After a few runs out in December, thoughts started to turn to the inevitable. I was certain that I was soon to be struck down by the dreaded 'Tinkeritis', also known as 'Upgraditis'. I had been warned.

OK, the list was forming in my mind, or rather on a piece of paper that seemed to be constantly in my pocket:
 • New Shocks All Round
 • Intermittent Wipers
 • Steering Column & Bush Modification
 • Mudflaps
 • Sierra Heater Motor
 • Exhaust - Renew Heat-wrap
 • Clocks - Fit Brighter Bulbs
 • Exhaust - Repack Silencer
 • Lock Suspension Joints
 • Coolant - Renew & Check Thermostat
 • Oil Change
 • Tappets

So, just before Christmas I set to. Armed with my list, I started to remove the bits I needed in order to do the jobs in a 'sort of' logical order, rather than just one job at a time. I'm not sure if this was a mistake or not but seemingly in no time, the garage floor was absolutely littered with parts. Good grief "What have I done!"

Shocks
After lots of measuring and wondering about spring rates, I ended up taking the advice of the guy at Dampertech completely. He seemed quite knowledgeable, so I parted with my money and four new shocks duly arrived. For the Fronts, I needed to fabricate some new bottom brackets. After borrowing my friends welding gear, I soon got them made and they fitted quite straightforward.
The rears though were a bit more involved. I was advised by Dampertech to additionally fit some retaining straps. This was to stop the dampers from ever over-extending. Some more bracketing was required and I utilised an old Cam belt for the strapping. Faffing about getting it to the right length took some time. Anyway all done now.

Intermittent Wipers
I tried to get these working before SVA but failed miserably. It was probably due to the fact that I'd bought an aftermarket relay. I understand that (for reasons unknown) you need the Ford item. This recent second attempt also failed though and I suspected that there was something wrong in the VG Loom. I ended up lashing the whole thing up and bypassing the loom altogether and Hey-Presto, it worked! Now that I'd got it all working, I updated my diagram. (I've retained the original diagram for reference. Both can be found on the 'Links' Page). Mysteriously though, an attempt at incorporating the circuitry all back through the VG Loom resulted in it all still working. So, no fault found in the Loom - I must have done something wrong. Anyway, that was another job ticked off. Thanks to everyone for their help.

Steering Column Bush
There's a fairly popular modification for the steering column where it passes through the bulkhead. A robust swivel-type bearing. Mine was OK, but I thought I'd do this job to be sure it would never fail. I also needed to slightly raise the steering wheel, so these two jobs went hand-in-hand. Working around the pedal box is always a bit of a stretch but the job went OK and I'm pleased with the finished result.

Clocks
Something I hadn't really planned on though was the dash itself. I knew I'd have to cut it in order to let the steering column go higher but in addition, I've never been too thrilled with how the clocks were set into the dash panel. I'm currently in the process of a bit of a revamp.

Mudflaps
Mudflaps fitted. I struggled to find something suitable at first, but eBay came to the rescue. A pair of Rally type ones that you simply cut to your requirements. I'm hoping that these will stop the spray coming back, hitting the rear wheel arches and forcing its way around the back of the side-screens.

Sierra Heater
The Mini Heater was OK but the fan was only a single speed. Coupled with this was the fact that there was only adequate ducting for the screen (SVA requirement). Heat for the cockpit was wafting mostly under the dash apart from an opening I'd cut which made the car fairly warm but constantly tried to melt my knee! Modification was in order. I managed to source a Sierra heater and most importantly, the three speed motor. I've fitted this into the Mini Heater Box, sealed up all unwanted openings and added appropriate ducting for the cockpit area. This should certainly be better, but it's still to be properly tested.

Exhaust Wrapping
I've re-wrapped the Exhaust Headers with Thermo-Tec as the previous stuff was starting to disintegrate. I've also sprayed them this time and hope this will last much longer.

So, that's the progress to date. Still some more work to do then, so I need to crack on! I've some trips planned soon, so I need to be ready for these.