I had my GTA parked under a shade tree yesterday so I could work on the dash and be somewhat cool. Well, last night we had a bad storm come through and I heard a loud crash. I didn't see anything out of the windows so I didn't think anything of it. This morning I went out and discovered that a huge limb had fell across my car . It ruined the windshield, both fenders, the hood, and a headlight. The left fender is pushed in so much I couldn't even get the hood up. The hood is also pushed over into the right fender. Do any of you body experts have any idea of how serious this may be? If it worse than getting new hood and fenders I may just sell the car. I can't afford to put a fortune into it. There was nothing wrong with the body before, just bad paint.





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left fender






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hood and headlight

 

That's very fixable, all of the stuff is just bolt on.

I replaced the WHOLE front end on a smashed S10 one time that rear ended a car and this would be way easier than that.

 

yeah thats fixable if you cant afford to fix it hold on to the car till you can you will regret selling it

 

That's good to know. I'm going to try and get the hood open this evening. Right now I have a tarp over it to keep the rain out of the winsheild. I think the windsheild will be needed first, it's about to fall in .

 

Yeah. Looks like exteriorsheet metal damage only, no inner damage.

On a side note...Hang on to your wheels! Those are the 87-only gold GTA wheels. I HAD a set of 87 only ones, but didn't realize until after I got rid of them!

 

The glass people are coming tomorrow to replace the windshield. It's $270, but I hate broken glass, especially anywhere near my face.

Stephen, what's different about the '87 GTA wheels ? I have heard people talking about "dimples" but didn't know what they were talking about.

 

hey man i feel for you. I hope your GTA gets brought back man. dont sell it keep that car lol its sweet. Keep us updated in how things are going. Good Luck man and sorry for your hard times

 

What makes them special?

 

87-only

 

Notice where the gold laces come together at the polished lip? Yours are smoth, no dimples. 88+ had the dimples.

Here's the 88+ ones...Yours don't have the dimples. AND, you have the 87 correct center caps. 88+ got the WS6 ones in the pic below.

 

Thanks for pointing that out, I never noticed it before. My wheels need refinishing, but that will be way way later, lol.

My hood opened fairly easy, it just wont close back unless I knock the fender back out a little. It could have been worse, it could have fell across the A-pillar. I have it worked out with a local f-body yard to get the replacement parts at a decent price. I feel a little better for now, until I write the check for the windshield tomorrow.

 

Thanks for nothing, Salem! LOL!

Thanks for the clarification Stephen.

 

This doesn't fall under a homeowners insurance plan? For as much damage as there is, i would think it worth a claim if it does.
Just curious.

 

I asked and they said no. The only way the car would be covered is if I had full coverage with comprehensive. Since the book value on the car is so low I didn't see where it would be worth it to get full coverage. Even if I could file it on my homeowners I don't think I would. The last thing I need is to get dropped during hurricane season.

 

Too bad there's not a loophole you could work. Oh well, there's enough parts just on this forum that you should be able to get her back together pretty easily. And like you said, best not to get dropped with 150mph winds outside.

 

Few questions for ya: what part of Louisiana are you in? Curious where that local f-body yard was, depending how they price stuff I could use a couple things here and there for my 85... I'm over in NOLA though....

 

I bought the car in Louisiana, but I live on the AL/FL line. The f-body yard is just outside of Pensacola ( www.birdsandbowties.com ).

 

Got the new windshield in today, nice and smooth . For some reason the black part around the edge looks wider . Oh well, it looks better than before.

 

yeah when i got my window replaced they put a new oute trim seal. its much wider. and i think it looks much better.

 

OK guys this is kinda on a side note but what would you recomend for a fender damaged like his? would you get a new reproduction fender or go to a yard and try to find one? Im sure the repro ones dont fit very good but im not sure.

 

I put a repro fender on my 86 and it fit and works just fine...and it only cost $40.

 

I assume I'm supposed to use base Firebird fenders? T/A fenders won't work because of the vents.

 

or you could take the oportunity to get Trans Am fenders with the vents but yeah, you're correct, base Firebird and GTA fenders are the same... its not hard to replace...I just replaced my fender a few weeks ago... its just a pain getting to all the little bolts...but very doable...

 

Oh thats minor. it sucks it happened but totally repairable. its good to see that you are. also third gen parts arent that hard to find. take a look in the parts for sale section/parts wanted and post an ad up. your sure to find some one

 

Sorry to hear about your ride, but dont sell it!
I regretted selling my 83 camaro for years, and it was just a coupe. You've got a GTA, someting a lil more special. Hang on to it. That's a easy fix, all bolt on. The "hardest" part is going to be paintin it.

 

well it gives him a better reason to pain the car :-D

 

No doubt . I guess it's a good thing it didn't happen after it was painted. Nah, I'm not going to sell it, I guess I was just panicking when I saw that huge log on it . I really need to buy myself a good car cover, I hate to park it near trees now but I also hate to leave it in the hot sun. I may just have to break down and build a bigger carport too.

 

.

 

Where did you get the repro fenders from & how were they? Fit as well as OEM?

 

Although you may get info It is a two year old thread. I do know niterider is a very good visitor here though.