This is great! I am just starting to rebuild a 76 for my wife, and have barely basic knowledge of Vettes. I have been working on cars since I was 14 but only ever put windshields in them when I was working in the auto glass business. I have been researching information on these for awhile now and have only found bits and pieces which have given only a little help. One of my biggest questions I had was the body mounts and how the shell sat on them. The car I picked up was basically a basket case that someone started and had pulled it apart, then unfortunately he died before he got farther with it. I have started doing videos on my channel to document the progress on it, if you're curious on just what I have started with you could check them out. Your series here is a wealth of information that I haven't found anywhere else, so thanks for taking the time to document and share the work you have done!
@@garrettworks346 thanks man! I did a short video today but was intending to do a longer one on fabricating a new rocker panel. However, I ran out of welding gas, and my welder started having wire feed issues that I couldn’t figure out. I guess my intended plan for today will have to wait for the opposite side.
interesting, im in the uk and that "really bad rust" on a uk car that age is local little repair jobs! looking forward to watching the progress, if i had a project like this and that was all the welding needed id think ive had a result, im waiting for my 72 convertible to be loaded on the boat - from Tacoma to southampton! good luck with the video thanks for putting it up!
Thank you. I am lucky it is not worse. A lot of these cars have birdcage damage. Like the 1970 body you see in the background of my videos. Good luck with the ‘72! Hope you enjoy.
I have a 76...L-82 4 speed car. I'd be interested in the trailing arms/spindles if the bearings still are in good shape. Mine are SHOT !... lol About to start a frame off on mine. Subscribed, and will be watching. Thanks
Why pull all that off when pulling the front and rear bumper covers, the supports for the front crash bar, some engine harness stuff, fuel level sensor, 2 brake lines and removing body mount bolts gives you full chassis access to engine to yank it from and a fully body with full access to pull parts from? you added time to the chassis swap.
I reused all of those parts on the new chassis. They were all pretty dirty/corroded so that gave me an opportunity to clean and paint everything. I also knew the headlight assemblies had issues that I repair in a later video. I also wanted to inspect all the metal supports in the nose and they needed some help. It was well worth taking it all apart and fixing all issues I found along the way. My next video shows the front and rear bumpers/supports going back together. Should be part 13.
I was wondering where you got the dimensions from to build the dolly to put the body of the car on. I’ve found a plan on the internet, but the clarity of the dimensions are not legible. I need to take the body off of my 76 so I can do all the mechanical restomod changes similarly to your project. Thanks Steve
I just threw it together out of stuff I had laying around, except the casters. Send me an email and I’ll get some measurements and pictures for you. garrettworksllc@gmail.com
@@garrettworks346 I’m wanting it to look mostly original except for using larger wheels to support modern tires. All the rubber bits in the suspension will be replaced with modern materials or at least new OEM bits. I don’t expect to make it in the same class as a new Vette but I want to have it as good as possible without replacing all kinds of structural parts. New paint and replace most interior carpet and trim and it’ll look and ride better than new.
Looking at a project c3 right now, I’m curious how much money you think it’ll take to fix up. The motor and trans are rebuilt and in good condition, but the AC doesn’t work, headlights don’t go up, powers steering leaks/doesn’t work, and seats are in rough shape. Any thoughts?
Hard to say. Depends on if you are going to do the work yourself or have a shop do it. Probably easier to replace AC with a vintage air unit. Headlights is probably a vacuum issue. Replace all the vacuum hoses may fix it or a complete rebuild of the headlight assemblies may be required. Power steering is notorious. Replace or rebuild everything. Aftermarket seats or refinish the seats. First thing you should do is look for rust in the frame and the birdcage before considering. If it’s ‘76 or later check the floor pans for rust.
@@garrettworks346 thanks, yeah it’s a 79 and I could probably get the car for around $5k, I’m mainly worried about the price of those AC units, might be in a little over my head on this one
