My 1st 2nd gen Camaro
 

I'll first start off with my name is John and this is my first post here! I've owned several 3rd and 4th gen Camaro's and TBH my plan was to sell my 06 GTO for another 4th gen (I loved my 2000 Camaro SSmore than any car I've owned) or get a 3rd gen and do a LSX swap. A friend of mine always browses CL for parts and cars, first week of March he found what was titled as a 70 Camaro for cheap. I'll be honest I've never though of owning a car 2nd gen Camaro or Firebird, but I decided to look at it. It was a roller, black primer paint, a dash, no steering wheel, seats there but not bolted in. But the body looked pretty straight, I decided to purchase it and he's going to help me with everything with the car.
The rear end locked up as the tow truck driver was loading it up, I planned on either going the 12 bolt or 9" route anyway lol It did make it very difficult to get into my garage though, the wheel dollies did not like being pushed up a driveway. But we finally got it in!
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psx0afbp3n.jpg
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Remember what I said about the AD being titled a 70 Camaro for sale? Well it's not a 70 . . . it's a 73, but the bodies didn't change and it's still smog exempt so I am keeping it lol
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psl9nil1hl.jpg
My plan is to take it all the way down and bring it all the way up to what I want the car to be used for: weekend cruising, autoX, maybe some road course and I'll take it to car shows. I won't expect to beat many people if I race it, but I do expect it to look really good while trying to compete lol

This project will take I'm guessing at least 5 years as my wife and I have a 3 month old daughter and I'll only spend a few hours a week on it :) :) but I'm a patient person so it is ok with my wife and I.

Started with some sanding
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Welcome to LatG, John! Nice find. Plenty of fast 2nd gens here. This place is a plethora of know how, when it comes to building fast cars. Hang out, do some research, and make yourself a plan. Patience is a virtue, so buckle your seatbelt if your looking at a 5 year build. This type of technology changes for the better quite often, so be prepared for that to throw a wrench in the bucket. It's very common in this game to buy certain items, only to have them up for sale in a year or so due to something better coming along. My build took me over 4 years, so I can relate.
So...what's the drivetrain plans? Do you have a color in mind?

Thank you sir and I expect to change my mind on things as I go along, hopefully not too many times!
Drivetrain most likely will be a 396 LS2 with a T-56, rear end is up in the air, but will definitely not be a 10 bolt . . . I never want to worry about a weak link in my drivetrain. As far as color, I'm not certain yet :( I loved my 2000 SS with it being red with matte black stripes because I never saw another on like I the 7 years I had it. I've decided red with black stripes will not happen on this one, due to seeing so many with that combo, I want a unique one ya know? I was thinking maybe a pearlescent white with matte black accents or a green with matte black accents. Paint is a long ways down the road lol

Welcome to lateral-g :welcome3:

Looks like a solid car to start. As Che70velle said, develope a plan for the car, whether it's drivetrain/suspensions, or brakes, and stick to it. Nothing adds costs/time faster than changing plans half way thru your build.

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Welcome ! Your definitely in the right place to get a jump start on your project.

:cheers:



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Lot of good advise on this site and lot of knowledge. I am building a 70 also and have had lots of help from many good members. I also had a 05 gto then had to sale it to get a family car. Paid off my family mobile and said want to do something different and went old school. LOL Look forward to the build!

Thank your sir and I'll be finalizing plans in the next year so it can be done 1 time and not multiple times.
Thank you sir! My buddy sent me links to this sight, to show me different builds and give me some of an idea.
Nice! I'll have to check on yours also!

Welcome, your in the right place to have some fun with your car.

Cheers, and welcome from a 2nd genner in the east bay...

Im hoping so!!
Thank you sir! Any chance you will have your car at GoodGuys this weekend?

usually, in the auto-x section. But the car is still down, harness is almost done and brakes lines to go, Fire then tune then auto-x/track/drive.....so, not sure.

Gotcha!

Some cleaning out of the interior
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psu4hdjsxg.jpg
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My trash pile, not in the pic is the locked up 10 bolt
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...pssdlycjyk.jpg

Isn't it fun throwing stuff away? I can't seem to stop creating new piles from my Falcon. Every year, a new pile. Keep at it--you can beat five years.

Yup and I love it when little things like this make a huge difference! I honestly hope it doesn't take 5 years.

Some sanding tonight before I go to sleep :)
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psuzwb64p4.jpg
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I thought my trans tunnel had been beat to death by a previous owner but it looks just like yours, very weird.

What are you using to strip the car?

Finally got ride of the junk from the car: the rear end, the seats, the wheels and the fuel tank! So nice to have more space around and under the car, still need to remove the front subframe for clean up and decide if I'll keep it or not.
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psbqvnsi3w.jpg
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A paint stripper my brother in law brought lol I'm using 60 grit sand pads to finish off the paint removal.

nice
 

Welcome. Looks like a really nice starting point. subscribed !!!

Welcome to the site! Looks like a nice project you have on your hands. The front subframe can be made to work very well depending on your needs and budget. If not, there are plenty of aftermarket alternatives. Good luck with the build.

Thank you sir!
Thank you! Once I sand down the car I'll pull the front subframe out and disassemble it and decide what to do with it.

Didn't get to work on it much this weekend, only an hour and a half. But the fender are about done, we're probably going to replace both genders from the body line down so no need to sand further down on that. I'm hoping this week I can finish the rest of the fenders and finish the hood and then I can sand the trunk and move my way to the front of the car.
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not too bad once you get all the mud and old paint off.
you can replace that trunk filler section easily.

Just takes time. Of course with a new Velcro pad on my palm sander its going faster lol

2nd Gen's are great cars. I'm working on one with my Dad right now, keep up the good work!

Thank you Josh! When I am ready for suspension Ridetech is one of my first calls.

Haven't touched the sanding pad in a bit, yesterday we did do this though.
Started out like this
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psbqvnsi3w.jpg
With the hood off and the engine bay has seen better days
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...pspvloehrr.jpg
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And after a few hours it looked like this
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psmujphc6z.jpg
The front bumper and fenders where a bitch due to the bolts rusting, 1/2 the bolt heads broke when trying to break loose. And at some point where the passenger fender and front bumper bolts together was damaged, so someone had the bright idea of spot welding it rather than fixing the ****ing problem. My driver side lower fender near the door is damaged so I might just go with a whole new front end. At least now I can pull the front subframe out and clean it up or get rid of it for an upgraded front suspension. Also removed the front windshield, wiper motor and wipers. Found my dash cluster was cracked in a few spots and the gauges are in poor shape, so that will be replaced also. My brother in law took the steering column as I need a different one and he'll use it for a mock up on his 40's dodge rat rod.
I need to continue to take the dash apart so the car can be a complete shell and then I will continue on sanding it down to metal.

Oh yeah the rear sub frames are ****ed more than Houston in the Houston 500 . . . maybe time to think about making a full frame for the car?

You can put replacement rear frame rails in the car, go with custom rear frame rails and backhalf the car almost, or replace the shell. Full frame is also doable but expensive. Sorry that area is damaged. It can be fixed though.

This will be interesting to do.

Well a lot has happened in the couple months since I've updated this thread. I sold the 73 this morning and bought back my 2000 SS that I sold 4 years ago. Having an old school would be cool BUT having my 2000 back has been what I've wanted for 4 years.
This is her
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...psasvpgvwq.jpg
The hockey stripes need to go, same with the tear drop hood decal, the aftermarket headlights and the clear turn signals. I expect most people to say I should've kept the 73, but the 2000 has a special place in my heart lol

Congrats on buying it back. Enjoy the ride!

You're the one that has to drive to it so as long as you're happy that's all that matters!

This is what the car used to look like
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...0/PA280403.jpg
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...0/PA280399.jpg
The goal is to get it back to exactly that.