Grumpy cat is back

bernd_st

bernd_st

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It was quite a while after 2 years of standstill, but finally my old grumpy MK I is back on the German streets. The bone stock , but newly rebuilt 289 purrs like a kitten - ok, it has a manual choke 1404 Edelbrock on the standard two barrel inlet ;). Very smooth, but still powerful...
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Yep, a full wooden lid with an integrated cup holder. The original Californian owner realized his own ideas, but unfortunately didn't have much skills :)
Flexible Map pockets on the door boards too. Actually these are quite functional, since they hold our caps when not in use. The cup holder works for nothing, except for car wash coins. The centre console also features a cigar lighter on the upper front, which works pretty well to give power to a Navi device.
Another story is the "homebrewed" full wooden dashboard with driver oriented black VDO instruments and aircraft fuses. The PO was an aircraft pilot. Anyhow I Ieft it so far because it is unique & mostly functional. Car is for driving not for shows :)
 
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I wanted to comment on the rubber antenna but said it's an 80's thing. I open my center console lid and use a Harbor freight item . It's a magnetic adjustable wrist band. It opens big enough for most cups and prevents them from sliding back and forth. VWs have those useful door card pockets. Good place for accessories...

Somewhat off topic is the question of how strict is the rule system for mods to the drivetrain etc.
 
Well spotted. The Californian PO's " Resto:( " was executed in the eighties with a Pearl gloss white Mexican paint job, green homeware carpets, brown interior and many other things, which would annoy the purists. The rubber antenna is just one of them, but actually it works pretty well in combination with the integrated Stereo FM/AM Radio which came with the car - so I left it on. Many other things to tell like trunk rust repair using glassfibre instead of steel, but at least those basic bodges are widely cleared now. It also came with a Mexican 302 which was running, but using a lot of oil. Anyway that's the way of how I pulled Old Grumpy out of a barn here in Germany, but at least it's a proven real Tiger and came in absolutely cheap ;).

P.S. No way, how anybody over here can tell the difference between a 260 or a 289...
 
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I've heard stories of a Orwellian MOT like old car hating DOT in Germany.
Allegedly making adherence to stock stuff nearly mandatory.


Ministry of transportation MOT. UK.

DOT US department of transportation
 
Things get complicated, once you apply for a Historic vehicle registration indicated with an "H" as last digit on the number plate. Car has to be completely original or just carry few period upgrades (to be proven and will be checked very carefully). If you put modern 15"wheels on - no chance. The advantage of the "H" is you pay less taxes and are allowed to enter pollution restricted city areas. Grumpy is registered normally so nobody cares except the normal dreaded MOT(TÃœV) has to be passed every two years. For that one the car has just to be streetworthy with everything functional. Recently any oil loss is in the focus which can be quite a challenge for us Brit vehicle owners...
 
If we disregard the weird 2 pc rubber rear crankshaft seal plus the cork strips on the inlet manifold on the Ford Smallblock, perhaps yes..
 
Update:
After renewing the dreaded german TUV yesterday - fortunately with only minor issues - I checked deeply again about that nasty oil leak dripping down from the clutch bellhousing. Carb off and a bright light revealed oil coming out of the rear portion of the inlet manifold (check the picture). Everything off today, thorough cleaning of all sealing surfaces, no more cork strips, thick beads of RTV and hey presto - it seems to work. No more oil - at least so far. Let's see...

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