Hansen, Hans C, III (Red), GLSVC wrote:
>
> Hi All ---
>
> First time requester, long time lurker....
>
> I bought a ' 74 TR6 just after Christmas and had it delivered (flat bed; no
> hook) to my home in mid-January. I immediately threw a couple of tarps on it
> and planned to forget about it until the weather gets more bearable here in
> snowy and cold Connecticut. Well, yesterday I tore the tarps off and began
> to take inventory of what I'm facing.
> Let's see now...some spots of fender rust - I can handle that. Mixed bag
> interior... some tan some black, some..are those home made door panels..? Oh
> well...Windows don't work...no problemo...etc, etc.
>
> The battery was dead. Can I charge it from a regular 4 amp battery charger?
> If so, do I reverse the leads? Can I jump it from my regular positive-ground
> car? Again, do I reverse the cables?
>
> There is no carpeting or panels in the boot, so I was staring at cold, hard,
> rust-free metal with some sort of filthy, old paint on it. But, what I
> couldn't understand were all the small, factory-drilled holes in the metal.
> I think they are original. But, what are they for? Are these holes for snaps
> for the interior panels that I'll be buying in the future? Should there be
> bushings in them? Is there a "map" of the boot area somewhere so I know what
> I'm looking at?
>
> Finally, the top has never been up for the past 6 years until I put it up
> yesterday. Because of the coldness, the material was stiff, unyielding and I
> guess I forced the rear window zipper too hard because it stripped. What's
> the best way to repair the zipper?
>
> This is the 5th LBC I've owned. The last one was over 17 years ago, so I'm
> kind of "rusty" when it comes to doing stuff.
> Any advice the Listerati can give me would be humbly and graciously
> appreciated!
>
> Red Hansen
> ' 74 TR6 CF13944
Welcome back to LBC ownership, Red.
A response to your questions and a few add'l suggestions (I don't know
your level of experience, so forgive me if I include something you
already know) to help get things rolling:
Your car should be neg. ground, and you should be able to jumper it from
any other car neg. or pos. ground. Just make sure the positive terminals
are always the first ones you link together. Don't trust the battery
cable color coding on a new purchase (DPO may have switched around)!
Look at the battery for the + sign and - sign. Then connect the ground
from the helping battery to a grounded point on your car, anywhere on
the car that you can get a good ground.
I will suggest caution with jumping from some modern computerized cars.
Many use millivolt type sensors and ultra low voltage circuits, which
can be damaged by any kind of electrical surge, and caution is in order.
Check the owners manual on the car providing the jump. Some cars'
manuals specifically warn against jumping batteries. Should be no
problem for the TR, though.
Your charger will work just fine. Just hook pos. to pos. & neg. to neg.
Same as above, don't trust the color of the battery cables. Check the
old battery fluid levels before you start charging and again after. Be
careful not to overcharge, many chargers take care of this for you.
You may need some starting fluid to get the car going. (you may need a
whole lot more!)
But first, it also might be a good idea to turn the motor over a few
times by hand, especially if it's been a while since it has run. Remove
the spark plugs to do that. A bit of light oil in the cylinders, via the
spark plugs holes could be a good idea, too. Check all the fluids on the
car to, oil in the engine, particularly, may need changing if it's been
a while since it has run. I would change it now and again within a few
days/100 miles after you get the car going, just to clean things out.
Who knows what the previous owner had in there!
Check your hoses, coolant, heater, etc for any cracking or hardenss.
Also the fan belts for same, and adjustment. Check filters and any
emissions equip. such as crankcase vents.
Check out the tires and brakes especially carefully before getting on
the road! Brake pads on the front should have reasonable thickness.
Check rear shoes at the earliest opportunity. Check the brake fluid in
the master cylinder (One of the best "quick" tests when looking at a car
to buy is to try to remove the master cyl. cap by hand, if it's frozen
in place, the prev. owner hasn't given the car much care!)
Get a good repair manual (or two) specific to the car at the earliest
opportunity. And, look for a TR club in your area, so you can compare to
other folks cars' and get the wisdom of others who have already gone
thru the DPO "fixits" and DCO "figureitouts" phases. Of course, this
list will be invaluable, too!
I suspect the holes you see in the "boot" are missing rubber plugs:
could be access holes, drain holes, attachment point for spare tire
cover or carpet, maybe some wiring is missing. But, I'm not a 6 owner,
so hopefully some others on the list will get in touch.
Regarding the top, I'd take it to a convertible top specialist at the
earliest opportunity. Wait until it is warmed up to remove from car.
Either put the car in the garage with a space heater or choose a sunny
day, or figure out a way to warm it before moving it too much.
Otherwise, if it is cold and it hasn't moved in a while, you might crack
windows or do more damage.
I admire your patience, having let the car sit for a couple months! I
would have been all over it the day it arrived! (Knee deep in snow, if
need be!)
Good luck & enjoy! I'm sure the rest of the list will have things to
add, which I have overlooked (still on my first cup of coffee).
Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif. (no snow! ever!)
'62 TR4 CT17602L
--
MZ
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