mikesz1984

I have owned 2 camaros since 1996, one a 1986 sports coupe(that died of rust) and in 2002 i bought a 1984 z28 with t-tops. Recently i decided to retire my 84 because of frame damage that was to expensive to bother with fixing, this car taught me a lot and was the car my wife and i rode in for our wedding. It was also the last project that i worked on with my cousin who was my best friend. This car means a lot to me(and i will be sad to see her go), but sometimes it is just easier to start over. I will begin stripping every good part off of her in the next few weeks, and every part that my cousin helped me with will be coming off her as well. Now i am not leaving the camaro world, as of last night i now own a 1991 rs convertible(that is need of some tlc mainly new rear quarters). This time there is no damage to the frame, and it has a 305 5 speed in her. The top is in mint shape, and so is the interior( except for drivers seat). It will be receiving all of the parts that will fit off my 84, so that everything that my cousin helped me with will still be present in my car. I will get pics up soon(i tried using webshots but it wont work for some reason). I will be naming this project Resurrection, because i am going to be starting from the beginning, with a car that has just shy of 300 000km on it, and by the time it is done it will be a tribute to my best friend

BADNBLK

iTrader: (11)

Welcome from a fellow convertible new comer also!

Can't wait to see some more pics!

trigger GTA

welcom Mike. Car looks good from the pics

FYI vetty just posted a ls1 on ccfbg. we can have that installed in a weekend!

mikesz1984

lol i saw that he posted that, but i will probably stick with the motor i have in my 84. i am actually thinking of even converting the first injection intake that is on my 84 to just the stock throttle body system, making it appear stock, lol

mikesz1984

well i started looking at the car tonight, i have to fix the rear spoiler(broken studs), the check engine light was on, but it went off after i charged the battery, door pins(these are the worst i have ever run across, it has scratched the ground effects up), but the emergency brake works, it has new tires, new brakes, hopefully tomorrow night i can get some more stuff figured out. Now a question i have, does the 1991 have automatic headlights, because whenever the key is on all the lights come on,( i figured it would have daytime running lights). Also does anybody know if i can just replace the cable to release the top, or do i have to buy the complete unit. Also is there a way i can figure out what all the car is suppose to have, the rpo codes are not on the bottom of the console lid.

mikesz1984

well the check engine light came on again, i read the codes it came up with code 23(mat or tps) so i will be getting both of those. Also the heater core has been bypassed so i will be replacing that. Also the metal line that runs from the rad to the heater core seems to rusted out, is there anyplace to get a brand new one of those, i was checking rock auto out, but was unable to see one.

two-if-by-sea

iTrader: (22)

With a code 23 on an L03, which is what I believe your vert has, look at the bottom of the air cleaner. There is a vacuum hose going to the throttle body, and an electrical connection. Make sure both are connected. I had the 23 last weekend, and found that the electrical connector was no longer attached to the bottom of my air cleaner.

Good luck with your project. I can't believe how much fun I have had in the last 9 months with my convertible. The wifey loves it, the kids think its the greatest thing ever. Hell, the 15 year old emo daughter who hates everything wants a third gen now.

mikesz1984

and so it begins, lol i found this in the rear wheel well, it was covered up with some paint and some tin sort of tacked on, lol i have a feeling i am in for a bit of work i also found some nasty stuff on the drivers pan, so far the passenger side looks solid though



here are the 2 cars side by side



and here is the 2 kids in the car

mikesz1984

well more issues found today, to depressed to post pics, but i have a question that i could not find in a search, i have to remove the frame connector asc put in on the drivers side, i have to replace the floor pan, rear quarter and part of the rocker(than reinstall the connector). Will the car sag if i take it out without supporting it. What is the best way to support it. i notice some people have 2 sets of frame connectors on their verts, but how do you put the outside set on? or would putting a set of alston connectors on it be enough while i was installing the floor and rocker.

mikesz1984

well time to update this, i finally got the asc frame connectors dropped and found all sorts of crap that wasnt good





with the help of a plasma cutter i started removing small bits of the front a pillar and than sandblasted and ground it down(i kept alot of water handy because i did manage to catch a little bit of the underlay i couldnt remove on fire)



i know you can still see rust inside there, but i will clean that up when i pull the floor out, i was only worried about the outside of the a-pillar right now.

i did get one piece of metal welded back in today, dont mind the bird poop, this is really my first time welding, i was getting better at it by the time i was done the first piece, but i still need alot of practice


hopefully as the week rolls on i can replace the bad chunk of rocker panel as well as start cutting up the floor on the inside.

welterracer

awesome... i also just got a 91 rs 305 5 speed.. welcome to the club

mikesz1984

well the more i dig the more i find lol








and this is the amount of dirt and rust just from the front of the rocker and floor pan



and i have started replacing the bad chunks of the inner rocker



i should be able to have the floor pan on the drivers side in by the weekend

this car is definitely going to have more new metal in it than what is left from the factory.

mikesz1984

first test fitting

Aaron12873

looks great Mike keep up the good work before you know it you'll be out enjoyin it with your family!! keep the pics comming i'll be watchin

Richboll

Love your dedication man! You know it will be worth it when it's all shiney and new and you can drop the top and cruise with the family on a sunny summer afternoon. As much as I like T-tops, I love convertibles. good luck with the project. Keep us posted.

BADNBLK

iTrader: (11)

Looks good man! Glad to see you saving that rusty pig

Da Spudro

Like others I applaud you for saving it, most either lack the skill (that'd be me) or feel the time/cost isn't worth it. Glad to see someone do it. Good luck.

mikesz1984

lol i will be honest it scared the crap out of me while i was cutting the floor out but i had about 3 jacks under the car due to using the plasma cutter i couldnt really brace how i wanted to(they would have been in the way) i did get the rest of the trimming done tonight, and i welded up some of the places where the plasma cutter blew threw while cutting so tomorrow i will finish scrapping all of the dirt out of the inner frame rails, touch up any rust in there with a grinder and sandblaster, than paintable rocker guard it tomorrow. Friday i will throw some paint on the inner frame rails and Saturday after work i will start tacking the floor in. by the end of sunday it should all be back in with a coat of primer on it.

One question i plan on using bedliner on the inside of the car, should i paint it first, or can the bedliner go on right over top of the primer.

mikesz1984

well i started the welding tonight. i was just going to spot weld around the edge, but in the end i decided to weld a bead around the whole thing little bits at a time to keep the warpage down as much as possible.

9340Ruby

iTrader: (7)

Nice job! That isn't easy stuff but it sure beats Fred Flinstoning it!

Beefster

Great job Mike.I am also a new vert owner and my first camaro.Mine is a 90 RS 305 auto,lovin it.My 16 year old daughter wants one now,guess I better start looking.

mikesz1984

well quick update, i finally got the complete floor pan installed, i have one touch up to make where i didnt cut it right, i also got the drivers side rocker installed, and most of the front lower a pillar closed in. so far it has been alot of work, but most of the drivers side is now complete.





tomorrow i should be able to finish closing in the front, do all of my grinding, and get a coat of primer on the rocker and lower a-pillar and floor board

ROCFATHER

Man I applaud you! That's some dedication and flat out VERT LOVE! Keep up the good work, can't wait til she's all dolled up.

kciaccio

I agree with what everybody is sayin here. I had not started my car in almost two years. I put a new fuel pump in it last weekend and started her up. I thought I had a project (which I definitely do) But seeing a guy put as much work as you are makes me feel lucky and gives me resolve to keep going.

Prime

Great work on this car! Good job on saving her.

Richboll

It's been awhile since the OP has been on. Mikesz1984...How about catching us up to date. I'd really like to see where you're at on this.

Myfirstconvert

I hate cancer.....Great job!!!

BlueZee28

iTrader: (30)

You're a better man than I...I would have taken the thing straight to a salvage yard after taking off any parts worth saving.

mikesz1984

Well I guess I should update this. This story doesn't have a happy ending. I ended up parting the car out after running into serious frame rot under the gas tank. I still have a vert but it is a 92 firebird that recieved a lot of the good parts from this car. I felt bad about doing it but it was beyond my skill and I couldn't find anybody to take the project on.

Richboll

Well you gave it a good try. I guess we can't save them all, but at least some of the parts live on. How about some pics of the new ride?

Myfirstconvert

Sorry to hear about that.....Lets see the new ride!!!!

abray1

From what I saw you have great skills. I looked almost 20 years for the vert I wanted and was very lucky that it had ZERO rust. I took the interior out and 3M rubberized undercoated the entire inside of the car. Now the car should live a long life way after I am gone. I let the stuff just run all around the wheel openings in the rear wheel openings where water would collect and it is hard to get paint or primer to. The biggest thing I noticed about having a vert is how much they flex. I put all the good red bushings in the sway bars and added the panhard and all the other bars to the suspension and then my windshield cracked. So, frame connectors are a must. They are a lot of fun. I have a yellow c5 vette and a lt5 90 ZR-1 corvette (430RWH) and all I drive is the vert. I will never sell the vert. Your 5sp car is rare according to the vert gurus on here. What are your plans for the car?