Perhaps I've found the car for me?

[Bobble]

Difficult to fine a good used one with out blemishes unless it's immaculate, red and yellow always seem to fade, yes the mold on headlings are a pain but warm water and a little bleach seems to work well also with the expansion tank i soaked mine in hot water and strong bleach and it came up nearly like new

 

[Paul Narramore]

Yes I soaked mine in hot soapy water, de-rusted and painted the steel bracket and even replaced the rivets with stainless steel bolts and nyloc nuts. Talk about posh! Cleaned the expansion tank although it's very stained and found the water very muddy. I shall drain the system soon and flush it through, and replace with the correct 50/50 ration of antifreeze and water (although the Haynes mention of distilled water seems over the top to me).

The screw-on oil filter. It's quite a shallow item and I know that some 2CVers replace their with a much deeper filter as the oil capacity on 2CVs is quite small. The larger filter allows more oil and very slightly increased cooling. I see that it is just possible to fit a deeper one on the R4 but I guess that with the larger oil capacity, there might be no point. Has anyone done this?

 

[petak]

Paul.....if it is not to much trouble for you....... i would suggest you to read project section with few topics where restorations are made from scratch, and you will find answers to most questions you have.

I did the same thing when was preparing for doing mine.

Among many good topics two were revelation to me to realize in witch direction i would go with my restoration.
First
http://www.renault4.co.uk/forum/threads/1985-renault-r4-f6-restoration-project.3173/
Second
http://www.renault4.co.uk/forum/threads/r4-restoration-made-in-france.3140/

And of course Malcom's restoration section of his web page...

So many details and do-it-your-self descriptions where secrets-of-the-job are shown....


Be patient as this forum is not "hot" and answers are not coming in a minute but they certainly do come...



As to your questions here are my experiences.
135R13 and 145R13 tires were standard to R4. Aldo 135R13 was more on saloon models and 145R13 on van models (due to load)
Today you put what ever tire you can find easily.
I am driving on 155/70/13 (same diameter and hight as 135/80/13)

Here is topic with more detail explanation
http://www.renault4.co.uk/forum/threads/tyre-sizes.7354/

For antifreeze i have used 2 lit concentrate (-30°C) + 3 lit distilled water to get mixture for my climate.
Distilled water is better solution as it is "clean" and wont left sediments in cooling canals. And it is cheap ( at least here in Croatia 5 liters less than 1 GBP)

For oil filter i use standard size as it is quite close to body and did not ever tried to experiment with bigger one.
Believe that more efficient is to change oil every 5000 to 8000 km with new oil filter

 

[Paul Narramore]

.....if it is not to much trouble for you....... i would suggest you to read project section with few topics where restorations are made from scratch, and you will find answers to most questions you have.

Well in theory, Petak. The current question for me is this. I have two stick-on window catches which need to be glued back onto the glass. I waded through 18 pages of the first restoration project without success and then searched for 'Window Catch Glue', and I am still none the wiser. I have used some metal-to-glass adhesive in the past, it's often used to stick rear view mirrors onto the windscreen. A trip to Halfords and I got the standard reply "If it ain't there, we ain't got any'. I'll go to Google, the answer will be there....and quicker.

Don't forget that as a newbie, and someone who likes chatting, it's simpler for me to ask questions as and when I come across a small problem, as not only does it provide me with the best information, it involves chatting to like minded owners too, keeping this quiet forum going so to speak. PS I always refer to the owners handbook and Haynes and come on here if that fails. I treat it like meeting up with owners in a pub and chatting over a pint. If the response to any question was simply "Go to XXX post. It's all there" what would be talk about? Football?

Personally I always use rainwater in cooling systems as I collect gallons of the stuff for the garden.

 

[mr-reno-139]

As always some questions can have more than one correct solution and we as a community have to encourage questions as new solutions are being found
A lot of more recent posts would be easier to answer if year model engine size and lhd rhd listed first to give best advice
A newbie will not realise the difference by just reading older posts

 

[Paul Narramore]

After giving the front floor two coats of gel Kurust on Saturday, today I gave the floor a coat of Hammerite Red Oxide followed by a coat of Hammerite Smooth Black. And very smart it looks to. By tomorrow the paint should be hard enough to replace the rubber floor mat although I have some high density foam used to partially insulate a Chinook helicopter!

The rear fog light lens had some white overspray on it so I thought I'd have a go removing it using paintstripper. This however didn't do the plastic any good at all so I shall fit a new light. I fitted a Renault mud flap on the back to make a pair and have another couple to go on the front. I can't see how they could possibly fit without me making up a couple of brackets.

I have added a number of cable ties to the springs of the front seats as they were a little saggy. See if that works.

 

[Paul Narramore]

For the story of my rainwater leaks, you'll need to go to another thread. In short I'm pretty sure the leaks are due to the vent not sitting flush with the bodywork.

Today I separated the gear lever, drilled and fitted a self tapper in the revolving gear knob, cleaned up the nasty rust and regreased the rod. The gear change should be much improved now. The service stuff arrived from Mr Auto in an enormous cardboard box stuffed with inflatable plastic bubble wrap, with the air and oil filter and four spark plugs nestling in a corner. Fitting the new airfilter reduced the intake noise from the engine somewhat. Tomorrow I shall re-visit Halfords and get copper sump washers, assorted rubber grommets and a fuel filter, then do an oil change. Rubber mat and front seats all replaced. Nearly ready to book a day trip to France ;-)

 

[Paul Narramore]

In between rain showers and even hail, I finally got the car serviced.

 

[mr-reno-139]

Hold on that's a pic well done and not duplicates
From iPhone or pc did you send this
Did you get discs and pads yet ?

 

[Paul Narramore]

iPhone. I have seen a set of discs and pads about £40 on eBay. I guess these will be OK? Taxed her last night. Seem to be sending rather a lot at the moment.

 

[petak]

Is your car really that height at front or one (any wheel) is lying in some hole?

 

[mr-reno-139]

Low res iPhone pic makes it hard to spot trolley jack
Remember pads are bendix type and I spotted a pair of discs for 9.95 recently as need some for a friend's project

 

[Paul Narramore]

No, although I had just lowered it down from the trolley jack so maybe the suspension needed to settle a little. Also the ground slopes slightly toward the workshop doors. I've just been out there and measured the car. From the top of the wheel arch to the centre of the wheel cap is 420mm and on the nearside 400mm, but as I say, I need to drive the car onto level ground to measure it properly.

For the gardener's amongst you, part of my rose garden can be seen in the background. I have about eighty roses in total with many in the front garden and they look and smell wonderful in June. The white squares in the foreground are called 'nappies' in the RAF where the mechanics use them where there's an oil spillage. Pouring old oil into a funnel and into an old can, a great pool of the stuff escaped onto the ground, hence the nappies. They are very absorbent.

Yesterday's servicing took for ever but at least it's now done. There is now a new air filter fitted (Filtron AR235), oil filter (Klaxcar BOL-FH006Z) and spark plugs (NGK BPR7HIX). Mr Auto was very reasonably priced.

These spark plugs replaced the old NGK BP6HS ones which where very sooty. I must look into weakening the mixture in the carb. The engine compartment is damned awkward to work in with the forward spark plug difficult to get at. Using my strap wrench, there's no way the old oil filter would budge as it was both slippery and there was no room whatsoever to swing the ratchet, so I had to resort to using a long screwdriver and a heavy hammer. That shifted it nicely with the obvious loss of old oil onto the ground. How do people who have pristine driveways cope. Perhaps they park on a tarpaulin? The sump plug needed a 13mm ring spanner and was on dead tight. The tiny hexagon, with it's square hole in the centre, had been damaged in the past so I must look for a new one before it seizes and becomes unmoveable. New copper washer (16mm outside diameter, Jayar PWN722) too. New fuel filter (Wix WF81340).

The old oil was really filthy and because I don't know when it was last serviced and just how much filth was in the engine, I filled up with Halfords 20/50, and will run the car for (say) 500 miles before doing a second oil change. That should clean up the engine's innards. I did intend to use Flushing Oil, as I have in the past, but the owners handbook specifically mention "Do not use".

My trip to Halfords was a waste of time. No copper sump washers? "No sir. We just don't have a demand for them". "But how do people change their oil?" "I don't know" he replied. I did find them at a local motor factors who told me that people bought replacement sum plugs with three or four copper washers. Perhaps I shall use them more often in the future although I do have a very helpful Halfords trade card which can be quite a saving.

I do have a very very slight water weep. Now whether this is the ancient top hose leaking at the radiator end or the radiator itself, I must keep an eye on it.

So the car is now taxed and I shall go up to the local Renault dealers this morning and see just what stuff I can order through them before going to der Franzose.

 

[Paul Narramore]

Low res iPhone pic makes it hard to spot trolley jack
Remember pads are bendix type and I spotted a pair of discs for 9.95 recently as need some for a friend's project

I checked with other images taken at the same time. I had taken the trolley jack away by then. Where did you find the discs & pads so cheaply?

 

[jjad]

Using my strap wrench, there's no way the old oil filter would budge as it was both slippery and there was no room whatsoever to swing the ratchet, so I had to resort to using a long screwdriver and a heavy hammer. That shifted it nicely with the obvious loss of old oil onto the ground. How do people who have pristine driveways cope. Perhaps they park on a tarpaulin?

Yes, I gave up trying to use my simple nylon strap wrench and could usually undo the filter by hand (wearing a latex glove for extra grip). However, last time even that didn't work, so I invested in the same kind of oil filter wrench that Malcolm has and it's brilliant.

 

[Paul Narramore]

Good point. I was never particularly happy with my strap wrench especially as the nylon webbing has begun to fray badly.

(Later) In fact, just this minute, I've bought one on eBay. It's described as an 'ITC 100-155mm universal 6708 adjustable oil filter wrench' and costs £3.99.

 

[mr-reno-139]

Mr auto is your friend for normal stuff most service items cheaper than ebay and good brand names
Need 35 pounds order for free postage I think

 

[Paul Narramore]

Thanks for that Paul. I ordered my service stuff from Mr Auto and, as you say, they were cheap and prompt. Where does the 'Bendix' come in? Is that the shape or the manufacturer?

I took the R4 into town this morning and she sounded a bit rough. I called in a filling station to pump up the tyres. One, as you'll recall, was very low. The steering is much lighter now. The exhaust manifold joint was blowing so I came home and cleaned it up and added Gun-Gum. Started it up and the exhaust was knocking where it passes through the inner wing. Slackened everything off again, wedged the exhaust away from the wing then tightened everything up. It now ticks over as smooth as the smoothest smooth thing.

Sitting at traffic lights this morning I tried to locate the vent opening knob. Ah. Boing! the bonnet popped open. Green light, oops. I think I am going to paint the bonnet opening knob white so I can find it more easily in future.

To re-glue the window catches back on, I have decided on Devcon 2 ton Epoxy (clear), 2500psi strength. A bit over the top but I aim to do this job just the once.

 

[pepper]

I bought a set of replacement door lock barrels from eBay France, they actually came from Tunisia tho

 

[Paul Narramore]

Hmm, today was irritating. I lowered the spare wheel to check on it's condition and that of the tyre. It's a 145x13 so that makes three 145s on the car and a pair of 135s, so I shall eventually fit 145s all around.

Lowering the M10x80 bolt of the spare wheel whatsit down and it gradually tightened up. No amount of WD40 loosened it, and then the bolt sheared. It turned out that the bolt was slightly bent so I've cleaned up the 'hook', repainted it and shall get another bolt in stainless.

Using my Lidl Orbital polisher with T-Cut I went around the car and got a modest shine one many of the panels. The bonnet is seriously crazed though and the roof has a number of rust spots which I shall fix before the t-cutting/polishing stages.

Tidied the car and set off to meet a friend at a nearby micropub but the car conked out at the top of the road. I freewheeled back home and no amount of churning got the engine started. My guess is it's points as although I serviced her last week, I avoided doing the points. They look really fiddly to do and I am not looking forward to doing them. My 2CV has electronic ignition so I may go that route.