And So It Begins....

[SanRemo78]

Thanks Eric - I will never know the difference it makes never having experienced this car. I suspect that the induction roar from the twin 40 carbs will be dominant.

Guy

[kbetas]

fyi last week i fitted led bulbs to the std HPE dipped beam lenses and i cannot believe how much difference they've made. Previously the dipped beam lights were hopeless even with high intensity bulbs but now it's like driving a modern car with the added bonus of lower power consumption. The bulbs came with an adaptor so they could be plugged into the std connectors. They have a little cooling fan on the back so i'm struggling to get the dust / water covers over the top but i reckon i can mod them to fit.

[SanRemo78]

Hopefully the beam pattern with standard headlights is okay? The ones I've bought are (supposedly) street legal and E marked.

A contact I made a few weeks ago had a pile of mixed Beta bits that were offered but no takers. He phoned to say they were on the way to the tip unless I wanted them. Not much usable but if I see anyone asking and it is there the parts are free! Or they will get down to Marks on the next trip South.

A pair of rear seats will get fitted to the car for a while whilst I work on the rustproofing and headlining. I have a funny feeling I will run out of Dynamat... Still got about half the floor, the under rear seat area, rear quarters, doors and front bulkhead/wheel arches to do. I think the one piece I managed to wreck when it folded in on itself will be the one piece I needed to finish the job. Hey ho.

Guy

[SanRemo78]

The petrol flap saga continues. And I still need one.

No 1 came with the car but was corroded beyond use. I threw it away but it's possible it's still laying on the floor at the bodyshop so I'm going to see if it's still there tomorrow. Might be usable as a pattern...
No 2 came from Greece via eBay and was a new old stock one. It's painted but when we tried to fit it the aperture was bigger than the flap, especially noticeable in the corners.
No 3 came from Felix in South Africa. Parts catalogue said it's suitable but there was a mix up in picking it and it turns out to be the twin of No 2. It's now back in SA.
No 4 was on a Beta Spider with Jim in Farnborough. Right shape but had rot and the hinge mechanism differs to the coupe. So it stayed on the Spider.
No 5 is still on a Beta Coupe at Jims, a HiFi that isn't for breaking. And is the right shape.
No 6 came from Mark. Same shape as No 2 and 3. Oh FFS!
No 7 may come from Mirco Andries in Italy. I've seen a piccy it might be correct. But I'm not sure.
No 8 may also come from Felix once he's compared it to the one I returned and, if the shape differs, I'll have that even if the hinge arrangement is wrong. I can cobble something together from the parts I'll have sometime soon. I hope.

Guy

[SanRemo78]

So, the grey one sat in the aperture is mine and obviously wrong.
The blue one, with the keys is the right one.

Does anyone have one the same shape as the blue one? Please?

My car is a 1980 built 2 litre Coupe, ZLA828BC1 Chassis if that helps! First UK registration in 1981.

And if anyone can identify what type of Coupe the grey flap should fit I'd be grateful!

Guy

[SanRemo78]

Well that's a couple of packs of Dynamat used. Lost one sheet when it folded in on itself. No recovery from that mess. Boot completed, floorpan completed and roof completed. I still need to sort out the front bulkhead/wheel arches, speaker/door bins on the sides, inside the doors and inside the rear quarters. Now I'm waiting on another delivery of mats... Probably need half a pack to finish it?

Tim expressed a concern about the longevity of the mats on the underside of the roof in the heat but they're so sticky i think they'll be fine. Especially as there are going to be the four cross bars supporting the headliner too.

Looks like I may have sorted out two filler flaps as well as the gearbox splash panel and a better radiator shroud part that's rusted on mine too. One flap coming from Raul in USA and the other parts from Mirco in Italy. Thank you both!

Guy

[SanRemo78]

And the roof.

[WestonE]

I put Dynamat on my Monte Roof and it has stayed in place on all the hot trips to Italy even though the car is black. I used Dyna Light on the doors on my Beta Spyder to keep the weight down and still have a solid closing feel.

[SanRemo78]

And that's it done. Who thought that putting soundproofing material down would be such a long job but it's done. I suspect that I didn't need to fully cover every square inch like I have for it to be effective but that's what I decided to do. The front bulkhead was definitely the trickiest part to do but I got there in the end. Last sections were the insides of the doors (very easy in smaller section) and the rear seat area on the outer wings. I haven't done the underside of the boot lid yet nor the bonnet. I think the heat from the engine would dictate not fitting it?

The rest of this week will be spent cleaning up and fitting rubber bungs so the rustproofing fluid doesn't leak out. Bound to miss a few spots!

[SanRemo78]

Actually, not done, there's another layer of bulkhead padding to go on top of the Dynamat.

Postie came with a new model for the cabinet. This Laudo Models one is really really nice!

Guy

[WestonE]

Hi Guy,

Careful with the weight of sound proofing on the boot lid or your springs will not cope. Use Dyna light.

Eric 

[SanRemo78]

The petrol flap saga is... over! Bar painting. It's still a bit of a mystery though. The top one is the first one I bought, second is from Mark and are both the same size/shape/hinge arrangement but not for my series (ZLA828BC1) but the bottom one is correct and came from USA from Raul Solis-Dipp after a Facebook appeal. There's another one on the way from Mirco Andries (same Facebook appeal) along with a couple of other parts so I ought to have two to paint now.

The one from Raul came with a plastic opener rather than the lock we're used to here. Fortunately the lock will fit as I prefer that look.

Now I just have to hope the printshop has enough of the paint left that's usable to do a couple of filler flaps and maybe a spare front valance I've also acquired... Spares, if you've got them you'll never need them!

Guy