Hi, I'm interested in building a third generation trans am from the ground up. I'm very new to auto body work in general, but I'm interested in learning and really want to invest the time and effort into this project. I wanted to know if anyone could help me with acquiring information for getting started on this project. Price listings, part listings, dependency charts for what parts work best/only with other parts, but most importantly I need a push in the right direction to go from a third generation trans am to a finished product.

Thanks,
Rob

 

Welcome to the board.

I assume you're rebuilding a trans am, as building one from scratch is a bit daunting !

I'm renovating a Camaro over here in the UK, pop along to www.camaro.batcave.net to see the pics and the progress. As far as bodywork is concened, as far as I'm aware, the only parts you need to worry about are the rear quarters. They are a b!tch to repair if they are too far gone. And the roof, of course.

Check out the "search" button just below the ad banners. You should be able to find everything you want to know about with a few key words.

Do you have a car at the moment? I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say, "show us a pic!!"

Si

 

First thing is, pick a car. There is a certain amount of variation there: carb, FI; hardtop, T-tops, convertible; etc. Then, consider what you're going to use it for: daily driver, weekend fun, strip only, auto-X, etc. Then, come up with a budget, either for the entire project, or for different parts of it, divided up into body, engine, interior, or whatever other chunks you think in. Then, go out looking for the right car.

This is a great place to get answers to any kind of technical wuestion, from the how-to, to what car is better, to what was original, etc. I doubt anybody is going to give you a step-by-step for a frame-off, but lots of people here can give you info about parts & pieces of the job, that might save you untold dollars or time.

Good luck!!

 

I was thinking about a late 80s or early 90s trans am. I havn't decided exactly what route I want to go with. It would be used for daily driving as it would become my primary (only) car. carbon filter would be the best option, I'd like to reduce the overall weight of the car. I'm hung up on what engine would be best. I'm new so I don't think going the muscle route of a 455 would be best, it would require a whole new transmission. (that and 10 miles per gallon would hurt me alot). The internal machinery would give me the most problem, but that is of course my main focus and the part im most interested in. I sounded a bit like I was looking for a step by step walkthrough in the original post but it's more of a "If I purchase said engine, what needs to be changed, upgraded, or modified internally for the car to be in a peak condition."