MANTARA RE-BUILD

MANTARA RE-BUILD

Author
Discussion

chrisr1001

Original Poster:

21 posts

156 months

Thursday 17th January 2013
quotequote all
Has anybody made any chassis repairs? The box sections behind the front wheel arches are rotten and are totally inaccessible for welding. Any ideas? The alternative - and most likely solution, is to take off as much as I can and then trailer the car to Rory at Heritage so he can take the body off and fit onto a new chassis - too much for me as the body is bonded onto the metalwork. Has anyone else done this and are you available to offer words of advice in the St Albans area?

Thanks, Chris

Martyn-123

652 posts

192 months

Thursday 17th January 2013
quotequote all
Hi,

You could have a look at my body off restoration blog which may give you a idea of the work involved and alternatives to buying a new chassis saving lots of £££


Martyn

Cool Mart

131 posts

221 months

Monday 21st January 2013
quotequote all
Hi Chris,

There's a wealth of information on the Mantara here : http://marcosforum.org/forums/72/Mantara?page=1 and a search for chassis repairs should throw up a few hits.

There are a few other people/garages who will tackle this kind of work, and if you look in the above forum in the 'recommendations' section you maybe able to find someone more local.

However Rory is the expert, and the extra you might spend getting the car fixed by him is probably worth it, chances are they've worked on the car in the past.

Where abouts are you 'near St.Albans' ? I'm in Hemel and when the weather finally clears I'll be out and about in my Mantaray (I previously owned a Mantula) There's a few local owners about and a good early season meet is down at the Ace Cafe on the North Circular if you fancy it.

Martin

chrisr1001

Original Poster:

21 posts

156 months

Friday 25th January 2013
quotequote all
Martyn,
thanks for the information, your rebuild seems to be more comprehensive than mine - I don't have any body repairs unless I break something. I've had a chat with Rory and I'll most likely strip off as much as I can and then trailer the rest to him. The body is bonded onto the chassis and cutting/repairing fibreglass is beyond my range of skills. I'll post some photos as the work progresses.

chrisr1001

Original Poster:

21 posts

156 months

Friday 25th January 2013
quotequote all
Cool Martin, thanks for the tips. As I said above, I think I'll take the Rory solution for the chassis change. I'm OK with nuts and bolts but fibreglass is a step too far - and I don't want to risk snapping it in 2 pieces anyway. I hope to start the strip down in a couple of weeks (after I've cleared some space in the garage) but wouldn't mind joining in at the Ace Cafe, can you let me know some dates?
Home is Bricket Wood, 2 minutes from M1 Junction 6, I'll let you know when I start so you can have a look if it suits.

Chris

Cool Mart

131 posts

221 months

Sunday 27th January 2013
quotequote all
Ahhh, just a short hop down the M1 to Bricket Wood, I'd like to pop down when you start taking bits off - let me know.

The Ace Cafe meet is the 18th of May and we normally get 10+ cars. Croxley Green is another popular meet twice a year.

Martin