TheHaflinger.com

Hi all - I've just found the forum; glad to see it's here, I've already picked up useful information. Thanks to all who established it and posted info - your efforts are making my tasks easier and more enjoyable!

I''ve just purchased my first Haflinger - it's a 1973 LWB. Structurally it appears good, although I'm finding a lot of 'repairs' some of which are a bit rough. I need to go round all of the body panels, frame rails and underneath to see how well they've been done. That'll have to wait though, the priorities are - getting the engine running right, fixing the brakes, stopping the engine and transmission leaks, and sorting the wiring. Lots to do!

I'm enjoying working on the vehicle and finding my way about it, and overall I'm pleased with my purchase. I've already ordered my first set of parts from HaflingerTechnik and no doubt will be soon be on first name terms and Xmas card list with the team there.

Here's a photo as it appeared in ebay, I'll post more as the build-up progresses. Looking forward to sharing experiences.

Regards,

John

jhon wrote:I''ve just purchased my first Haflinger - it's a 1973 LWB. Structurally it appears good, although I'm finding a lot of 'repairs' some of which are a bit rough.

Regards,

John

John - welcome to the forum is a great resource - having also recently bought my "good" haffie I am also finding a few things that have meant the "good" haffie that I thought I have is not quite so good but we are getting there.

Cheers

Garry

Hi John, welcome to the Forum, I am the club secretary of the Haflinger and Pinzgauer Club UK, our members have a wealth of knowledge on Haflingers and Pinzgauers and are all ways happy to help fellow owners with advice etc if you are interested in joining our club please feel free to PM me and I will email you our membership details

Hi John, welcome to the forum. Your Haf looks very nice indeed!. You say it is 1973 - and the reg confirms it, but the style of side indicator, the tyre tread pattern and possibly the shallow rear footwell sort of suggest that not all of it dates to 1973? Or am I seeing things in the photo that aren't there?

Whereabouts in the UK are you based?

Hi there,

I have seen this Haflinger on eBay in April 2004, it appears that it has since undergone some kind of "restoration". To bring it back to original condition, it certainly requires some work.
I think that it is a 73 model, but the tyres are certainly not original for that year of make. The indicators might have been replaced as well. The rear footwells were possibly gone due to rust and have been replaced with smaller ones.

Kind regards,
Constantin

Thanks for the welccme everyone! To answer a couple of questions and to clarify..
I'm based just a few miles south of Inverness; plenty of wild country around here though not many places that you can drive without permission. I'll be rejoining our local 4WD trials club and using the Haf in these, nothing too testing until I learn a lot more about the vehicle.
What a surprise seeing photos of it in a previous life! (Thanks for posting these). It looks like it had a hard life, and yes, now it is quite far from original. The rear footwells have indeed gone and the bed area been plated over. Two metal storage boxes partly sunk through the bed have been welded in; one of these contains the battery. The sides of the bed have been fabricated and welded in place.
No sign of the full cab/rear enclosure when I bought it, it came with a thin canvas over the cab only. Having never owned one before and not having ready access to an unmolested original, it's difficult to determine what else has been modified - I suspect rear lights/indicators, rear mudguards, the electrics and possibly some of the engine covers/cowling. Fortunately I'm not too bothered about it being all original - I'll replace parts with genuine as and when needed, but am happy to accept the vehicle as modified, provided it performs it's functions and is reliable.
I have plans for evolving it over the coming months/years so in a way it's good that somebody's already altered it (it wouldn't feel right modifying a restored original).
I've been working on it almost every night since I got it; it now starts and runs on two cylinders, the main oil leak is fixed, the electrics are about 80% finished and the brakes work. I won't be using it until I've checked all oils and corrosion protected all the steelwork underneath.
I really hope that the transmission/drive-train is mechanically OK, reading some of the posts on here makes me worry; however if it's not I'll fix that too.

jhon wrote:I'm based just a few miles south of Inverness; plenty of wild country around here though not many places that you can drive without permission.

I'm planning to do the Speyside Way walk (Buckie to Aviemore) in early May - are you far from there? I love the area, and have been several times. Some superb whiskey too

My 1962 Haflinger lived at Kingussie for several years, having been in Grantown-on-Spey before that. But sadly I have never been able to track down who were the initial owners.

Once again, welcome to the forum, and to the wonderful world of Haflingers!

Thought I'd post a quick update and some photos of recent progress - doors are finished, hood replaced, vehicle painted, hub seals done, clutch release bearing replaced, electrics/brakes sorted, leaks (mostly) stopped and it's running pretty well. Still lots to do though - the motor is still a bit smoky on start-up and there's play in the steering arm bush; that's jobs for the winter though, I'm enjoying using it too much now to pull the engine out again.
I don't post much but am on here almost every day, still learning and taking inspiration from those of you that post regularly - thanks!

Well do you! That's s lot of work in a short space of time. I too, know the problem of getting a Haflinger that "looks good", till you discover all the faults!

Brakes do appear to be the main culprit for the unexpected extra work... Which seems really strange when you consider that other than the weird rear handbrake system, the rest is conventional!

Anyway, enjoy it for a time, but remember - winter is when you will have a lot of fun with it, but not if you are having to fix things all the time!

John