Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Moderator: Ian
Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
I've had my Bongo for just over 4 years now and as you'd expect with a 20 year old van she was starting to look a bit tired and tatty and had succumbed to the dreaded rear wheel arch rust which was getting pretty bad and creeping along the sills.
After seeing another thread by Andyb36 where he had his wheel arches replaced locally to me I got the guys details and a few months later contacted him to get an idea of price to get her repaired.
As well as the rusty wheel arches there were lots of paint chips and rust spots on the bonnet and around the windscreen, rust had set in around the water inlet 12v inlet, there were chips and cracks to both bumpers and the paint and decals were looking quite tired.
So I decided to get her completely overhauled, it meant not having her for 3 weeks but I knew it would be worth it.
So I dropped her off mid June and waited... it was a long 3 weeks and I was itching to know how things were progressing but I presumed no news was good news. Eventually I got a message from Phil to say she was ready, I was so excited on the way to collect her and I was so surprised when we pulled onto the forecourt and there she was all new and shiny, I actually thought she was a different van!
Phil didn't find any nasties, I was lucky the original decals hadn't been lacquered over but he did have a job getting the ones off the AFT which caused a bit of damage so he painted a strip down each side and a bonus was he cleaned and painted my very rusty wiper arms
A huge thumbs up and thank you to Phil who has done a grand job of restoring her, she certainly doesn't look 20 years old now!
I've still got lots of little things to do such as replace the broken radio aerial, maybe get some smarter wheels and I'm undecided as to whether to put decals back on, I quite like her 'naked'
After seeing another thread by Andyb36 where he had his wheel arches replaced locally to me I got the guys details and a few months later contacted him to get an idea of price to get her repaired.
As well as the rusty wheel arches there were lots of paint chips and rust spots on the bonnet and around the windscreen, rust had set in around the water inlet 12v inlet, there were chips and cracks to both bumpers and the paint and decals were looking quite tired.
So I decided to get her completely overhauled, it meant not having her for 3 weeks but I knew it would be worth it.
So I dropped her off mid June and waited... it was a long 3 weeks and I was itching to know how things were progressing but I presumed no news was good news. Eventually I got a message from Phil to say she was ready, I was so excited on the way to collect her and I was so surprised when we pulled onto the forecourt and there she was all new and shiny, I actually thought she was a different van!
Phil didn't find any nasties, I was lucky the original decals hadn't been lacquered over but he did have a job getting the ones off the AFT which caused a bit of damage so he painted a strip down each side and a bonus was he cleaned and painted my very rusty wiper arms
A huge thumbs up and thank you to Phil who has done a grand job of restoring her, she certainly doesn't look 20 years old now!
I've still got lots of little things to do such as replace the broken radio aerial, maybe get some smarter wheels and I'm undecided as to whether to put decals back on, I quite like her 'naked'
Celeste
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- Bongolier
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- Location: Gloucester
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Corrrrr! Now she's looking GOOD.........
- mikeonb4c
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Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Boy she looks lovely, and worth every penny. I may do mine likewise at some point.
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Wow, looks great
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Very nice indeed.
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Like you say,looks like a new van.
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Hi - looks great.
Do you mind if I ask how much it cost? Ours could do with a re-fresh too.
Please PM me if you don't want to post it up.
Cheers
Do you mind if I ask how much it cost? Ours could do with a re-fresh too.
Please PM me if you don't want to post it up.
Cheers
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
I paid £1500
I went to see Phil and said the main thing was to replace the rotten wheel arches and the rust/damage to the nearside rear where I had clipped the corner of our side extension one day, thinking it was a wheelie bin!
We walked around her and looked at all the other age related rust and patchy paint and decided to do everything as he was going to have her for a good couple of weeks. So in the end it was strip all the decals off, both rear wheel arches cut out and new ones welded in (the rust had started creeping along the sills too), repair all the scrapes, scratches, rust along the bottom of the tailgate, paint chips on the bonnet and around the windscreen which had also started to rust, plastic weld crack to front bumper, the respray exactly the same colour as before.
He has taken photos of the work as he went along, I need to get them from him so I can share them on here.
The bonus bits for me were he also treated my rusty front and rear wiper arms and resprayed them, he also painted a strip down the sides of the AFT. Also when I open the doors I can see where he's feathered the new paint into the old and its such a clean job.
He did a grand job on her and I'm still smiling at how gorgeous she looks now!
If anyone wants his details here they are, just tell him I recommended him please
Phil Reed
07850 396109
He's based in Gunthorpe, Nottinghamshire
I went to see Phil and said the main thing was to replace the rotten wheel arches and the rust/damage to the nearside rear where I had clipped the corner of our side extension one day, thinking it was a wheelie bin!
We walked around her and looked at all the other age related rust and patchy paint and decided to do everything as he was going to have her for a good couple of weeks. So in the end it was strip all the decals off, both rear wheel arches cut out and new ones welded in (the rust had started creeping along the sills too), repair all the scrapes, scratches, rust along the bottom of the tailgate, paint chips on the bonnet and around the windscreen which had also started to rust, plastic weld crack to front bumper, the respray exactly the same colour as before.
He has taken photos of the work as he went along, I need to get them from him so I can share them on here.
The bonus bits for me were he also treated my rusty front and rear wiper arms and resprayed them, he also painted a strip down the sides of the AFT. Also when I open the doors I can see where he's feathered the new paint into the old and its such a clean job.
He did a grand job on her and I'm still smiling at how gorgeous she looks now!
If anyone wants his details here they are, just tell him I recommended him please
Phil Reed
07850 396109
He's based in Gunthorpe, Nottinghamshire
Celeste
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- Bongolier
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Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Hi celeste, nice job! I know the area well,which part of NFFC are you from? Pm me if you want?
Peter
Peter
- Djembe Maz
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- Location: Macclesfield, Cheshire
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Just had the wheel arches and rust done on my bongo so I feel your happiness!
It's a grand feeling xxx
It's a grand feeling xxx
Djembe Maz
Re: Betty Bongo has a shiny new coat
Ooh, that looks gorgeous, very nice! My PhoebeFreda's arches are rapidly heading that way too, I definitely need to get them sorted next year. Are you going to replace the decals? I'm planning to get replacements of the original ones put back on PhoebeFreda, and restore her to full retro glory.