$300 ’67 Firebird - The Continuous Build

[CanyonRider]

Longtime lurker - reading, learning and dreaming, first time poster. I’ve learned folks love pics, so I’ll try to keep the pic-to-text ratio high. I bought this 1967 Firebird for $300 (delivered) on June 22, 1981. I was 16yrs old, the car was 14. The car was originally a Sprint6 with a Saginaw 3spd on the floor. Most of the interior was in the trunk, it supposedly ran and I discovered later the subframe was bent - I may have over paid. :rolleyes:

I spent that summer before my Sr year of HS assembling the interior, getting the engine running and swapping the subframe from a junkyard Nova. It apparently had been hit in the front pretty hard. Someone had swapped the entire front clip from a ’68 400 - hence the 400 hood.

Here’s how it looked then - and the following 2yrs:

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-7sLBBHK/0/M/1Firebird82-M.jpg

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-36VXmZk/0/M/2Firebird82-M.jpg

That first summer, the Saginaw gave up and I acquired a Borg-Warner T10 - in a box. I had to buy a few parts, bearings and synchos, but it proved to be a good tranny. - although it was a wide-ratio.

Two summers later I decided “How hard could it be to paint a car?” Here’s a dumb 19yr old painting his car - outdoors, one panel at a time (lacquer is very forgiving). Check out the Herb Adams VSE belt buckle!

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-rp2dXdf/0/L/15Firebird83-L.jpg

Interior
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-LjF9PBD/0/M/10Firebird83-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-qzcVgV2/0/M/11Firebird83-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-bTcZhQM/0/M/12Firebird83-M.jpg

Notice some of the cool cars in the background.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-mRS4Tm4/0/M/19Firebird83-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-fBLm9nB/0/M/21Firebird83-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-Mxwx8h3/0/M/25Firebird83-M.jpg

Here is how it looked then.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-LLVQDZc/0/M/27Firebird83-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-zJKrzKH/0/M/28Firebird83-M.jpg

A year later the Sprint6 motor gave up and I replaced it with a $100 junkyard Pontiac 350. That was pretty much how I drove the car for the next 10yrs.

I finally finished college, got a real job and bought a house (with a garage) in ’93. I attended my first autocross that year. The car was awful, but I was hooked. That winter, I did a cheap rebuild of the 350 (rings, bearings, cam, oil pump,heads, intake, etc); trimmed 3/4 coil off the front springs and added big front and rear swaybars. I also swapped the T10 for a close-ratio Muncie M21 and a Hurst Super Shifter.

Here’s a couple AutoX clips from that period:

http://youtu.be/t_eMHAaUjAo

http://youtu.be/WaoHshYb6vs

I spent the next 5yrs autocrossing and starting a family. In ’98, the engine developed a water leak into the oil pan. At the same time, big changes on the home front were happening: job change, selling house, moving 800mi - and raising kids. I decided to park the car “until I had time to build it right” - although I wasn’t quite sure what I meant by “right”.

Autocrossing continued off and on over the years - although, always in other cars. And there have been other projects including a dedicated track car for HPDEs. Meanwhile, the Firebird sat on blocks under a piece of rubber roofing - until last week. :dance:

CR

[CanyonRider]

So here it sat for almost 15yrs.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-bV96x2L/0/M/IMG_5271-M.jpg

I aired up the tires, set it on the ground and hooked a tow strap to it. After about 20’ the left rear wheel began to rotate - 50’ later the right front wheel started rolling. Gotta love stuck drum brakes.

With all the wheels rolling, I was able to get it in the garage and on the lift.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-fhVJChr/0/M/IMG_5272-M.jpg

The interior is familiar and makes me smile.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-dK48kWC/0/M/IMG_5274-M.jpg

Preliminary Assessment
I was pleased to discover the engine turns over by hand. Although after the first rotation, I could hear “tink, tink” for several minutes as the valves snapped back - a litle sticky I guess. After a few more rotation, it seems to have stopped.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-XkMkF3g/0/M/IMG_5509-M.jpg

I scraped about 5lbs of mud wasps and other debris from under the car. Here’s what we have:

Factory traction bars! I seem to recall these were only available on the ’67 400s and Sprints.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-gX5gvXw/0/M/IMG_5511-M.jpg

My big rear swaybar. Also note, I had relocated the battery to the trunk.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-hpqcJjF/0/M/IMG_5518-M.jpg

When I swapped the subframe (over 30yrs ago), I machined solid steel body mounts - I’m thinking aluminum may have been a better choice.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-MR4f48M/0/M/IMG_5519-M.jpg

Muncie and Hurst shifter.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-2LBqVvx/0/M/IMG_5520-M.jpg

Big front swaybar with solid, adjustable endlinks.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-RrrT6Dv/0/M/IMG_5523-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-5pJgH2w/0/M/IMG_5524-M.jpg

Some Ugly
In addition to being hit hard in the front, the car had been hit hard in the rear - to the point that the frame rails are deformed at the peak of their arc - hence the need for washers on the swaybar bracket. We’ll be addressing this.

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-rDWgndw/0/M/IMG_5513-M.jpg
http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-DpkQkbn/0/M/IMG_5514-M.jpg

So where do we go from here? The plan is to build a street legal, G-Machine primarily for AutoX and the occasional HPDE. Having done a project or two in the past, I know myself and what keeps me motivated. I have to be able to enjoy the car periodically during the build. I don’t do well with a torn apart car for years on end. Therefore, this build will be done in stages - focusing on one area at a time. Sure, this can result in some inefficiency, but it allows me to work for a couple months then enjoy the car for a few months - hence The Continuous Build.

First up: pull the motor; freshen it up and get her running! Excited to be working on her again!

CR

[Che70velle]

Excited for you, as most people sell off their cars as "life happens" and time goes by. The hand painted pin striping is epic, and brings back a lot of memories for me. Keep us updated, and oh yeah, welcome to Lateral-G!

[waynieZ]

Nice! I wish I had followed suit and kept some of my old cars. It will be fun to watch.

[Panteracer]

I like that you kept it all this
time I bought my bird for $300
27 years ago. Been thru many changes
over the years and I know what you mean
about the memories

Don't plan on selling mine ever

Have fun and enjoy it

Panteracer

[Spiffav8]

Awesome!! Looks like a good cleaning is the first thing in order. lol I 100% agree with keeping it on the road as much as possible. A lot more fun and motivational. Buying all the needed parts and having them ready to go, while doing one section at a time will keep it going for sure. Heck you could build up a new front sub with engine, trans, etc. and just have them waiting for a quick swap.

This is going to be a lot of fun to watch.

:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[waynieZ]

Agreed!

[WSSix]

Welcome to the site. Great story about the car. Glad to know you're planning to revive it and drive the snot out of it. Good luck!

[SlowProgress]

Cool story looks like you have great history with the car in the past. Keep nudging it back to life and keep the photos flowing !!

[im4u2nvss]

Like others have said, this is a great story! Congrats to you for keeping it. Along with getting it running, it may be a good time to freshen up your brake system. Keep it up!

[PonchoJohn]

I love the final turn on the first video- excellent "drifting" skills ;)
Can't wait to see more of this car!

[CanyonRider]

Excited for you, as most people sell off their cars as "life happens" and time goes by. The hand painted pin striping is epic, and brings back a lot of memories for me. Keep us updated, and oh yeah, welcome to Lateral-G!

Thanks! It was done as a favor shortly after I painted it. Sadly, you don't see much pinstriping any more.

Welcome to the site. Great story about the car. Glad to know you're planning to revive it and drive the snot out of it. Good luck!

Thanks! And yes, I plan to flog it. :burnout:

I love the final turn on the first video- excellent "drifting" skills ;)
Can't wait to see more of this car!

Thanks! You can see from recent in-car footage, my technique has not improved after all these years. :lol:

http://youtu.be/lXKuar8a8Io

http://youtu.be/7nLEKvN_cRs

CR

[CanyonRider]

I've been puttering in the evenings - mostly accessing the situation. Spoiler alert: It ain't good. :(

Pulled the motor:

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-6qTR42v/0/M/IMG_5282-M.jpg

Got it on the stand:

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-z9MhpHT/0/M/IMG_5286-M.jpg

Stripped enough covers off to get a look inside. I put fresh oil in it and primed it with an electric drill, put a little oil in the spark plug holes and turned it over several times. Then performed a leak-down test. Sorry for the flash, but as you can see, the needles are pointed at each other - 20over80! For those that don't know, that's really, really bad. And that is one of the better cylinders. :(

http://canyonrider.smugmug.com/Cars/Firebird/i-N6P9wCT/0/M/IMG_5287-M.jpg

I wouldn't expect 10% leakdown like a fresh motor at operating temperature, but I pretty bummed about 80% leakdown. It appears the rings are just as stuck as the valves were.

I'll need some time to regroup and figure out my next move. :waveflag:

CR

[ModernDay67SS]

Awesome. Can't wait to see the progress

[Tuske427]

+ another one for the great story, I look forward to the updates!

[gordonr1973]

Looking forward to where you go with this! Looking great so far