Cooper_dan
Newbie
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2025
- Points
- 3
So I viewed/purchased/drove home the Z on the evening of Friday 24th January. I was almost positive that buying a convertible in winter and only seeing it at night was a great idea and absolutely wouldn't come back to bite me.
Either way it was a 4 hour round trip and I don't like to go home empty handed. Plus the MOT history was unbelievably clean, with very few miles having been covered in the last 8 years, and there was no rust to be seen.
The new ownership joy lasted about 36 hours, at which point I got the 'wet knee' and realised the roof was leaking on both sides. So I resigned myself to now owning another rolling project and started making a list. Most work will be done on the driveway with occasional use of a garage if needed, and everything will be done in the evenings after work. So probably do the easier jobs now in winter, and more in depth laying on the floor kind of jobs in summer.
Jobs done so far:
- Adjusted the hood latch hooks. A previous owner had obviously tried to fix the leaking roof by tightening it up as much as possible. These were wound back out until the closing mechanism felt sensible
- Silicone repair to the A pillar plugs. Both were visibly bad and obviously the source of the leaks
- Cleared out the fuel filler drain hole
- Rubber conditioner (Autoglym vinyl and rubber protect) on the roof seals
- Swapped the gear knob from my E30 (temporary). The Z has got the chrome pack and the gear knob chrome is peeling off and not very nice to use
- Third brake light, new gasket
- Disassemble wing mirrors, clean and lubricate the pivot shaft. The drivers side was OK, but passenger side was very stiff. I need to fold these in to get up my driveway and didn't want to risk breaking them. There wasn't much external corrosion, so I liberally sprayed the grease into the internals and then worked them back and forth maybe 20 times. And then a bit more grease for good luck
- Passenger wing mirror back cover. This looks like it came from a blue car at some point in the past. Maybe the original was knocked off? But this replacement one had two broken studs inside, probably from over tightening. Some JB weld and now there are 4 functional screws again
- White lithium grease on all the hood hinges and pivots. Because why not.
- Remove the sound deadening foam from inside the airbox. It was badly degraded and crumbled when touched. Don't really want that sucked into the engine!
Next jobs:
- Aerial grommet. Should hopefully be waiting for me when I get home
- Rear shock top mounts. Hopefully arrive today or tomorrow as they are making a very annoying squeaking noise and I want to drive to the Forest of Dean on saturday
- Check/clear scuttle drains. Need to order some of the thin butyl tape for this
- Check/clear hood drains behind seats
- Fix the seatbelt holders on the side of the seats
- Clean and condition the hood
- Get the rubber conditioner on every rubber seal I can see
- Door cards off and check the membrane. Drivers side is definitely leaking
- Find a way to attach my phone in a sensible place for sat-nav
Either way it was a 4 hour round trip and I don't like to go home empty handed. Plus the MOT history was unbelievably clean, with very few miles having been covered in the last 8 years, and there was no rust to be seen.
The new ownership joy lasted about 36 hours, at which point I got the 'wet knee' and realised the roof was leaking on both sides. So I resigned myself to now owning another rolling project and started making a list. Most work will be done on the driveway with occasional use of a garage if needed, and everything will be done in the evenings after work. So probably do the easier jobs now in winter, and more in depth laying on the floor kind of jobs in summer.
Jobs done so far:
- Adjusted the hood latch hooks. A previous owner had obviously tried to fix the leaking roof by tightening it up as much as possible. These were wound back out until the closing mechanism felt sensible
- Silicone repair to the A pillar plugs. Both were visibly bad and obviously the source of the leaks
- Cleared out the fuel filler drain hole
- Rubber conditioner (Autoglym vinyl and rubber protect) on the roof seals
- Swapped the gear knob from my E30 (temporary). The Z has got the chrome pack and the gear knob chrome is peeling off and not very nice to use
- Third brake light, new gasket
- Disassemble wing mirrors, clean and lubricate the pivot shaft. The drivers side was OK, but passenger side was very stiff. I need to fold these in to get up my driveway and didn't want to risk breaking them. There wasn't much external corrosion, so I liberally sprayed the grease into the internals and then worked them back and forth maybe 20 times. And then a bit more grease for good luck
- Passenger wing mirror back cover. This looks like it came from a blue car at some point in the past. Maybe the original was knocked off? But this replacement one had two broken studs inside, probably from over tightening. Some JB weld and now there are 4 functional screws again
- White lithium grease on all the hood hinges and pivots. Because why not.
- Remove the sound deadening foam from inside the airbox. It was badly degraded and crumbled when touched. Don't really want that sucked into the engine!
Next jobs:
- Aerial grommet. Should hopefully be waiting for me when I get home
- Rear shock top mounts. Hopefully arrive today or tomorrow as they are making a very annoying squeaking noise and I want to drive to the Forest of Dean on saturday
- Check/clear scuttle drains. Need to order some of the thin butyl tape for this
- Check/clear hood drains behind seats
- Fix the seatbelt holders on the side of the seats
- Clean and condition the hood
- Get the rubber conditioner on every rubber seal I can see
- Door cards off and check the membrane. Drivers side is definitely leaking
- Find a way to attach my phone in a sensible place for sat-nav
