Whew. Okay, so I got my Camaro back today. It's pretty rough. It was my first car, when I was 19. I'm about to turn 31 now, and I live in Las Vegas. I had it sitting at my parents house in Florida for the last 7 years, and due to some issues with transporters damaging the ignition lock cylinder, it was unable to start for the entire time. When parked, it otherwise worked fine. It needed a new Clutch master Cylinder, and a good cleaning from a recent dust storm. Recent being 2013. I know there's going to be a huge amount of work to even get it running again, but I think I can do it over time relatively cheaply.

As you can see from my profile, I have been here before, but not for a very long time. I don't know how regularly I'll be posting, but I know there is no better place to connect with folks who know these cars. I'm somewhat mechanically inclined, so I'm willing to do big jobs if I have detailed instructions, but I think the main issue I'll be facing is knowing what big jobs to look at doing.I think the first thing I need to do will be a VERY deep cleaning and at least partial reassembly of the interior.

I'm thinking I'll need to finish the master cylinder, replace the battery, and replace fluids. Tires, brakes, etc will be later on but also very needed. I think I remember reading somewhere about fuel pumps needing to be replaced after too long sitting, I could be wrong. I'll have to take a good look at the seats since the driver seat wouldn't lock back, and there are some tears and stains. Lotta mold removal too. Also will need a new steering wheel.

What do you guys think? Am I missing anything?

Don't worry, that T-Top is still there. I had to take it out to hear my spotter getting it off the truck.

 

You gotta hit up your old goals and make it mid-engine, for sure.

I would say get it 100% running and passing smog. Then tear down and paint eng. bay, floors, jambs, and then get it back together for paint. Nice ride.

 

Don't try to start it on old gas, a $10 hand pump can siphon it out. Fuel pump is either gone or it isn't, it would be wise to replace it but you might be able to get through all your initial testing before replacing if it is still working. If it's quiet enough you can hear it run for a few seconds when the key is turned to the on position. Don't forget to change the fuel filter. Pop the valve covers off and whack all the valves with a hammer to make sure they aren't stuck. Might as well hose them down with penetrating oil while you're there. Pull the plugs and get some penetrating oil in the cylinders as well. Inspect wires for rodent damage. Watch for smoke when you hook up the battery.

 

I know the gas is gonna be bad lol the last time I started it was in 2013. I'll have to get a cheap pump then to get it all out. I'll do all that engine stuff too, it'll be my first time cracking one open though so much research is needed.

22 year old me was one hell of a dreamer. I agree at this point with the consensus back then. I'm not an engineer in any sense of the word. I actually had a mid engined car for a while, and it was awesome. Would do it again. But the Camaro's engine is gonna stay where it is.

As an update, I got the inside generally clean, replaced the master cylinder for the clutch, got the clutch working again. I put the center console back together and got most of the stains out of the back seat. Haven't gotten to the front for stains yet. Just for fun I hooked up another battery and the lights came on in the dash like it was working just yesterday. Got me all excited seeing that.

Up next I'll be replacing the ignition lock cylinder and either having to pay for a new key to be made or having to add a resistor loop thing to the VATS system.