Quote: Originally Posted by NEW-85IROC-Z Hi, Im glad to see you got my email, and the links to this forum. Thanks for joining!! Did you happen to check out any of the video's or some of the many pictures I have posted? What do you think of the car so far?? I have much more work to do, but it should come out pretty good. I offered to do this because its something that I really enjoy to do. The current owner, Jack is an older gentleman, and he surely wasent going to do it. If I wouldent of stepped in and offered, our detail department would have done it, and they just wouldent have had the time to do the kind of detailing that this car needed, and deserved. Let us know what you think, and when you have a moment if you could reply to the email I sent you, that would be great. Thanks!! Keith you are doing a terrific job. not many people like us around that cares about how an original a iroc should be kept. my 85 is bone stock but it has 173,00 miles on it. i wish i had you here for at least 2 weeks to detail mine. you are doing a great and correct job on the car. steve

The story that I got regarding this car is the original owner ordered the car new in 85 specifying that he be notified by the dealer when it arrived on the transporter. The car was transferred directly from the transporter to a flatbed tow vehicle and brought to the storage yard. I do not believe the car was ever driven or even started. The original intention was to make a street rod type car out of this Camaro. The engine was going to be swapped for a big block, suspension re-worked, custom wheels and tires, complete audio upgrade etc. The reason this model, LG4, was purchased is because it allowed the manual transmission and there was not really a big concern on the engine because it was going to be swapped out anyway. The big thing is all the clutch pedal linkage would be there. Early on the stock wheels and tires were sold to start and finance the project. That is when the junkyard rims and snow tires where put on, even leaving the original lug nuts. For one reason or another, either financial or work related, the car project moved very slowly and finally just stopped all together. I do think a big block was located and was also being built up at that time and that probably consumed a lot of the finances. The car sat it the trailer for all those years until it was purchased by me.
I had heard about the car for at least 10 or 15 years knowing exactly where it was but was always told that it was never going to be sold. Never say never. There were even times when I would see the rear doors of the trailer open for days on end which explains the amount of dust and grime on the car. It is easy to second guess the original owner as to why he never put a car cover on it but I don't think he ever intended for it to sit for so long. After a while you just don't think about it anymore. I am sure all of us have a few things put away that we know we have and just don't look at all the time. Just so happens that they are not brand new Camaro's!!
I knew that I was not going to keep this car that is one of the reasons I did not want to disturb it's condition one bit. I am very much a car nut liking many different makes and models but Camaro's are not my passion. Big land yachts of the early sixties are more my specialty. Although my first car was a '69 Firebird Sprint convertible, 6cyl OHC w/Holley 4bbl and 4spd all factory stock of which there were only 213 built. Now that would have never left my grasp if that was the find in this trailer.
I welcome any questions about the Camaro and will answer honestly and to the best of my ability.

Thanks for that information.

It's just an amazing story. I'm sure there are cars out there, bought for the sole reason as an investment, that are sitting in a garage comfy, warm and dry. 25 years from now up will pop up a 2009 Z06 corvette w/ 11 miles. What fun is that. Blah lol.

What makes this situation different and unique is the original owner shelling out good money for a brand new car with the intention of hot rodding it. (I mean who does that these days, lol.) It's a base engined car with nothing rare about it. The not getting around to the project for 20+ years. It being a non-dealer prepped car and so on makes the car desirable. It's the background that makes it "historic" and an interesting to me.

Update:

New Lug Nuts came in a few minutes ago, and they look great! Plus, I just got an email from the GM dealership stating the power antenna repair kit is in...

Now if I could only find a easy way to get these wheels from Canada I am looking at here. I also just found out that this guy never put any weights on the outside of the wheels, only the inside, so the outer portion of the wheels are perfect!

The only bad part is that he wont sell the wheels by themself. So, we have to find a place that will package them up, and ship them also. Many places wont ship tires so that is another problem. Anyway, I am going to make some calls today to see what I can do to get these 9,000 mile wheels here...

Keith

i find it hard to believe the car was never started at some point in the production process. gm's quality control couldnt have been THAT bad

qbansmokr was referring to after delievery. How else would the car get 4.3 miles on it?

Keith, you might want to post a new thread asking if someone lives near the tire location. You might be able to work with them to pick up the tire/rim combo for you, get the tires removed and ship you the rims. Maybe you can offer them the tires for super cheap as a thank you. I have found that there are many people on these boards willing to help another Camaro/Firebird person any way they can, even to the point of driving to look at a car that's for sale, taking pictures and getting as many details as possible for the prospective new owner. It won't hurt to post it.

Man, this is beyond cool. At first when I heard about this I thought it was an urban legend, like the one I used to hear about years ago involving a widow who sold her dead husband's '53 Chevy to a collector for a couple hundred bucks... and the punchline was that it was a '53 Corvette.

If I had the means, and known it was available, I'd have bought it myself... but what I'd really like is a '69 Camaro... had one, and sold it.

It's great to see the loving care that is going into this car.

hey where in canada.... i am 20 miles from there if u need someone to get them i can always go pick them up and if u want the tires taken off i can take them to my buddys shop to remove them and he can pack everything up in boxes and ship them for ya if u need let me know i can give you my phone number

hey keith,

there is a guy selling an 87 formula w/411 miles that just replaced the old tires. maybe they were gator backs?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...m=260401760159

Keith,
Just a quick note the '92 GTA wheels I got from SLP came by UPS and were on the rims wraped with 2 layers of cardboard. They did not get damaged in shipment. That may help with getting the seller to pack them for you. Also consider calling a moving company to pick them up and pack them then ship via UPS or what ever. might cost more but it would get them packed better and also help with the security of the transaction and shipping...
Dave

Thanks for the info!!

I emailed the guy and asked him if they were Gatorbacks, and if he would sell them. I will post back with his reply...

Thanks again!!

Keith

Thank you for the offer!!

I am waiting for a reply tonight to see what his address is, or location in Canada. I will reply as soon as I know. That would be awsome if you could help. If you need some tires, you can have the firestones that are on it now if you want them. I will find out more info on them. Or just let me know what kind of money you would need to help, and we can go from there.

Again, I really appreciate your help, and I will post back soon..

Keith

I am with Jon I know him on a personal level and hes a great guy we are very close to the border here in MI and if its not far I'd be willing to help as well. We have both been following this car since its hit the internet and are both fascinated by it and its story!

Ok, he responded back, and this is his reply as to where he is located:

" I'm located in Toronto, North York, Ontario in the north central part of the city near Lawrence Avenue East and Don Mills Road.If your Canadian contacts are familiar with Toronto this will give them a clear indication of my location in the city"

How far is that from your location??

Thanks again for the offer, but if its too far, I will find other means. I would hate to have you drive very far....Let me know when you have a minute...

Keith

Thank you for your help as well, I really appreciate it!! I posted the location of the gentleman with the wheels, just let me know if it is too far, I completely understand if it is, and I can make other arrangements if needed. I just wish the tires were not on the wheels. They are really causing me a pain in the rear....I asked him what kind of Firestone tires he had, how long he has had them, and aprox how many miles were on the tires as well. He should post back soon, if not in the early am on Tuesday. I will post an update about the tires if anyone is interested....
Tuesday is my day off, but I will make a trip to town to get this guy a Certified Cashier’s check in the mail before I go much further. I don’t want him to sell these wheels while I arrange the shipping.....

Will post back soon, and thanks to all who have offered your advice, and time to help in the restoration of this car. You guys are awesome!! I hope someday I can get this thing to some cars shows so everyone can see it when it is finished.

Keith

if he is in Toronto its about 3 and half hrs from me not that far... if u need me to get them i will do it just for gas money i would just be glad to help with this project

Now thats why I love these boards.....

J.

Damn yea people on this board are really coming together for this one car.

Having just read this thread. Two thoughts came to mind. 1. I couldn't help thinking after reading this thread, after the viewing of the pictures and video documentation, it made me feel as if I was watching the birth of a newborn. A newborn a whole community will readily love and care for. 2. This thread should be a sticky. One doesn't often get a chance to view pristine history like this in the making. In the years to come, an archived account will be priceless.

Just a thought.

PUMP THE BRAKES....

I would not mind to make the drive with you Jon, nothing we couldnt do on a friday or saturday!

ya i know man it not a big deal.. i dont mind going if you need me to get the rims Keith? i believe that your name let me know... or call me anytime 586 662-0145

now why wont people go get parts for my camaro

I started a new thread asking if anyone was near the area in Toronto. No responses yet, but the thread is open.

Just heard back from the guy with the Formula with 400 miles on it. This is what he had to say:

"They were 245 VR 50 16's but they had sit for 20+ years and are completly dry-rotted."

Thank you any way for the heads up, it was worth a try. He dident say that they were Gatorbacks, but wasent the Gatorback one of the few VR rated tires back in the day??? I guess I will stick with the Goodyear RSA's that I have coming for now. If I do find some "new" Gatorbacks that are in good shape, and not dry rotted, Im sure I can sell a set of $800 plus tires that have no miles on them for a decent price....

Thanks again!!

Keith

I emailed the guy, and asked him what his address is, so I can send him a Certified check. I will let you know when I send it, and his address. We can go from there. Also, if someone chimes in closer, and they offer, please feel free to "pass" on the trip. If you do by chance make the trip, we will have to talk about getting you some cash for the trip for fuel. Do you by chance need some tires? I found out that the tires he has are Firestone Firehawk FTX's, and they also have only 9,000 miles on them. They were only driven in the summer, so they are in perfect shape I guess. If you have a use for these tires, let me know, and they are yours...It would be cheaper to ship the wheels without them, plus it would benefit you as well.

I will give you a call on Wed if that’s ok...Thanks again!!

alrite man no biggie just call me

I was supposed to go to bed an hour ago, then I stumbled upon this thread, Thanks a lot.

Please keep the interior plastics on. Chin spoiler, I'll leave that up to you, I personally would put it on.

Whats up Keith?
I think your doing a great job on the car. I've been following this car since the video was shown on ebay. I see your looking for some original tires and I was wondering if you had called Coker tires? The number is 1 866 513 2744 or look online at Cokertire.com. You may not see them online but they may be able to order them for you. Good luck!
My opinion, leave the nose piece off.

Well, I had a small change of mind on the shipping arrangements. I really appreciate your offer to help, the thought of you doing that for virtually nothing is just unbelievable.

I did however have the seller take them to the UPS store and had them packed up and shipped out. I just thought it might get too complicated with so many people involved, and trying to get everyone's schedule timed just right might take some time. Again, I want to thank you and anyone else that offered to go and get these wheels, it was extremely kind of you to offer your time not to mention the miles you would put on whatever car you were going to drive.

I got the center caps in today that I got from Ebay which are original GM parts, plus the rest of the GM stuff I ordered is in as well. Just have to pick it up. The only problem is the hood insulator that came today. The person who I bought if from said that it would fit an 82 only. (He was right!) However when I had my local GM dealership look it up, it did indeed say that and 82, & 85 were different part numbers. However, the parts computer said that the 85 was still available. So, I ordered one. The next day the guy called me and said that it was no longer available, and the part number changed to another one, which was also discontinued. That part number matched the one that was on ebay which was GM, NOS still sealed. I even had the parts guy do a look up of the sheet metal to see if the hood was the same from 82 & 85 and it was, so I thought this insulator would have to be correct!! Turns out this is NOT the correct hood insulator. It has what looks like a aluminum backing to it, and a hole in the center of it. The one that is on the car now does not have any backing to it, and does not have any cut outs in the insulator at all. I don’t know what was different in 82, but something was. Anyway, this thing is not what is on the car now, so now I am stuck with a very expensive, obsolete hood insulator that I have to sell on ebay, or maybe I will post it on this forum for sale. Maybe someone needs a new genuine GM hood insulator for a 82 Camaro out there???

I do have a lead I found today that what appears to be a new GM “correct” hood insulator for the car. I will find out more on Thursday….

I will post some updates soon. Been very busy at work this week, so I haven’t really messed with the Iroc too much. Oh, we did get the new Goodyear RSA’s in today also. They are a sweet looking tire, can’t wait to see what they look like on the correct wheels…

Talk to ya guys soon....

Keith

Thanks for the kind words! Yea, I tried Cokertire the first week we got the car. I thought that would be a good place to start. I am afraid that I dident get much help there. I emailed them and asked if they had those tires, and if not, could they point me in the right direction. The guy simply said they have been discountiued for years, and " it will be very difficult, if not impossible to find those tires" Sounds like he dident want to get off of his stool to look into it at all for me...I was kind of dissapointed, but it seems thats the way a lot of places are these days. If it's not on the shelf, then we dont have it...Nobody wants to put any effort in these days.. Execpt for this forum, and you guys arent even getting paid to do anything, these guys are!! Oh well, I will keep looking, but for now, the Goodyear Eagle RSA's we got in should do for now...

Take care!!

Keith

awww man i was hoping to go but o well if u need anything esle let me know

Might be worth some coin if it's NOS. I believe it's for the 82-83 fiberglass hood with operating air induction.

That's not really fair...Someone randomly calls asking for a set of 23 year-old tires...They've not only been discontinued for years, but years and years. He just probably knows what he's got and knows where to find it and knows he can't find those. You can call a million stores, and nobodys going to have them. Althought I know you're going to find a set. And I bet they belong to a member of this site. There are 96,000 members, and only 3500 have even read this thread. They're sitting in someones garage on a pallet sealed in a box.

its just a job to that guy at coker. we are car guys, f-body guys at that! this is a passion for the guys helping keith. not some $10 an hour job answering calls.

$10 an hour!!!! I frieken wish!!

I'd say Kevin is right. The aluminum foil backing would be to protect the fiberglass from heat, and the "hole" in the insulator would be for the induction part where the hood flappers were. The '84 and newer cars did not have this hood. Sounds like a rare and valuable piece to me.

Whoever you had looking up part numbers who told you that the '82 and '85 hoods were the same either got some bad information, or he was looking at base Camaro hoods instead of Z28s.

Thanks for the info. I think you are right! Think I should list it on Ebay??? It is NOS, I did open one side of the cardboard, but I did not remove it from the package. In fact, I only opened part of one side. Enough to see what inside then I gave up knowing it was wrong. But it had never been opened until I got it.

I did have a web site come up with another part number today, and it turns out the hood insulator I need IS still available from GM. I ordered it today and it will be here on Friday. It was only $65.00. MUCH, cheaper than the one I bought from Ebay. I really hope the one I get in on Friday is correct, and if anyone is interested in a new obsolete hood insulator for a 82 Camaro Z28, let me know and we can go from there...

Keith

If your not in a huge rush to sell it I usually throw things up in the for sale section of this board first. Then if no one bits for a long enough time i throw the item on ebay. Its up to you though. It will probably sell to someone on ebay.

As for the tires, I am from Toronto (live in Georgia now) and have contacts in the auto parts industry in TO. My best friend lives about 10 minutes from Lawrence and Don Mills. (Heck, I lived in that neighbourhood 7 years ago!) Email 811 haven@comcast.net with a number and i will pass along his name and info

Thank you for the offer, however I have already made arragements to have them shipped here. It was about 300.00 in shipping, but overall the price paid for the wheels, tires, and shipping was very resonable compared to what nos wheels are going for, if you can find them. Even the owner said "thats all ?" when I told him how much...

Thanks again for the offer, I appreciate your efforts. Now, if you have someway of getting some "new" Goodyear Gatorbacks that are not dry rotted from some of your contacts, that would be great!

Take care...

This may sound crazy, but if you are looking for new tires, maybe you could pick them up one at a time. Here's a guy selling a VR and ZR Gatorback in August of 08 on the turbo buick site. He lists his cell number so its worth a 5 minute phone call to see if he still has what you are looking for.

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/gnx...gnx-front.html

Hey Keith, do you any pictures of the insulation? I just bought one off of ebay, for my '83 Crossfire Z/28. It didn't have the aluminum backing, so I had to peel off the old one and put it on, plus I'm not 100% happy with fit - I had to trim some areas.

Anyway, I might be intersted in the one you have if it fits my car.

yal might as well make this thread a sticky it aint goin nowhere

any updates? been following this for awhile now lol.

Another member waiting updates...
This is actually the thread that finally convinced me to join (couldn't see the pics otherwise). Oh, and the fact that I pulled My 85 IROC out of nearly 5 years of being garaged.

quote:

Hey Keith, do you any pictures of the insulation? I just bought one off of ebay, for my '83 Crossfire Z/28. It didn't have the aluminum backing, so I had to peel off the old one and put it on, plus I'm not 100% happy with fit - I had to trim some areas.

Anyway, I might be intersted in the one you have if it fits my car.




Hello,

Had a pretty busy weekend, so thats why I havent been online in a while. Well, I took some pictures of the hood insulator for you. I hope they are good enough quality for you. You can check them out here... http://s258.photobucket.com/albums/h...view=slideshow

Let me know if you are interested. It was taken out of the box only to take these pictures, other than that it has been in the package the whole time, and it is discountiued from GM as far as I know. We have $100.00 in it, plus shipping. We would like to get our money back out of it if possible. We dont need to make a profit on it, and I can provide reciepts of what we paid for it if needed....

Thanks!

Keith

Hey Guys,

Well, I put another coat of wax on this weekend, and man is this paint coming alive!! The color is really starting to come back. The "correct" hood insulator came in Friday, and fits perfect. I also installed the rear hatch lift struts this weekend and cleaned the inside glass while I was at it. I have a huge lawn at home, so I spent most of the weekend cutting grass which was about ready to be bailed rather than mowed. LOL

The wheels from Canada are on their way as well. They should be here this week. When we get the wheels, the power antenna repair kit will be put on at the same time so there is less moving the car around.

I had a member pm me about a couple of "correct" new Gatorback tires, so I am going to check into that some more. I would only need two more tires, and I already have a member that I know of who has some who is "thinking" about selling them to us, but again, I have to check. I am going to have to get with the boss to see how much he is willing to spend to put original tires on this car. We already have over $800 in tires for the car here now (New Goodyear Eagle RSA's Z Rated) plus I have 4 refinished wheels that are here as well that I have to send back. I just don’t know how much a difference it’s going to make having the correct tires on this car which might cost a small fortune, verses putting on some very expensive Eagle RSA’s? Man, I would hate to see the boss's Amex card bill that I have been charging everything too!! LOL

I am going to start cleaning the inside of the car this week also, have to get the tar like stains off of the seats and carpets that came from the floor mats that have the rubber backing on them. As some of you may know, that rubber backing deteriorates into a tar like substance over many years.

Scott advised me that simple green and resolve would take it out fairly easy so I am going to try that first. After that I am going to really dig into the engine compartment and make it look as new as possible. That’s going to take some time as there are many crevices that are still very dusty.

I have been invited by another Camaro forum to take this car to MI the end of this month to a Camaro car show. I have to check with the boss to make sure it’s ok, and if so, make sure its show ready by that time as well. I would really love to take this car out and show everyone. I think it would be a great time. I will post to let everyone know if I will be taking it or not..

So, basically have the paint to finish up, the small amount of interior stains, wheels & tires, antenna repair kit, and engine compartment and it will be done! Once I get the wheels & tires on, I am going to post some pictures right away of the car. It’s going to look great!!

Thanks to all who have given advice, and have followed this car from day one! Your time and knowledge are very much appreciated!!

Will post again soon!!

Keith

Thanks for the link. I will call him today and will let you know what I find out...

Thanks again!

Keith

Well,

I called the guy, and the tires he had for sale were sold a long time ago. He said that he still has a full set now for himself, but he really doesen't want to sell them. He said if he did sell them, they would be at a premium price around the $2,000 mark for all 4. He told me to check back with him if I dont find any just to see what he may have come up with, or if he thought about selling his set....

Definatly a good number to hang on too!!


Thanks again Tony for the link, another good contact, and yet another guy who is looking for tires!!

Looks like this thread is going to start a page #5. Sure is a lot of post's and watchers of this 85 Iroc. Cant wait until it is finished!!


Keith