REAR AXLE

We stripped the rear axle ,cleaned the case to bare metal and painted it in 2 pack epoxy black along with the chassis and all other suspension components. I prefer not to blast axle casings as I am never sure you can remove all of the grit afterwards.

Spencer Lane-Jones workshops rebuilt the differential for me with new bearings and a new oversize pin which the planet gears run on as this had worn along with the centre of the gears and had also bent.

I made new gaskets and fitted the diff in the axle, rebuilding the halfshafts with new bearings and seals and assembled the axle and rear brakes which were refurbished in the same manor as the fronts.

SUSPENSION

The car has not turned a wheel on the road since 1956 but she had seen a bit of action in the first 19 years of her life and some of these being in war time ,this meant maintenance of the car had slipped during these years. The suspension pins were all worn so I purchased a new set from Germany at large expense , luckily Mike Sythes had a couple of new old stock larger diameter pins for the front of the rear springs which he sold me at a fraction of the price of the german equivalents. I replaced all of the bushes in the suspension front and rear and reamed them to suit the new pins . Paul Hurley in Bath ground the king pins for the first time in the vehicles life and replaced the bushes in the stub axles.The wheel cylinders which were fitted to the car by the previous owner (looking similar to AC ACE one's) were refurbished along with the brake shoes and a new set of wheel bearings.

woodwork underway

Garath Barnard is doing a lovely job sympathetically replacing damaged woodwork, leaving all the good wood in place so we have as much of the original car remaining as possible.

Woodwork commences

We have now removed the aluminium scuttle panel to expose good firm wood above the dash.

Unfortunately the lower wood has rotted and two inferior lower longitudinal sections have been fitted so we must replace these sections. Using the doors as a reference we will repair the front, before moving on to removal of the rear panelling.

Restoration begins on prewar BMW 319 Sport

Dismantling of very rare BMW 319 Sport has begun.

But restored in England

On stripping the chassis we found only one layer of paint which looked original and from our point of view this added to the responsibility that we have, bringing this car back to as new condition.

Condition of steel underside still impressive

The next stage is to further ensure that all corrosion is driven from the structure. To this end, we will be giving the car a very light in house blasting. This is an area of restoration that can easily go wrong if you are not an expert, with rippled panels for example being a distinct possibility. We have extensive experience in this area.

Next stage is removal of panels to expose woodwork

Test Post only :-)