[Guilty]

Steve,
Greetings from Kamloops BC. I'm on a trip back to Vancouver from Calgary. Started out in Vancouver on Tuesday eve. Beautiful country out here and can imagine your formula had a great time driving out here. It would have been a great drive from London out here. Brian.

[njsteve]

Send some photos of the scenery, Brian!

As for the car, right now the frame repairs are being done. I am trying to get the car safe and road-worthy once I get the title paperwork in order and actually get some plates. Also, I want the underside finished once and for all. I have a Gardner exhaust on order for the car and it should arrive in a couple weeks. I do not want to be pulling that system out to do other repairs at a later date.

The frame repairs were supposed to be a week but looks like it will be at least two weeks...or more.

The passenger side lower area of the three panel sandwich was as we thought: the outer piece was rusty and the inners were pretty good. The problem was that the inner sections were rather mangled from the tie downs used during the transport so the inside section had to be cut out and redone to make it flat again. Here's some photos from earlier in the week.

Here's the bad area prior to trimming:



Here's the section after the outer piece was cut away:



And the mangled bottom of the inner rail/spring bucket that has the tie down holes. They were pulled and ripped out of shape.



He ended up cutting the section out and remaking it so it looks correct once the new section of rail gets welded back over it.



And the portion of the replacement rail that will be used:




He is starting on the rear of the passenger frame rail, next (where the tailpipe area was cracked and the rail was thin).

[Formulabruce]

looks like hes pretty handy with a spot weld remover

[The Boss]

Keep it. JMHO

[Norwood]

I to say keep it, if it were a 70 I would vote lose it.

[Formulabruce]

Originally Posted by Norwood

I to say keep it, if it were a 70 I would vote lose it.

X2!
I would also put fender emblem and Firebird back on the fenders, but thats just me

[njsteve]

Already put on the emblems a couple weeks ago! I had to pull the inner fenders to get the nuts on! Luckily, I remembered to do the emblems when I did the heater core (pass side) and the wiring harness (driver's side).

I finished cleaning up the fuel lines that were removed for the frame repairs. Lots of wire brushing to get the dirt out of the coils.

I got the new tank ready today. It is a Spectra 42B tank that I got via rockauto.com at a helluva discount. I put the old sending unit in with a new O-ring and redid the USSteel date stamp with the stencil that InlineTube sells. Their decal is close to accurate but it is missing the day section. It only has the month and year, whereas the original date stamp had month/day/year. So I had to carfully pick away at the stencil after I painted the main portion, and then had to reuse a couple numbers to get the "30" in the 12-30-70 date sequence. (yes, the steel used in the tank was over a year old when they made the tank!).

[njsteve]

And the rear is staged and ready to go back in the trailer for when the frame repairs are done and it's time to pick the car up. I did notice that the front pinion seal is seeping so I guess I will have to do that this weekend. At least its easy to get to at the moment!

[tabob]

No spoiler. I know my vote will not suprise anyone.

[J GLASGO]

Cool car. I would keep the spoiler,and lose the side moulding,and door edge guards.

[njsteve]

Hey, no extra voting! :-)

Actually, I was not going to put the door edge guards back on because they destroy the paint when you attempt to install them. I have no idea how the factory got them on...or maybe they just didn't care about chipping the paint when they malleted them on. I am keeping the side moldings, though. The one thing I live in constant fear of is someone opening a door into the side of my car. And these are the original stainless and vinyl moldings, not aftermarket ones, which you don't see that often. I think the extra stainless trim accents the black nicely.

I do need to find an original set of fender trim. Right now a cheap set of aftermarket trim prices are on the wheelwells and the holes don't really match up. When Grant, (the guy I bought it from) retrieved the car from the widow's home, they were not able to find all the random parts that were missing from the car. I have all the missing A/C parts now. What's left to locate is a 112133 unitized distributor, the fender trim and a date-coded, 80 amp 1101015 alternator.

[Formulabruce]

Steve was the DS pitted? how did you get the rust off that?
tank looks sweet!

[njsteve]

Actually the driveshaft was really nice - but it was painted white by the previous owner, for some strange reason.

[njsteve]

Time to celebrate! I actually received the title today and went directly to the local DMV where I finally got the car officially registered.

I had wanted to transfer the historic vanity plates that I had from the T/A but when the lady behind the counter said I'd have to mail the old plates and my documents to the DMV in Trenton in order to do that, I almost had a seizure right there. It had already taken 8 weeks to get a title, and it has been 12 weeks since I actually bought the car in British Columbia.

I said just give me the plain old historic plates. She also indicated that it would have been $96 to transfer the old plates...compare that to $44 for a brand new set.

So I could literally apply for the same vanity plate for less money than it would be to transfer my old ones. Go figure? Only in Joysey could this happen.

The entire titling process for a vehicle coming from a “foreign” country to NJ is insane. You cannot get a title for a car coming from a foreign country at the local DMV. You have to send all of your paperwork to the special “Foreign Title Unit” in Trenton, after calling them, of course, and getting an exact list of what they need. Then when they get the package, it takes them at least 2 weeks before they look at it. When they do look at it, they only go as far as the first problem they see with the first document, immediately stop all work and send a letter telling you there is an issue with that document. For example, I have a letter that says the Canadian Title and registration are missing from the package. I call them back and tell them that British Columbia does not issue titles; they only issue a combination registration and insurance form on their cars. The clerk then has to research that issue. Several days pass and the clerk then says "You're right about the title" but we need that British Columbia registration form. I asked them why they didn’t request that in the first place? No real answer. I then tell them that in Canada the seller is required by law to retain the upper half of the form. She says they need the entire form. Luckily the seller in this case gave me both halves of the form. (Thank you Grant!) The clerk said I have to send in the original to them, by certified mail. She tells me that NJ DMV can only take original documents or original carbon copies. No copies are permitted.

So another week passes and I call them back. I am then told that since I had not included a check for the sales tax on the car, they could not proceed any further. I tell them that I included the $80 they requested for the titling process and that no other funds were requested by the DMV at the time. The clerk says, “Well, we need the check to proceed.” I asked what the amount was. She wouldn’t tell me, only that it was 7% of the sale price. So I had to get a calculator out and figure the amount out while I had her on the phone and then ask her if that was the right amount she needed? She said yes. I then sent her the check... by certified mail.

Another week passes and I call them back, the package has now been transferred to another clerk who tells me that they need the Customs Brokers paperwork. I tell them they have it. She tells me that need the original not the certified copy that is in the file. She says that the certified copy that is in the file appears to have been a fax that was notarized by the Customs Broker. I tell her that is how US Customs sends the finished forms back to the brokerage company. She then recites that the DMV can only take original documents or carbon copies. I asked her how am I supposed to get the original document which is in the custody of the United States Customs Service? She simply recites again, that the DMV can only take original documents or carbon copies. New Jersey DMV does not recognize certified copies. The DMV says it has to be the original document or a carbon copy from the original form made at the time of the transaction. So, even if the original form was a computer generated print out, it has to be from the original computer, printed out from the original printer at that location!!!!!!!!! I kid you not. It's like they haven't even entered the 20th century, let alone the 21st.

So, after several days of attempting contact with the Customs broker, I get through and I get another certified copy of the exact same document, only this one is larger and doesn’t have a fax header at the top. I send it certified mail to the DMV.

After several more days I call the DMV again. By now I am on a first name basis with all the clerks in the unit. I hear them sigh heavily whenever they pick up the phone and realize it’s me. The clerk now says she received the Customs Broker form but that wasn’t the form that they actually needed. They actually needed the original carbon copy of the Bill of Lading to prove that the car is in the United States. Once again I ask why they didn’t request that document from me four weeks ago? I didn’t get an answer. So I send them the original pink “carbon copy” of the Bill of Lading...this time by FedEx, since the clerk assured me that this was the final key to unlocking the puzzle of my title. (Silly me for believing her).

So, another week passes and I call the DMV and ask if the title has been issued. They said no. I ask why? They say it is because the US Customs Form 7501 did not have a US Customs official raised stamp on it. I told them it does: it has the notary stamp from the customs broker and under the business records exception of the rules of evidence used by every court of law in the United States of America; that is considered to be an officially recognized original document... And in perfect Abbott and Costello “Who’s on First” tone of voice, she then recites that the DMV can only take original documents or carbon copies as New Jersey DMV does not recognize certified copies. That is when the whole insanity started with the fact that Broker notarized the copy of the form that he received from US Customs for the transaction. According to NJ DMV, that is considered a forgery of another person’s signature, so now the title process is dead in the water until I can provide them with THE ORIGINAL UNITED STATES CUSTOMS FORM 7501 for this car’s entry in to the United States.

So I then contact the broker in Canada to get them to get an official US Customs stamp on the document. They tell me that the document has to be hand carried to the Niagara Falls Customs station where the car entered the US and that it would take at least 48 hours once US Customs has the document, before the broker would get it back. So I wait...a week goes by and now the customs broker is ignoring my calls. (As it turned out the brokerage was sold to a new company, who was not retaining the old staff, so no one really cared any more, about getting me my document). So I get the shipping company owner at TFX International involved (as I previously described a page or two ago) and he raises Holy Hell with the broker on a Sunday night and within 3 days I have the official stamped document in hand. Of course it is not a raised, embossed stamp, but a red ink stamp on the form. I then send it via FedEx to the DMV. I also call the clerk at the DMV and tell him it is on its way. It arrives on Friday. I call the clerk handling my “package” to tell him that the FedEx tracking indicates it has been delivered. Of course he is out on leave that day. I am asked to call back Monday.

I call back Monday and the clerk says the mail has not been delivered from the front office yet but he will call when it gets to his desk, if there are any problems.

On Tuesday, the clerk leaves me the message that the title was processed. I call him back and ask him to define exactly what “processed” actually means. He laughs and says that it means I have a title now and that it was being mailed out that day...by regular mail.

I also asked him if I now hold the record for the longest time to issue a NJ title for an American vehicle entering the state from a “foreign” country.

He says “No, not even in the top five.”

[eaglesan13]

Oh no Steve, I live in California, and although I'm not sure I can "Beat" that DMV story, I can get really close!

Originally Posted by njsteve

So I could literally apply for the same vanity plate for less money than it would be to transfer my old ones. Go figure? Only in Joysey could this happen.

[3tas4me]

Keep the rear spoiler. These cars do not look right without it. When they designed it, they did it perfect.

[PONTIAC-ONE]

Rear Spoiler... keep it, it looks good in BLK and the holes are already there.

Post # 359; It's amazing how the look of these cars completely changes going from whitewalls to white letter tires....ho-hum to oh-yeah

[The Boss]

Congratulations.....how's the frame?

[njsteve]

The front lower rail was as we expected: just the outer piece of the rail was compromised. (luckily that's part of the rail that is reproduced). The two inner sections of heavy steel layers that make up the front spring box were corrosion free, but mangled a bit from the hold downs during the 3500 mile trip.

[Formulabruce]

Steve, grats on that title! WOW! I have helped a few folks in NJ get titles, one was member with a 67 GTO. Got it done under 100 bucks and 1 week..
There is a thriving business now helping street rod folks and older musclecar people get titles for insane places like that. Get a "certified copy" of that Title! hehe
Hows the AC going?
what do you have for T stat housing bolts?