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-   -   My '69 GTO Convertible Body-off Restoration Thread (https://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=844840)

roger1 10-12-2020 07:14 PM

My '69 GTO Convertible Body-off Restoration Thread
 
Was in the works for awhile but I just acquired my GTO project car last week. I found it for sale in Phoenix, Arizona and trailered it home to San Angelo, TX.
Here's some photos of it I took upon arriving and unloaded:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

As you can see, the engine and transmission are out of the car and dismantled. The interior is all out of the car as well.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

Original matching numbers engine and transmission. The block has had most the machine work done. The heads are done and so is the tranny. I do have a couple of things planned for the drivetrain.
I think I will save the transmission and install a beefed up 200-4R. I will use the engine but save the manifold and carb an purchase an Edelbrock ProFlo 4 MPFI system.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

It looks excellent from underneath. Hardly any surface rust. Just dirty.
There is some rust in the bottoms of both fenders behind the wheels. I believe those will need patch panels.
One small spot above the p/s tail light and a small spot on d/s rear wheel well lip.
There is a hole in the floor from a leaking heater core. I can make a small patch for that.
I've found evidence of bondo in the middle of panels using a magnet but the rockers don't appear to have any.
It will need some work on panel alignment and gaps too. Hood to fenders, fenders to doors and at the Endura bumper to hood and fenders. I intend to make it all very close to perfect if I can.
Doors to quarters and trunk lid look pretty good already. I've read that it is quite a challenge to get an Endura bumper to really fit well on any car. That will be interesting.

Stripping the paint will reveal some things as it always does but at this point I think it is a great car for a restoration. I did buy it sight-unseen but the seller was good about providing me with a few iterations of sending photos of specific things I wanted to see.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

Scott Thelander 10-12-2020 08:02 PM

Well
I will jump in and say "nice find " !
how did you sleep > ? waiting for it to make it into your shop ..
great colors
nice options,,, rally gauges ac adjustable mirror disc brakes convertible no rust convertible ... no rust... and complete!

roger1 10-12-2020 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott Thelander (Post 6186154)
Well
I will jump in and say "nice find " !
how did you sleep > ? waiting for it to make it into your shop ..
great colors
nice options,,, rally gauges ac adjustable mirror disc brakes convertible no rust convertible ... no rust... and complete!

Thanks!
You have a good eye if you spotted the rally gauges sitting on the floor in a box. Here they are:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

As you can see by the 140 mph speedometer, this set didn't come out of a '69 GTO. My car didn't have the rally gauge package from the factory but the person I bought the car from intended to upgrade gauges but never installed this set.

Here's the build sheet for the car btw:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

Not sure whether I'll use this replacement set. I might opt for the Dakota Digital VHX system and save the original gauges that are still in the car now.

Brewster 10-12-2020 09:44 PM

Cool car and great color combo. Looks like that psg side cylinder failed from the looks of the stained floor boards. Hope its an easy fix.

Andretti 10-12-2020 10:00 PM

You're starting with some great bones there as she looks solid. I think liberty blue with parchment is an awesome combination and I'll be looking forward to your updates.

bluejudge 10-12-2020 10:32 PM

Nice car, good luck with everything. I’ll be watching your progress. Marc.

Shiny 10-12-2020 10:54 PM

Congrats on finding such a solid-looking convertible. Hope you have fun with it.

Your post triggered a few memories as I went to HS in Midland. San Angelo was an oasis by comparison.

roger1 10-13-2020 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brewster (Post 6186186)
Cool car and great color combo. Looks like that psg side cylinder failed from the looks of the stained floor boards. Hope its an easy fix.

Thanks! I guess I cross that bridge when the time comes which will be awhile. Next off is dismantling the car and getting ready to pull the body off.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andretti (Post 6186190)
You're starting with some great bones there as she looks solid. I think liberty blue with parchment is an awesome combination and I'll be looking forward to your updates.

Thanks. I agree it does have great bones but there are some areas that will take some work to get to the level I want the car to be. Yeah I think it is a pretty color combo. I toyed with thoughts of changing it but came back to keeping it the original.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluejudge (Post 6186196)
Nice car, good luck with everything. I’ll be watching your progress. Marc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shiny (Post 6186199)
Congrats on finding such a solid-looking convertible. Hope you have fun with it.
Your post triggered a few memories as I went to HS in Midland. San Angelo was an oasis by comparison.

Thanks guys! What a great reception you guys are giving me here. So glad you are all interested in following along.

Yes San Angelo is a nice place to live. My wife and I moved here when we retired after living in Austin during our careers. Austin just got too crowded for us.

roger1 10-13-2020 10:03 AM

Hey look what my wife made for me yesterday!

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

She's really good at building things. I asked her about it and she put this together yesterday. This will be perfect since this tranny will be stored for who knows how long. Still need to make a lid for it but she ran out of scrap wood.

Baron Von Zeppelin 10-13-2020 08:18 PM

Glad you got it and aren't finding deep regrets with it.
One of the Top Notch color combos

Have you frame off restored a car before ?

roger1 10-13-2020 08:28 PM

A couple of times but I don't own a rotisserie and did them without.
No regrets even one bit. I was and am prepared to tackle any issues I run into. I'm pretty sure at this point that this car is better shape than the 2 other frame offs I did.

I'll be posting a little later this evening about my progress today after I sort out the photos I took.

roger1 10-13-2020 08:39 PM

This was the first frame off restoration I did:

Before:

https://www.hotrodders.com/cdn-cgi/i...09.59443/full/

After:

https://www.hotrodders.com/cdn-cgi/i...280.85463/full

roger1 10-13-2020 09:30 PM

Progress
 
This is the first day I actually did a couple of things to the car. I had spent a few days organizing and taking photos of all the parts and then got them all stored away.

First I'll show what I uncovered today that was super good. I took the windshield out and was surprised at how good the the underside looked. It's in superb condition.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

So Scott, I wish it were rust free but it does have some as these photos show:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw...-no?authuser=0

I did a little sanding on that wheel well edge and it's full of bondo. I knew this already after I took a magnet to it the other days. I'll post photos of that a little later. The ones I took didn't come out very well.

4zpeed 10-13-2020 10:45 PM

Welcome to the forum Roger, thanks for posting your pics are great, I envy the lighting it helps allot. Great work on that box by your wife, that kind of thing helps.

The 55 looks awesome, looking forward to the 69 outshining that, you really did find a diamond in the rough, seems every owner of that car probably had a garage.

Good luck with the build, if you need any Pontiac specific help your at the right place. As you've seen, plenty of interested, helpful and knowledgeable people here.

One other thing, I see you're not keeping it stock, nothing wrong with that it's your car. I don't mind the day 2 look under the hood, but inside I love the look of original.

Enjoy,
Frank

will slow gto 10-14-2020 01:01 AM

Wow, your 69 vert is such a great project! Hardly any rust where the dash metal meets the cowl. Good luck, will be looking forward to seeing the progress on this car.
Here's a little inspiration, but that 55 of yours clearly shows you don't need any: https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds...o/2421721.html

brians 10-14-2020 09:33 AM

That is one great project Roger and a great color combination. Congratulations.

Goes to appreciate the south west. Projects in Ohio usually look as though Captain Nemo brought it up. (older people will get that :))

Please post as you work on it. Love the restoration threads and think they are the most helpful to others here.

roger1 10-14-2020 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4zpeed (Post 6186499)
Welcome to the forum Roger, thanks for posting your pics are great, I envy the lighting it helps allot. Great work on that box by your wife, that kind of thing helps.

The 55 looks awesome, looking forward to the 69 outshining that, you really did find a diamond in the rough, seems every owner of that car probably had a garage.

Good luck with the build, if you need any Pontiac specific help your at the right place. As you've seen, plenty of interested, helpful and knowledgeable people here.

One other thing, I see you're not keeping it stock, nothing wrong with that it's your car. I don't mind the day 2 look under the hood, but inside I love the look of original.

Enjoy,
Frank

Thanks Frank. I am going to need some help. Mostly with the engine. I am not familiar with Pontiac engines and I will need help with the assembly. When I cataloged all the parts, I had no idea what some of them are.

Quote:

Originally Posted by will slow gto (Post 6186535)
Wow, your 69 vert is such a great project! Hardly any rust where the dash metal meets the cowl. Good luck, will be looking forward to seeing the progress on this car.
Here's a little inspiration, but that 55 of yours clearly shows you don't need any: https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds...o/2421721.html

Thanks for that link! I downloaded the photos for files. Sweet car and I'll take all the inspiration I can get.

Quote:

Originally Posted by brians (Post 6186592)
That is one great project Roger and a great color combination. Congratulations.

Goes to appreciate the south west. Projects in Ohio usually look as though Captain Nemo brought it up. (older people will get that :))

Please post as you work on it. Love the restoration threads and think they are the most helpful to others here.

Thanks Brian!
If you looked closely at the fenders and quarter wheel openings you can see I have rust issues there. The fenders will need patch panels. The quarter wheel openings are going to need new metal too. But I was prepared for this as I saw the evidence before I purchased it.

Actually this car did spend some of it's life in the east. Originally in PA then went to Ohio before landing in AZ. I'm sure it was the life in the east that led to the rust in the fenders and quarters. I do think it was garaged and taken care of while there because the floors and frame look really good.
The car also has some things that it's life in Arizona helped with. The windshield frame is as good or better than any old car I've worked on. I've peeled off more of the old convertible top and the frame looks darn near perfect.

Andretti 10-15-2020 09:09 PM

I love that garage in the '55 unrestored picture (still have?). I remember the red stars too, sort of like the old Esso (Exon in US) stations up here using 3,4 and 5 stars depending on their size. Great picture of her restored sitting under that beautiful car port with that fuel pump.
If in the future you find a shortage of '69 resto pics, I give you permission to share your garage here. :)
Carlos

roger1 10-15-2020 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andretti (Post 6187143)
I love that garage in the '55 unrestored picture (still have?). I remember the red stars too, sort of like the old Esso (Exon in US) stations up here using 3,4 and 5 stars depending on their size. Great picture of her restored sitting under that beautiful car port with that fuel pump.
If in the future you find a shortage of '69 resto pics, I give you permission to share your garage here. :)
Carlos

Yes, still have the '55 and what I call my gas station workshop.

https://www.hotrodders.com/cdn-cgi/i...er1.82776/full

I did sell that '57 pickup last week the day before buying the GTO. The buyer of the pickup was in Tucson and I drove it there and dropped it off. Then I rented the U-haul and trailer and headed up to Phoenix to get the goat.

My garage photo was before my cab-off restomod on the the pickup. Here's how it turned out:

https://www.hotrodders.com/cdn-cgi/i...620.62967/full

I've owned this car 25 years and finished my second restomod on it last year:

https://www.hotrodders.com/cdn-cgi/i...531.66957/full

dataway 10-16-2020 01:20 AM

That night time photo of your shop makes me want to go hang out at your shop on weekend nights :)


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