Johnny Cash: "One Piece at a Time"

Discussion in 'Members Rides' started by Waterboy, Jan 27, 2015.

  1. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    I'm starting a thread about helping my son with his "new" car. He used to have an 83 Regal Limited, 3.8, 4 barrel, headers, and cold air, that was in mint condition. A 38,000 original-mile old lady Regal Limited with pillow top seats and all the extras. Unfortunately that car was totaled (by an illegal immigrant of course), but the body of the car was still intact. Now his "new" car is an 87 T-Type that has an 85 Regal body, and title, that my son bought off my buddy for $2000. What a deal! The original T-Type body was accordioned, (again, by illegal immigrants), but the drive train and frame were still intact. Problem is the 85 Regal body rusted apart so we're doing a full body swap between the 83 and the 87/85. We have learned how NOT to take a body off. One cherry picker is NOT enough! We can come up with more.... We are having a good time and I will send pictures tomorrow.
     
  2. CARHEX1

    CARHEX1 Founders Club Member

    If you go to your local home depot you can hire some illegal immigrants tell them the story I'm sure they will give you a discount on the labor.
     
  3. Briz

    Briz Founders Club Member

    WTG Mikey! Keep us posted.
     
  4. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    Hector.... I like your idea!!! They are the one's that caused the problem. Maybe they can help fix the problem.


    Steve.... You knew we were crazy when you met us at the camp ground in Bowling Green!!! Life is good!

    So here are a couple of pictures, I think. It worked!!!!! They are not in order. You'll figure it out. The first picture we were "thinking" about how we were going to do this. The second picture, after many cold refreshments we had a plan. The third picture was after 3 or so hours with a saws all. And the 4th picture is a body ready to go to the recycling center, get little cash,and buy more cold refreshments.
    Today Scott is supposed to be wire brushing and sanding the frame. Maybe paint it on Saturday after we dump the body. Then he is going to go through everything while the body off of the car. It is soooo much easier working on everything with the body off. That is where we are today.

    Steve... I just brought my 68's rear end to the shop yesterday to get 3:90 gears and a posi put in it. I see long burnouts and lots of donuts in my life, soon!
     

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  5. CARHEX1

    CARHEX1 Founders Club Member

    Was It Canadian or a chinese one?
     
  6. Smokey15

    Smokey15 So old that I use AARP bolts.

    Looks like you're havin' too much fun! This is going to be an interesting thread.
     
  7. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    Hah???? The illegal immigrants or the 68 rear end. The illegal immigrants were most likely Guatemalan. We don't really know because they left the scene of the accident. The rear end in my 68 GS came out of a 69 GS built in Canada. So it is an immigrant rear end with a green card. It an stay long as it works real good!!!
     
  8. Radlark

    Radlark Well-Known Member

    Insert "sarcasm" here.........lol
     
  9. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    Scott's been making some headway on his 83/85/87 turbo Regal. He pressure washed and wire brushed the whole frame and then painted it. Then he ordered new bushings and ball joints for the front control arms, new brake hoses for the front and rear, along with new shocks. He was excited when the parts came in. I came home from work and he said to me, "My bushings came in. Did you see them in the garage?" I said, "Yah, I saw them. When are you putting them in?" As he turned and was walking away I heard "I................ don't know how." We laughed and laughed! "We" got the old bushings out and new ones in last week. Yesterday he installed the new brake hoses, back shocks, and got the control arms back in place before dark. Today we'll finish putting the spindles on along with the new ball joints. The next step will be new engine gaskets where they are needed. Probably just new valve cover, oil pan, and timing chain gaskets. Get a new timing chain, clean it all and fresh paint. Hopefully we can get more accomplished as soon as daylight savings time comes around. I hate standard time!!! I'll make another post after we get the engine out. Have a GREAT day!!!!
     

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  10. Smokey15

    Smokey15 So old that I use AARP bolts.

    Frame looks good. This seems to be a good learning experience for Scott. In the end, he will have something to be proud of.....................as will You, Sir! Kudos!
     
  11. Justin@ECP

    Justin@ECP Member

    That was the daily LOL moment! :TU: to you sir
     
  12. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    Would you believe we are still working on this project??? Scott got deported, Oops, I mean deployed, for quite awhile. He is back Christmas break trying to get this project back on the road. It has been interesting for me, as a dad, to see how he has changed in a few years. To the better mechanically. (OK, I'm honest. He still doesn't clean up his messes, but neither does his older brother!) My buddy who sold him this "hybrid" car had always said he would come over and help Scott out. Sure enough, he did. He came over and said, "You need to rip out the dash, you do still have the original dash?" Yes, thankfully! Then he said, "Pull out all the old wiring, and pull in all "this cars" wiring." We sat down and enjoyed some cold brews. By the afternoon Scott had that dash out of the car, old wiring out, and new wiring in. John did help him some. (I don't own a GN and have NO idea where all that wiring goes!!!)
    The next day Scott went through the wiring, figured out what needed to go to the steering column, and the engine cranked. YEE HAA!!!!! My buddy, John, came over later. They put gas in the tank and low and behold...... that baby fired up!!!!!! It ran for a couple seconds before we realized it had no radiator and the oil cooler lines squirted out oil in a BIG mess!!!! We all gave high fives and popped open a cold one! After celebrating we cleaned up all the speedy dry and threw it in the trash can only to realize that was going to be the trash can we were putting the New Year's Eve keg in. YUCK!!! So we emptied the oily speedy dry into the big garbage can and I scrubbed the trash can clean while Scott scrubbed the driveway clean.
    New Years Eve party, also my 60th birthday. That would have to be another thread! It was a GREAT TIME!!!!!!!!
    The next day.... No, we did not work hard. Yes, we did party more. The keg still had some beer in it. But, Scott and John did look the car over quite a bit trying to figure out electrical plugs from the 83 that did not fit the 87. It needed a different wiper motor, brake switch/cruise control switch, and a different headlight switch.
    Today my oldest brought his brother over an 87 headlight switch. (It doesn't fit his "old" wood grain dash and Scott was not happy. More in a minute.) Scott ordered, and got, a new brake light/ cruise control switch that plugs in. (It doesn't fit either, but we can easily fix that problem.) He also bled the brakes. It's got brakes! Another yeah. So he got finished with a lot I didn't mention today and he was happy. I told him he should go on Ebay, or somewhere, to see if he could get the right "wood grain" dash panel. You won't believe this!!! He found one for I think 25 bucks plus 12 dollars shipping! It has one blemish... the guy put a switch in it. That's OK. Scott wants to put "switches" in it. Works out perfect!
    I will get pictures tomorrow if it is not to cold. I know you guys are freezing your butts off, but "we" are NOT used to the cold!!! It has been high 70's/low 80's the whole Christmas break, and now we are about to freeze our gonads off!!! I think 38 in the morning. Sure am glad my house faces the southeast and it blocks the northwest wind. Stay warm. Hopefully pictures and more forward movement tomorrow.
     
  13. Mark Demko

    Mark Demko Well-Known Member

    Cool project!
     
  14. Waterboy

    Waterboy Mullet Mafia since 6/20

    Thank you Mark! It is coming along well. Scott is pretty much finished with the inside wiring. YEAH!!! Yesterday he got the dash board screwed back in place. My wife and I came home from a dinner party and he had quit work. He said it is impossible to work on the car in the garage because he cannot open both doors fully. So today we'll hopefully push it into the driveway where it will be much easier to work on. Next comes an entire front clip, still bolted together, that we need to put on the front end. The front clip is from an 85 Regal and we are putting it on an 83 Regal. They sure look the same. We shall see? More later...
     
  15. Mark Demko

    Mark Demko Well-Known Member

    I'm pretty sure from '81 to '87 is the same minus header panel and tailights
     

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