The £650 Puma

[The Arch Bishop]

Thrust angle? Bit personal isn't it? Had no complaints... :lol:

'Just' twisted body.... I hope not! Be about my luck though! It's certainly had a smack at the front at some point, but there's no visible wrinkling in the engine bay. Just suspiciously rust-free front wings and the front cross member is a bit bent.

 

[quest63]

Did you follow the proper procedure for tightening up the rear axle after the bushes were done? assuming that is that the brackets were removed from the body when this was done?

If the brackets were removed its worth checking each side to see if the wheels are the same distance front / rear in the arches.

 

[The Arch Bishop]

The rear bushes were done by a garage but I don't think they removed the brackets. That's not to say they haven't been removed before though - Jegger felt very strange when I picked him up all those years ago.

Have there ever been instances of the ally spacers breaking up with age? I'd imagine that that would give a rear-wheel steering type effect.

 

[quest63]

I have seen the cast type spacers breaking apart on here a couple of times over the years when the hub has been removed but I don't know if there were any symptoms associated with them being cracked.

 

[tuonokid]

You can check the alignment of the rear beam by looking up at the bolts that tighten it up to the chassis rails. When it's originally tightened up at the factory the shanks of the bolts leave witness marks on the bottom of the bracket so if it's not put on in it's original position you can see the witness marks outside the shank of the bolts. As for the wriggly steering my Fezzers the same at the mo but I'm putting it down to worn front tyres, differing grip across the width of the road and our knackered road system.
Barry

 

[The Arch Bishop]

The inside edge of the tyres is a little worn certainly, but the majority of the tyre is fine. It's had a change of tyres when I first bought it and it didn't improve the camber-chasing. When I get a moment, I'll check out the beam alignment as you suggest tuonokid.

The speedo stopped working yesterday when Mrs. Arch Bishop borrowed it. Apparently it made quite a racket when it stopped and chose to fail just before she came across a radar van on the M23! :lol: So that's another thing needing investigation... She did comment on the gearbox being 'the nicest on any car ever!'

 

[piliff]

Hi, i have just spent the last couple of evenings reading your thread all the way through.
such a great thread, which shows the ups and downs of owing a used car, you should give yourself much more credit for your own skills, some of the work you have done on the drive is commendable, i've worked in the motor trade for many years and learnt some things over the years but i wouldnt tackle some of the jobs you have done ,on my drive, wife would go mental anyway.
jeggers looks great after the bodyshop visit, i'm looking for a puma at the moment and im sure i will be using your threar as a guide for many jobs ahead soon.
keep it up and i take my hat off to you for a great car and thread.
enjoyed every minuite spent reading this.
kind regards
phil

 

[The Arch Bishop]

Cheers Phil! I've learnt a great deal tinkering with Jegger and the downs make the ups more uppy! The missus is very good about it all so full credit to her for being ace!

Glad you've enjoyed reading it and good luck in the hunt for a Puma! :thumbs:

 

[The Arch Bishop]

Here's a photo to prove that Jegger does occasionally leave my driveway and get a bit dirty...

Drove nicely this morning (the roads were dead on the way to work) although there's still moisture in the cabin meaning I haven't got all of the leaks yet. Still the carpet is still dry so it's not pouring in like it was. Note windows open to clear the steam in there!

Hoping to get some time to give him a clean-up and a polish as it's been a while since I've put any work in. I'll also be getting a new off-side wishbone soon. It's the only front suspension component that came with the car when I bought it, but I noticed a few months ago that the ball joint gaiter is thoroughly split and the bushes look tired. I won't be going OEM as I don't see the point for the mileage I do. The last patten wishbone I bought was almost indistinguishable from a Ford one anyway and has done good service.

 

[quest63]

:thumbs:

 

[The Arch Bishop]

I had a self-indulgent day of cleaning, polishing and waxing today! Wash-down, followed by a go over with Some Auto-Glym Super resin polish (yeah, not what the detailers would use but does the job) and then some Meguires carnauba wax. Not ideal as by the time I was buffing off the wax, the temperature had dropped and the paint work was misting over. Still pleased with the results!

Even got a chance to polish up my engine cover that was a pock-marked clouded mess!

Yesterday, I popped into my local car parts place and picked up a decent wishbone and a set of mounting bolts for it. This time, I'm hoping my impact gun will make short work of the rusted up fixings rather than the six-hour grinding terror that was the last wishbone I replaced...

Final Christmas money purchase was a set of cheapy (£7 inc postage for all three) Aero VU flat wipers. They may be utter pish but for that sort of money, I'm willing to give them a go as my Bosch one's have not lasted well and cost a fortune!

 

[Skippy]

Good work! Nothing wrong with Super Resin Polish! I'd probably put sealant on top of SRP. Extra Gloss Protection maybe (not the best but readily available).

I really must wash the Kitten...

 

[The Arch Bishop]

SRF is funny stuff. I don't think I've ever bought a bottle of it but always have lots of it!

I whacked some wax over the top so that'll do! :wink:

 

[evilrob]

Lovely! :thumbs:

 

[Wild E. Coyote]

I'm willing to give them a go as my Bosch one's have not lasted well and cost a fortune!

My experinces with Bosch wipers are they will last exactly one year. Almost as a prepaid mobile card. One summer, one autumn, one spring and one winter. And that is it. After that period they are for replacement. End of story. Much better are IMHO original Ford ones…
Has anyone tried Champion? How are they holding?

 

[The Arch Bishop]

Lovely! :thumbs:

I polished the tail pipe because I know you deduct points for not doing so! :lol:

 

[evilrob]

Lovely! :thumbs:

I polished the tail pipe because I know you deduct points for not doing so! :lol:

Good man! :lol:

Jegger would look great here:
http://www.projectpuma.com/viewtopic.php?f=174&t=26434&p=330357" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[The Arch Bishop]

That's bloody miles away and it'd be full of ZS drivers eyeing up my engine for a conversion! :lol:

 

[quest63]

Point them in my direction for a 74k conversion kit :thumbs:

 

[The Arch Bishop]

Puma pimp!