Description
Good home required for 1981 W-reg Ford Fiesta 1. 1L Sandpiper II
I have owned this fantastic car for over 10 years and it is with a very heavy heart that I have finally managed to convince myself that I need to find her a new enthusiast / keeper to continue owning and looking after her.
Mr David Horne* ordered and purchased the Fiesta new at UBM Ford Bristol (opposite Temple Meads railway station) and traded in his 1974 Hillman Avenger Sunseeker (also a Ltd Edition vehicle). The Fiesta was registered 30 March 1981 and still retains her original rear numberplate and dealer sticker in the back window (the front numberplate cracked about 6 years ago and I had to get a replacement – but the replacement is in the same ‘font size’ as the original).
The Fiesta was registered to Mr Horne* until 31 March 1995 when unfortunately he became unwell and was not able to drive the car. He didn’t want to sell it but luckily his daughter Mrs Briggs* took the car from him and registered it in her own name and kept it safely in her garage, while her own car stayed outside.
The Fiesta was, I believe, used by one of Mrs Briggs* sons for a while but covered very little mileage in this time. In fact when I bought the car in June 2002 she had just 53, 810 miles on the clock with a full service history to back this up.
The Fiesta Sandpiper II was based on the 1. 1L and followed on from the Sandpiper I which Ford made in 1980. Over the L model the Sandpiper II featured the following:
* Two Tone coachwork in Roman Bronze Metallic (upper) and Solar Gold Metallic (lower)
* Ghia style seats in Bitter Chocolate and Tan fabric with head rests and map pockets on the back of the front seats
* Tinted glass all round with gradiant banded windscreen (blue colouring strip at the top – makes even the greyist of days seem a little brighter!)
* Push button LW/ MW/ FM radio with centre console & clock
* Thicker carpeting and extra sound insulation
* Chrome wheelnuts and trim ring embellishers
* Cigar lighter
* Glass sunroof which tilts and is also removeable
* boot tray plastic liner with lockable boot top
* twist/ turn boot lock
I have added / changed a few things over the years, including :
* three rear seatbelts (2 x intertia and 1 x lap belt)
* Mk 2 Fiesta rear side parcel shelf trim with the correct seat belts guide holes (the original dark brown side trims are included in the sale)
* Mk 1 Fiesta 1. 1 Economy gearbox was fitted about 7/ 8 years ago; this gives approx 20mph for ever 1000rpm as opposed to the standard 1. 1 gearbox of approx 15mph for every 1000rpm
* Immobiliser
* Centre plastic hubcaps from the later Fiesta Mk1 models
* CD player and radio with twin speakers fitted in the rear side panels using the standard Ford speaker bracket mounting brackets – so no panels have been cut except the centre console
I used the car daily from September 2002 until May 2007 and she was regularly serviced (oil change, oil filter, air filter) and maintained in that time, mostly by myself. A full record of work carried out is included in the sale.
In September 2006 just before the MOT I had the following work carried out:
- New front brake discs
- New front brake callipers
- New alternator
- New rear brake shoes
She was taken off the road in May 2007 because I bought a 1987 E-reg Mk2 Fiesta Festival 1100 which had covered just 11, 000 miles by that time. The Sandpiper was taken to my parents in Cheddar and stored in their large dry shed, covered over with blankets, from May 2007 until earlier this year when I made the decision to get her back on the road.
She needed some welding to the inner rear sills (common rust spot as all Fiesta owners will tell you !), some tidying up of the rear wheels arches, and the bottom inch of the nearside front passenger wing (in front of the A-pillar) had to be rebuilt, with some work locally on the inner sill/ footwell corner too. She went for her MOT and failed on the following:
* Both front brake hoses perished
* Near side rear brake not working sufficiently
* Off side rear brake sticking on
* Nearside CV gaiter split
The mechanic I use came out and replaced both front brake hoses, checked and cleaned the front brakes, cleaned both rear brakes and fitted new rear wheel cylinders, replaced the N/ S CV boot – and then back for the retest which she passed.
Since then I have also had a new water pump fitted, new rotor arm and distributor cap, 2 brand new front tyres (Marshall – 145 x 12”), the spark plugs cleaned & re-gapped and a thorough tune up including valve gaps adjusted.
I have used the car weekly since then and have enjoyed every moment of it – since she’s come out of hibernation and was tuned up, she is really quite nippy and can easily keep up with today’s traffic (until you come to a steep hill and you have to change down to 3rd !!!).
In August I drove from Portishead (south Bristol) to a car rally at Gaydon Warwickshire for a weekend and she performed faultlessly, she is a pleasure to own and drive.
If you’ve got this far I guess you must be quite keen - or there's not much on telly!
Obviously the car is 31 years old and has been used quite a lot – she is still low mileage for the year – but is now on 95, 000. The interior is in excellent condition, none of the seats are ripped or torn or faded, the drivers seat has some wear but nothing major. I covered the seats with some retro furry seat covers in c2004 and only took them off this year when she came out of storage – I’d forgotten just how good the seats are ! The carpets are all in good condition and since I bought the car they have always been covered with genuine Ford rubber mats. All electrics work including interior lamp, clock in centre console, rear wash wipe, front wipers with intermittent wipe, heated rear window (all strips work), 2 speed fan, rear fog lamp etc.
The paintwork is what lets the car down. The roof is somehow turning ‘white’ – the lacquer has not peeled but is ‘crazed’. The bonnet has some dents (not easy to see in the photos but they are there) – however rather than replacing it I have kept the car as original as possible. The doors and bootlid and bonnet are all rust and rot free, the bonnet has some rust on its ‘engine side’ but its all been coated with wax oil to stop it getting any worse.
Back in 2002 when I first bought the car I removed all interior trim and re-routed the sunroof “drain pipes” – Ford fit these to run INTO the sills – not good! I drilled the outer sill on each side and the 2 rear pipes have a snug fit poking out of there. The front drain pipes now exit each A-pillar and so all water now runs out of the car, rather than into the sills. If only Ford had done that in the first place I’m sure a lot more Fiesta Mk1 and 2’s would have lasted much longer.
I would have no hesitation in driving the car anywhere – she may not be the fastest at accelerating but can easily cruise at 75/ 80mph on the motorway due to the Economy gear ratios and she is extremely reliable. The only time I remember she let me down was with a cracked distributor cap and damp weather conditions.
Now the difficult bit - price wise – what is she valued at? I really have no idea and I’m mad on Fiesta’s !
The good points are:
* she is a fully complete Fiesta Sandpiper II including all the standard ‘extra’s that this model came with – including the rear locking boot floor and under floor ‘tool tray’
* she has her original hand written order, the typed bill of sale, original hand book and dealer wallet, rear no. plate and dealer sticker in the rear window
* she is all original inside with the exception of the centre console which I cut in 2002 to get a CD / radio in
* she has just had 2 brand new Marshall front tyres
* new waterpump, fanbelt, front brake hoses, rear brake cylinders, oil and filter change, points, rotor arm and distributor cap
* she is MOT’d until 14 June 2013 and taxed until the end of December 2012 (cheap road tax - £74. 50 for 6 months or £130 for 12 months)
* she is fitted with an immobiliser
* she has masses of service history, MOT’s, invoices, receipts etc etc
* I have a record of all petrol put into the car since I bought her including date, price per litre, mileage – which shows how economical she is (usually around 40mpg)
The bad points:
* The paintwork lets the car down and I’m sure the photos make her look better than she is. I did some de-rusting of the front wheelarches and the front valance 'seams' in 2005 (photos of before and after available to view) - which was surface rust rather than structural - but I repainted the sanded/ kurust remedied areas in black smoothrite so not too pretty. However I have not re-painted these areas in gold smoothrite (which is a pretty good paint match, almost a full tin included in the sale) because its best for you to see that the rust has not come back through from 6 yrs ago, rather than to see fresh paint and wonder what is lurking beneath
* There is some rust starting to come through on the drivers side front wing – a bubble around the headlight (just where the paint colours join), some ‘starring’ just in front of the aerial and a few bits starting within the top rear 1/ 4 of that wing
* The drivers door has some play in the bottom hinge; the door has been adjusted so it closes easily and freely but it does has some wear. The A-Pillars themselves are solid so there’s no problem there, and I have some new “hinge pins” that can be included in the sale
* The tailgate does not always stay up as the boot ‘gas struts’ are weak. Most of the time they are fine – but now and again you have to give it a helping hand
I have a lot of photos I can email and can take plenty more if required. However I would strongly recommend that you please come and give the car your own inspection – it’s so difficult to describe a car as so much is open to personal opinion. Please give me a ring and I’ll happily talk with you about the Sandpiper – I just want her to go to a good home where she’ll be enjoyed and looked after !
I guess price wise I’d be looking for around the £1, 000 mark. As said a good home is much more important to me than the money. She is extremely solid and un-abused and fully complete. When did you last see one which only has 2 owners from new (one family until 2002 and me from then) with a full service history and the bill of sale? They just don’t come up very often!!
I look forward to hearing from you and thank you for taking the time to read all of this.
