My Lancia years.

[Nigel]

I worked as a mechanic/MOT tester for JD Ross,Etchinghill,Kent between 79 and 81/82.
During that time the trade-in offer was running, and I acquired a forecourt trade-in 76' 1600 Coupe. PFG76R i think, in Lancia Blue.
Rusy front wings and front panel were swiftly swopped from a 74 Coupe which Lancia had bought back!
Quick paint jobs on both cars and they never knew a thing!

I recall what a joy it was to drive the brand new cars,so tight and quick! They were all carb models....the dealer
closed down before the IE was introduced. The Delta 1.3 was introduced whilst I was there,what a lovely car that was,and with so much more to come inside that bodyshell!

I had to fit a factory a/c kit to a LHD HPE registered in Andorra. That was a 3 day job back then.
We became experts at diagnosing wheel bearing hum! Got it right 98% of the time!
Also learnt how to strip a gearbox in-situ [see gearbox thread]

When this dealer closed I moved to Johannesburg,and after 2 years at a VW dealer,I moved to TAK and spent another 2 years on more Betas,Deltas and Themas. One 8.32 was owned by the MD and we converted it to RHD.I recall we couldn't match the leather for the dash, so the interior was fully re-trimmed! As far as i've ever known,it was the only one in the world at the time,maybe theres another by now?

Sadly,us mere mechanics in JHB wern't treated very well,so I opted to leave and enter the security business instead.
I loved the cars though,and was a frequent visitor back to TAK,and 2 years after leaving bought a White 1980 2.0 HPE.
I used it for work,tools in the back etc,and ran it for 3 years,clocking up some 150k miles, during which gearbox bearings and big-end bearings were renewed,all in-situ. No rust issues in JHB either! I retired the HPE from work duties and then retrimmed her in grey leather using an old Singer machine i'd acquired.

I want another Beta,and i'm considering getting one from JHB in the future.
Sadly i've no pics of my wonderful Lancia experiences, only fond memories!

[Gerhard]

Hi Nigel,

Read your message. My son owns a 1984 Beta Coupe, that had some extensive work done on it. He just inherit my Fiat Stilo, as I got a new car, so he is looking for a buyer for it. Give me a shout on 083 797 5825, I will then talk you thru all the work done on the car.

Gerhard

[Nigel]

PM sent Gerhard, thanks!

[Nigel]

Well, to continue my little story, i'm now the very proud owner of an Australian-original 1984 HPE!
To me, it's the holy grail of a find, being relatively rust-free,and a carb engine.
 
It was imported to the UK in 1998,spent time on the road until mid-04, then stored in a relatively dry garage.
My purchase and collection was only 4 weeks ago, and i'm close to an engine start attempt.
This is planned to be a re-commission rather than a restoration,as it really doesn't show,so far, that it needs
more.
Perhaps I should start a new thread? Somewhere?

Regards to all,
Nigel