What car to make pro-touring? 69 firebird comvertible or hardtop?

[DroptopJ]

I'm not sure what to make into a pro-touring car. Right now I have a 69 firebird convertible, that needs almost every piece of sheet metal. I can get a 69 firebird hardtop from a friend of mine, that needs floors. I have an ls3, a Ford 9 inch, Dse mini tubs & frame connectors to start. Just looking for some direction on what would be better to build.

[andrewb70]

What do you want to do with the car? Personally I would start with whichever one needed less body work.

Andrew

[esenior]

Andrew asked the $10k question...what do you want to do with the car? I'm building a ragtop, but I expect to do most of my time cruising and don't expect to see much (if any) track time. Others can clarify, but if you want to race a ragtop, you're going to need a roll cage.

[ModernMuseum]

As an ex-69 bird convertible owner, don't expect to do much conversing at highway speeds. Old convertibles are pretty loud on the inside.

That's one of the reasons I switched to a 69 coupe :)

[DroptopJ]

I planned on doing a little bit of everything, mostly cruising. I don't like the looks of a roll bar in a convertible when the top is down. I might just flip a coin.

[andrewb70]

I planned on doing a little bit of everything, mostly cruising. I don't like the looks of a roll bar in a convertible when the top is down. I might just flip a coin.

A convertible without any sort of roll bar will have a realy hard time passing any sort of tech inspection.

Andrew

[DroptopJ]

Yea, I know. That's one of the reasons I'm thinking of building a hard top.

[Atomic 67]

My vote is for the hardtop....see you on the track, don't forget cage and safety planning.

JB

[rohrt]

As an ex-69 bird convertible owner, don't expect to do much conversing at highway speeds. Old convertibles are pretty loud on the inside.

That's one of the reasons I switched to a 69 coupe :)

X2

I love to cruise in my convertible but its a pig. Much heavier then a HT car. Much louder inside then i would have expected. A lot of chassie flex = squeeks and groans.

I have a HT car too that needs started on. I could have finished the HT in a very short amount of time compared to the convertible.

[79-TA]

Hardtop. You'll have less chassis flex and you won't need a cage or roll bar for basic track days and auto-crosses (not that you should rule a cage out.) Fewer leaks and less interior noise are also perks.

[DroptopJ]

Thanks, I guess I'll part out the convertible & get started on the hard top.

[Zanie]

Another vote for the hardtop. As a guy who loves his convertible, I've reached the maximum amount of fun I can have with it.
I am looking for a car with a roof, so i can zip around a track and really push it without worrying about flattening my skull. Plus Gingeman was the only track that would let me run (for the Motor State Challenge), that won't be allowed next year.
As others have said; you'll have too much flex without the rollbar , and I agree rollbars kill the looks of a convertible.
Don't even ask me about wind noise, with the top up on my Chevelle, 70 mph is maddening! I can align windows to seal up perfectly on a hardtop chevelle in no time flat, however; I still can't get the top and windows right on my chevelle convert!

I don't know about parting out the poor convertible though, sell it to an ambitious young guy.

[NJSPEEDER]

Convertible with a full cage :)

-Tim

[DroptopJ]

I used to have a 67 chevelle convertible. I loved that car, but my wife was layed off so I had to sell it. See still hasn't found a job, but I've cut back on a few things. Now its time to build another. I'm going to part out the convertible to get more money for parts, rather than to sell as a whole & not get as much money.