1967 Camaro Project
03-18-2007, 09:26 PM
#1
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1967 Camaro Project
I promised on another thread that I would post some pictures of my Camaro project that has been going since April 2006, so here they are.
I have owned the car since 1995 and have just been having fun with it. The car was running and driving fine, so I kept putting off the restoration until it really started to show some rust. I had a local company do a paint job and some body work on it, but they did a hack job. Either way, it was enough to hold the car for a few more years while I collected the rest of the parts that I needed to do this restoration. So, after 11 years of driving it and collecting parts, here is the restoration that has been long overdue.
Once the car was blasted we found that the rust was much worse than ever imagined. We ended up replacing every panel on the car with the exception of the hood, trunk lid, rear header panel under the rear window, the doors and most of the dash. Other than that, everything was replaced, including the roof.
The car was a drag racer when I bought it, so the numbers did not match. This is what I wanted so that I could make my own changes without destroying a piece of history. Here are some of the changes that we are making.
- Replacing the stock 327 with a Chevy 415 small block (525hp).
- Replacing the stock Muncie 4 speed transmission with a Tremec 5 speed.
- Replacing the stock 10 bolt rear with a ford 9 inch.
- Replacing the stock suspension with an air ride setup from Air Ride Technologies. The rear will receive a full 4 link setup.
- Adding sub frame connectors.
- Replacing the stock front sub frame with a stronger version from Martz. This sub frame will also allow the use of wider front tires.
- Replacing the stock steering box with a rack and pinion setup.
- Replacing the stock brakes with 4 wheel Wilwood discs.
- Installing mini tubs in the rear wheel wells.
- Adding a full roll cage, less the door bars. The cage is tucked up tight to the roof and, other than the hoop and cross bar behind the front seats, will not be too noticeable.
- Removing the rear seat entirely. We will be building a flat floor with some covered storage in it. Think of the area behind the seats of a late 60's Corvette and that is what we are doing. We figured that a seat would be a waste because it would not be accessible with the roll bar.
- Replacing the stock front seats with Mastercraft Baja RS seats.
- Changing the headlights to HID and all other lights to LEDs.
- I wanted to add some driving lights to the valance under the front bumper, but I wanted it to look stock. We tried to use a panel from a 1969 Camaro figuring that we could use the turn signal holes for the lights, but it did not fit. We ended up cutting the sections that we needed from the 1969 panel and welding them into the stock 1967 panel. Now we can add the driving lights and make it look like they were always there.
- Replacing the factory wiring with a setup from Painless Wiring.
- Replacing the factory gages with Auto Meter gages.
- Replacing the factory radio with something decent.
- Adding an air conditioning system from Vintage Air.
- Adding power windows.
- Adding power locks with modern keyless entry.
Anyhow, that is a list of the major changes. I know that you guys think that I am crazy, but remember that it took the past 11 years to collect all of this stuff. It should be an incredible car when it is finished. OK, enough jabbering from me. Here are some pictures.
This is pretty much how the car looked when I got it. I made a few changes to make it better for the street, but this is how it looked. I did put the trim rings and caps on when I put the stock wheels on the car.
This picture was taken just after switching the wheels.
I have owned the car since 1995 and have just been having fun with it. The car was running and driving fine, so I kept putting off the restoration until it really started to show some rust. I had a local company do a paint job and some body work on it, but they did a hack job. Either way, it was enough to hold the car for a few more years while I collected the rest of the parts that I needed to do this restoration. So, after 11 years of driving it and collecting parts, here is the restoration that has been long overdue.
Once the car was blasted we found that the rust was much worse than ever imagined. We ended up replacing every panel on the car with the exception of the hood, trunk lid, rear header panel under the rear window, the doors and most of the dash. Other than that, everything was replaced, including the roof.
The car was a drag racer when I bought it, so the numbers did not match. This is what I wanted so that I could make my own changes without destroying a piece of history. Here are some of the changes that we are making.
- Replacing the stock 327 with a Chevy 415 small block (525hp).
- Replacing the stock Muncie 4 speed transmission with a Tremec 5 speed.
- Replacing the stock 10 bolt rear with a ford 9 inch.
- Replacing the stock suspension with an air ride setup from Air Ride Technologies. The rear will receive a full 4 link setup.
- Adding sub frame connectors.
- Replacing the stock front sub frame with a stronger version from Martz. This sub frame will also allow the use of wider front tires.
- Replacing the stock steering box with a rack and pinion setup.
- Replacing the stock brakes with 4 wheel Wilwood discs.
- Installing mini tubs in the rear wheel wells.
- Adding a full roll cage, less the door bars. The cage is tucked up tight to the roof and, other than the hoop and cross bar behind the front seats, will not be too noticeable.
- Removing the rear seat entirely. We will be building a flat floor with some covered storage in it. Think of the area behind the seats of a late 60's Corvette and that is what we are doing. We figured that a seat would be a waste because it would not be accessible with the roll bar.
- Replacing the stock front seats with Mastercraft Baja RS seats.
- Changing the headlights to HID and all other lights to LEDs.
- I wanted to add some driving lights to the valance under the front bumper, but I wanted it to look stock. We tried to use a panel from a 1969 Camaro figuring that we could use the turn signal holes for the lights, but it did not fit. We ended up cutting the sections that we needed from the 1969 panel and welding them into the stock 1967 panel. Now we can add the driving lights and make it look like they were always there.
- Replacing the factory wiring with a setup from Painless Wiring.
- Replacing the factory gages with Auto Meter gages.
- Replacing the factory radio with something decent.
- Adding an air conditioning system from Vintage Air.
- Adding power windows.
- Adding power locks with modern keyless entry.
Anyhow, that is a list of the major changes. I know that you guys think that I am crazy, but remember that it took the past 11 years to collect all of this stuff. It should be an incredible car when it is finished. OK, enough jabbering from me. Here are some pictures.
This is pretty much how the car looked when I got it. I made a few changes to make it better for the street, but this is how it looked. I did put the trim rings and caps on when I put the stock wheels on the car.
This picture was taken just after switching the wheels.
Last edited by Hot Duck; 04-10-2007 at 09:24 PM.
03-18-2007, 09:28 PM
#2
Platinum Member
Platinum MemberThread Starter
Here is the car after it was disassembled and blasted. The gray color is a primer applied to keep the bare metal from rusting.
03-18-2007, 09:31 PM
#3
Platinum Member
Platinum MemberThread Starter
I won't bore you with rust pictures, but there was a lot of it. Here is a picture of the rear quarters, trunk lid, rear header panels and the rear tail light panel removed. All were replaced except the trunk lid and header panel under the rear window.
Last edited by Hot Duck; 05-08-2007 at 04:34 PM.
03-18-2007, 09:36 PM
#6
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Here are the 1969 light rings installed in the 1967 panel. In 1969 these cutouts were used for turn signals, but we are going to use them to flush mount some driving lights.
Gold Member
03-18-2007, 09:42 PM
#10
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Here is the car at the painter. Notice how all of the seams from replacing panels were filled with lead instead of body filler. They are doing all of the prep work and final panel alignment before disassembling the car for paint.
