses and pipes from the heater box under the dashboard of the classic Bristol.

After this, the team moved to the underside of the car to begin work on several jobs that need to be completed. The first, was to fit the newly fabricated jacking plates onto the car. These could now be fitted after the repairs carried out to the sills of the car and everything being structurally sound.

Next, was a quite badly corroded area in the battery compartment of the classic Bristol. This was cut out with a new plate welded in its place to strengthen the floor of the area.

Whilst under the car, the team noticed some corrosion to boot floor support which had been filled with fibreglass but corroded through to the boot floor on the near side rear of the car. This area was carefully marked and cut out of the car in preparation for the new piece to be templated and welded into the car making the boot floor stronger and sealed.

Finishing Work – Cleaning Up the Welds on the New 1970 Bristol 411

April 29, 2022

The restoration workshop at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on finishing the welds on the 1970 Bristol 411’s new sills.

The fabrication team have been working alongside the restoration technicians to get the new sills into the classic Bristol. Although as much is done as possible during the process of welding to ensure the pieces sit properly and flush, some finishing is needed to make sure there is no valley between the two pieces. This is achieved with subtle heat and a series of body working tools.

Along with that, the team have started to fabricate the new closing panels underneath the 1970s GT car.

Finishing Up – Finish Welding the Sills of the 1970 Bristol 411

April 28, 2022

The workshop and fabrication teams at the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop have been working together on the repairs to the 1970 Bristol 411.

After beginning to weld the newly fabricated sill into the classic Bristol, the team have now begun to finish welding the new metal in the car. This needs to be done very carefully so as to not affect the existing metal around it and cause any form of heat warping. So, the fabrication team are systematically welding the panels into the car allowing it time to cool and shrink back into place.

Once this is complete, the team can move on with the work needed to be done on the 1970 Bristol 411.

Closing Up – Replacing the Sill Straps and Closing Panels on the 1970 Bristol 411

April 21, 2022

After carefully opening up the sills of the 1970 Bristol 411 and thoroughly inspecting them, our technicians have begun the process of sealing them back up in the car.

The workshop at Bridge Classic Cars have hand fabricated new sills straps and new closing panels for the classic Bristol after inspecting the inner sills for any form of corrosion. The originals had to be cut out of the car and couldn’t be reused so our fabrication team made brand new, tight-fitting and durable panels to replace them.

The original flanges were cleaned up and straightened to give a good mounting surface for the workshop to weld the new panels back into place and seal up the underside of the classic Bristol.

Getting Stronger – Inspecting and Strengthening the Sills of the 1970 Bristol 411

April 14, 2022

The restoration technicians from the Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been working on inspecting inside and then strengthening the sills of the 1970 Bristol 411.

The team cut off the chassis cover in order to inspect the structural pieces of the frame on the classic Bristol, inside was found to be in generally good condition but they did notice the strengthening rail, which pinches the two seams together, had corroded quite heavily. So, the team have fabricated a new replacement piece to put back the strength and rigidity to the piece.

And Then There Was Light – New Glovebox Light in the 1970 Bristol 411

April 14, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars in-house trim team have upgraded the hand-made glovebox for the left-hand drive converted 1970 Bristol 411.

The glovebox has had a new lighting system installed into the car to take into account the change over in drivers sides. The team carefully cut the opening for the system to be installed flush and cleanly into the one-off Bristol 411.

All By Hand – Hand Stitching Dash Pieces for the 1970 Bristol 411

April 13, 2022

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working alongside the workshop team on the left-hand-drive conversion of the 1970 Bristol 411.

In the last update, we showed you getting the dash panel pieces test fit into the car but our trimmer Lydia took some detailed photos showing the process of hand-cutting and stitching these beautiful black leather pieces together to make the final covers.

Dry Fit – Checking the Fitment of the Dash on the 1970 Bristol 411

April 11, 2022

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on test fitting the new dash panels of the 1970 Bristol 411 into the car as part of its left-hand-drive conversion by the team at our restoration workshops.

Brian, one of our trimmers, has been working alongside the restoration technicians on the conversion to the classic Bristol. Each piece has been test fit numerous times and refined over the previous weeks to make sure the fit and finish of the dash panels is perfect and flow seamlessly into the shape of the cabin.

Brian will make small tweaks to the bracketry and supports to make sure each individual piece (and the panel as a whole) sits right in the car and works together.

Retrimmed – Dash Panel on the 1970 Bristol 411 Retrimmed

April 11, 2022

The dash panels of the 1970 Bristol 411 have been completely refurbished and retrimmed by the trim team at Bridge Classic Cars.

These pieces have been trimmed in black to match the original dash pad covering and to work around the new LHD conversion being carried out by the restoration workshop. With these pieces now finished, the team can begin to refit them into the car.

Painted – The Heater Box of the 1970 Bristol 411 Painted

March 30, 2022

The modified heater box of the 1970 Bristol 411 has been in the Bridge Classic Cars in-house paint shop to be refinished.

Mauro has worked on getting the heater box prepared and then thoroughly cleaned down before each individual piece was hung in the spray booth and sprayed in durable black ready to be reinstalled in the engine bay of the left-hand drive converted Bristol 411.

Progress – Brake Lines, Wiring Harness, Steering Locks and Brake Reservoirs on the 1970 Bristol 411

March 16, 2022

The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars have been progressing on the left-hand drive conversion of the 1970 Bristol 411.

Paul has been working on getting several key pieces of the conversion completed. Firstly he has made all new brake lines for the car since the master cylinder and reservoir have been moved in the engine bay. Each of these was handmade and flared to the exact needs of the car.

Next up was the wiring harness for the dashboard. Each of the wires will need to be precisely lengthened with the change in position for several key components.

In preparation for the new steering rack for the car, the existing lock stops on the steering box had to be removed for space to fit the new system into the classic Bristol.

Finally, with everything in the correct place orientation, Paul could lengthen the wires which go to and from the brake reservoir.

Revisions – Modifying the Heater box of the 1970 Bristol 411

March 7, 2022

The 1970 Bristol 411 which is in the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop to be converted to left-hand drive has to have several important pieces in the engine bay modified to fit the application.

One of these pieces is the heater box of the classic Bristol. The inlets and outlets of the heater box, once it has been rotated during its relocation across the firewall, were in entirely the wrong orientation. This means that our restoration technicians have had to modify and relocate each of the individual outlets. Along with that, other openings in the heater box has had to be blanked off and reopened 180 degrees out.

Remove and Replace – Stripping Down and Modifying the Firewall of the 1970 Bristol 411

March 1, 2022

The workshop at Bridge Classic Cars have been stripping down and modifying the firewall/bulkhead of the 1970 Bristol 411 for its conversion to left-hand drive.

Our technician Paul, has been removing all necessary bracketry and components from the car in order to change over any of the pieces from one side to the other. With pieces being moved around in the engine bay, he has welded created replacement pieces which will be welded in to plate over and then any access or holes that need to be made can be cut into the new material.