Jack F K Posted June 22, 2020 Report Share Posted June 22, 2020 Hello all, I am the new owner of Swallow Doretti #1259, as of yesterday. I've been a longtime fan of these cars, and couldn't believe I'd found one by chance - I was actually looking for a TR2 at the time... The car will need a whole new interior, and potentially a new soft top (it's not clear), so I shall definitely be sounding you all out for tips and patterns, and I'll also of course be posting progress pictures as I go (and some pictures when the car arrives to me!). I'm currently in Auchterarder, Scotland. The car has a newly rebuilt engine, and to my understanding, the same is true for all mechanics. The interior trim has not been addressed (mostly missing), and the bodywork has been resprayed (at least based on the original photo below), though some areas eg. the boot panel look to need some fettling. Some initial questions: Given the moderate condition of the paintwork, and the total lack of an interior (bar degraded seats and a passable dash covering), the car would be a good candidate for a respray and an interior to match; would I be destroying the value of the car (and offending the community, which I'd love to avoid) if I changed the colour? The car comes with an unpainted hard top, and my imagination is already running wild on a deep blue body with contrasting blue-silver or cream hardtop, and blue/cream interior... Likewise, given the TR2 - based mechanics, and my experience with a TR3A, I think it would be fairly easy for me to switch the hubs out for wire wheels (though if I change the body, complementary painted steelies might be my first choice), but I wouldn't want to be seen as harming the car. Obviously a hub change is more reversible than a respray, though. Finally, I'd love to go for FRS - bore out the cylinders, improved cam (both fine, from what I can see of other Swallows out there) but also potentially a '3A rear axle and front discs. Similar concerns about keeping the history alive. The car on discovery (photo from the Doretti Register): The car as I bought it (at the very least, I'm adding those handsome running lights back!): https://angliacarauctions.co.uk/classic/sunday-21st-june/1954-swallow-doretti/ Looking forward to meeting you all, and very excited to share my progress on what will hopefully be a very rewarding restoration. Cheers, Jack Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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