Technical Tips > Pre 84

82 body conversions on a 74 frame

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rebel:
Brutus and all,

Here's the pics I promised on the conversion of the car. I wanted to organise them in a proper pesentation but time is a bit of a factor at the moment. This is version 1 of the car and was pretty much focused on the body mods, the engine was basically a stock small block except the fulie heads.

If interested in techincal details and "how to's", I'd be happy to interview the body builder who put it together and get proper report.

1) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore2.jpg
The original rear end as the General intended.
2) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore1.jpg
The '82 nose piece. You'll notice subtle mods like the front section between the lights to adapt to the '82 bumper, and not so subtle like the prep of the guard.

3) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore6.jpg
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore16.jpg
The surgery!!

4) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore5.jpg
The '82 rear, prep'd and ready to fit.

5) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore7.jpg
The rear fitted to the vehicle.

6) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore3.jpg
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore4.jpg  
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore8.jpg  
To me this very scary!! In there somewhere is the original 350 and notice the original fan and shroud. Also, notice the original support arm for the alternator. Because the heads were fulie and there was no where to bolt the bracket, it really looked out of place and had to go. The motor currently has a modified bracket which holds the alternator much closer to the engine.

7) http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore13.jpg
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore14.jpg
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore15.jpg
http://www.ement.com/Photo/Restore19.jpg
These are shots of the final product painted Corsa Red with original Oyster interior. It took some effort to get the paint finish looking like that again as it was covered in swirl marks and light scratches. Luckily the paint was very thick and I was able to remove these with a number of treatments that included a clay rub and various layers of polish. Notice the wheels and the impact they make when they are new. These currently let the car down a little as they are worn in places and in need of re chrome but finding someone to do spoke wheels is extremely difficult. For comparison, here's the latest shots from last year's AutoSalon. (http://www.ement.com/Rebel_Projects/AutoSalon02-Page3.htm)

On purchase, after restoring the paint, I focussed inside the motor. This included the cam, push rods, springs and valve work. On the outside, some chrome, electric fans, Koni shocks and many hours (and band aids) in braided hoses to name a few.

Version 3, interior overhaul, aluminium in place of chrome in the motor, and I've currently got the car off road ceramic coating the extractors.

Apologies for the long post.

Cheers ...

77CVT:
WOW!!  ;35;27;35;27

77CVT:
Can I ask a dumb question though?.......how come you just didn't buy an '82?  :ado

rebel:
LOL, not a dumb question, I get it alot ..... I didn't convert it but I'm glad someone else did 15 years ago. Could you imagine the cost of doing something like this if you didn't have your own autoshop ??

I sarted out looking for a pre '75 as I wanted a `raw' engine with no computer management. However, I really loved the 82 body. I looked around at many vettes including a 78 and a few more from the NSW club. When I saw this car in a private sale just sitting in someone's garage, I could immediately hear the thing screamin' "Take me home and save me from the wrath of this man's garage!!" After some negotiating the price was a steal and home she came.

It was perfect, the pre 75 I wanted in an 82 body, was it fate or not?!?

But fate doesn't end there .... whilst at the Sydney MotorEx that July, I met a guy who claimed this used to be his car. After some gruelling questions i was convinced he knew intimate enough details about the car to be telling the truth. It was Mick Schumak from Maroubra Auto Refinishes and turned out to be a very nice bloke and who filled me into the rest of the history. He introduced me to the guy who restored the interior 15 yrs ago and as I was already reseaching interior experts, I was blown away by the quality of hois work. So Clifford Powell was given the job and the family was re united ....

Ain't fate a wonderful thing ... ?

Brutus:
Nice documentation of the conversion there Rebel. I sure as hell ain't nowhere near up to that stage of my fibreglassing career.
I am interested in your aluminium bits and pieces for the engine too.

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