Talk me out of buying a 1976 w/ factory 350 & 4 Speed

[zlathim]

I'm looking at a 2nd generation Camaro for my son. It is for sale right down the street from us and we've been by to look at it several times. It is a running, driving car that starts right up. The body has quite a bit of rust, some of the panels will need to be replaced along with the floor. The panels are cheap but it's a lot of work. It would be a fun project for us to complete together.

My son wants to race in the high school drags at the local track, which means that the 3.08 gears will need to be swapped out to something more suitable for racing. A full set of rally wheels with center caps and beauty rings are included, which kind of trips my trigger because I've always liked that look.

The guy had it listed for $4,800 originally, but it has been for sale for a while. His best price so far to me is $3,500.

So, why shouldn't I buy it? The price is about what the market will bear around here. There are similar cars for sale for more $$$, but they have been for sale for a while. Talk me out of this....

[hammdo]

Ok, I’ll take it so you don’t spend the $ ;o)

Sounds like a fun project — I’d expect there will be more hidden things to fix. Have to weigh what you might spend vs getting one in better shape — I’d rather spend a bit more and have less work. Those ‘rust buckets’ can have a lot of hidden work...

-Don

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by hammdo

Ok, I’ll take it so you don’t spend the $ ;o)

Sounds like a fun project — I’d expect there will be more hidden things to fix. Have to weigh what you might spend vs getting one in better shape — I’d rather spend a bit more and have less work. Those ‘rust buckets’ can have a lot of hidden work...

-Don

I stopped by the credit union at lunch today, so I have cash money to negotiate with.

You are correct, there will likely be things to repair that I'm not aware of at this point. I am already planning on replacing all of the steering components (minus the box if I can avoid it) and rebuilding the brakes completely. That's about $4-500 in parts and some time in the garage with my son.

I crawled under the car to inspect rust on the undercarriage. I was looking for things like rusted out spring hangers, etc. The subframes have surface rust only, no cancer at all. The thinner sheet metal has issues, but the structural stuff seems to be ok, and the panels that I know are bad are cheap on RockAuto.

This isn't just about getting the kid a car. This will be a project that will hopefully teach Zach how to work on his own stuff, plus it will be a bonding experience for both of us.

Unless you guys can convince me I'm making a mistake, I'm gonna scoop that car up this weekend.

[zlathim]

[zlathim]

You guys suck at talking me out of spending money. I'm gonna go pick up the car tonight. Thanks for nothing!!! lol

[hammdo]

;o)

Wanna talk money? Ask me how much I spent on ‘my’ project!

It’s all about the joy of doing the work — and with your son...

-Don

[Cheap Guy]

More pics please!

[CamaroFred]

Originally Posted by zlathim

You guys suck at talking me out of spending money. I'm gonna go pick up the car tonight. Thanks for nothing!!! lol

Your ex-wife needs her bathroom remodeled.
That's as good an excuse as I have ever heard for buying your son a car while she stews on the old stool.

[zlathim]

Thanks for the support, fellas! We picked up the car on Friday evening and my son has been working on it every day since then. he has the interior gutted and we have a bunch of parts on order, including a new DS floor that we will need to weld in.







The rusted floor is from water leaking into the car and pooling in the footwell. The undercarriage has surface rust only. I was careful to inspect all the spring hangers, etc. Everything is solid.

[CamaroFred]

Seat belts should be on your list. They have a life-span and moisture will have shortened that.

[zlathim]

At this point, everything is on my list. We are replacing lots of safety stuff right out of the gate. Steering components, ball joints, brakes are all headed my way via UPS. Seat belts are a safety item. I'll be sure to inspect them well before I reuse them.

[Zspoiler]

That was a very bad idea getting a car with that amount of rust . Its going to be very expensive taking care of all the rust .It would of been patient and look around for a better body.

[Vegas Bound]

Late 2nd Gen is ugly.

[zlathim]

Originally Posted by Zspoiler

That was a very bad idea getting a car with that amount of rust . Its going to be very expensive taking care of all the rust .It would of been patient and look around for a better body.

Suit yourself. Just because you lack the skills or sense of adventure doesn't mean that the rest of us can't live our lives as we please. If I wanted to buy my son a car he could get in and drive away, I would have. I wanted a good project that will teach him everything he needs to know about his car, and about what it takes to finish a worthwhile project. Besides that, I looked at several 2nd gen Camaros before I bought this one. It isn't easy to find a V8 / manual 4 speed 2nd gen Camaro around here, which was a requirement of my son. He wants to shift gears.

I'm not afraid of replacing the floor, and replacement panels are fairly inexpensive. I have a new floor panel coming on a brown truck and a welder sitting in the garage ready to go. This stuff really isn't that difficult, it is just time consuming. The car rusted from the inside out because it was leaking water, probably from one of the windows or something. The undercarriage has only surface rust. I crawled under the car and looked it over before I bought it.

Besides the DS floor, there is a some rust on the rear quarters and one of the fronts. Those panels will be replaced later on, when the mechanical stuff has been taken care of.