Quote: Originally Posted by 85maroz28 Vintage Rest did an amazing job. I can't wait to see it to come together.... i agree. Niel, thank you for proving to the world that 3rd gens are NOT joe dirt!

alll I can say is wow....

Sex on wheels best thirdgen I seen yet.

hollly crap! thats freaken awsome

*subscribe*

I wish I had a place like Vintage near me!

Congratulations on all your achievements thus far!

$11k sounds very reasonable for all the work that is going into the car. I'm looking to take on a project similar to this and it's going to be hard to find a committed shop to partner with.

Not sure if I missed it but what kind of motor is going in this thing?

From what read itll be the sickest engine package to ever go in a thirdgen street car!

454 LSX!

I have to see this thing in person when its done. Please let us know if you are going to any big shows this summer.

A quick update for you guys....I was in the process of dropping the stock K-member; removed the wheels, springs, sway bar end links and then I started looking for my metric, deep-impact sockets and I can't find them!!! So, now I am looking for the nearest Sears Hardware to go buy those needed impact sockets. Why couldn't GM be consistent with standard or metric throughout the whole build of these cars? Minor set back, no big deal it's not like I have 6 days (Overhaulin') to build this thing.

I was planning on having the new tubular K-member in tonight, but that ain't gonna happen. As usual, I will post pics once it's in.

Car was up there thursday if I remember. Give me a call when you are going to be around. I'm there some Saturdays, just depends.

Cant wait to see this thing finished!

dont mind me just latching on to keep updated on the progress

I finally have a few updated pics of the new headlights. They are xenon projector low beams with HID high beams. When I first put them in they looked quite different from stock to say the least but I am starting to get use to the new look. I purchased them from www.brightheadlights.com if you are interested.

Wow I didn't know anyone made real projectors for our cars! That's sweet! Although I'm not sure I like that it sticks out so much. I bought some H4 housings off eBay I'm using my HIDs in and they work great surprisingly. You should get the projector for the high beam too so they look the same.

Now, on to the front suspension; new Spohn K-member and other freshly painted parts. I am re-using the stock IROC sway bar, cause that thing is big enough as well as the stock steering brace "factory wonder bar".

What did you paint the swaybar etc with?

Good ole Rustoleum - Satin black

lookin' good neil,anything new on the motor yet?

The release date for the LSX block is mid to the end of the month and I am still trying to touch base with Callies on their Magnum crank which should be ready soon as well. Texas Speed & Performance will hopefully soon have their "massaged" LS7 heads ready. So, I am still in waiting mode!

Cool.. I just painted my rear sway bar and springs with rustoleum.. Painted some other pieces with POR-15

Did you brush or spray?

Sweet new pictures Neil! That K member looks good. I really like the lights, but you are right. It takes a bit to get used to them! I can imagine they are great as far as night viewing! Very sweet, I hope they are as good as when the M3's were!

A few more photos......another view of the headlights and the Dynamat Dynapad that is going on the firewall and the footwell portion of the floorpan. It will add a little weight but worth it by keeping the heat and sound down.

I used spray of course!

where did you get the projector headlights from those look awesome would like to get some for my car too
thanks

From a rattle can or did you use a gun?

Sorry Ricco, I used a rattle can.
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I bought the lights from Bruce Chandler at www.BRIGHTHEADLIGHTS.com
My kit is the HID-XP4656.

why not get them powder coated

Holy crap! How much????

At this point I just want to get the car on the ground and start working on the interior, hopefully by the end of the week. Maybe later, after the car is running, i'll buy some really stout aftermarket sway bar and wonder bar. I gotta leave something later to play with, right!
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I paid $975 for the set.

What kinda prep work is needed for rustoleum?

Awesome work so far!!!!

those headlights are fricken amazing on your car neil. i cant see paying that much for them though but i guess thats what your going for is the best of everything. haha

So...When is the Phase II thread gonna start?

I did little prep on my springs, pretty much b/c i forgot when i was prepping the other pieces - i did give them a bit of a going over with a grinder to remove all the flaky stuff.. On the other pieces i did, i treated them the same as you do for POR-15.. removed all the loose rust, cleaned with marine clean and coated with metal ready.. then paint :-)

Yea, the interior install needs to be phase II !!

Hurry up and put that interior in that beater!

Several people have requested that I keep this thread alive and try and have the thread renamed, which is what I am working on. So, I will see what the administrator says.

I paid $975 for the set.[/quote]

was that for all gour headlights is so all they all HID lights or just the high beams

was that for all gour headlights is so all they all HID lights or just the high beams[/quote]

That was for all four headlights, the high beams are HID and the low beams are Xenon projectors.

Well, tomorrow I will start re-assembly of the front end and hopefully have the car back on the ground tomorrow night. I just received the BMR A-arms which look pretty strong and I took a few photos to share. I am sure someone will ask so i'll address this question now...why did I go with a Spohn K-member and BMR A-arms? Well, I didn't want to wait 4-6 weeks for Spohn's A-arms, that guy is just damn busy, good for him though!

I also bought new nuts and bolts for pretty much the whole front end, I figure might as well do it now since the original bolts were 20 years old! I just finished painting them and I will allow them to dry overnight. So, that's all I have for now........

Hey Neil...have you spoken to BMR...from previous posts I've read here I thought the BMR A-Arms will only work with the BMR K Member...just a heads up. I wouldn't want you to get the K member and find out the hard way. Give BMR and/or Spohn a ring to verify.
BTW...excellent job on the car!

- Joel

Dude those headlights are sick. They are a good chunk of change but hawt. Do you have the model number handy?

i guess you must have missed it.


Car just keeps getting better and better Neil!

I was told that you have to use the BMR A-arms with their k member and could use the spohn a arms with either the stock k member or the spohn piece. How long did it take you to get your k member. I ordered mine the end of january. Awesome car man.

The BMR A-arms do work with the Spohn K-member (and it took me 6 weeks to get the k-member after I placed the order). I have them installed and i'll take some pics tomorrow and post them. I painted the steering brace mounting brackets as well as more bolts, I should have the car back on the ground tomorrow night, finally !!!! Then, the interior work will officially begin on Tuesday! Posting pics of this build really helps me keep on track and stick to my "deadlines" and it's going to help me get this car finished!

Hey, I'll be up in your neck of the woods tomorrow. Maybe we'll round up Scott and grab Chilis again. I'll give you a ring when I get close to Dallas.

Neil- I am curious as to how heavy those tubular control arms are in comparison to the factory ones. I know the stock ones weight a ton. Thanks Pat

After going throught this thread for 2 hours I can honestly say this is the hottest project I've seen on this board yet! WOW!

I can't believe that the last post was on 03-14-2007? Whats going on w/ this thing....

We've scrapped this project and decided to build a 1983 Toyota Corolla.

Check Corolla.org for updates......