New to G/A-Bodies

[StreetDogg316]

Hi, I just bought a 1978 Buick Regal, And I have a couple questions.. One: Where can I find replacement parts for the frame besides the junkyard? The rear frame is rusted out on the passenger side and I would prefer to buy a new replacement instead of cutting one out of a car at the junkyard, But I have found no help from searching on Yahoo and Google. Two: Is there any place that I could order replacement sheet metal parts? The body is in pretty rough shape, Mostly surface rust, But just under the drivers side rear window is a couple holes and also inside the top beside the window, The top is still on the car, But when I press on it I can hear a crunching sound that sounds like rust crumbling. Also around the top of the door hinges are rusted pretty bad, But the bottom ones are in almost perfect shape. The car has it's fair share of problems, None mechanical yet, But I would say I got a decent deal at $475 with only 105,000 original miles and almlost 70% of the stuff on the engine(305ci) is new with warranty tags still attached, It also has a new exhaust pipe and muffler, Fairly new shocks on the rear, And fairly new tires. Any input you guys have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[dan2286]

I cant help you with the body panels, but their is someone in Canada that has replacement rear frame rails but I cant remember the name.

 

[supercrackerbox]

Sweet, another '78 Regal! I'm gonna have to start keeping count.

Unfortunately it sounds like yours is going to take considerable work. The rust you're describing is in some of the worst places it can be, and will take major surgery to correct it. The rot in the bulkhead (where the hinges are) will be especially tough. To be terribly honest you might be better off looking for a rust free(er) one and combining the two. Don't feel bad, my first Regal (a '78 Sport Coupe) went the same way. Look farther inland, you might get lucky. Being that close to the shore, the sea salt will tear a car up.

But if you're up to the challenge, your best bet is to start hitting the junkyards, swap meets, Craigslist, and Ebay. You never know what will pop up. If dirt track racing is popular in your area, you can often find good complete frames from abandoned stock car projects. Or if you're not picky on it being factory correct, you might find someone who can replace the rear rails with some simple square tubing for next to nothing.

 

[StreetDogg316]

I don't really mind what the car looks like, As long as it functions right. I can get another top to go on it and cover up the pieces in the top of the car when I fix the holes in the top. My main worry is the door hinges. I will have to do most of the work myself as I don't have alot of money. I know this is probably a stupid question, But if I sand down the rust around the hinges, Spray some Rustoleum to stop it from rusting any further, And put some JB Weld around it, Would that help any? I would get another car, But I have nowhere to put it, Where I live you are only allowed one car per driver, And that's it, Any more than that and they get towed at your expence.

 

[supercrackerbox]

Any way you can post some pics?

 

[StreetDogg316]

 

[clean8485]

The person who sells the replacement rear frame rails is Conrad Lozier, and he is located in Woodstock Ontario. I'm sure you can find more info if you Google his name.

 

[supercrackerbox]

The sanding idea certainly can't hurt. That's actually not as bad as I had pictured in my mind.

 

[StreetDogg316]

Yeah, The pics do not do it justice. It actually is worse in person, The rust has eaten away all around the hinges, There is an indent sround them where the rust has eaten it away. I looked for that guy, His website is: http://www3.sympatico.ca/conradlozier/ He doesen't list any prices, But I will shoot him a E-Mail later asking how much they are, Shipping would probably be quite a bit coming from Canada. Most of the car is full of surface rust, But I can just sand it down, Prime it and be good to go. My grandfather has all the equipment to do welding, Sandblasting and even to paint my car, So tools aren't really a worry. I have another question, How are the Transmissions in these cars? I read on Wikipedia that these have the TH200's in them and are prone to going out when put behind a V8.

 

[StreetDogg316]

Conrad said that it would cost $275 for the rear frame rails, And it could take around 12 days to get to me in VA. He seems like a pretty nice guy, He sent me 3 E-Mails full of pics showing what they look like and what they look like installed on the car aswell.