Hello guys and gals! First and foremost - to those of you responsible for this site - and to the 100's of posters who have provided so much information for noobs like me - THANK YOU! This is my first 3rd Gen project and the information here has been an incredible resource for my build.

I am building (or rebuilding) a 91 RS Camaro - currently a stock 305 TBI 5 Speed car. Planned mods include an LS1 T56 swap, custom paint and interior, electronics and stereo, wheels, tires, etc....

I will post as progress is made for 2 reasons:

1) To possibly help others with their projects, and
2) To gloat about how b!tchen my car is. :-)

Here we go! Wish me luck!

 

Blow our minds!

 

First order of business is the body - and having T-Tops in North Carolina...well, we have a lot of roof rust to take care of and will need to remake some of the T-Top channels.

Unable to find a metal fab shop capable of making replacement channels, I decided to make them myself.

I had my local metal shop make L shaped pieces out of 20 guage sheetmetal (they could at least do this part for me). One side 7/16" and the other 7/8".

I then fabbed a piece of 3/16" steel to serve as my "jig". I drilled holes in this piece and corresponding holes in the L pieces. I then bolt all of this to a steel workbench and then CAREFULLY and SLOWLY bend the 7/16" side over the 3/16" steel with a heavy hammer.

In my prototype I used a torch to heat the metal for easier bending. This was BAD as the heat warped the metal. The second piece I made without any heat came out straight.

 

The pieces in the pics above will be welded in to replace the rotted channels that have been removed. The windshield side will have little slits cut in the bottom side so that it can be bent to conform to the roofline. Trying to bend these without a slit will warp the metal.

 

Subscribing. The wheels look clean!

 

She's still at the bodyshop and I hope to get her home in a couple more weeks. Here is the progress thus far. I forgot to mention we are going BLACK.

 

Wheels are being replaced with these - I opted for 17's so that I still have a sidewall and not feel like I'm driving a brick.

 

I see a lot of people move away from the stock wheels but I sure like them. Hoping I can put some effort into polishing and repainting mine to get them to look as good as yours.

 

They look a lot better in the pic than in person, but they are in pretty good shape. They just don't quite fill out the wheel wells as I would like. Plus I want to show off the Corvette brakes once they are installed. The car was well maintained by the previous owner. No rust anywhere except for the T-Tops - but from what I can tell I am not alone....

 

While I am waiting for the body shop to finish, I am getting the new seats ready - these are power seats I acquired out of a 99 Porsche Boxster. Since they have level and flat rails they will retro-fit easily. The rears will be black leather out of a 4th gen that I am acquiring from another TGO member - like I said, This site is awesome!

Eventually - but not yet because upholstery work is unbelievably expensive - I will have the front and rears recovered with houndstooth centers and will also install the old 68 Camaro seat emblems in the headreasts.

 

Very nice! I'm lovin the seats and the rims! What kind of rims are those?

 

good luck on the build.

 

Chrome Corvette C6 copies.

 

Very nice.

 

New T-Top channels welded in and ready for paint!

 

Black paint and clear applied and ready for sand and buff!

 

Noice.

 

Moving along nicely.

 

Man you're really on it!

 

Just got it back from the body shop. I have installed the new outer window felt/weatherstripping and wheels and tires, along with the new T-Top bar. I went to install my new soffseal T-Top seals only to discover that the quality is not what I had hoped for. I have now ordered new GM ones and they will be in in a week or so.

 

Swwweeeeeet.

 

youve done so much i little time. loooking good

 

that was really quick. looks good.

 

Looks great so far. Gotta get those front bumper lights changed out. They don't look near as good as the rest of the car. Can't wait to see more pics.

 

Agree with the statement on the parking lights. Also think the side markers should be tinted instead of yellow.

The only problems is I don't know where to find the parking lights or side markers tinted. LOL

 

Have spent the last couple of weeks installing the wiring for the power seats, stereo and interior lighting.

I will post more about the stereo once I begin installing the components.

Interior lighting will consist of LED lighting under the dash and seats - NOT the cheapo LED crap that lasts 3 weeks either. They will be white in color.

I have almost completed installing the sound deadener...thank god. This stuff is a PITA to install! I bought mine from Eastwood - much cheaper than other places (Dynamat) for the same thickness.

I also finally got my hatch pull down working - bad cancel switch. Finding one of those was fun, but thanks to the folks at Hawks for getting me a rebuilt one. New hatch and hood shocks also.

 

Smoked park lights are in also ;-) I'll post a pic tomorrow.

 

I did not want a carpeted center console so I decided to strip mine and recover with black vinyl.

I first removed the old gray carpet. Tip: Use a heat gun to loosen the glue - BIG help.

I then used a chemical spray called Acrysol to remove what was left of the glue on the plastic console. This stuff is awesome and it won't eat the plastic.

I first covered both sides of the console with 1/16" foam. Lay the console on the foam and trim out a piece a few inches bigger than the console. You can trim the excess once the glue dries.

The glue I used was Weldwood contact adhesive. This is the best stuff I have found for upholstery work. It is designed for spray, but for smaller applications like my console brushing it on works fine. Apply to BOTH the console and foam, let cure for a few minutes the apply the foam to the console. Trim the excess with a razor knife after it has set for about 30 minutes.

 

Next comes the vinyl. The tricky part is the rear - there is no cover like the top section has to hide where the vinyl ends. I glued this end in a fold and then glued it to the console. I let this cure overnight and then applied glue to the rest of the vinyl and console and carefully set the vinyl in place.

Once the glue holding the vinyl has dried, you must then roll the excess around the edges of the console and trim accordingly. Take your time.

Here is the finished console ready for install.

 

Here is a pic of the smoke'd front lights - I love the side marker lense but the front park light isn't as "smoked" as I would have liked. I have LEDs in the side marker lights and I am looking for a good LED option for the turn/park light.

And yes, the car needs a bath. ;-)

 

Wow that center console looks awesome! How much would you charge to do something like that?

 

lloks very nice so far...more pics...

 

Worked on the interior some more. I got the carpet, rear seat and driver's seat installed. The seats are out of a Porsche Boxter - wired up with power recline. I have protective foam on the seat to protect the painted rear. I'll take a better pic of the seats once I get a little further along.

The rear seats are out of a fourth gen.

The carpet install has hands down been the most frustrating part thus far. Molded to fit my a$$. Had to heat with a space heater and work for hours to get it to lay decent. I hope over time the few remaining wrinkles work their way out.

Ther carpet I used was from Trim Parts. I will probably try a different brand next time.

 

Would love to help, but finding time to work on mine is hard enough. it's easy - you can do it.

 

Wow that carpet does look rough to start. I hope my ACC is in better shape when I unroll it.

 

Door panels completed:

Used the old panels to make a "rough" patern - rough due to previous water damage and age. After rough cut I mounted to the doors to trim all the excess before upholstery work. I used 1/8 inch "bathroom board" from Lowes. I applied fiberglass resin to stress areas to help strengthen where the panel clips mount.

The green tape is to mark where my houndstooth stips will be and to aid in foam removal after the foam is glued to the panel.

I used 1/8 inch closed cell foam. Great stuff.

I then removed the foam where the tape was, covered 1/8 inch strips of the same board used to make the panels and covered with original 69 Camaro houndstooth upholstery.

Remainder of panels covered in black vinyl.

I had planned on installing the speakers in the kick panels, but they interferred with clutch pedal opperation and just made driving the car miserable. I have much better leg room with them in the doors. I bought some aftermarket billet window cranks that sit out a bit farther than stock so no issues with them hitting the speakers, and they look much better than stock.

 

Pics of completed door panel - both sides done.

 

Sub Box / Stereo:

I made a sub box to sit in the lower well as to retain as much space as possible. It holds one 10 inch Boston Acoustics G2 sub.

I have 2 Alpine amps - A 300 watt amp to power the 2 Kicker 6x9's and Kenwood 6 1/2 components and a 500 watt mono amp for the sub. I chose these amps for 2 reasons

1) Alpine **** is awesome. And

2) Both amps look identical. If I have to see them (which I do since there isn't anyplace else I can mount these things) them I want them to be uniform. Mission accomplished.

I covered the sub box with 1/16 inch foam and the same vinyl I used on the doors.

Yes, it sounds incredible. I have drained the battery 3 times now just sitting in the car listening to the stereo. My decibel meter maxed at 110. It definitely goes to 11.

 

Other than a few nick-nacky things the interior is complete. The car used to have gray interior believe it or not.

Seat backs painted, wired up and installed. Seats are out of a Porsche Boxster with power recline/tilt. Nothing enhances the driving "experience" like a good seat.

 

Very nice job so far. Are you doing most of this work yourself?

 

Well done sir, well done.

 

Yes. I am an ASE Certified Master Technician and I own and operate Frantz Automotive Center in Cary, NC. www.frantzautomotive.com

My last project was a 68 Camaro. I chose this car for my latest project because it seems that everyone tricks a 67-71 Camaro or a Mustang. I wanted something different, and the third gen Camaro was always one of my favorite body styles - just wish they had actually put a real engine under the hood but I digress....

LS and T56 coming soon..... ;-)

 

Thanks!

 

Just read/looked through your thread. Great job you did!! If you dont mind me asking, how much did those seats run?? They look pretty good in our cars. May have to keep them in mind.

 

Pulled them out of a totaled Porsche - they were free!

They have flat tracks which lend themselves well to fabbing into other cars.

 

Oh wow good find!!

 

Sure would be nice to find a good mechanic that enjoyed cars as much as you do around here. I haven't found too many I trust in Vegas.