820 Vitesse sport or Coupe wanted

[philhollings]

Hi all,

As title says, I am looking to buy a Vitesse sport saloon, fastback or preferably a Vitesse Coupe. Would love Charlestone Green colour but condition is more important than anything.

I would like a really nice example and will pay top money for the right car and i'm willing to travel. I am based in West Yorkshire.

Please PM if you have anything that may be of interest.

Thanks

[scoobyh123]

Welcome Phil - have a look at this thread :

viewtopic.php?f=15&t=13935&p=139354#p139354

This is the ebay listing in question:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/182090026155? ... EBIDX%3AIT

Could be worth a look?

[philhollings]

Thanks for the welcome Dave,

Yes, I have seen this ad and the other one too in Skegness in the same colour, buy both and hopefully make a good one. Love this colour too.

Unfortunately, I work away quite a bit and I don't have the time to spend on these cars to get them to the standard I would like hence I would like to pay decent money for a really good example that I can use straight away and enjoy.

Went to the POL today hoping there maybe something for sale but the day was a bit disappointing due to it being cancelled in the park.

Cheers for the reply.

Phil

[scoobyh123]

Shame about PoL, especially on the 30th anniversary year of the launch of the 800 - would have been quite an event!

In fairness though, i understand what you're saying about buying the best example you can afford in the hope that you can use it, enjoy it and just do routine maintenance.
Without being negative, it often doesn't always work that way. I'm sure others will also mention this at some point but there are many cars advertised that look fantastic but turn out to be really bad and sometimes only fit for the scrapyard. I remember seeing a white Mk1 some time ago, the guy had paid a lot of money for it and on the face of it, he still got a good deal - nice tight engine, good gearbox, excellent paint/body work and interior. It quickly developed enough electrical problems to give even the most patient auto electrician a nervous breakdown followed by an attack of the measles! The car had the measles, not the auto electrician, in the form of rust spots breaking out all over the car.
Almost all the electrical problems were traced to bad earths except a central locking relay (which had its own bad earth too) and the bodywork had been tarted up to make it look good long enough to sell.
Sometimes it's better to buy a car that doesn't look so pristine and spend some time making it right, same goes for the mechanical side of things. I realise with working away home time is going to be minimal and there will be a lot of "home" things to catch up on so it will take you much longer to achieve the result you want but that could be a better way in the long run - at least then you'll know everything that has needed to be done has been done.

Having said all that, there are a lot of honest sellers about and they will likely tell you of any faults on the car. A few things to double check on any potential purchase though :

Fuel Filler Neck - these corrode badly and besides being an MoT failure will cost you in lost fuel
Front bottom ball joints - these are a weak spot on all 800s, they are prone to breaking if they are worn with the result the wheel disappears into the wing.
Fuseboxes - cause problems with wipers, windows and other things, usually just need resoldering with proper solder.
Front fog lamps - the reflectors corrode badly due to poor design. Replacements are still available for about £32 each but you have to find them by searching for a 1986 Renault 21!
Outer sills - particularly on the coupe. Although non-structural, any rot in them will constitute an MoT fail because it's still within 30cm of a suspension or seat belt mount. Replacements have been made and fitted successfully but obviously it's not cheap.

Those are some of the worst/most common problem areas, obviously everything else needs checking as well but those are the bits most likely to cause you problems. The T series engine in the turbo models is pretty much bomb proof but does have its foibles like oil leaks from the corner of the cylinder head which unless it's like the Exxon Valdiz is usually nothing much to worry about. I've heard that 5th gear synchro can go weak causing it to jump out of 5th gear but it can be repaired.

Hopefully that gives you a few more pointers, with luck someone else will be along soon either with an offer of a car or a bit more information on the 2.0 models.

Good luck with your search anyway!

[philhollings]

Hi, Dave

Thanks for all the info and tips.

Had a tip off about a car that I will hopefully go and see tomorrow if I can get hold of the owner so fingers crossed. Its not a coupe but it sounds nice.

Thanks again

Phil

[scoobyh123]

No problem Phil, it's just a condensed version of a lot of other information on here - somewhere there's a "Buyers Guide" (i think it was/is in the FAQ section but it may have moved since the recent revamp of the site) that goes into a lot more detail.
Most of the stuff i listed could be used as bargaining points and if it was a rough car that you couldn't otherwise fault, a deal breaker as well.
Forgot to mention, check when the cam belt was last done, should be a 48k/4 year interval on the T-series according to what i found when i checked the other day for someone else with a T-series. Other sources of reference range from 36k to 80k but this was in the Rover Workshop Manual for early Mk2s so i'd say is a pretty reliable source!

Good luck with this one tomorrow!