Restoration of My Premier 118NE

[kushagra]

Well this is going to be my second thread on TAI. I always like to read restoration threads here.Here is something from my side.

BACKGROUND

I always had a crush on NE from my childhood,we had two-three NE's in my family.but i never got an opportunity to feel it personally.after completing my studies, I started working in my city. In my family,relatives and friends whenever someone buys a car either it is a new one or a preowned they always come to me, to take advices, I dont know why just because i have interest in cars or they think that I am a mechanic because after my job hours and in weekends i spent most of the time in my cars. Anyway a friend was looking to buy a preowned car and we started searching on olx and soon discovered a m800 type 2 in decent condition and within our budget. We call the owner,but he informed us that he sold the car two days back. I always take screenshots of the cars which are of our interest. So after some days my friend bought a zen and that night when i was going to delete screenshots that i took for my friend, I stumbled upon the same advertisement of that maruti 800 car, something catch my eye in the background,whoa its a NE, from then my friend and i both tried to locate the car,but we were unable to find it, six months passed away.

In this period i save enough money by less using my existing car AVEO U-VA and by spending nothing on it I somehow managed enough to buy either a PREMIER PADMINI or a PREMIER 118 NE.I see some padminis but the rate was quite high.As a NE lover I always kept a eye on a car that was standing beside the KANPUR-LUCKNOW highway .We contacted the seller and saw car first time .it was in a pathetic condition ,there was nothing left in interior ,as the windows were partially opened and car was being used as an storage box to keep scrap in it.But I was so excited to see a NE that the owner quickly understands that.I thought that i would offer him around twenty five thousands to finalize the deal.but he said that this car belongs to his brother who lives in kolkata. We left the place and I was too much happy that finally my dream of owning a NE is going to be fulfilled .After some days I visited him again and the owner says that his brother is asking seventy thousands for it,as it is fitted with cng kit,and car was in running condition till 2009 .I was shocked to hear the price he quoted,and was also angry that for this unrealistic price he called us to meet him from my place to his which is 70 kms far .So after that experience i got frustated and decided to leave the plan for owning a classic,but somehow i managed to locate that earlier NE which we saw once in background.

After many visits to the owner finally i managed to get the car from him.car was standing in that condition from last three years .see some pictures below of the car as we found it.

THE FIRST TEASER

 

[kushagra]

Below u can see the car which was standing on lucknow-kanpur highway

This is the car that was standing on highway.





condition of car when we finally reached there to tow it











Below were the initial observations-
1-There was no air in any tires,and all tires were in very bad condition.
2-there were no brakes in the car at that time.
3-roof and a door had a dent.
4-whole wiper assembly was missing.
5-Steering plastic cowl assembly was broken.
6-All doors were closed but they all required some effort to close again.
7-All mirrors were up thats why interior was clean.
8-Interior door opening handles were broken.
9-Car locks operate with multiple keys.There were asha make keys,unity make keys and c.i. make keys.
10-Ignition key was missing.

Journey begins

We quickly start the process to tow it,6 persons pushed it but it didnt move.We were unable to fill air in tyres in that position because other cars were parked and there was no space left to fill air in tyres.But somehow we managed to fill air in it,and in the process we triggered security alarm of honda city which was parked just next to my car.After air was filled we again pushed it and this time with some effort it moved.And then we started to clean it- three years old dust take some effort and consume a lot of time to clean it.Then we started towing it.We forgot to take towing chain with us so we towed it with seatbelts,borrowed from a nearby mechanic.My work horse UVA towed it with ease with some hiccups.











Some random clicks

EXTERIOR-

 

[Nissan1180]

I am glued to this thread!
We have a 118 NE in Ahmedabad. It is undergoing painting now. We have it since 1998. It was the first car in the family and we have travelled more than 100,000 km in it across Gujarat. All this without an engine overhaul. The car was with its original paint till 2013.
Please post more pics... Thank you for saving the NE. Best wishes.

 

[Ilangop]

Journey begins
We quickly start the process to tow it,6 persons pushed it but it didnt move.We were unable to fill air in tyres in that position because other cars were parked and there was no space left to fill air in tyres.But somehow we managed to fill air in it,and in the process we triggered security alarm of honda city which was parked just next to my car.After air was filled we again pushed it and this time with some effort it moved.And then we started to clean it- three years old dust take some effort and consume a lot of time to clean it.Then we started towing it.We forgot to take towing chain with us so we towed it with seatbelts,borrowed from a nearby mechanic.My work horse UVA towed it with ease with some hiccups.

Welcome Kushagra. Glad to see you here. Do keep updating this thread. For sure you will love the journey with your 118NE.
All the best.

 

[kushagra]

Interior
As i said earlier car was standing in the shade,thats why we didn't get any surprises in interior,though rust was there,on floor,on rain channel ,on dashboard lid hinge,etc. but nothing that was a big issue to us. Rust will be treated once painting started,but as of precaution,we cleaned the floor and applied black paint on it.For this process we take out interior original mat.which was in many pieces as supplied by company.Was damage in some areas too.But my bad that i didn't take pics of that before taking it out.now we are unable to identify which part goes in where.



















Engine Bay
Bonnet opening mechanism was not working.Engine oil cap was not fitting in properly,had some rust too on it.Later i did some diy and clean the rust of engine oil cap as much as possible,also it was not fitting in properly because of a rubber washer which was missing,used a maruti 800 type one oil cap;s washer and it fitted perfectly.





Rusted areas















More Rusted Areas















Next day we tried to start the car with proper precautions which have to take when starting a car after a long time.It started in 4-5 attempts.After let it run for a hour we take it for cleaning.As car had no brakes we didnt take the risk and cleaned it at a nearby roadside service station.,Just about 100 meters from garage.

 

[Nanofreak]

Congrats @Kushagra, for renovating this classic, the body and the floor panels look in decent condition, I do hope you manage the spares which will be time consuming and difficult at times, but in Kanpur every thing is possible, including jugaad

All the best.

Regards

Vinod

 

[kushagra]

Parts Hunt Start
My car is the only NE in running condition in my city.Spare availability is almost 0,even one can hardly find amabassador spares here.But plus point is that all spares whatever available in my city are for me only.NO one else is interested in these,so i can negotiate a lot.
First priority was to get the brakes overhauled following parts needed to be changed-
Brake master cyllinder major kit
Bleeding nipple
Brake hoses
Brake pads
Brake liners
So the hunt starts and after hunting almost one month i couldn't spot a single major kit for master brake cyllinder although minor kits were available.but they were of no use.So i bought a brand new master cyllinder from delhi.Could n't find bleeding nipples still so using old nipples by cleaning them .Brake hose were also not available ,so reconditioned them with new hose pipes and metal jackets around them.Brake pads were arranged KBX make but later found out that NE comes with two types of brake systems and these KBX make brake pads were not suitable for my car.So had to buy suitable one.LUckily those were available of a brand called AMT ,i did not have many choices to chose so bought these.Brake liners are old still ,did not changed them yet.
Old master brake cyllinder

Congrats @Kushagra, for renovating this classic, the body and the floor panels look in decent condition, I do hope you manage the spares which will be time consuming and difficult at times, but in Kanpur every thing is possible, including jugaad

All the best.

Regards

Vinod

yes sir i am getting spares easily ,till now only one jugaad done i.e.- brake hoses

Welcome Kushagra. Glad to see you here. Do keep updating this thread. For sure you will love the journey with your 118NE.
All the best.

thank you sir will need your help in many areas.

New master cyllinder

Reconditioned brake hoses







Some more broken parts-














New spares which i got here easily

 

[mayankdixit]

congrats for your car.This car is lucky to have you as the owner. Is it true that the odo stands at 62,000kms .Or has the odo gone kaput!!If its true, than you are lucky to aquire this piece.!!Still its a very brave and bold decision.Best of luck.and keep posting more pics.I am glued to this thread for sure!!

 

[kushagra]

congrats for your car.This car is lucky to have you as the owner. Is it true that the odo stands at 62,000kms .Or has the odo gone kaput!!If its true, than you are lucky to aquire this piece.!!Still its a very brave and bold decision.Best of luck.and keep posting more pics.I am glued to this thread for sure!!

speedometer was in fully working condition except clock and back lights.by seeing the engine condition .I am sure that reading is accurate.Car was registered to a company manager ,and the person from whom i buy it was also very kind and had 7-8 cars ,so i dont think that he would do such fraud to me.He was very much emotionally attached to this car,and even was not ready to sell it.After 2-3 visits and my promise to him that i will surely show him the car once it would be restored,he finally agrees on selling it.Car belongs to his late father.

Some more spares which i purchased here-















Work done till now
1)Bought new lock set and replaced all locks including front two door locks,petrol tank lock and boot lock.Now all locks operate with single key.
2)A diy job of converting existing dashboard storage lock to operate without keys.Reason-storage space in there is already very less and i won't be keeping valuables in there.Also by doing this there will be one less key too .
3)Another diy job of finding and changing internal door opening handles or R.C lever to a better one.Now there is no tension of that existing R.C lever's bezel .Which was fragile enough as well as pops out frequently too.NEW R.C. lever with new bezel is permanent fix and looks good too.
4)All suspension work complete including new shockers,tie rod ends ,all ball joints, and bushes here and there.NE owners knew it that how difficult this job is.And getting all spares and fixing all takes a month.
5)All electricals working now except some niggles.
6)New lights including interior pillar lights ,tail lights,front grill indicators installed.
7)Car was serviced - new oil filter ,air filter ,3.5 liters oil,spark plugs and coolant makes quite a difference.
And some more small diy's to fix rattling sounds and other issues.

Door locking knob was making noise so found a locking knob bezel of correct size and fixed it.

Replaced the old worn out clutch and brake pedal rubbers with new ones from alto.









Found a close replacement door switch and changed it.Now interior lights work according this.
Bought alto tail gate weatherstrip and fixed in front bonnet weatherstrip area and in boot too,rattling noise from both areas are gone now,although will have to bought one more weatherstrip as one was not enough for bonnet and boot and in boot some area was left.

 

[harishankar]

If I remember right, this was our second car in the family owned in around 1998-2000 or thereabouts. I remember learning driving on this car. Lovely to drive, I remember the gearbox was so smooth and driving was a pleasure in this. Sadly the body was not all that great and if I recall right required a lot of tinker work.

 

[kushagra]

If I remember right, this was our second car in the family owned in around 1998-2000 or thereabouts. I remember learning driving on this car. Lovely to drive, I remember the gearbox was so smooth and driving was a pleasure in this. Sadly the body was not all that great and if I recall right required a lot of tinker work.

yes body was prone to rust but i was lucky that it was not that much corroded,gear box is buttery smooth, and that nissan engine's roar is awesome.

 

[kushagra]

Current problems-
1)My car is equipped with hitachi carburettor, when i purchased this car choke cable was not fitted in it,and car requires several attempts for first start.I thought installing choke wire will solve the problem,so i told my mech. to install choke wire but instead of installing choke wire he simply take out the carb,and started cleaning it,i did not ask for this,somehow we managed to repack it,and after repacking it and installing it car starts in first attempt.i was happy to see this but then car engine stops just before hundred meters from my house.We pushed the car and parked it outside as it was already dark.Next day mech. discovered that there was something stuck in tank float unit pipe.After some attempts car start but now there is another strange problem car is making noise like some air is leaking from somewhere.
2)Hitachi carb. has some problems too ,we cant install choke wire ,as something is broken in there where choke wire is attached.Also one carb. screw can not be tightened because some threads are missing.
3)Front balance rod bushes were not replaced during suspension overhall,they are making noise.I wonder if i can get those bushes alone anywhere.
4)My car had no wiper mechanism ,entire assembly was missing,somehow i managed to source all parts but wiper motor coupler has no power,will have to check by some electrician.
5)Although i got replacement switches but in left side when we tried to replace switch a wire which was attached to the switch fell on the ground,so there must be a cut somewhere,now existing wire which is in there,we cant reach to it,as at is very short.I want to know how to access this wire?
6)While fitting inside door rc handles ,a trainee mechanic cuts some metal wire (rod) to which rc lever is attached now it is making problem because of short length that lever is not fully operating.
7)Left side rear door is not locking from inside lock knob,also it is not shutting completely.W hen shutting door there are two steps in first step door shuts and in second step door locks ,in my car only first step is completing.When i shut this door it comes back it is not locking up completely.
I will be waiting for your replies on above problems.

Spares i need now
1)A mikuni carburettor setup.incuding carburettor +air filter box +manifold.
2)Fender indicators at least 4 sets.although i have two sets but for future i will be keeping those with me.
3)NE specific rear view mirrors,currently i am using ambassador side mirrors ,but they are not giving proper view.Also i heard that matiz rear view mirrors looks good on N.E.so i need your opinions regarding this too.
4)I will also require tank float unit as current one is very old and corroded too.
5)I am also looking for NE user manual book and tool kit with jack .
Thats all for now kindly help me in getting some spares which i mentioned above.I will also love to read your advices and suggestions,as i am very new to these classic car's and there mechanism.

 

[Ilangop]

Current problems-
3)Front balance rod bushes were not replaced during suspension overhall,they are making noise.I wonder if i can get those bushes alone anywhere.

6)While fitting inside door rc handles ,a trainee mechanic cuts some metal wire (rod) to which rc lever is attached now it is making problem because of short length that lever is not fully operating.

7)Left side rear door is not locking from inside lock knob,also it is not shutting completely.W hen shutting door there are two steps in first step door shuts and in second step door locks ,in my car only first step is completing.When i shut this door it comes back it is not locking up completely.

3. Balancer rod bush from other cars will fit in the NE. Just take a bush to a shop that sell parts for cars.
6. You can weld a small piece of rod and extend the link as much as desired.
7. If you are not able to depress the locking knob completely, open the door panel and locate the Horizontal rod (not the vertical one on which the knob is mounted) that connects the latch and pull it downwards to bend it as much as you can. This way the length of this rod is shortened and the knob can lock properly. For the door, remove the rubber beading and check if the door shuts close till the second step. If so, you will only need to adjust the door catch unit slightly and you are done.

Spares i need now
2)Fender indicators at least 4 sets.although i have two sets but for future i will be keeping those with me.
3)NE specific rear view mirrors,currently i am using ambassador side mirrors ,but they are not giving proper view.Also i heard that matiz rear view mirrors looks good on N.E.so i need your opinions regarding this too.
4)I will also require tank float unit as current one is very old and corroded too.
5)I am also looking for NE user manual book and tool kit with jack .

2. Ashok Leyland E-comet's fender indicators are the same.
3. Hard to find, but you can buy them over ebay.de. Costs about 15 Euro for a pair
4. I am also looking for one
5. I have uploaded mine here. Premier 118NE Owner Manual - THE PREMIER PADMINI CAR WORLD . You may have to login to download.

 

[kushagra]

i will definitely look onto your advices ,but currently everything is on hold,until i found a solution to carb. problem.Once all mechanical and engine issues will be sorted out ,i will give my car for dainting .One more update- bought a new battery for my car.

 

[Ambylovers]

Hi,
Its very interesting thread. All the best for your restoration.