'83 Cutlass Cruiser Build Thread

[Blake442]

Re:

Jim, yours is a '78 with the 3 vertical bars in the grille, '79 has 5...

I think I prefer the '78 the more I look at them...

I'll keep my eyes peeled at the yard, Jack!

 

[liquidh8]

Ahh, I had to look at some pics because I couldn't remeber, lol. I think I prefer the 78 also.

 

[Blake442]

Had a successful trip out to the yard on Saturday, a bit on the warm side though...
Grabbed an aluminum hood off a red '79 Cutlass 2-door. It's got a few hail dents as well, but it's a million times better than the one on the car now.
Then I picked out the cleanest and straightest bumper I could find, and it had an aluminum reinforcement too.
I had a few '78-'79 wagon header panels to choose from so I picked the one with the fewest vines growing thru it and was in some shade.
I had to grab some grills off another car that weren't broken, but the plating is peeling up in a few spots. I'm not sure if I'll just paint them or spend the big bucks and have them redone... Plastic plating isn't cheap...

I'll throw it all on the car this weekend and see how it looks...

 

[liquidh8]

Nice, glad you were able to score a few things. The g-bodies are getting few and far between at the u pull its around by me.

 

[Longroof79]

Glad to hear that you scored well at the boneyard. These parts are getting fewer and farther between. Was that the yard that you had once mentioned with all the G-body Oldsmobiles?

 

[Blake442]

Yep, same yard... Definitely worth the drive for the bounty of g-body Oldsmobiles... 🙂

 

[Blake442]

I marked out the hail dents in the roof...




I've got my work cut out for me... :shock:

I threw my new hood on the car on friday and took my old hood to the recycler.
The guy at the check in was convinced the outer skin was magnesium, but I didn't believe it... Either way I got $12 for it.

Saturday I pulled the nose off the car and swapped on the '78 header and bumper I got at the yard.





The bumper needs to move in at least an inch and a half, maybe more, and I've got some new fillers to replace the cracked up ones.
The fillers on the fenders need to be trimmed about a half inch. Evidently the '78 nose is a bit taller than the '83 nose. I'll deal with that later...
I'll keep driving it around like this for the next couple weeks and then I'll start pulling it apart for paint.

 

[liquidh8]

Blake, I like that front end better for sure. The more of them I see, the more I like them. Glad I have the same one. I don't have bumper/header panel fillers though.

 

[Blake442]

Spent a few hours Friday while the weather cooperated and pulled the interior out of the wagon.
All that's left is the dash, drivers seat and seat belt so I can drive it out to my buddy's shop.
Once it's there the rest will come out and the fun can begin...

 

[81cutlass]

8) I expect to see it painted by carcraft next summer.

Looking forward to see how it looks! Nose looks a lot better