Author Topic: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz  (Read 10385 times)

Bob Purton

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #15 on: June 07, 2011, 08:49:08 PM »
"Isetta owner"  recently bought a Prinz and joined the club, he told me he got a lot of usefull help from them. You could send him a private message and have a chat.

mharrell

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #16 on: June 07, 2011, 09:56:09 PM »
A true enthusiast would have got there no matter what the distance....

Oh, now you're just making me feel bad for slacking off on this one, but at least I've got lot #42 from their auction as a souvenir.

http://www.goldingyoung.com/catalogues/MS181008/page2.htm
197? Lyman Electric Quad (two), 1978 KV Mini 1, 1980 KV Mini 1, 1981 HMV Freeway

Bob Purton

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #17 on: June 07, 2011, 10:50:13 PM »
Was that the KV?

Oceanix

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #18 on: June 07, 2011, 11:35:37 PM »
A true enthusiast would have got there no matter what the distance....

Oh, now you're just making me feel bad for slacking off on this one, but at least I've got lot #42 from their auction as a souvenir.

http://www.goldingyoung.com/catalogues/MS181008/page2.htm

Sorry, to aks a stupid question... Are those prices real? Some are less than 40% of prices here...  :o The Fiat Multipla and others for example...
Are there any more such auctions  ::)

mharrell

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #19 on: June 08, 2011, 12:43:47 AM »
Are those prices real? Some are less than 40% of prices here....

I submitted my maximum bid in advance from about 5000 miles away, so I don't know how the auction itself went, but I can confirm that the hammer price for my lot [Bob-- yes, the KV] was ?1400 as shown.  Lucky me, it was one of the few lots to significantly exceed its estimate.  The folks at the museum made a very nice shipping crate for it, though.
197? Lyman Electric Quad (two), 1978 KV Mini 1, 1980 KV Mini 1, 1981 HMV Freeway

Big Al

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #20 on: June 08, 2011, 10:52:35 AM »
I cannot answer for the PR from the Museum. It seems to be a matter of luck as to who has had a good or bad experience. Of course I know them well, they do not suffer fools gladly and have put themselves under enormous pressure by moving several businesses, cars, house etc from one place to an unfinished and unstarted place with no other way of making money. So you were talking to busy people.
I say fools, this includes a wide range of what to some count as non-foolish enquiry. In this case you had a car they had already discussed with the previous buyer. I could tell you without reference that you would get little information as I suspect this had revolved round the mix up over the lotting. Both Mike and I have been dealers. You just know when you reach a point where you are not getting any merit from a topic so it gets blanked otherwise you just revisit the same thing again and again, which we are doing now. To be blunt, what benefit is it for Mike talking about this? In most cases only negative. I can see where he is coming from and I am exactly the same when people question me over something I have no wish to expand on or want information I do not wish to disseminate for some reason of my own. For all we know the shell you have was subject to an illegal number plate sale and was passed on with a deed of trust to obscure its ID, perhaps it should have been scrapped. I used to buy from number plate dealers and took cars that had to be broken up as part of the deal. I did so, even recycling some very good cars in the process. To continue trade trust has to be maintained. So there are cars out there that are bitsas but that is better than scrapping them for their weight. Sadly the anoraks will not accept this and pick at the scabs and that has resulted in quite a few cars being destroyed by those that do have something to hide. Blame who you like but this is reality. I can list some I attempted to liberate but will not. You would cry as there were rarities. That is the nub of providing information, once out its Pandora time be it private, register or business. Unfortunately thanks to our stupid Government system the owner of a car is not empowered to have access to the history of that vehicle nor a title deed proving ownership. Not only that they conspired to create a trade in IDs. Until that changes you are hostage to a variety of problems in gaining information about a vehicle not aided by the Government encouraging the Councils to throw the ownership details they did have away. How jolly convenient. You want to gripe at someone have a go at those silly ******s.

Prinz.
Clutch has to be about as easy as a clutch change can be and is done in situ if you want.
Brake cylinders I used fitted quite a few other cars at the time so not sure about that factoid. Seem to recall rear Audi 80/100 and VW Golf, of course these were really NSU inspired so no great surprise there. Used to be £25 a throw from a factors. Certainly seal kits are about and they might hone up.
I found the NSU club very disorganised for parts. They had an old leaking shed full of stuff but little idea what is in it. They were traditionally slow to respond. I ended up buying 4 tons of ex dealer stock and traded with Mellman? in Germany or sourced at Mannhiem as it was cheaper and quicker stock and upon getting out of NSU I sold it well - the club failing to purchase the cages despite a low price being asked. This was some 10 to 15 years ago so things might have changed but I found the Club had a lot of inertia to anyone who was about it and jealous of activity, like finding Sport Prinz and Spyder, as it made them less rare. A shame as the cars a brilliant with annoying faults
Rear drum, this has a habit of being loose. You need to check out the fit and get it clean and then a good clamp on it with a good lockplate. You can tell if it is not home as it will not roll correctly normally, being eccentric, so look for run out or there will be an audible knock as it is loose. Do not confuse brake snatch as run out. The drums go oval as applying the handbrake on hot ali/steel insert drums sets up a strain. If you have round rear drums you are a lucky fellow! It is always worth cleaning and lubing the brake adjusters. These are a weak design.
Messerschmitt set, Goggo Darts, Heinkel 175, Fiat Jolly, Autobianchi, Fairthorpe Electron Minor, Borgward, Isuzu Trooper
Citroen BX 17TZD & GTI 16v
Held - MG Magnette ZB & 4/44
For sale - Vellam Isetta, Bamby, AC Type 70, Velorex, Church Pod, Reliant Mk5, KR200,  Saab 96, Bellemy Trials, Citroen BXs

adi

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #21 on: June 08, 2011, 05:27:07 PM »
I had problems with the adjusters. They were all siezed solid, and two of them were rounded off so that a 16mm spanner fitted them instead of a 17mm. I got around it in the end by heating them up to red hot, that freed them up OK, and all 8 now turn.

From what I found out so far, the rear cylinders are the same as very early Audi 100s, and a few other Audis, but only from the early 1970s (up to about 72 for some, up to 76 for the 100). They are 15mm bored. Unfortunately those early 70s Audis are very hard to find as well, so I have not found any sources in the UK so far.

The front cylinders are exactly the same casting, only 19mm instead of 15mm bore, and are unique to the Prinz by the looks of it. After hours of searching through old catalogs and crossover tables and stuff, I still can't find a single car that uses them apart from the Prinz.

Unfortunately, they will not hone out, they are too badly pitted. There was obviously water in the brake fluid.

You still happen to have any of your stockpile of parts? Any of them for sale, or is it your private stash only?

adi

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #22 on: June 08, 2011, 05:40:11 PM »
Oh, it seems the front cylinders may NOT be unique, they may have been used in the DAF 44/55, and also the Goggomobil T/TS 250-300-400, whatever that means.

Big Al

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #23 on: June 08, 2011, 06:18:20 PM »
The later Goggo does have a larger version. Uwe Staufenburg sells them. I did find another car that used them, maybe the front drum of a Golf/Polo thingy before there were discs. I have my old parts supplier books but not the time to look at them now. I have nothing much NSU left save screens, a steering switch set and some odds and sods including a tow hitch strangely.
Messerschmitt set, Goggo Darts, Heinkel 175, Fiat Jolly, Autobianchi, Fairthorpe Electron Minor, Borgward, Isuzu Trooper
Citroen BX 17TZD & GTI 16v
Held - MG Magnette ZB & 4/44
For sale - Vellam Isetta, Bamby, AC Type 70, Velorex, Church Pod, Reliant Mk5, KR200,  Saab 96, Bellemy Trials, Citroen BXs


Big Al

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #25 on: June 09, 2011, 08:15:56 AM »
Forgot to comment on fuel pump. The mechanical pump is OK as far as it goes. They do weaken though and with the volatility of modern fuel, set to get worse by chucking ethanol in thus knackering a load more cars as a 'green' measure (read less imported oil per fuel duty litre, kerr-ching), it is worth considering a pump that offers better pressure on an air cooled car. Without a good pump do not fit an in-line filter and in fact it is bad practice to use them on air-cooled cars unless you have too. It promotes hot fuel in the line more prone to vaporisation and thus running a weak mixture with all the associated probs. To this end it is acceptable to disable the mechanical pump and place an electric one under the fuel tank up front (to keep it away from the heat of the engine bay). This gives better performance as it drives off vapour on the occasions it can build up, thus the engine runs better. The fuel can be routed through the disabled pump or a new line made. Be aware that a mechanical pump seal failure on a Prinz, functioning or disabled, can fill the sump of the engine with fuel. This can reach a good oxygen/fuel ratio and blow up distributing your engine into a very pretty pattern suitable for the Tate Modern but perhaps not so handy for picking up Auntie Flo. Well even NSU are not perfect!
Messerschmitt set, Goggo Darts, Heinkel 175, Fiat Jolly, Autobianchi, Fairthorpe Electron Minor, Borgward, Isuzu Trooper
Citroen BX 17TZD & GTI 16v
Held - MG Magnette ZB & 4/44
For sale - Vellam Isetta, Bamby, AC Type 70, Velorex, Church Pod, Reliant Mk5, KR200,  Saab 96, Bellemy Trials, Citroen BXs

adi

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #26 on: June 09, 2011, 11:04:59 AM »
It's a very common problem with VWs too. That's exactly what happened to my Prinz. As soon as I got it, as I am used to VWs, the first thing I did was pull the dipstick and smell it, and sure enough it was very thin and smelled like fuel, and also was very over-filled. Mr Previous Owner has been running it with a broken pump it seems. so I drained the oil and disconnected the pump, and at the moment am running it from a 'redneck gastank' (just a metal can hung off the open bootlid for gravity feed).

I see the pump (at least in pictures, I havn't seen my pump yet since its so awkwardly placed) has a ring of screws around it, I assume it's rebuildable. Is it possible to just get a rebuild kit for it?

Otherwise of course I could fit a Facet pump and a pressure regulator, but I would rather keep it original if I can.




Big Al

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Re: ANOTHER ex microcar 'museum' car??? My new Prinz
« Reply #27 on: June 09, 2011, 07:42:53 PM »
I cannot see why it would be a special pump. No notion of source though.
Messerschmitt set, Goggo Darts, Heinkel 175, Fiat Jolly, Autobianchi, Fairthorpe Electron Minor, Borgward, Isuzu Trooper
Citroen BX 17TZD & GTI 16v
Held - MG Magnette ZB & 4/44
For sale - Vellam Isetta, Bamby, AC Type 70, Velorex, Church Pod, Reliant Mk5, KR200,  Saab 96, Bellemy Trials, Citroen BXs