Ant Anstead - Master... Bodger?

[Spacenut]

Probably old news to the rest of you, but watching terrestrial telly means that I have only just seen the latest episode of "Ant Anstead - Born Mechanic" on Quest. Tonight's episode (drum roll please) - a 1980 Alfasud!

In spite of been in storage for 35 years, the condition of the bodywork and interior was excellent, but I was horrified when Ant tried to start the engine without changing the cam belts first

Turning over the engine by hand, with the plugs out, is one thing, but starting the engine with cambelts 3 decades old???

Now I know how these programmes work, they do a lot of stuff off-camera that doesn't make the cut, but even if they did, they really should mention it on camera in case anyone else thinks it is a sensible idea...

He also did some bizarre things like dry ice blasting the outside of the carb to free up a sticking butterfly instead of stripping it down

In case you were not aware of the show, the premise is that any profit Ant makes gets plowed into the restoration of an 18th century cottage for his parents to retire to. Also typical of these shows is the plan to send all of the cars to auction with no reserve, and unlike Mike Brewer, Ant seems to have badly misjudged the demand for the cars he is renovating - he has made a loss on the last two cars - a Jag XJS (obvious really, what was he thinking?) and a Lotus Elan Plus 2, which needed costly engine work (because he concentrated on the cylinder head and didn't check the condition of the bottom end). Luckily the Sud didn't blow up, but only made a £200 profit over the £4,800 outlay. I do hope that after the cameras stopped rolling someone had the presence of mind to change the cambelts... and the water pump... and the plugs and points, condenser, oil filter, antifreeze...

Not impressed, frankly

Lauren

[Kegsti66]

Yes, I saw that as well Lauren. Like you pointed out, it was all a load of rubbish. Never been a fan of him to be honest. Not denying his talents but boy, what a narcissist. Does everything himself, and tells you.
Wants to save money then spends £200 on ice blasting. What would be wrong with some Jizer and WD40 to clean and lubricate.
Wonder who bought the car and if we will get to know them?

[Sud 145]

Edd is probably shaking his head in disbelief.

[justsuds]

The auctioneer mentioned Shrewsbury ..... and I think there was only one bid ?? - in the auction pictures the interior looked really poor, but it looked ok on the telly, also, in the auction details it did say it needed to back to the production company after the auction. I supplied some parts for this, - parts not mentioned, or accounted for in the 'profit', - these programmes are always full of bollocks !

[Kegsti66]

Couldn't agree more John.
They are very misleading for the generally public. Hourly rates on classic cars are not pro rata to the age of the car in question.
What you said about the car going back to the vendor after the auction sounds dodgy. Shame as it could be a nice car if it was in the hands of an enthusiast.
Fingers crossed it finds one.

[Spacenut]

The auctioneer mentioned Shrewsbury ..... and I think there was only one bid ?? - in the auction pictures the interior looked really poor, but it looked ok on the telly, also, in the auction details it did say it needed to back to the production company after the auction. I supplied some parts for this, - parts not mentioned, or accounted for in the 'profit', - these programmes are always full of bollocks !

Hi John - that is really disappointing, although I guess not surprising This "flipping cars" format beloved by Discovery Channel really doesn't work over here. I suppose there just isn't enough interest, or disposable income to waste on budget classics

Seems really odd that the car had to go back to the production company after the auction. Maybe there was a problem with the car that would have made it illegal to sell on the open market, like the Top Gear "Reasonably Priced Car"? As you say, there was only one bid, over the telephone, of £5,000. If it was all a set-up I guess the one bid was from the production team...

The windscreen was cracked as well, and they didn't replace it before the auction, which might also have put bidders off

Lauren

[TracMan]

Hi All, I'm a newbie Alfa owner. I was 'fortunate' enough to be the only bidder on Ant Ansteads "sud.

We're slowly evaluating just what needs doing immediately,

This is so far,
Full carb strip and clean,
oil & filter,
Soft fuel lines,
cambelts (original Alfa marked belts on car)
Fuel tank renovation inside and out.
Clutch

I'm trying to keep the originality for at least a couple of car shows but I'm guessing it will require a full rebuild someday.
We're videoing the progress here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmdxMjkyFho&t=175s

James

[TracMan]

The auctioneer mentioned Shrewsbury ..... and I think there was only one bid ?? - in the auction pictures the interior looked really poor, but it looked ok on the telly, also, in the auction details it did say it needed to back to the production company after the auction. I supplied some parts for this, - parts not mentioned, or accounted for in the 'profit', - these programmes are always full of bollocks !

Hi, What parts did you supply for this car?

James

[justsuds]

Hi James, - I supplied a pair of the stainless steel sill trims, the tapered end caps and mounting clips, - I've plenty more bits for Suds, give me a shout if you need anything, - I think you've bought a great car, inspite of its' recent history !
Cheers, John.

[alfadave]

James,
suggest you add a distributor cap to your shopping list.
There were different ones, Bosch, Marelli, Ducellier

Someone will be able to recognise yours?

[Kegsti66]

Welcome James, so glad to hear the car has gone to an enthusiast who plans to fettle her and get her back to a usable condition.
Lots of fellow Sud lovers here. good stuff.
Keith.

[Spacenut]

We're slowly evaluating just what needs doing immediately,

...cambelts (original Alfa marked belts on car)

James

Crikey! So they really didn't replace the cambelts after all

I really thought that might have been one of the essential service jobs they might have done in the background - the recommended service interval for Alfa boxer cambelts is every 2 years. The good news is that in spite of being 35 years old, the old cambelts held up, so no harm done I guess (unlike the Lotus Elan Plus 2 the previous week that had a bottom end seizure).

I agree the car is a really nice sound example, hence our collective dismay at the strange procedures Anstead used. He seemed to do a good job on the suspension though, but I think leaving the original bushes in place was a mistake. Anyway, it's great to hear that the car is now in good hands, and the lack of bidding in the auction means that you have bagged yourself a bargain!

Welcome to CAF!

Lauren

[StescoG66]

James,
suggest you add a distributor cap to your shopping list.
There were different ones, Bosch, Marelli, Ducellier

Someone will be able to recognise yours?

I have a dizzy cap you are more than welcome to have. My car is a Bosch distributor and this cap doesn’t fit, so I presume it’s either a Marelli or Ducellier. Box is a bit knackered but it is new and unused.

[alfadave]

Marelli cap was screw down type

James cap is clip on, so its Bosch or Ducellier I think