My first C5

[kamilb1998]

I've always wanted one, and finally one's come up fairly cheap so I bagged it!  Its a 1985 Sinclair C5, been stood in a barn since 1988, and will need some work to bring it up to tip-top condition. The purchase of this, does, however mean that the quad's engine won't be getting rebuilt till about December-ish. But with it being fairly cheap I just had to buy it. I've already paid a deposit, and will be picking it up at the end of October. Can't wait!!

[vanpeebles]

Fairy Power Spray will be your best friend I think 

[Karl]

Looks like a nice project , should scrub up well 

[kamilb1998]

Looks like a nice project , should scrub up well 

I hope it does!

Just looking at the pics now, especially the first one. It looks as if the body is slightly bent as if something had been stored on top of it? Anyone else see it or is it just me?

[Jonny]

i think it looks that way too, that can often happen if you lean on it/ put something heavy on it. i remember karl once told me "just prop it up in to the right position with a peice of wood and leave it outside on a hot day"

good luck with the restoration! i use the cif foam spray and a large scrubbring brush to clean my c5, works a treat! 

[PLOD11]

Use a heat gun, but be careful when you are doing it they are very HOT 

[Retro Andy]

Barn finds are the best, they look worst then they are sometimes as just really dirty, looks nice and original and will come up nice, I have seen some tips to re-align the the front by putting some supports up under it on both sides for about a month.

Retro Andy.

[kamilb1998]

Should be picking this up on the 15th.

Now I need a bit of advice from you all, what parts will I need to bring it back on the road? I could only think of tyres, tubes, battery & a re-grease. Any others?

[PLOD11]

A good investment is the wiring kit to connect the battery, it will give reverse polarity protection as well.

[kamilb1998]

A good investment is the wiring kit to connect the battery, it will give reverse polarity protection as well.

I think I'll buy the leisure battery conversion kit, I like to keep things original. So I can then keep the Sinclair battery top & key setup.

[Karl]

Keeping it original is no bad thing, but if you intend on using a c5 for the meetings or events then converting to a c5alive wiring kit could make more sense. The original keyswitch assembly is now 26years old and not getting any younger. They're known to get temperamental in use causing power cut-outs and the battery top needed to accommodate the keyswitch also restricts your choice of battery.

A c5alive power wiring kit is a simple "plug and play" conversion, meaning no permanent alterations. Most of the c5's at the meetings we hold are running on c5alive wiring kits mainly due to the ease of fitment, improved battery choice and added reliability.

[thedesigntailor]

The reverse polarity protection is a must. I've already tried to connect mine the wrong way once. I've only had mine a few weeks and it's already saved it!

[thedesigntailor]

Also on the leisure battery side - are you planning very long trips?

I understand that the leisure batteries are a lot heavier than the normal car ones and though I expect you are a bit lighter then some of us this put's me right off. I finding the cheapy battery I bought of Amazon hard to run out. I did about 8 miles yesterday using a lot of motor and still only used one bar from the indicator!

[Lancealot]

I would check what voltage / current / battery % usage the battery has used as the POD may require re-calibrating...

Lance

[kamilb1998]

I'm not really planning on long trips. I got a bit confused (doesn't take much) and thought that you need a leisure battery conversion kit to connect a standard car battery to it. I am looking at buying a size 048 battery, I think I saw something on here saying that a Sinclair battery top will fit over a 048 size battery?

As to the C5 Alive wiring kit, I like the sound of it but i really would like to keep it original. Also I'm fairly skint at the moment having a quad engine to rebuild and a Jaguar restoration to finish in time for next summer (although this isn't all going out of my pocket money) and don't think I could afford a C5 Alive wiring kit at the moment.