I'm amazed! When I went over there yesterday, I attached jump leads to an old battery, turned the key once and the electrics "woke up", turned it a second time and there was the sound of a couple of chugs from under the bonnet (presumably getting the oil moving), turned it a third time and the engine purred into life! I disconnected the battery and left it to idle for a while. I could not believe how quiet the engine was - even with the bonnet open. I even took a video of it although the automatic volume control of the camera makes it sound quite loud as it was obviously struggling to hear it! Here's the YouTube link.
Later, I turned off the engine, waited a bit and then re-started it - which it did instantly - so the battery is pretty amazing, too! I drove it back and forth on the driveway and all was well including the brakes which worked just fine. I wish my own car [Volvo XC90] was that good!
With electricity, the central locking worked and I was able to open the boot and the rear doors. The boot lid hydraulic support needs attention as it did not support the weight of the lid at the mid-open position but might that just need the seal reinstating?.
I've added a couple of pics of the inside of the boot - including under the floor mat - and the rear seats through the open door which look pristine.
Also, a pic of the lit dashboard showing the mileage of 114,205. I had a conversation with a forum member who postulated that the car might have been "clocked" having looked at its MOT history on-line. I can categorically assure everyone that this is a true figure as the car was originally imported by a director of a company for which my wife managed their finance department and they offered it to her when they wanted to change it after 3 years. She had it for a few months but it was really too big for her needs so, in March 1998, she passed it on to her father.
So I think I am at the end of the road in terms of describing its current state and I would now like to find a new home for it.
I've just looked on eBay and seen that it is probably worth around £1,000 so may I invite those who are interested to PM me confirming their interest at this sort of level with a view to arranging to see the car for themselves over the next few days?
Thanks, Andrew