1968 GTO Resto-Mod

[waynieZ]

That was cool!

[heyhiitsmevlad]

dig it, i love old ponchos

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by tones2SS

Very cool Danny. Awesome video.

Originally Posted by waynieZ

That was cool!

Originally Posted by heyhiitsmevlad

dig it, i love old ponchos

guys, thanks a lot for checking out my project!



danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

the further along with this project i get the more i realize how much my plans have changed since i first began the disassembly in 1999.
at that time i had absolutely no idea what i was getting myself in to and even less of an idea about how to carry on with it to ensure the dream would become a reality.
for example, i had never thought i would need an artistic rendering so i never really planned to have one created- until recently.
several weeks ago i came across a thread here entitled 'teenager doing renderings' and after seeing some of the examples posted there i began to think about having one done for my GTO.
after initiating contact with roman we quickly came to an agreement about how to proceed with the work and within only a couple days he had begun constructing the rendering.
from the very beginning roman seemed totally professional and was very easy and accommodating to work with.
throughout the project he quickly and thoroughly addressed all of my suggestions and remained clearly committed to developing the picture which previously had only ever been present in my mind's eye.
thanks, roman!
also, i am very grateful for the strong advice i received from the man who first suggested i have this done...
thank you, roger!

[Roger Poirier]

I like the Pontiac rims. What size tires are using per your drawing. Front spoiler looks awesome. Hows it look in silver? What color white are you going with? Check out the 2014 white metallic Ford Fusion. It is absolutely stunning. Tinted glass?

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by Roger Poirier

I like the Pontiac rims. Front spoiler looks awesome. Hows it look in silver?

thanks!
those are circle racing's 18 inch rally II billet wheels.

yes, for a long time i entertained the idea of painting the GTO a color which might be considered a "blend" of the colors of the black goat and the white goat to create, in essence, a grey goat.
roman did produce an image of the car in ferrari silverstone grigio, so i could get an idea what that would look like, but in the end it didn't really seem appropriate.
after thinking about it long and hard it became clear to me that this GTO must be painted the original color.
my whole life i've known this GTO to be cameo ivory, and all the memories that remain with me now were created in that white goat.
ultimately, i feel that in this particular case it makes sense to stay true to it's original appearance.
also, i believe this is what my father would have preferred.
many of the conversations we had about this car when he was still alive continue to ring in my ears... and i intend to honor his dream as much as i possibly can while i proceed with the restoration.
danny

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by Roger Poirier

I like the Pontiac rims. What size tires are using per your drawing. Front spoiler looks awesome. Hows it look in silver? What color white are you going with? Check out the 2014 white metallic Ford Fusion. It is absolutely stunning. Tinted glass?

i hope to mount 25.9" tall 285/35 tires to 18x9.5 wheels in the rear. that tire's section width is about 11.5 inches (my measurement from the frame to the quarter lip is 315mm, which is 12.4 inches).
in the front the tires are 25.7" tall 245/40 on 18x8 with a 9.8" section width.

this GTO does not have air conditioning so i have been considering the option of tinting the glass as a possible way to help mitigate high interior temperatures.
i have much more research to do on this topic so i'm not certain at this point what will happen with the glass, but i figured the rendering could help give me an idea what some tint might look like.

thanks again!
i really appreciate your interest in this project!!!



danny

[Roger Poirier]

I'm sure you are getting ready for a paint job or are in paint jail already. Any new updates? Have you bought tires and rims yet? What white color did you end up with for painting the body?

Details and update appreciated. Thanks Roger

[Al Moreno]

Nice project, just went through the entire thread. Great story! Can't wait to see her done.

[1968 GTO Resto-Mod]

Originally Posted by Roger Poirier

I'm sure you are getting ready for a paint job or are in paint jail already. Any new updates? Have you bought tires and rims yet? What white color did you end up with for painting the body?

Details and update appreciated. Thanks Roger

Originally Posted by Al Moreno

Nice project, just went through the entire thread. Great story! Can't wait to see her done.

thanks so much for checking in!
and thanks as well for your interest in this project!!!

as far as i can tell i'm still a ways out from paint.
am i missing something here?
i have seen that many other frame-off projects apply paint before mounting autobody back to the frame, but i was unable to do this... is it a mistake?
i can still unbolt and raise the autobody then remove the rolling chassis if necessary.
i don't plan to make final measurements for wheel/tire package until the full weight of the ride is sitting on the properly adjusted suspension system.
the idea is to settle for the momo setup with falken rubber until then.

i'm very excited about how far this car has come and i have been thinking a lot lately about how to continue the project.

one of the most important lessons i've had to learn throughout this entire process is something most of you gentlemen are probably already familiar with: restoring a car is one project and finding a way to pay for it is something completely different.
consequently, i have been very busy with work this season and have had precious little time to devote to the goat.

as far as recent progress is concerned, i do have a few pieces of good news to report...

i believe i've solved the tensioner pulley puzzle.
after countless hours of sorting through pulleys at parts stores and salvage yards, i finally found a general motors manufactured tensioner pulley that might work for the serpentine accessory drive.



at 4.00" the dimension between the two mounting holes in the tensioner is exactly the same as the dimension between the threaded stud on the timing cover and the lower alternator mount!

also, after months of screening ebay and other online sources i finally found a spread bore, four barrel, rochester quadrajet carburetor for 1968 pontiac manual transmission application.



huge credit to cliff ruggles and his team at cliff's high performance for their effort in remanufacturing and refinishing this quadrajet.
many sources claim no one has more skill and knowledge with the rochester quadrajet than cliff ruggles, so i am very fortunate i was able to coordinate with him on this project.



702 => 1960's
8 => 1968
2 => quadrajet (4 bbl) federal standards
6 => pontiac
3 => manual transmission

thanks again for your interest in this project.
i will update with further developments as progress continues.
danny