Finally starting on the Olds this week

[rebelgtp]

Well this week I will FINALLY be starting on the Olds and getting the project under way. I have final exams until Wed morning and I will start on the car that afternoon.

Up first is going to be pulling all of the weeds that had grown up into the car from it sitting for oh 15 years or so. I'll post some before and after shots of that little bit. Also the girlfriend and I are going to start stripping out the interior. Its currently the tan/brown interior with a split bench and all of that will be coming out and it will be replaced. Is there any demand for this stuff or should I just junk it? Its surprisingly clean for being 29 years old and sitting for so long.

Door panels will be replaced with just simple sheet metal possibly wrapped in black vinyl. Black (or gray) carpet put in, black dash (again would a Camaro/Trans Am unit work?), center console and seats. I know that Camaro/Trans am buckets can be made to fit but what about the rear seat? Would that fit in as well? The reason I ask is I figure it might be easier to find a black Camaro/Trans Am rear seat than a G body at least out where I live (though I might get lucky). Head liner will be stirpped and you guessed it be replaced with black (or gray).

Also I'm still thinking about either doing the Trans Am Shaker or a cowl induction hood so that would mean finding a steel hood. I just can't bring myself to cut up that aluminum hood. GNX style flares will be added as well as fender vents though I might use units from a Trans Am. Some sort of stock spoiler from a G body. The car is going to get repainted after everything is stripped so no multi color from outside to engine bay etc. Again the plan for the outside is black at the moment though I am leaning to a graphite gray or a dark red as well.

I have a Muncie 4spd lined up that will be going in as the plan so far is a nicely tuned (350-400 hp) small block. However I'm still considering a 455 or the like which would more than likely force me to go auto. However I want to autocross the car when done so the small block will more than likely be my motivation. My uncle thinks he has a lead on a Ford 9 inch rear that will fit that is already setup for rear disk brakes. As far as suspension goes the car came with a full set of racing springs sitting in the trunk.

As far as reinforcing the frame and all I understand that there are quite a few factory reinforcements that can be obtained or replicas there of. I want to stiffen it out as much as possible so any suggestions here (or over all) would be greatly appreciated. I'm considering even putting a roll bar in to help stiffen things even more. Just how stiff can I make this thing? This is mostly going to be a "fun car" not really going to be my take it on long road trips car :lol: .

This is of course just the over view of things there is more that will go in over time and small details I just left out. This week I'm hoping to have the weeds pulled and the interior stripped (except dash and steering so I can still push it around). Excited to finally be diving into a project car again.

 

[outsider_27]

Would like to see pics! I think you may find it easier to recover your back seat than find another one that you may have to decover anyway. Any other interior parts that are good you should be able to sell. Colorwise, go with the dark red or dark gray, black is nice, but IMO overdone. Take it one step at a time and have fun with it. Sounds like it will be a nice project.

 

[maliburacinfreak]

i agree, have your rear seat recovered. the camaro doesnt have a full rear seat, the bottom are 2 seperate peices with the hump in between. ive seen camaro buckets and consoles in g-bodys many times so that shouldnt be a problem, the dash will probably be a big project to make work though.

 

[rebelgtp]

Is there a company that makes good recovers for the back seats of these cars or would I need to use like a generic fit or have custom recovers done?

I agree that black is way over done, and I'm sure with the new Fast and Furious movie it will become even more common on G bodies. All of my American muscle has always been black, so that is part of the motivation there. But I do like the graphite gray and the girl friend is pushing for the dark red.

I'm going to setup a build site for the car here this summer so I will make sure to keep things updated there. Another big thing is just scrounging up my parts.

here is what I'm starting with

The interior is fairly clean though some of the plastics like the backing on the steering wheel has deteriorated

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[custom442]

I changed out my back seat and wish now I had recovered my old one. Got a corbeau bench but it sits too high and only people under 5'7 can fit comfortably. I looked into the camaro rear seats and found it isn't worth it. You'll have to bolt them in somehow and they don't bolt up similarly to the G body.

I love the idea of a 4 speed with 400 hp. That's gunna be killer to drive. Yes, these frames can be stiffened up. info is in the chassis/drivetrain/suspension/wheels section, check out the "f41" sticky.

I'll be upgrading my suspension to handle some major twisties next year this time (one thing at a time).

It's been proven these cars can handle 1.00 g's on a skidpad, im sure they can be made better. The question is how far you want to go and if you build it correctly. I like the two inch cowl hood best on these cars, just my opinion.

 

[rebelgtp]

Oh yeah I would not go above the 2 inch cowl hood, I just don't like the way the taller ones look.

The main goal is going to be making the thing handle and able to put the power down, something people would not expect from this car when looking at it.

Nice thing is my Uncle built several of these up as race cars so he is going to be helping me out quite a bit as well. His brother (that raced the cars) still has a large supply of parts laying around that I might be able to scrounge from.

I am considering selling off the aluminum hood if it was worth it. Any ideas on how much I could get for it?

Good to know about the back seat issues guess I will look into just doing a reskin though I doubt I will really have to many people riding in the back seat of this thing :lol: . Though the girl friend and I might want it for when we go to the drive in (yes my town still has a drive in).

 

[custom442]

Ya I have a problem with my hood, I need a 4 inch cowl but I hate the way they look, huge and out of place. oh well, so much for havin a sleeper

The aluminum hood should sell for a good amount, my guess is try 200$ and go lower if no one buys it. I wouldn't sell it for less than 150$, they're so rare.

That's cool your girlfriend helps you out, mine wont work on sh*t lol, she likes to paint her nails and talk on the phone all day or some b.s.

 

[outsider_27]

You could always do a 2-tone with the dark gray and dark red. I'm just partial to it since you don't see this often. (Check my sig pic.)

 

[rebelgtp]

Yeah I'm lucky I seem to have a nack for finding girls that are into cars. Heck one of my ex's knew more about cars than most guys I know lol.

The two tone might look good especially with the dark red and graphite gray. Though I plan on painting the car myself so I'd like to keep it simple its been a long time since I last spayed down paint on body work.

 

[outsider_27]

And instead of replacing all the plastic parts, you should be able to dye the good ones and save them. Would probably save a little cash that way.