I heard a rumor about the car... so I went for a drive yesterday and paid it a visit....

The guy who owns the place... told me to make him an offer... hes tired of looking at it.

No motor, no trans. Front clip is shot... needs minimal rear quarter work, and hard top along the window is in need of some work also. Floor boards need replaced... so I can only assume the trunk pan also needs replaced... heres the up side...

The back seats, and passenger seat are original... and surprisingly... in amazing condition... no cuts, rips, tears, ect... and actually NOT dry rotted. Driver seat is not original, and needs replaced. Door panels are also in good condition.... as well as the rear panels, head liner, shifter console, and complete dash... including all of the gauges... they look as if they have been preserved. Has 74XXX on the clock... wonder how many times its been turned??? The heater and a/c controls are there... but the radio is gone. All glass is good, and the entire rear of the car is complete... bumper and all... tail lights, everything.

The car was originally a 327 V8 with the TH400 Powerglide transmission. It was built the Second Week of March, 1967 in Van Nuys, CA. Originally Mountain Green, with a black top. It came with black leather bucket seats, standard interior, tinted windows, rear antenna, center console, and factory a/c.

Im thinking of picking it up. Car hasnt been wrecked, but I would strip it down and send the frame off for acid dipping as to make sure nothing is wrong with it. I got opinions from a couple people... and those that know a little more about body work, said it was a rebuildable car... as long as the frame is in good shape. What do you guys think... should I do it?

 

TH400 is not Powerglide. This car would have a Powerglide, which is a 2-speed.

What do you mean by "front clip"? To me that means all the metal in front of the doors.

Sounds rebuildable. But is it justifiable? How much money have you got?

 

The PG is a 2-speed, the TH400 is a 3-speed.

How much?

 

I thought the same thing about the powerglide thing... but everything I look up states that if the car was built in LOS (Van Neus) then if it was optioned with the powerglide... that the TH400 was the choice... but if it was built in Ohio... and was optioned with the powerglide... then it came with the TH350. I always thought the powerglide was a 2 speed as well...

As far as the front clip... yes, pretty much everything in front of the firewall and doors needs replaces as far as the body goes.

Price... Im thinking about offering him $1000 and I dig it out... obviously Im willing to negotiate upwards.

 

Here is the clip from the trim tag decoding thing... that way you dont think im a retard... option M

Location K - Option Information (2)


B - three-speed on floor
E - air conditioning
G - center console
H - heater delete
L - four-speed manual transmission
M - Powerglide transmission (LOS - TH400 it is thought)
R - rear seat speaker
S - rear antenna
U - eight-track/multiplex
Z - TH400 3-speed Automatic (NOR only it is thought)

Note: "2" appears as a trim tag location identifier on Camaros with one of the above options but is not an option code itself.

 

If the car came with the 327 and an automatic it was a 2-speed Powerglide. No 3-speed automatic was offered with any smallblock in 67 or 68. As to whether or not to get involved with a full restoration you are looking at a LOT of hard work, time, and more expense than you would believe. It is certainly not an impossible task but just be aware of what you are undertaking. Also be very certain of the proper paperwork (title) before any money changes hands. If I was jonesin' for an early Camaro I'd look for a finished one I could drive and enjoy now and gradually personalize over time. It's actually cheaper in the long run. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

expect to spend 15k at a minimum to get it to be a driver quality car. And it doesn't have a TH400, its a powerglide.

 

GM never put a TH400 behind the 327. The TH350 and TH400 are called Hydraglide or Hydramatic. Only the 2 speed got the Powerglide name.

No frame under a third gen either. It's a unibody car. The front subframe is attached to the body with 4 bolts.

As for what it's worth, On the TV show Wrecks to Riches, they bought a rolling chassis that they thought was good enough to rebuild for $6000. The car was completely gutted and it sounds like your find has a lot more than that except for a powertrain which doesn't usually mean much unless you're building a numbers matching car. Finding replacement body pieces is easy. Many companies such as Year One have everything you need.

The complete rebuild cost them $43,000 and they sold it for over $50,000. It was rebuilt as a custom performance muscle car with lots of bling.

 

I figured that it would be tons of cash to finish... but Its more about finishing a 40 year old car... and enjoying it... im not looking to turn a profit.

 

My friends dad is doing a full rotterossie (sp?) restoration on a 1968 Camaro SS 396. Its almost done and all the work was done by us and a local body shop. He is expecting to have about $40,000 into it and it should be worth around $60k. It was alot of work and has taken over a year but it has been more than worth it. I say go for it!

 

Im going to try to get out there this week sometime and make him a cash offer. I have some local guys from our local forums willing to help me get it out, store it, and even work on it... so the local support here is just making me want it that much more.

 

I say go for it and good luck!