I love this threat !
To me it sounds like a sort of fairytale , but a true one .

Great job, Ian ! Only a little bit of hard labour left, and you are able to drive it through its natural habitat .
Enjoy !

Yeah, first time too. Many congrats!

The engine seems to be running well now. I need to sort out the timing but I will wait for the exhaust to arrive and do it all together. Little backfires at present but probably as there is no silencer.

Leak on the output shafts has near enough ceased so it seems I must have the old seals that have now expanded. I have got the new shims and seals on order so will keep them on the shelf to do at a later date.

Water pump is still dripping like a tap - new parts on order and I will do this as soon as they arrive.

So the sun is out in the Pyrenees and so is the spray can. I am not doing the bodywork just yet on the car, this will wait until next year but I did have all 4 wings sorted as they were terrible. So I am just putting on a single top coat of Black Gloss to protect the undercoat and also to tie it into the rest of the car.



I did have to repair the fixing bracket that fixes to the support bar. One had snapped off when I got the car



So a quick template and I cut out a new piece



And then welded it on in place, painted it with chip seal like the rest of the underside of the wing and voila!!



I repositioned the power steering motor (as it was hitting the gear change rods - one thing here, I did not get a lot of help from EZ Power Steering, which I am a little unhappy about) I had to fabricate a new securing bracket and refit - very fiddly now all the carpets are in.

First time the dashboard has been complete with steering wheel.



Then onto the brakes. Rear left drum had stuck on and it took an age to remove it. The forward shoe had stuck, must have been when I was fitting the handbrake mechanism. Re centred the shoes and rebuilt the hub.

Then onto filling and bleeding - all went OK with a few leaks but it made me go through the whole system tightening and checking. Brakes were sold and worked great (no road test yet though ) Filled up the glass jar which is the first time it has had fluid in it.



But just as I was about to finish and turn the lights off, I noticed the level had dropped by 1 cm. Checked under the car and there was a puddle under the master cylinder. Whipped off the panel and could see the fluid leaking from the push rod of the master cylinder. If you remember I was worried about the refit kit I was given and the type of seal. It did not match exactly the original but with a lot of these replacement items that is quite common. So I have ordered a complete Master Cylinder to make sure it will be fine.

About water pump, on early ID and DS there is an oil gallery on water pump, to oil the sealing. And the sealing is also rebuildable on them. Couple of days ago, we had one -58 ID started again after some decade parking, it had water pump leak and it stopped leaking after oiling it.

Traction water pump could be constructed like in early D, but I'm not sure about that...

I will remove my pump soon and take the spindle to the machine shop to be refaced. - I just don't want to lose the feeling of being able to start the car each morning (still on the lift) but it feels good

Yesterday, I adjusted the front brake shoes as now there is pressure in the system it forced them out and they were scraping the drum. So now all centred and free - quite a satisfying job as it was maintenance more than restoration

I also tightened and adjusted the steering balljoints, upper and lower ball joints and secured the swing arms. So all the front is now ready to go. Slight play on one of the swing arms but nothing noticeable, I am just too familiar with it all now. I will keep an eye on it and maybe change out once I have driven for a while.

Then a few more starts.....

I then started with the wings - the right wing is now secure and went on relatively easy. Fits very well seeing as it was a pile of rust and dented metal when I took it off. I also fitted the indicator and headlight unit - I just love those headlights

Tis a transport of delight!

I have all my parts ordered - I think they must have known about the crappy Master Cylinder seal kit as they gave me 25% discount straight away on the new master cylinder.

So on with the jobs I can do - on with the other wing



All the lights connected and tested, although they will need aligning when the car finally is on the ground.



And finished for the night with half the front grill bolted in (a lot more difficult now the wings are on)



The old owner came around today to have a look - I started it first time - first time he has heard it since he parked it in the barn 43 years ago

I'd have liked to see a video of the previous owners reaction to it...

I was thinking almost the same...

This was the reply from one of our neighbours - she is the sister of GG who died late last year (64), André was the previous owner and is around 67.

"Good job ! Ce sont les souvenirs qui reviennent ... André, Richard, GG et les sorties du samedi soir dans les bals le bon temps"

Good job! These are the memories that come back ... Andrew, Richard, GG and Saturday night outings at the dances - good times


These guys all used the car every weekend to get to the parties in the area. The Mayor (Marie) came round the other day to see it and she actually cried remembering her times in the back of this car. It is really nice that it has so much village history. (I have had the seats recovered though )