1973 Camaro "Project Pumpkin"
 

Ok so here's the build of what will always be know as Project Pumpkin :peepwall:

The car is a mostly solid 1973 Camaro, both front fenders lowers and three small spots in the trunk are the only rust on the car. Well that is until I strip it :confused59:

For those that don't know and just to :poke: the rest of the 2nd gen owners out there. This car would have been the first 2nd gen built by Mark Steilow sorry but that's not goning to happen now :snapout:

This is not a full on build take it apart and hope to finish it some day!! Nope this will be worked in stages, also this is being built on a budget, so not a lot of fancy new parts going in here.

Ok so here's the quick plan, some will change as I get into it I'm sure.

I will start with the drive train. It has a GM crate 350 with a 350 trans. For now the engine is going to be used, upgraded but still going with a SBC :drowninga:

The trans will be changed to a manual, trying to find a T56 6spd but we'll see?? Second round will be a ls2 6spd (already have a deal working on that).

Plans for the engine are new gaskets, fresh paint, new cam, headers, carb, and if I can find a deal on a pair of used aluminum heads that would be cool.

Rear end will get a freshing, posi, and maybe a gear change.

I will paint it and NOT orange maybe silver?? Cowl hood but with MAJOR work done to it as I hate how it looks like a ramp for a water skier :lmao: more on that later.

Suspension is still open, ideas? I'm not going to do anything with the front yet as I want to change out the whole sub frame but not sure when that will happen. DSE solid body bushings and DSE frame connectors. Not sure if it will get mini tubed or not as then the bigger wheels and more money come it play. Maybe phase 2 :bitchslap:

Rear will stay leafs for now but will change it to Ride Tech I think??

Interior will be mostly stock but freshened up new carpet and seats. Still thinking about seats suggestions??

The biggest part is the wheels, I really want to start there because as you all know shells can make or break how a car looks. I've got a few ideas so we'll see how that goes? Again suggestions?? Also looking at something used (budget budget budget).

So here's the starting point with the pictures.

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps74243b0c.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps2a6ecb95.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps4b696953.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps3d288fff.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps4928e412.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps4cf67585.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...pse7bc5901.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps1f8301ea.jpg

Car would look great silver with some black stripes.

That's my thinking as well but not sure on the strips??

Me really likey this, sorry SW I stole it from your thread!

Rick looks like a great solid car to start with,silver sure is one of my favorites on these,also either red or black is nice,good luck.

Congrats on getting the camaro its a great feeling. I know how I felt the night before getting mine and it was a basket case. Yours looks to be a really nice camaro. Can't wait to see this build. Good luck.

Nice start Rick! Can't wait to see this come together.

Car looks great Rick. I know what its like trying to build on a budjet. Try and get what you want the first time around or you will be spending twice. Research what you want, put a plan down on paper, and then start collecting parts.

Congrats on the new project Rick! I'm looking forward to following along.

Congrats Rick! Car looks great and I know pumkin's in great hands. Tell the owner project names can come back to haunt you, lol.

I agree w Gae. Make a plan and budget, get the car handling and stopping first. Marty has a pretty good blueprint IMO. Engine upgrades and prettiness last.

Good luck man. I know you've been dying to wheel a car for a long time so enjoy the moment :thumbsup:

Rick,where on earth did you find such a nice 2nd Gen.You must have looked high and low for something this perfect.LOL!!!!

Ha! Stielow dropped it in his lap! :D

I like it! Great score.

Atta boy Rick. Congrats man. Never a bad thing buying a car from the King.

:king:

Rick

Stick to your statement and build it modular. Don't take it off the road for more than a week at a time unless you suddenly are willing to spend :G-Dub:

Take a look at Siegs car. He has a nice ride that he has kept on the road (most of the time) and has made some key upgrades without breaking the bank or stalling his progress. :thumbsup:

I can't argue with jumping on a 6 speed conversion. I would jump on that right off.

The car is a 20 footer or better so even though you can do paint leave it alone until you are done slinging big parts into and out of it. Just get rid of those dam bumperettes.

Take Gae's advice and put together a budgeted plan. Start with the $$ you are willing to spend and prioritize your wants based on what fits within that number.

Then lay in wait for a bit. If you buy good second hand stuff you can resale it down the road if you step it up and it won't really cost you. Sure you may want new brakes first but if seats show up at a great price buy them first.

When you save some $$ from the budgeted number by scoring a good deal then you can reallocate that $$ to another upgrade on your project plan.

Bottom line is be disciplined about it. :bitchslap: You just got out of one stalled project.

Wheels. For the first round wait for somebody who just bought a complete sub and tubbed their car to sell their "small wheels". I see nice looking wheel sets out there all the time. If you buy smart you can sell them if your project escalates. Bottom line JMO is don't buy them new because they are a big expense and their specs are dictated by so many pieces of the build you haven't settled on.

For you Camaro guys there are so many suspension options it make me dizzy. I don't pay that much attention to all the details of them for obvious reasons, are any of them modular? Can you do spindles and arms now with the stock sub and steering and later go full sub and rack? That way you can ease into it and get good brakes, that you can keep with future mods, on the car sooner than later. Doesn't the Ride Tech or Speedtech route allow you to do this?

Leave the stock rear diff alone for now. I'd target a rear suspension upgrade first. The front of a 2nd gen isn't terrible so look for a good deal to show itself for the rear. Save that $$ you want to dump on that 10 or 12 bolt to put it towards a nine inch.

Same with that motor. Clean it up and beat the snot out of it don't drop $$ into it.

You asked for opinions so you got mine.

BTW congratulations Charley Brown on finding the "great pumpkin" I hope your driving it today.

:cheers:

Good advice Rob :thumbsup:

Rickster, get used to that punkin color buddy, it will serve you well through the many priority phases of the project. The timing of this and who it's from is pretty special IMO. Enjoy the journey. Be patient and don't bite off more than you can comfortably chew. Keep it fiscally under control so it's always an enjoyable hobby with positive thoughts and dreams for the future. I've seen too many hobby/project cars compromise finances and relationships and that simply ruins everything. Like Rob said......the more they're running the more you get to enjoy them.......no matter the performance level.

Let the planning and dreaming begin!

Thanks guys!

Rob and Seig and that guy that owes me dinner :buttkick: :hello: J/K Ron

You guys are giving some very good advise there and it is much appreciated! Yes the plan is to keep it moving and driving car as much as possible.

As for pumpkin color sorry its already in primer!! :idea: :hello:

















J/K :lol: but as I bought the best car I could get for my budget, I only can start with the things that won't cost me to much money.

First on the list is a manual trans, and wheels and tires. Then it's up to what kind of deals come around. Be leave me Rob I ain't buying no NEW wheels. Marty already made me an offer I may not be able to pass up. So next is the trans which I'm looking for now, I may just get a 4sp for now as I really don't want to buy to many parts more then once. The ride height is very nice (40 year old suspension) so maybe a god set of shocks and call it a day.

Brakes will be some kind of OEM stuff C6 and brackets from Tobin at Kore.

So that leaves me to the body and paint, remember I don't have to take the car anywhere to get it painted! And I can knock out an awesome jobs fairly quick, and paint well it doesn't cost me anything so this will most likely get done first thing.

Anyway off to sand the paint off of my car :hello:

T56 Mag close ratio..........nothing else! My trans is just starting to break in and it is such a treat, you need to drive it to appreciate it. It's your right hand's connection to your drivetrain...........and it feels REAL GOOD! :D

Big brakes and wheels first - I say this for a couple reasons 1) I bought wheels first, then installed the T56. 2) The speeds you can generate with the T56 almost created a very bad situation for me as I completely exceeded the limits of the stock front disks with 245/40/18 200TW front tires and came close to totaling the car. I called Tobin at Kore3 the next morning and ordered brakes.

The big aggressive manual brakes and T56 are the driving highlights of my car......for me. :D

Having just the right exhaust note even if you're not putting 550hp to the wheels doesn't hurt your image either. :lol:

Congrats Rick!!!! Wish I'd seen that car 2 years ago LOLOLOL

Nice pick up! It looks like a very solid car to start with. I am looking forward to watching the progress you make with this car.

Brian

Great score...... I'm glad I talked you into it!!!

It's similar to my first '73, except mine was a 3 speed with no spoilers in Light Copper.

Let the spending begin!!! :G-Dub:

Yeah you had me on the phone for hours talking me into it:hairpullout:

And you of all people know that the spending has started and finished already!!

Oh and this one is cleaner then yours!! Lol

Rick, great score on the 2nd gen. I fully understand building the car on a budget, but just make sure the car gets its due justice. It's a certain amount of respect a car like deserves. Now, with that being said...let's go!! :Tomcat:

Thanks Marcus! Don't worry it will be a great car that's for sure.

I think this post should be a Sticky in Project Threads.

1973 Camaro " Project Pumkin"
 

It looks like it has a decent body so I wouldnt`t paint it till last. If it has a 8.5 10 bolt just freshen it up and add a "posi" . I have supercharged small block /Super T-10 combination in front of mine with just a couple of upgrades. A heavier duty carrier and 31 spline axels. On the suspension you can go a basic as using a Z-28 Suspension package to using a Vette Brakes C-4 Corvette suspension package like I did. There is quite a variety of both engine and suspension package out there .It depends on you and your check book.

Like Rob needs a bigger head... :headscratch:

Least he's got the car to pack it.............:underchair:

yep, keep it simple. These 2nd gens already have a great base. They respond well to good shocks, sway bars and stiff bushings on stock arms. The only reason I would use a tubular arm is to get that tire away from the wheel housing when adding caster. That would be a good lower with a stock upper arm and Del-alum bushings. The Hotchkis lower moves the lower ball joint forward for increased caster.

Nothing wrong with the spindles, Custom works likes to add a tall upper ball joint for increased camber gain so you can run a low static number.

Adding big brakes is easy but that comes with 18's.

Chat Keith up a bit when you are ordering your CF bumperetts....if you get rid of your bumper guards don't toss them. Put em up on ebay. Set of 4 might just pay for some of your build. Keith also has a nice subframe connector and front frame support kits too.

:lol: :RunninDog:

I like too. That car is sick in silver. 2nd gens are very cool. You have a nice ride Rick!

The body is decent as in very little rust but all dinged up and I hate the color :lol:! As for the brakes the plan is a set of OE C6 calipers front and rear. Suspension will be left mostly stock for now with a shock upgrade, and maybe a better set of sway bars. Wheels will be 18 front and back. As for engine it's got a crate 350 so that will stay for now as it runs nice and strong.

Yeah Vince I don't plan on changing to much of the stock suspension as of now, just better shocks and maybe sway bars. The plan is to get an aftermarket sub frame later down the road and I switch to the LS motor. I plan to put in DSE subframe connectors??? And solid body bushings?

Thanks guys!!!

Ok so I jumped in last night and started to move things along!! :headspin:

Looking these pictures you will see why I bought this car! I found two rust spots under the carpet :bang: but I think you will all agree that for a 40 year old car it's not to bad??

First I removed 55lbs of old nasty carpet and factory sound deadener. And this is what was left.

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps29df02ae.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...psb8a1ecb1.jpg

Driver side under the rear seat has a couple of holes.
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...psa6e8ef1a.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps0cfde202.jpg

Driver side front no holes just some scale
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...ps5a15f16b.jpg

Passenger side front will require a replacement floor pan, it's the worst part of the floors.
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...psab3bb807.jpg

That looks very nice.

Looks like a great car! I love 70-73's. Are you going to leave the nose or do a split bumper conversion?

Rick,

I know you said about possibly painting it silver. Maybe a little inspiration...

My 73 camaro

http://s131.photobucket.com/user/jmc...76359341433455

Welcome to the 2nd gen brotherhood Rick! Enjoy your new project!

yep, solid bushings with frame connectors. The DSE units are nice.

Since you have some rust on the floor pans .I would replace those sections.as needed.Then paint the floor with bed liner.It seals and quiets the interior at the same time.

So YOU'RE the one who stole Mark from the 2nd-gen guys!!! :warning:

Looks like a great car to start with and I like that you're skipping the belly-button-cowl-hood! I've always thought a modified 1970 Chevelle cowl induction would work well with the lines of a 2nd gen Camaro.
Whatever you go with I'll be watching!