1967 2000TC - HOT

As promised here's a shot of the inside with the new black flat pleat seats fitted.



As I said before I quite like the two tone contrast with the black seats and sandalwood door cards. Obviously the headrests and rear arm rest need recolouring black to make it look right and the door cards could do with a freshen up too, but I have a more pressing problem now.........



I managed to run into the back of a van yesterday, I won't bore you with the details, but basically the tow bar on the back of the van has complete stuffed the front end. I haven't managed to get the bonnet open yet, but I can see through the gap at the sides that the slam panel is pretty badly bent and the tops of the inner wings are crumpled at the spot welded seem by the bonnet hinges.

I need to figure out what my options are but I really can't see it being repairable so I'm not sure whether to submit an insurance claim to get it written off or strip the few nice bits off it and scrap it myself.

What I can tell you about the crash is that the static seat belts did their job well (despite the rest of may family constantly telling me that they're not safe) and the front end squished nicely so I didn't really feel much of an impact.
 
Thanks for the sympathy guys.

redrover said:
Oh no!! That's heart-breaking! I'm so sorry for you! Is it definitely looking non-repairable? :cry:
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In theory everything is repairable and I need to get the bonnet open to check, but I can see the inner wings are creased near the bonnet hinges so it would need a massive amount of cutting and welding to sort it out.
 
testrider said:
I can see the inner wings are creased near the bonnet hinges so it would need a massive amount of cutting and welding to sort it out.
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I know the bit you mean.. the right angled seam where the bulbous inner wing meets the flat top of the bulkhead? I've always thought that was a natural weak-point... perhaps that was the original intention.
Seriously gutted for you, mate. I hope some good can come of it, no matter how small.
 
redrover said:
testrider said:
I can see the inner wings are creased near the bonnet hinges so it would need a massive amount of cutting and welding to sort it out.
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I know the bit you mean.. the right angled seam where the bulbous inner wing meets the flat top of the bulkhead? I've always thought that was a natural weak-point... perhaps that was the original intention.
Seriously gutted for you, mate. I hope some good can come of it, no matter how small.
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That's the one. The drivers door doesn't open properly either, but I think that might just be catching on the back edge of the wing.
 
I am really sorry to see this outcome Paul.
At least you and your family were not injured and hopefully the damage will be small.
 
:cry: Absolutely gutted for you Paul :cry:

Glad to hear you're okay though and that the seat belts and crumple zones did the job.

As you say, everything is repairable and that is certainly not outside your ability to repair. However,it will more than likely need to be put on a jig to check the base unit is not bent or crumpled elsewhere. Judging by the light units it looks to have been a pretty straight-on impact. What sort of speed was the impact at?

I guess someone had to redress the balance of all the P6s that have been rear-ended, sorry it had to be you.

Dave
 
Dave3066 said:
However,it will more than likely need to be put on a jig to check the base unit is not bent or crumpled elsewhere
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I wondered about that too as it's possible that the cross member or the brackets for the lower suspension arms could have moved.

Dave3066 said:
Judging by the light units it looks to have been a pretty straight-on impact. What sort of speed was the impact at?

I guess someone had to redress the balance of all the P6s that have been rear-ended, sorry it had to be you.

Dave
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I reckon I must have been doing less than 20mph when I hit the van I was only doing about 35mph when I hit the brakes and I did hit it fairly square on.

What surprised me most about it all was how quickly everything went wrong - maybe only 2 seconds very rolling along in traffic all fine to crashing.
 
testrider said:
Dave3066 said:
However,it will more than likely need to be put on a jig to check the base unit is not bent or crumpled elsewhere
Click to expand...

I wondered about that too as it's possible that the cross member or the brackets for the lower suspension arms could have moved.
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If the crossmember has gone back they won't pull out properly because of the way they're designed to progressively crumple, so even if you have the jigs they won't do you a lot of good. The jigs are only usefull if you're fitting new panels, or if it's something minor.

That said if the impact has passed over the crossmember and knocked the top of the inner wing backwards up by the bonnet hinges, on a 2000 you might get away with just pulling the inner wing forwards again.

If it's not going through the insurance (which it probably is as you hit someone else) then I'd look at the crossmember, and if that hasn't moved I'd give the inner wings a little tug and see what happens.
 
Paul, so sorry to see 'ol Hotty is now a bit grotty.

After all the hours you've put in you must be gutted.

I do hope you're able to save it, the rest of the car still stands testament to your welding skills so fingers crossed for a positive outcome.

All the best

Alan
 
Heartfelt commiserations. That is so painful!
Not a good week for 1967 Arden Green TCs - I reversed mine very firmly into the garden wall a few days ago (and I've lived here for over 25 years so I should know where it is by now)
John
 
Very sorry to see this, Paul, particularly given the enormous amount of work that you've put into it all. Glad to hear you've escaped unscathed though, and it's a testament to these cars.
Hopefully you can either carry out a repair, or use the spares for another P6.
 
smokin1942 said:
Heartfelt commiserations. That is so painful!
Not a good week for 1967 Arden Green TCs - I reversed mine very firmly into the garden wall a few days ago (and I've lived here for over 25 years so I should know where it is by now)
John
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I'm sorry to hear that John, let me know if you need anything though, the bootlid and valance were only painted last year.

I had a few spare minutes this afternoon to lever the bonnet open - it's not pretty in there.





The crease doesn't show up too well here but it's about 3 or 4 mm high.









Need to wait and see what the insurance people offer now, then I can figure out where we go from here.
 
Providing the crossmember hasn't moved, it's the bit at the rear that's the problem, so a quick pull would tell you whether or not that was going to come back. As for the front, all of that would come out easily. I had a mate who used to do them with me, and he could get all that out and back into shape without any filler whatsoever, just metalwork. (And when it was done you'd never know). You just need to find someone who is as good as my mate was, which is the big problem.
 
What a shame im gutted for you. All the work you have done . But as said knowing and seeing your welding skills im sure its worth fixing. Im sure between us all we must have all the bits you will need.i hope you can sort.
Regards
Marcus
 
What a nightmare for you. Paul.

Gutted to read about this after all the top-notch work you've put in on HOT. :(
 
Having (sort of...) been there already, i can confirm that the sheet metal up front is soft and deforms easily, and can be pulled back or even replaced realtively easily. For example as far as i remember the bonnet closing panel is readily available and rather cheap from the usual suspects, so it makes more sense to replace rather than repair. Now the creasing at the back looks more complicated and perhaps what happened was because of the weakness at that point due to rust.
Given your welding skills, i wouldn't worry much if the suspension pick up points and engine mountings are still in position.
 
Sorry to see the damage Paul, but glad you're okay.

The crease at the back is the only major thing that I can think of.. speak with Nick and he might be able to take a look at it for you. The front damage is just lightweight and easily repairable.

She's still a lovely car!
 
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