John Mulders

Pat, wait till the bugs are out of seven? I guess the watertube comes out by itself sooner than that will happen. Win7 is better than XP. Things to consider : can your hardware handle it (if you have an older PC you may want to check that first). 32bit vs 64bit - eventually everyone will use 64 but if you use the basic software (office, browser etc) you are fine with a 32 bit OS. Printers etc, make sure you can get drivers for it. Most problems with systems are caused by installing and trying new software, add 'add-on' features etc. Not the basic stuff. Even when you uninstall software entries will stay in the Registry and on the system and that will eventually cause problems and slow things down. with a 32 bit OS your old software will probably run and if needed you can setup a virtual PC for free. The Virtual PC is also handy for people who want to try software, have a test Virtual PC ready and run the program there, if you really like it you can install it on your system. If you don't no harm done. A virtual PC can be made quickly. John

Larry, that looks good, I like the black interior with the red paint. John

look good, always good to see progress like that! John

Ok, thanks, I have some new parts (cap, points and condenser). The condenser (Mopar box) looks a bit smaller than what used now. It is a 12 V setup. I removed the vacuum part, all kind of rubble comes out, I assume the seal? So that one is no good? And if I read correctly it is not a NAPA part and only can be bought with classic car parts suppliers or ebay? The wires will be replaced, I can manufacture these connections myself I guess. Or are these standard wire to be obtained at Napa? Thanks. John

Hi, following earlier thread I took the ignition out. The vacuum advance line (always rusty) broke off so I need to replace that. Then the unit came out without a problem. There are three washers in the unit, is there a sequence for them? Not sure what to look for as far as the bad spark, it seems a bit oily? Never worked on this part, so not comfortable. Some dirt visible, outside can be cleaned and painted. Questions: In the picture I have added two arrows Bottom one points to a wire that has fabric insulation but part is missing (it doesn't touch anything). The other points to a wire that is already wrapped with tape. Should this be replaced? The circle shows the most oily/dirty part, not sure that cleaning up will do any good to the functioning? Any suggestions? How can you tell whether the points need to be replaced? Before the problems (flooding) the engine did start without too much trouble. I assume the vacuum line may have leaked but could this cause the car not to start (the problem I saw was that there was no spark)? Appreciate your expert answers and suggestions! John

Looks good Chester, these small things take a lot of time but are needed anyway. John

I opened up the cap... Seems a bit wet, the spark from the coil isn't really strong to start with. I tried to clean the inside using compressed air. But the rotor was off and then I saw something pop out (inside the rotor) , I didn't hear it fall and think it is soft? Can't find it on the ground! Anyone knows what that is? Anyway , when I saw the pictures I can see the inside is more dirty/wet then I saw directly. Guess I need to clean this thoroughly. Can the distributor be removed easily or am I going to get myself in trouble (with parts flying around or special ways to take it out or put it back)? The coil is in there for all the years I have the car (so more than 5 years). What is the little device called? Is it available from NAPA? Sound like something I may want to get. Also will replace the cables while I am busy with this. thanks for the replies, any suggestions are appreciated as this is new ground for me. John

Finally some time to look at this issue. Charged the battery, took a spark plug out , no spark. So I check the cable coming from the coil, first I thought it did not spark (when close to ground) but then I saw the spark. Coil gets warm (but not really hot), I assume this is normal. So I think the problem is within the distributor. Not sure how I can check that , not really into that part. Could that be dirty from the flooding? I opened it earlier, didn't see much that could be related to the flooding. But maybe something is corroded? Any suggestions what I could check? Thanks Johm

Are you sure you have a Coupe? I bought a trunk light (a Coupe) but the seller decided to sent me a better looker one he had. That was a Sedan version. It doesn't fit, if you tighten the bottom one the top will have an inch of space. If anyone ever wants to swap a Coupe for a Sedan one let me know. John

How sure are you that it is a virus? The Stuxnet you mentioned seems to be a totally different virus (targeting Siemens , intended for the Iranian nuclear systems), see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuxnet Anyway : quick search gave a nice option: http://forums.cnet.com/7723-6122_102-350609.html Not sure how well you work with computers I checked the registry file that is provided and it seems ligit (same entries a my registry). Hope you can solve it. John

Be careful, hope the damage is minimal. Had my share lately with waterdamage due to flooding and 3 trees down, not a good experience with the insurance company. John

Bob, hope Dale will have a speedy recovery. Maybe you should take him on one of your trips ! That will be very relaxing. John

Not sure wat "Karo" is? On the sugar in gas, did Mythbusters not proved that that is a myth? Sugar won't disolve in gas and would not get in the system. http://www.ehow.com/facts_5562222_effects-sugar-gas-tank.html Good luck with catching them, guess the best moment is to tap them on the shoulder when they are sucking on the tube John

Just kidding Ed In Curacao people leave their cars running a lot too (parking lots of shops). Very annoying, temperature is mostly in the 90's but they want their car cool... Bit different from the colder areas I guess, windows need to be transparent to drive safely. Seen some idiots driving with only a piece of the frontwindow de-iced. John

Ed, you mean you can actually turn them off? Thanks ! John

I drove the 2CV and owned two Renault 4's. I agree with Uncle-Pekka, it will lean over a lot but not tip over. These car were very forgiving in terrain (used by farmers in France) as well. The Renault also had the dashboard stick, just a matter of getting used to. Easy to maintain (everything was bolted) and cheap to replace. Question for Uncle Pekka, that R4 picture is not from Finland right? The plate looks very much Dutch old style plates (blue with white letters). Also the mailbox looks like the Dutch one. Loved the R4. Different circumstances in Holland (small winding roads, small parking spots) so these cars were very usefull. Great milage for both cars for that era. John

Ed, but there is no denying ? John

More rain this night, every weekend we are surrounded by water. I calculated the amount of water going through my driveway. Sorry but I calculated in metric. Height off incoming water : 40 cm Width of the driveway : 400 cm Time for a piece of wood to cross 10 meters : 6 seconds I hope I calculated right but this results in 9600 Cubic meter every hour. 9 600 cubic meter = 2 536 051.702 6 gallon [uS, liquid] That is 28 million cans of Cola per hour.... Unfortunately it is dirty water , no value. John

So this guy walks along the river and sees this beautiful blonde on the other side. He makes contact and asks "how do I get to the other side of the river?" . The blonde looks confused and replies : "but you are already on the other side" ! John

Before I try a push start I need to make sure that the clutch is free. I need to get the electric pump working anyway, that is the only device getting fuel to the carburator (bypassed the orginal pump). And of course I need to get the P15 back on it wheels, still on blocks Again heavy rains here, very frustrating as this is a constant threat for more flooding. John

So many things to repair after the flooding so not 100% working on the car. Deepwell pump is getting there, new bearings etc. Checked the suggested points. I don't think the starter was submerged. I hooked up another battery using starter cables, bit more action but not enough. So recharged and cleaned the connections again (battery). This time the starter makes the engine turn reasonably. So I will check some more connections, also will check the sparkplugs. Worked on the rearwheels while charging, got one drum off without problems, doesn't look bad (expected worse). Very little rust which a cleaned. The other one was stuck , got the drum to rotate but not yet off. I don't have a puller for it. Patience I guess.... But now the electricfule pump seem to have given up. It was pumping fuel when I tried starting the engine (I could hear it) but now it doesn't make a sound. Again, could be something simple. Will check tomorrow. Again thanks for the advice ! John

Merry X-mas of course ! So I tried to start the P15 after the oilchange. The engine tries to turn but it seems like the battery is not having enough power. Charged the battery, cleaned the connections and tried again. No improvement. I only changed the oil. I can turn the fan without problems (so the engine is not seized). Presumably the clutch is stuck (I can press the pedal but that doesn't mean it will disengage). I have the transmission in neutral. The rear wheels are not free (brakes are stuck). But if it all is stuck this may well be too much for the starter. Any suggestions on what I can do to free the clutch? I am not sure whether there can be also water in the gearbox, I never have changed the oil in there either actually. I looked in the Service manual but haven't found anything specifically on this. Advice appreciated ! John

Got this picture through the Wabiclub. Townhall - Curacao - early fifties. Fair chance that my P15 is one of the cars as it was imported as new. But no way to find out. According to the person who sent it to me there is a "Sedanette" in the picture. I don't know which one it is. Appearently a special GM car built between 42-51 , back of the roof and trunk were aligned giving them a smooth line. So my guess it is the forth from the right? The center one is a 1950 Ford with the distinctive cat's eye taillights John

Back from a nice basketball trip to Surinam! Twisted my knee again , bummer. My guess is the draft tube, the flow of the water was from the back to front which, given the speed of the water, could have pushed it up and in. Will probably try to start the engine this weekend, will do some more checks and see whether things move freely. John John

All, just a quick update, finally got around to work on the P15. As water was found in the oil after the flooding I followed advice to drain (was needed anyway). First gulp coming out was clear water and after I collected it I put it back in containers. As you can see there was quite some water in the engine. The good thing is that it is not rusty (as it was in the bottom and I guess the amount is also not so much that it has been in moving parts. I manually turned the engine and that went fine so perhaps no damage. Will be off for week or so (basketball tournement in Suriname) so after that I will check the brakes and see whether she will start. Will keep you posted. John