My first GBody was a 78 Turbo Coupe I ordered from the factory. I moved from Oregon to Washington D.C in 1978. In 1981 it was T-Boned by a drunk and I used the settlement to but a brand new Triumph TR8. I already had a Mini Cooper and TR6 , It all started with a couple of 3 day weekends in the Summer.
The first restoration was a 74 TR-6, bought in 1978 and sold in 1987. That money helped get the down payment for some land to put a manufactured home on in Oregon where we lived then. I already owned the ‘67 Austin Mini Cooper S, in storage in Oregon..
In 1981 I bought a '62 Mini Pickup for everyday driving, The TR8 was new and I wanted to keep the mileage low. I drove the Mini daily until I was transferred to Japan; sold it to a guy in Hawaii. That money was used to finish the ’67 Mini Cooper S restoration. Almost all my restorations led to another project.
In 1989, now out of the Navy, I bought a ‘46 Chevy Pickup, restored it and sold it in 1994. Half of that money was used to buy a ‘70 Olds Vista Cruiser wagon which I later traded for a 67 442. I drove it for years upgrading one part at a time, until a teen reaching to get his cassette tape plowed into me while turning into my driveway. The angle caused the frame to be bent, and insurance totaled it. The settlement was used to buy a rust bucket ‘67 442 convertible from South Carolina. After the part swapping, about two months later I was driving the convertible with about 90% parts from the bent frame one; interior, seats, front fenders, hood, doors and windows, carpet, driveline, mufflers and pipes, chrome, buckets and console, hood, engine and transmission, wheels, tires, both bumpers and windshield. The convertible came with a posi-traction rearend, I watched them tow away the skeleton and in hindsight, I should have probably quit then. It was about 80% finished, only needing paint and a new top, $11000 I didn’t have. That probably was the easiest restoration because I already had new parts or restored ones, with recent experience putting them together. I lost my garage forcing the sale, or watching all the work I did be negated by damp and wetness.
About 6 months later, I stumbled on a complete 63 Cutlass and had it trucked from Wisconsin to Oregon. That one was my first incomplete restoration failure. After I did the bodywork and paint, it needed interior and engine work. I rebuilt the engine but it needed a windshield, rarer than I would have thought and it never got one. I started it and it ran well, but I could not get the weird transmission to work and in 2008, 2010 and 2013, I changed jobs with 3 major moves. I towed it 350 miles from Oregon to Washington on a dolly, and paid a flatbed to move it the other two shorter moves. It sat where the El Camino is now for over a year with no more work done. I started it and tried to find a trans shop but it was during the time that everyone simply replaced rather than repaired, so no shop would take it on. A transmission is far too complex for this shade tree mechanic, and no more modern transmissions would bolt up. 3 .
I traded it for a working Chevy Tracker. I drove it daily for 3 years and when the "Marketplace" had section listed “trades”, I traded it for the El Camino. I drove the El Camino for a couple years before taking it ALL apart. The rest, 2018 to now is a period I would like back!
I also restored a bone stock V6 ’83 Mustang for my older son along the way
.
The first restoration was a 74 TR-6, bought in 1978 and sold in 1987. That money helped get the down payment for some land to put a manufactured home on in Oregon where we lived then. I already owned the ‘67 Austin Mini Cooper S, in storage in Oregon..
In 1981 I bought a '62 Mini Pickup for everyday driving, The TR8 was new and I wanted to keep the mileage low. I drove the Mini daily until I was transferred to Japan; sold it to a guy in Hawaii. That money was used to finish the ’67 Mini Cooper S restoration. Almost all my restorations led to another project.
In 1989, now out of the Navy, I bought a ‘46 Chevy Pickup, restored it and sold it in 1994. Half of that money was used to buy a ‘70 Olds Vista Cruiser wagon which I later traded for a 67 442. I drove it for years upgrading one part at a time, until a teen reaching to get his cassette tape plowed into me while turning into my driveway. The angle caused the frame to be bent, and insurance totaled it. The settlement was used to buy a rust bucket ‘67 442 convertible from South Carolina. After the part swapping, about two months later I was driving the convertible with about 90% parts from the bent frame one; interior, seats, front fenders, hood, doors and windows, carpet, driveline, mufflers and pipes, chrome, buckets and console, hood, engine and transmission, wheels, tires, both bumpers and windshield. The convertible came with a posi-traction rearend, I watched them tow away the skeleton and in hindsight, I should have probably quit then. It was about 80% finished, only needing paint and a new top, $11000 I didn’t have. That probably was the easiest restoration because I already had new parts or restored ones, with recent experience putting them together. I lost my garage forcing the sale, or watching all the work I did be negated by damp and wetness.
About 6 months later, I stumbled on a complete 63 Cutlass and had it trucked from Wisconsin to Oregon. That one was my first incomplete restoration failure. After I did the bodywork and paint, it needed interior and engine work. I rebuilt the engine but it needed a windshield, rarer than I would have thought and it never got one. I started it and it ran well, but I could not get the weird transmission to work and in 2008, 2010 and 2013, I changed jobs with 3 major moves. I towed it 350 miles from Oregon to Washington on a dolly, and paid a flatbed to move it the other two shorter moves. It sat where the El Camino is now for over a year with no more work done. I started it and tried to find a trans shop but it was during the time that everyone simply replaced rather than repaired, so no shop would take it on. A transmission is far too complex for this shade tree mechanic, and no more modern transmissions would bolt up. 3 .
I traded it for a working Chevy Tracker. I drove it daily for 3 years and when the "Marketplace" had section listed “trades”, I traded it for the El Camino. I drove the El Camino for a couple years before taking it ALL apart. The rest, 2018 to now is a period I would like back!
I also restored a bone stock V6 ’83 Mustang for my older son along the way
.
Attachments
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1974 TR6.jpg -
1981 NEW TR8.jpg -
1962 Mini Pickup A.jpg -
1962 Mini Pickup B.jpg -
1967 Austin Cooper S A.jpg -
1967 Austin Cooper S B.jpg -
1967 Austin Cooper S C.jpg -
1946 Chevy A.jpg -
1946 Chevy B.jpg -
1946 Chevy C.jpg -
1969 Vista Cruiser (2).jpg -
1967 442 A.jpg -
1963 Cutlass A.jpg -
1963 Cutlass B.jpg -
1983 Mustang A.jpg -
1983 Mustang B.jpg
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