UPDATE
Despite the minor setback with the rib injury I have been making slow and steady progress on #165. I am due to start working again soon and really wanted to tick as many things off the to-do list as possible. Some things have been started, some completed, some in progress and some are yet to begin.
To start with I have bought a new plate. "T44PHY" will be staying on the Porsche, much to the dismay of quite a few people it would seem! I couldn't really find anything too similar (or, at least, for sensible money) so compromised on something slightly different. Or the same. And totally irrelevant and void of any particular meaning!
I'm sure it will become known soon when the change has happened and photos posted.
One of the BIGGEST things to happen recently, marking the end of an era, was the removal of the tax disc. I was tempted to leave it but ultimately decided it had to go. It made cleaning the windscreen easier, too. That tax disc alone gives some indication as to when I last actually had the car in my possession and was able to drive it. Briefly. Until it went tits-up again.
View attachment 1549504
Having now spent some time looking at the exterior there are quite a few dents and dings that need sorting.
View attachment 1549505
Well, they did need sorting but all is good now. The local PDR guys paid me a visit yesterday and removed the worst of them. It has made quite a pleasant difference. I can't get over how many different shades of red / pink there are on the tailgate though...
Talking of the rear, I did find that my spoiler has cracked / split on the right side near the fixing points and the boot struts were not stopping the boot short of fouling against the roof edge. This must have been happening over some years now as the affected area has been scratched all through the clearcoat and well into the paint layer. There's not much I can do about that until I decide to get it resprayed (perhaps).
A quick shot of the fleet in the sweltering 32 degree heat. I'll state now that, in case you were wondering, it is not typical of the Welsh weather.
View attachment 1549506
As can be seen in the pic above, I had to break-out the dust sheets to offer some level of protection from the sun whilst I worked on deep-cleaning the inside. It took a while as there were stains on the seats, oily fingerprints on the headliner, excessive dirt on the touch points, snail shells in the carpets, gunk and smelly s**t in and under the rubber trims... it was grim! Thankfully Mick had given it a quick going over and got rid of some of the crap for me (and he kindly got a valeter in prior to that to give it a quick going over).
The steering wheel is melted (no surprise) and will be refurbed, and the heater panel fascia is flaking and will be replaced. After some serious elbow grease and discomfort the inside came up quite nicely. The boot area is now clean and stain-free, as is the cabin. The rear bench seat is pretty decent too and the Recaro Trendlines have come up beautifully. No rips, no tears, no blemishes. Just a few scratches on the rear plastic backs of the seats where things have rubbed against them during... well, during whatever happened in the time before it arrived at Mick's.
View attachment 1549507
View attachment 1549508
In truth I was feeling a bit deflated recently as I had really wanted to get on with sorting #165, but the rib discomfort and lack of sleep was getting to me. The excessive heat didn't bother me too much but it still was draining. Then, out of the blue, I received a fantastic gift from a good friend on here - with this lovely piece of artwork very kindly crafted by his daughter. Honestly, it made my day. And then some. A totally unexpected letter through the door, but an extremely kind and generous gesture and a very welcome pick-me-up. No lies, I was cutting onions at the time. True story...
Again, thanks for this wonderful drawing.
View attachment 1549509
Erm... what else...? Ah yes, I decided to finish off refurbing the carbon splitter. Wet and dry with 800 grit, 1000 grit, 1200 grit, 1500 grit, 1800 grit and then DA rotary polisher with compounds and polish to finish it. Once that was done it was given 3 or 4 coats of clear lacquer and the result was as pictured below. It's still not perfect, but it looks a LOT better and helps freshen up the front end!
View attachment 1549510
Talking of freshening the front, I also gave the headlights another quick going over to remove some of the fogging / clouding but I think I'll get new items in the future.
The only other thing of note right now is that I removed the old 'Ring stickers and my old car club stickers. and also removed the damaged and faded side Trophy decals on the skirts. I have replacements that will be going on once I have had a go at correcting and detailing the paintwork. 3 hours. THREE hours to get the decals off! Despite the 32 degree heat, and the use of my better half's hair dryer, the glue just would not relinquish its hold. I was worried about scratching and even warping the plastic due to the heat I was directing towards it. Another 30 seconds and the decals would probably have burned and become ash! This pic doesn't show it too well but you can see "TROPHY" on the side skirts in the car's original colour.
To be fair, they haven't faded too badly!
View attachment 1549511
I think that's about it for now, more to follow soon.