1300 Coupe '81 Restoration (in Hungary)

[AndrewJ]

I bought my Beta coupe exactly one year ago and I started to restore it immediately - however the speed of the restoration was very slow until this November. First I needed to buy/make many tools and from August I had to restore the engine of the Lancia Y10 driven by my wife ( https://picasaweb.google.com/103220166446302840291/LanciaY10HengerfejTomitesAtegeseMotorFelujitas# )  

In the last few weeks I started to work on the body of the Beta and I hope that I will have more time for this work than before  

A few days ago I created a gallery - that contains the photos from the beginning till now :

https://picasaweb.google.com/103220166446302840291/LanciaBetaCoupe1300RestorationPhotos#

[Hawk]

looks like you've got a big job on your hands there!  Although the body work looks ok?   

[AndrewJ]

looks like you've got a big job on your hands there!  Although the body work looks ok?    

The car body has not so much rust for the first sight, but it has many old nasty patches and under these unworkmanlike pathches are all the sheets rusty - so I need to remove/replace them . I also have rust problem with the floor plan and around the windscreen.

I will do all the bodywork for myself, because there are some professional (and very expensive) specialists in the country, but most of them don't like to work on old cars and their quality is terrible.  Now I am at the beginning of the body work - I already have many tools, and have read many professional car body books - so now I am learning this profession on my Beta  . It is not a problem for me, because I  guess that I have good handicraft and my "official" job also requires it.

I don't have much free time for this - I can work on it in the evenings and on weekends, so I guess, that the restoration will be completed  within two years. Then I want to bring my car to  classic car qualification (only for the local, not for FIVA - it is a bit easier and cheaper)

 

[AndrewJ]

Anyway I already have found about 10 Beta owners in Hungary, but I don't think that in Hungary would be more then 20 Betas - and most of them is in bad condition yet. However I know some other Lancia fans here who want to buy and restore one like me.

A few days ago the first Beta article was published in a Hungarian oldtimer/youngtimer magazine. I also know the owner of this car from a local internet forum. I scanned it for my friend, but I can link it here - if someone is interested in the pics  :

http://lanciak.hu/LanciaBetaCoupeTest.pdf

[HFStuart]

I have colleagues in Sarvar - I may have to send this to them so I can bore them in their own language for a change!

Stuart

[AndrewJ]

I have colleagues in Sarvar - I may have to send this to them so I can bore them in their own language for a change!

Stuart

It is a good idea   !

[AndrewJ]

Could anyone tell me where the original margin of undercoating on the body around was/should be? I guess, that mine was coated much higher, than the original - for example the whole front of the car was covered with bitumen  ..

[rossocorsa]

I think there was stone chip type material (generally refered to over here as 'schultz') in black on the sills up to just under the door but only on later cars (certainly S2FL2 but maybe earlier) and possibly some had stone chip over sprayed body colour on the front valance but I'm not sure of the originality of this on cars I've seen

[AndrewJ]

I think there was stone chip type material (generally refered to over here as 'schultz') in black on the sills up to just under the door but only on later cars (certainly S2FL2 but maybe earlier) and possibly some had stone chip over sprayed body colour on the front valance but I'm not sure of the originality of this on cars I've seen

Yes - that is also my problem - not sure.. On the valance - It would be OK for me, but on my car everything was covered with that on the front  up to the bonnet - I guess that this was not original (fortunately )..

[Watshot]

Certainly the S2 face lift from '79 in the U.K had a band of maybe 5 inches around the whole of the bottom edge of the car, which was then sprayed body colour to match. So this was the length of the sills, then onto the rear leg of the front wings, which has a swage line to match the angle of the sill. The front valance in a similar strip accross the bottom edge which continued around on to the front wing, and the same at the back. Just imagine a 'sill depth' band around the whole bottom edge of the car treated in Schutz underseal, then oversprayed with body colour.

I can confirm this having owned two coupes in the 1980's which were unmolested from new.

[AndrewJ]

Certainly the S2 face lift from '79 in the U.K had a band of maybe 5 inches around the whole of the bottom edge of the car, which was then sprayed body colour to match. So this was the length of the sills, then onto the rear leg of the front wings, which has a swage line to match the angle of the sill. The front valance in a similar strip accross the bottom edge which continued around on to the front wing, and the same at the back. Just imagine a 'sill depth' band around the whole bottom edge of the car treated in Schutz underseal, then oversprayed with body colour.

I can confirm this having owned two coupes in the 1980's which were unmolested from new.

Thank you for this detailed description - this is enough for me to be able to restore the original state  !

Were the underside of your Betas also painted originally to body colour or were they simply black?

[MattNoVAT]

Both my S1 and S2 have underbody sealer (a kind of rubberised paint) this is black but there are areas where the over-spray from the main body covers it.

The body colour stops pretty much at the rear crossmember and starts again at the front bulkhead, everything inbetween is black. 

When I reemoved my fuel tank it revealed unmarked blue paint..... if only the rest of the car looked like that!!

[AndrewJ]

Both my S1 and S2 have underbody sealer (a kind of rubberised paint) this is black but there are areas where the over-spray from the main body covers it.

The body colour stops pretty much at the rear crossmember and starts again at the front bulkhead, everything inbetween is black. 

When I reemoved my fuel tank it revealed unmarked blue paint..... if only the rest of the car looked like that!!

I want to paint the whole underbody to red, but I think that my fuel tank and the boot floot sheet will not be such in a good condition like yours  ..

[AndrewJ]

Have anyone tired to replace the drain tube of the sunroof to a new one? Is it possible?