'71 Vandura: Inspection and Tires

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura) 10/15/2016 at 23:31 • Filed to: None

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The Vandura is at home with its younger brother, the ‘97 Safari.

The tire on the left is the original; on the right is the new (used) one.

The window regulator is completely inoperative.

In a word: yucky.

The seller claims this to be an original odometer reading. I have zero inclination to doubt him.

I can probably have most any seat I want in this van. I was totally loving the driver seat in the F-250 I used to tow this vehicle home.

Understatement: The wiring is going to need some work.

Hotwire

Very clean undercarriage.

Rotten neoprene and the only rust-through I’ve found, at the front of the wheel wells. Worse on the battery side.

Disc Brakes!

I plan to replace every end, bushing, joint and bearing.

Front of the passenger side wheel well is locally rusted out because battery acid.

Today I got the other two tires mounted. A used tire shop in Hayward charged me $50! for mount, balance and valve stems. I probably could have saved $20 if I’d driven around all afternoon. Friendly guys, ethnic shop, new owners.

I have access to a heated-water pressure washer. I’m going to remove the grill and radiator to allow total access to the engine compartment. The only rust-through I’ve found has been at the front of the front wheel wells. Also, there is some damage at the front of the frame where someone tried to steal the van and they about pulled the front bumper off. So I’ll clean that up and do some welding up there and make sure everything’s solid.

I am confident that the engine will run, and I am putting off starting on that until I have cleaned everything up. I am very sensitive about how the van looks . I’m not talking about a paint job, I just want it to look like someone loves it.

If anybody is wondering, I took the photos with my Nexus 5 smart phone and post processed them in Lightroom 4.4.

Die-Trying > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 00:10

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its been a while since i “fixed” my ignition........ best i can recollect ....... purple goes to the starter. red should be the power into the switch pink should be the power to the coil. and the fuzzy.......... the browns are grounds? and the white goes to the alternator excitor? they were mostly labeled on the back of the switch though......

i had just run my stuff though some toggles.

and in that other picture of the under dash wiring, it is surprisingly intact, and not hacked up. looks to need to be tucked up under there.

Frank Grimes > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 01:10

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I would love a project like this everything looks so solid it would be very satisfying going through cleaning things up and painting and bolting it back together.

I am the same as you in I get concerned about not looking like I don’t care about my car.

I think just cleaning the heck out of the van and painting up the white parts on the exterior would go a long ways to making it look a ton more presentable.

cant wait to see how this progresses.

RallyWrench > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 01:48

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A manual and a black plate? Excellent find.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Frank Grimes 10/16/2016 at 01:54

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Thanks.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > RallyWrench 10/16/2016 at 01:54

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What to you mean about a back plate?

RallyWrench > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 02:00

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The original black & yellow license plate. Lots of classics have lost their period correct plates, so that’s kind of cool. The newly available throwback vanity plates screw that up a bit, but I like original plates.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > RallyWrench 10/16/2016 at 02:08

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Got it. Yeah, kind of cool. I thought you were speaking to something mechanical.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 18:03

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Such a great project vehicle. This thing is going to be amazeballs once you’ve cleaned it up. Definitely looks like new wiring harness time.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/16/2016 at 18:45

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And every piece of rubber on the entire vehicle.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 20:52

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Yeah, for sure.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/16/2016 at 21:28

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Those vans must have simply dissolved back east in the winter. Probably started looking like Swiss cheese in less than five years.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/16/2016 at 22:00

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That’s exactly what happened. The ones that were kept alive mechanically, the bottom foot or so of the exterior would be completely gone in about a decade or so.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Die-Trying 10/17/2016 at 20:03

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I bet you could speak to this one:

http://oppositelock.kinja.com/what-sets-apart-the-sounds-of-starter-motors-1787904052

Die-Trying > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/18/2016 at 20:07

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say i *HAPPENED(broke some important parts) to be under the dash of my truck just yesterday. i looked at my switch, because i was already there. the browns are for the switched sections of the fuse block and the alternator.

not sure what the white on in your picture is for, i didnt see it on on any of my switches. so trace IT back.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Die-Trying 10/18/2016 at 21:22

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What for a vehicle?

Die-Trying > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/18/2016 at 21:42

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the old 71 truck that i have....... it has/had the same ignition switch as your van.........red is the hotwire into the switch . purple is the starter, pink is the coil, and the browns(didnt remember for sure what they were last time) are for the switched portions of the fuse block, and the alternator kick in........... didnt see the white wire though so you’ll need to track it down...........

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Die-Trying 10/18/2016 at 21:55

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You have a ‘71? Imagine that! Pickup truck?

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Die-Trying 10/18/2016 at 21:58

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This van came with 14-inch rims from the factory. What would be your thoughts about keeping them versus moving up to 15-inch?

Die-Trying > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/18/2016 at 22:20

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nearly all of the cars/trucks that i have picked up over the years have had 15 inch wheels............ FOR ME it is simpler to stick with what i already have a lot of laying around....... 15-inch for a long while were more readily available than 14. i havent checked closely of late.

if you were planning to switch rims, either the rallys or the safari chromies, which SHOULD also be 15, now would be a good time to switch......... BUT you dont NEED to. those 14's will clear the brakes, and calipers(not by a whole lot) and since you’re not exactly planning to upgrade to monster sized brakes, maybe new pads or calipers, but nothing OVERsized, the 14's will keep working fine........

its just a matter of how happy you are with the current 14's........... i like the plain white wheel look myself.

i am however running narrow 225 70 15 on 6 inch wide wheels up front to make turning fairly easy with the no power steering, and running some wide 295 50 15 on 10 inch wide wheels out back, because i’m addicted to wide nail magnet tires.