Hi - So, I acquired my father's old 1969 Camaro... It needs help. I need advice.

[BCinME]

Hi Camaros.org, I thought I'd post to introduce myself. I recently came into a 1969 Camaro. It was my father's - Unfortunately, he let it rot in a barn for a few years - He's just not a car guy, and spent some time being bitter about it for some reason, and just yesterday he said "I don't care anymore. Go do what you need to do to make it run."

My dilemma: I know next to nothing about Chevy SBCs. I do Jeep and Volvo as a hobby. Further compliating the matter, this particular '69 was used as a pro-street drag car in the 80s. So the motor, while being a 1969 350, has been modified, it has a high overbore (I'm told .080, but .060 I'd believe) and is mated to a 2-speed Powerglide on a ratchet shifter with a reverse lockout pin and line-lock. The front wheels are 14" and the back are 15"s with 60 series tires, and there are traction bars on the rear leaf springs. When it ran, it went like hell.

I'd like to get the motor tuned down somehow, once I figure out what's special about it, and get it running well on pump gas instead of race gas, and make the car not so suicidally fast, and get it back on 15s with normal summer tires, fix the stance so the rear end isn't so jacked up, and put disc brakes on it so it can stop in a straight line, so the old man can get in and drive the thing without fearing for his life. I also have to do a bit of rust work - Oddly, none underneath, but the channel along the roofline has some rust bubbling in it. This summer I'm just going to see if I can't rebuild the master cylinder & drums and put some decent wheels and tires on it. (It has some old Cragars, but one of the lips is bent on the front from his brother hitting a curb with it. One of the reasons for him throwing it in a barn to rot.)

I have full access to an auto shop, we've got about everything but a pipe bender an an alignment machine. The car can run - Well, maybe - He last put it up 3 years ago and spitefully (Nobody understands this) ignored the jackstands, fuel stabilizer, etc, etc, that I gave him so it wouldn't, you know, be ruined.

Anyone have a good recommendation on where to start? Obviously, tires, but what to do about those traction bars? I've never encountered them before and Google doesn't seem to know what to do about them. I don't expect I can level the car out without getting rid of them first.

Pictures when I get it out of the barn it's been sitting in for 3 years. : / If you guys can stomach it!

[TooManyReels]

Congrats on getting the car..What I seem to be missing when I read your post is what do you want to do with the car...Make it a daily driver, drag car, just a rebuild for your dad etc........Unless you have unlimited means of funding,  MTC worth - I would approach this in a selective step process just in case you get to a point where you do not want to finish the car to minimize your investment.

ie. body work and paint first, then maybe the interior, then the motor, the wheels and traction control could come last since I assume that to be good based on this being a race car..

Eddie

[BCinME]

I'd like to turn it into a daily driver of sorts. Interior is mint, needs nothing. Body needs a bit of sanding along the channel on the top, I haven't seen it in years but I'm going to say there's still plenty of material there and I shouldn't have to cut & weld any of that. The door skins are gone, but, whatever, I'll just get new doors later. Underneath is mint.

He's owned it for 10-15 years now which is why the dilapidation. I had it running and driving 3 years ago, but the master cylinder started leaking, he put it up, and told nobody to look at it It isn't anything that I'll need to do body and paint, and the engine was rebuilt in '01 professionally, as he stored it improperly, it froze, it cracked, and he spent some cash getting that straight. I'll say it has 6000 miles on it since. I would like to tone it down a bit, though, there's just no need to have a car that fast. (Perspective: I drive a Wrangler 7 days a week, and a Volvo 740 turbo is a fast enough car to me)

Mostly, I think the big thing is do something about the wheels and stance. I'm puzzled as to what to do about the traction bars - Do I just take them off? If I could put 4 15" wheels with 205/70/15 BFs on there and lose the traction bars for the summer, I'd consider that a major victory, I'm just not sure what happens when I remove them.

[GI JOE]

First if you already have some mechanical experience you wont have much trouble with getting into a Chevy. Tons of knowledge online, plus books and I suggest you read read read CRG.

IT all depends on what you want to do with the Camaro.  To me it sounds like you want a good driver but still a street machine... and frankly if your dad is my age and gets back into the car he'll want to burn some rubber at some point and for that you'll need those traction bars... so I would just clean them up and leave them on the car.  Going with the retro 60-70's street machine look isn't a bad idea and a lot less expensive too.  You can get a set of Cragars, or Ansons, or Rockets, or torque thrust mag wheels, F78's 15" or 14" tires and I they will fit within the wheel wells so the car sits normal without hitting the quarter lip.  If you do remove the traction bars you will need the stock plates and bolts for the switch. Check out RIcks Camaros or other vendors for these parts.  you 'll need to check out if there are air shocks or some other suspension part making the car sit different... if air shocks you can just reset the cars height by letting some air out.

If your engine is too radical for the street you'll need to pull it out and rebuild it with a milder cam, maybe less compression depending on what it has.. a 9:1 or 10:1 cr should still work with today's pump gas and still provide plenty of power.  The best thing to do is talk to a machine shop and get some answers... you will need to decide which way to go with the heads, etc.. it may just be easier and less cost to go into another motor like a crate engine... but it willl all depend on what you currently have.

You will need to figure out what you need for a carb and if what you have will work or if you need a more reasonable carb for the street.

Rear gears could also be a lot for the street if the car was built for the drags... a good gear ratio for street driving 3.31:1, up to 3.73:1 ratio but you'll need to check out what you have.  for example if you have like 4:56 gears you can still drive them on the street but if you want a better street-able gear you'll also need to change the carrier from a 4 to a 3 series.. 

You will also need to look at everything mechanical on a car that has been setting and make sure it all functions correctly.  You'll probably have to replace a lot of stuff just for safety, brakes, brake lines, gas tank, fuel lines, etc.... some mechanics will evaluate the car for you for a small fee...

Then there is the body... How much needs to be replaced, repaired , etc..  The more you can do the more you will save but if you have a basket case it may not be worth doing the car unless you got something rare.  but if you only need a some doors and new paint you are not to far gone..

So ...
1) assess the cars condition. 2) Estimate your repairs, costs and time.  multiply by 2.5 or more.  3) Be realistic and determine if it is feasible to get this car driving again.  Good luck and let us know what you find and decide.  JOE

[Charley]

Pictures would be great. Might be fun to just clean up and leave alone for the occasional blast down the street.

[sam]

Junk it! Not worth the time and money in my opinion. Drive the Volvo.