Is the rest of the car solid seems to be the question? If so, it could be fixed. Good sail panels & the other req'd pieces shouldn't be too hard to find. I'm no bodyman but would tackle it. I couldn't see putting the $ into it to have someone do the work. Not that a good bodyman doesn't deserve it, but it's too much $ to put into that car unfortunately. Or do what Ethan (@hugger) said & patch it up or some hybrid (i.e. replace just the sail panels & rear filler).
If the 1/4s are available as they appear to be....and you are ready to spend the money...not gonna say make the investment...because it's not an investment unfortunately. But two 1/4s and the rear deck filler are gonna be $3500 with shipping Beldin speed has the upper roof channel...the Apillars as mentioned are available....but tour looking at 5k labor minimum to replace the 1/4s and rear deck filler....add another 2k if the wheelhouse are toast...front pillars another 2k...top roof channel repairs...$1500....replace roof...2k plus the $500 for the skin These are what I would charge....large shops with lots of overhead..or ego issues....double it
The above "estimate" is why I think a re-body is a legit option in this case for this car. If this car was sitting out in the weather, I fear the floors will be in poor condition as well. It's funny that you can replace everything with AMD stuff, it's all good, but if you use a 1972 original body it's not good. hmmm. It has always been that way, but I don't get it.
The floors in the one pic appear to be mint...but I agree 100%.....a rebody is the better option in most every case
Assuming good sail panels could be found (shouldn't be too difficult), & if the lower quarters/wheelhouses are solid, what about splicing them in below the vinyl top line? That'd save a bunch in parts. Maybe a little in labor?
Time you section those in and patch the wheel arch...bottoms....next to the rocker...it would be a quilt ....would be no better than just keeping the sails and spot patching
Gary , Thanks for the pictures that summed up my suggestion better than my words could. Quarter availability and other parts are better than the 69 choices but as stated earlier. If you can't do it yourself or find a great friend that can help with some welding. Be prepared to pay. From experience figure your budget and prepare to go over and possibly double it.
If it were my car, I would try to find a clean body to swap but would likely end up going the route Ethan suggested. My first car was a 72 Skylark in much, much worse shape than your 72 GS350. I was filling rust holes with newspaper and slapping bondo over it. What ever it took to attempt to keep water out. It was horrible, a really, really bad way to do things and I didn't know better at the time, but I enjoyed that car for almost a decade. Drove it 10s of thousands of miles, raced it, went to car shows. I was embracing the rusty muscle car trend before it was cool . The problem that killed the car for me was when the windshield developed a crack through most of the center. I knew there would be no metal underneath to glue a new window to. I spent a year trying to find a reasonably priced, clean shell to swap over to and had no luck. Everything was either big money, or not much better than what I already had. Ended up buying a 67 GS that pretty much none of my parts would swap over to, parted out the 72 and scrapped the shell and frame. I'd decide what you want your car to be before spending too much money on it. If you can be content with Ethan's repair suggestion, save some cash and enjoy the car for what it is, you will be money ahead and still have a cool car. If you wait until you have a ton of money into the mechanicals of the car and decide you want to restore it to show quality or find a really clean car, you may find yourself going in a totally different direction during your search and take a big loss parting it out.
Regarding reinstlling the vinyl top you have to think of it this way. How much actual weathering is the car going to be subjected to? if it will be an occasional ride and spend its off time in a garage then the tow should be no problem at all. if it is going to be subjected to nasty weather and road salt then may be better to go without it. Either way go with what makes you happy. it is your car, build it your way and enjoy the hell out of it.
I've seen much worse and have repaired it. These are pretty common issues. Take your time and plan it out. Also with type of damage there will be some needed repairs inside as well. The tray under the filler panel likely will have some damage too, but once the filler panel is off, it is easy to work with. The Chevelle top, filler and deck lid are all the same for '70-'72 GS cars, I know cause I just did all these repairs of my car.
