Back from the brink - my 75 resurrected by Terry Shaw
 

This time last week, my beloved Cowley-built 75, looked as though it might have reached the end of its road and I was wracked with worry. As well as being my daily transport since April 2009, it has become my hobby - with my enjoyment of this club, participation in the Cowley Convoy/Pride of Longbridge and the friendships I have made.

The sorry saga began just over 2 weeks ago, when switching on the sidelights, the dashboard display illumination momentarily went off, then came on again. I was concerned, of course but just thought it was a quirky glitch.

Fast forward to two Fridays ago - a dark morning in more senses than one - again, the dashboard didn't illuminate.
I rang my trusted 'guru', Terry Shaw of TS Autos, as I then discovered that only two indicators were working.

At that stage, Terry suspected a malfunctioning Light Switch Module (LSM) and like an air traffic controller guiding a passenger to land a plane, he talked me through how to extract it, undo it from the wiring loom and then spray it with contact cleaner. Unfortunately, this wasn't the cure.

By Saturday, the brake lights had also failed, as well as the number plate lights so I arranged for the AA to call early on Sunday. The AA mechanic, was polite and helpful in the pouring rain and thought the problem might be a faulty earth. By mid-afternoon, an equally courteous AA man arrived to take the car on his flat-bed lorry all the way from Guildford to Terry in South Shropshire, where it arrived early Monday morning.

Terry made it clear that this was no easy problem to solve and prepared me for the worst news as a highly likely outcome. Terry worked tirelessly for the next few days, having to partially dismantle the car��.

But he weaved his magic and was able with Sherlock Holmes-style sleuth to diagnose and treat the issue that had caused the major breakdown. It was a problem with the brown and orange live feed from the under-bonnet fuse box to the LSM, having a poor connection at the fusebox end.

The car had many leaks, centred in and near the boot, including a ventilator at bumper level and some of the side chrome strips where the foam backing has passed its design life and effectively turned to powder, enabling water to get in. On top of this, the recently installed after-market number plate unit had failed and water got into the boot latch. All told, the spare wheel well had become a well in reality too. All these issues have now been addressed by Terry, but in a 21-year-old car are a wake-up call for me - and may help others here too ��.

So, yesterday, I had an epic train trip from Guildford to Terry's - my first time on public transport since February 2020(!), which actually took me on a beautiful excursion via Wales.

Terry finalised his repairs with the original Rimmers-supplied number plate light unit and I had an uneventful
safe drive home.

The lesson for me is that never assume it is the end of the road until an expert such as Terry (who actually assembled/rectified the cars at Longbridge) has worked his magic. I am so indebted to him, as otherwise, I would have been without transport for the near future.

And warm thanks to Trikey too, for messaging me with offers to help with any parts, even in the middle of his traumatic week or two!

All the best to everyone,

Nicholas/Zircon

Really pleased for you - i know the sense of relief.;)

I’m glad to read that Zircon lives to drive another day, I know how much the car means to you Nicholas. Well done Terry, I really hope to meet and chat with him one day about his time on the line at Longbridge.

Really kind of you, Paul! You are absolutely right - and unlike you, I don't have the odd 75/ZT/ZTT up my sleeve. I know you would greatly enjoy meeting Terry who wears his knowledge lightly and is also a very kind gentleman who is not a averse to pulling my leg😊.

Hats off to the AA too on this occasion, the guys were all knowledgeable and helpful and Dougie who took the car for an overnight sleepover off the M5 was very knowledgeable about the demise of Longbridge.

My reasoning behind writing such a detailed post was to encourage others to believe it's still possible to keep our cars going as everyday transport when you have a access to expert support.

All the very best,

Nicholas/Zircon

Really kind of you, Martin😊

Terry certainly knows these cars insde out. Great to hear that you are back on the road.

I live in Shropshire and have been wondering where the nearest expert might be for servicing etc as I look to take the plunge into ownership...I think I have just found the answer!

Thank you so much, Mike - I think you and I are both 'paid-up' members of Terry's fan club😊. He was saying very nice things about you too yesterday!

A warm welcome to the club, Charlie - lots of luck searching out a car!

Only about 32 miles for you 😊.

All the best,

Nicholas/Zircon

Good to hear the car is back on the road, Terry is an absolute legend! I’ve not had the privilege to speak to either of you for a while but looking forward to it at the next opportunity