If Carlsberg made Coupes.......

Finally, I am able to answer one of the most frequently-asked (of me) questions over the past year or so.

Q. When are you getting your Coupe back?
A. TODAY!!!!

That very nice Mr Carl and Mr John set off from the frozen north at some ungodly hour this morning, and just after 8am, C8PPO finally returned home!

It only looks flippin blinkin well blimmin AMAZING!

Th weather is dull here today and I can't drive it to some nice photo-opportunity location until I go and tax it at lunchtime, but I know you lot will be baying for pictures, so here's a little taster. The light outside, the conditions, and apparently my camera don't even go half-way to doing it justice - it looks SOOOO much better in the flesh. But at least this will give you an idea of what, now, if I might be so modest, has to be one of the best Coupes in the country?

Hello!

Looking fabulous

Not a ding in sight!

None here either!

Plenty of work done under here too

Red!

Powder-coated and spotless!


Carl is planning a photo montage of everything from the day it crashed up to today, with all the stripping, repairing and horrors found in between times.

Carl, I just want to say a massive public Thanks to you and John for this. If this turns out to be your Coupe swansong, then as far as I'm concerned, you've gone out on the highest note possible. It's brilliant, and both Juliet and I are absolutely delighted with it.

A Very Happy Cappy.

Maybe Carl is moving onto sEnny's - mans finest achivement.

Good post Cappo, bet it feels great to have THE MINTER. However bet you will be very paranoid from now on when parking/leaving it! Anyway do a massive burnout for me in the RO.

Fantastic job guys!! Surely this must want you to do more like this? All the best to enjoy it Cappo

Looking

Wow, looks fantastic, now go polish your car!

Looks great, really nice, all the expense has paid off, it looks like a new car!

Gareth

It really does, Gareth, it's just like a new car!

Have just driven it for the first time in 18 months! Only a few miles, a round trip to it's new lodgings in a secure. dry garage half a mile away. Felt really good to be back in it.

Very very tasty indeed, you're rightly proud of it

Aw Cap, that looks just perfect. I'm delighted and horrified for you at the same time. I well remember your posts shortly after you got the Monaro about it's well being and I fear for your mental state

lol, how well you know me! I was a bag of nerves driving it!

Looks great Cappo, but I suspect those pics really won't do it justice! Moon grey is kinda difficult to capture on camera, it often looks dull and boring. Find a proper camera and make some decent pics

I'm surprised you don't apply the correct spacing to the number plate, for added peace of mind

Mah, looks OK

Is it the standard silver, just looks a little duller in the photos, also whats that mark on the passenger door!!


Muwahahahahahaha

Looks really nice!

Now check the oil!

Same plate, same spacing before as after and I haven't had a problem (yet!).

The spacing between the groups is greater than the spacing between the group characters, but slightly less than it should be.

(PS - the "before" pic came out much better than the after! I think that one was taken with a flash.)

Looks well pony.

Lucky lad.

Best coop alive!........easily!

Are you going to drive it or just keep it for car shows? I would do the later if i were you!!!!!

Carl at his best.

Thanks t0m0!

Plan so far is to keep it tucked away safe and dry, roll it out for nice sunny jaunts, and carry on doing that until one of us pops our clogs!

Would it be rude to ask how much it's cost you to get it like that?

Looks lovely Cappo

Well done to Carl and John

Looks absolutely perfect. Not a ding, or mark on it.

Take it from me. You won't want to leave it anywhere now.

Looks a fantastic job. Must be the best in the UK

Thanks all. Alan, if you're as pleased with yours as I am with mine, then we're both very happy!!

Cappo, lovely example, they've done a really nice job and you can certainly see the effort from the under the bonnet pic .

To really bring that new paintwork out in a photo try some morning sunshine pictures, dawn light makes this colour look great, you must be chuffed

Thanks CC, I'll see how the weather is at the weekend (not looking good) or if not then Carl's pics will probably do it a lot more justice.

@Spee - don't really want to get into that; let's just say it was a very significant amount more than any other price I've seen quoted on here. Carl's opinion, notwithstanding the fact that he did the work, was that it's about the best standard you can reach without delving into a ££ 5-figure full nuts & bolts stripdown.

Needless to say, it is now, and will remain, totally standard - no fiddling about with this one.

Fair enough! I'm just curious, I wince at having to pay for anything for my car yet always feel better when I've done it! Mines being resprayed over the winter and I'll be replacing a lot of parts that I think make the car look old, usual stuff, perished pipes, discoloured plastics (washer bottle etc).

Cheers, look after yours, like you need telling!

I missed what happened to your original coupe cappo.. I remember you getting your monaro but cant remember you coop.

Was it in an accident and rebuilt from there?

Always known carl had been working on something special for you but it looks just magnificent... I think I actually love the engine bay

@Mottles - the Coupe is/was a 2000/X Moonie Plus. Suffered a front end shunt about 18 months ago, but we (mostly Carl!) managed to rescue it from the chop and that was when the plan started to hatch.

There wasn't much wrong structurally, just the front X-member iirc. It wasn't written off in the end, so not recorded as such. Was lucky to save it from that fate, as Adder's Plus, which was almost identical in terms of age/value/damage etc, was lost to the hacker.

Ooh thats very nice

Am I the only fccuker who HASN'T had their coupe resprayed (NB: It is in dire need of a respray though)

Not the only one Nobby, after spending £2k in the last 2 months on my Coupe I dont think I'll be having one any time soon either.

Cappo, that's amazing

Flippin hell,

I was just looking through the pictures and was saying to myself, ya thats nice alright until I seen the underbonnet pic, my jaw is now hanging on the floor, unbeliveable!

Nice one Mark, looks great. I'd love to see the rebuild photos.

What's been done to the interior, Cappo?

I remember seeing this sitting in Carl's workshop for ages. He always said he was going to use it as an example to showcase his skills, and I think he's done that perfectly. Looks amazing!

Ben

(Did he mention whether he still has that Silver LE?)

I'm bumping this cos I'd like to know how the the interior's been replaced/ up-dated etc. I'm having mine done now and it's hopefully gonna look lush.

Trying to get the interior as good as the exterior is not easy - or cheap!

Hedge, the interior has all been out, and then replaced. Apparently there was about 3 days worth of cleaning went on from Carl & John, and a few things like replacement centre console, but it was really "just" down to hard work - no secrets really!

It's got some standard mats in at the mo but they need replacing with some new/old stock proper ones really, as & when some come up.

No mention of the Silver LE, Benje, but AFAIK every last Coupe associated with the business, i.e. all those apart from Carl's personal family ones, are gone now

You replaced the jizzbags? With new ones, presumably?

Wow. Impressive, good work.

Wow!!!!!!! Looks x 10

Makes my coupe look a right dog. I have been meaning to get the spray guns out and respray it for ages now. However I want to strip it down and recon the old girl. Time is always the issue though.

Not replaced, Hedge, they were removed and deep-cleaned.

Was going to try and get some pictures in the sun but it wasn;t good weather at the weekend. Maybe tomorrow.

I'm going to try and get to the meet on Sunday but can't be certain yet, but hopefully it'll be there for everyone to pick holes in!!

Decent pics = give.

Why didn't (don't) you get the seats re-leathered/ re-foamed etc by a specialist?

Newly padded seats with new leather over them.....CarlT/ jizzbag nirvana

Well, the seats are in fair nick and as things stand I'm not really going for the concours approach, just a very nice, very tidy Coupe which I can look after, without going completely OTT on the money spent on it.

I'll chuck my pics up of mine when they're done then (assuming the job done is a good one). Not prohibitively expensive - certainly when compared to the money spent (albeit courtesy of insurance) on yours.

Cheers, Hedge

Your not implying it was expensive are you???

Of course you will do yours cheaper. Yours isnt crashed is it

Do you think the insurer paid out to cover a retrim while were at it?

I think you seem to forget what was done if you possibly even think it was expensive.
Start with the damage, everything from turbo forward, replaced, new or powedercoated.
Heatshield, water pipes, rad, aircon rad, slam panel, x-memeber, bumper bars, PAS tank, bumper foams, bonnet, 2x lights, 2x fogs, grille, Plus Bumper, Bonnet, Struts, aircon pipes, bumper hangers, rad fans, neumerous fixtures and fittings.

Loading and offloading onto jig including a FULL measure.

Removal of ALL the trim bar dash, carpet and headlining.

Removal and refit of ALL glass, inc new seals where needed.

Full prep of entire car with no less than 50 NON ACCIDENT defects.

New door

Replacement skirt

All four wheels refurb properly, (not spray painted while fitted)

Engine bay painted out as far as possible with engine fitted.

Full car prepped and primered not one but twice EVERYWHERE, not just the marks, the entire panels.

Painted with proper paint, over £450 in paint alone.

All put back together, all back to standard.

MOT done etc etc

Running faults sorted.

Collected and delivered, 800+ miles?



Do you think either us or the insurer would cover a re-trim hedge?

I think you forget its cost Mark, the owner £0.

The insurer would have been quoted over £8k to repair just the front and repaint just the bonnet and bumper. All done in 2 weeks. Its had considerably more for half the cost. Saving the car from being hacked and making it one of if not the best around. That will look like that for years to come, not start flaking around windows when the frost hits it before long like most.



Yes its had money spent on it, looks alot when people get a repaint for £1800 (glass still in, half the car prepped, only the repairs primered and just straight colour paint at £12 a litre with no laquer to cut the cost????). Think people forget it was wacked on the front and it has to be repaired properly for the insurance

Oh & Mark, just uploading all the pics, ill pop them online tomorrow when i get back.

Nice one Carl, thanks, I think everyone will be looking forward to those!

Carl,

No idea why you think I'm implying it's cheap/ expensive or otherwise? All I said was that, next to the amount of money/ love/ care that's been thrown at it, why not get the interior re-done to a similar level? Nothing more.

Anyway...

Hedge

I'm jealous in every sense.

Car looks stunning and as we all know Carl's work is impeccable.

Only problem i would have with owning such a stunner is that i wouldn't want to get her dirty, and would never be able to go shopping leaving her in the car park again!

Yes to both of those Rus!

It actually showered on Sunday when I took it out and I was close to going home again!

As for parking it up - complete nightmare. Many people on here will know how paranoid I am over this on an ordinary day. I am trying to get to the meet on Sunday but due to other plans it will be a bit of a hassle to do - in any other car, I would leave it parked up where we're going beforehand but I daren't do so with this.

As someone who sprays, I can appreciate the level and skill it takes to get a finish like that, and the costs involved.
Did you use waterbase carl?
That is an amazing piece of work.

Saw this Coupe at Sundays meet. I was going to say it looked like new but I bet no Coupe ever left the Pininfarina production line looking that good. No wonder you parked it on its own across two spaces, I thought the electric fence and machine gun post was a tad OTT though

Mark, you were clearly still smitten with it, as was your other half. One to keep for some weekend blats

Thanks John!

I also missed meeting you Mark, but when everyone else wandered inside, I'd just arrived and had a nosy around the Coupe - definitely top top quality stuff, it's a beautiful car

Come on, where are the high quality pics?

I'm with AlanW on this give us some car porn...

Gimmie another couple of days working on it, ive taken over 450 pics of it, without realizing and they are taking a bit of sorting to say the least.

Needs to be seen in person though to appreciate. (parked next to a few others to really make it stand out helps )

You'll be lucky, I don't think Mark will park within 20ft of another car

I want a youtube video of Cappo doing an impromptu rap infront of the car, lyrics relating to its general tidyness.

What a nice repair, Carl and John should be proud of their hard work.

BUMP!

Pics pics pics pics

No more pics then?

Bugger now Mrs L will want her coupe to look that good, Dam you, you must be the happyist coupe owner on the planet it looks mint

What you on about? My coop does look that good if not better it's yours with the big cat scratches in the new paint on the roof you should be worried about

Nice car Cappo