2015 Shot
The next few photos are Pearline in May 2015, after we'd cleaned her up for my son to drive to his Senior Prom.
April 2020
Getting our kicks on Route 66, broke down at MM89
Getting started. August 2020.
At the Little British Car (LBC) mechanic
Moss Motors delivery
While waiting on Pearline to get healthy at the mechanic, I ordered carpets and upholstery from Moss Motors. I'm fairly certain I paid at least a year of college for Mr. Moss' granddaughter.
New convertible top.
Notice the dents in the rear fender, door frame, and door panel.
Powder coated wheels
Powder coated wheels, while we wait on the mechanic. Got this done at a place in OKC called ColorFast.
Phase 2
Back home, ready for phase 2 (tear-down and cleanup)
Old Carpets
The next shots, show me tearing out the old carpets and cleaning up the interior rust.
OEM radio
The radio was working a few years ago, so I'm hoping it still does.
Elbow grease
A wire wheel, a power-washer, a couple gallons of Simple Green, and lots of elbow grease
Painting the wheel wells
I took my power washer to the wheel wells with a liberal dosing of Simple Green to get the grease off. Then, I repeated with a wire wheel on my drill. Then, more Simple Green with the power washer. Next, I covered the hub and brake assemblies in a trash bag and painted with black Rustoleum.
Finished result.
Not perfect, but better than before. Repeat 3 more times.
Battery wells
It's hard to believe the battery sat in these spaces with nothing between it and the road. I bought some plastic battery liners from Moss and painted them white.
Tearing down the worn-out seats
The next few photos, I'm tearing out the worn-out seats to get to the metal frame. I'll buff off the rust and paint with Rustoleum. I bought new seat upholstery, foam, and the interior baffle that holds the weight.
New dash cap
I don't love this, but I didn't want to source a complete new dash just to hide the upper damage.
Painted interior
Even though most of this will be covered in carpet eventually, I wanted to keep new rust from forming by putting down a base layer of paint.
Empty boot.
Stripping down the body
I'm taking the car to the body shop the next day, so I started removing all the exterior parts that I could.
Prom reminder
My son ran the MGB into a trash dumpster the night of his Senior Prom. That long scratch is the reminder that trash dumpsters and little British cars should not mix.
At the 'Beauty Shop'
Checking in.
A few weeks after dropping her off at the beauty shop, we stopped by to pick out a paint color.
Grinding down the old paint, filling in the dents
Sanding out the rough spots
First primer coat
New driver seat
I had the seats re-upholstered while the body shop folks were home with COVID.
Getting ready for more primer
Second primer coat
Shiny
She'd just been painted a few hours prior. I happened to stop by the body shop the day they painted her. They'd just moved her to the storage room when I got there.
Bonnet and Boot
Don't remember which is which
Body mostly re-assembled, minus the moulding
I bought new rubber seals for all the lights. I figure you only get to do that every 50 years or so.
Back home, safe and sound. Phase 2 complete.
In the next few days, I'll be doing a lot of work getting Pearline ready for my daughter to drive to prom.
Dusty
Lots of fine dust everywhere from the body shop. I disconnected the battery and took the power washer to her. Then, lots of Armor All wipes.
Putting in the interior body panels.
I have the tan material to cover the door arm rests, but I kinda like the blue on brown...Also, notice the new vanity plate. There's a website to go along with it. https://my72mgb.com
Dry-fitting the carpets
I'll start putting down the 3M #90 spray adhesive once I have all the carpets fitted.
Getting there.
Shortly after this shot, I started re-assembling the seats. That was a pain and I didn't have the presence of mind to take another photo when we were finished. We were ready for a cold beer after 3 hours in the sun.
Trunk carpets.
I sprayed the trunk black Rustoleum and then put in the trunk carpets. Also includes a tire cover.
Phase 3 complete
I have the carpets down and the seats in. There's another step where I put in a new clutch. No LBC restoration is ever completed and I have a ton left to do. I'll add more photos as I keep going.
Grill removed and 2 new Hella horns
Hella horn
Painted grill