Hell On Wheels: GATA! -1979 10th Anniv. Trans Am

[GATA79]

Hey ya'll,
Long time reader, and have finally registered myself and getting started posting as I am finally starting my resto-mod project of my dreams! I am going for a moderate pro-touring build, but still keeping it streetable and able to hold some of its value.

Quick background:
Since I was a little kid, as long as I can remember, I've wanted a 1979 Trans Am. Seeing Smokey and the Bandit with dad only made this craving worse. I got my first set of wrenches when I was 12 and it's been down hill since then. My first real project was a 1996 BMW that I blew the motor to pieces in. I pulled it into my family garage and for 6 months we rebuilt the motor from the ground up to a decent performance motor, and the suspension got only the best of the best parts that money could buy. The car was a dream on the AutoX track! I sold that car upon finding my dream car, a 1979 Anniversary Trans Am. It's rusted, and 3-tone primer gray. But it's a 100% original, numbers matched car, although it is the less desirable 403. I couldn't pass it up and me and dad drove up to N. GA to pick this car up. I've driven it around every now and then with the tops down just to have some fun, but not much else. I am a full time college student with a job, and have been putting money away for 2 years now to start this build, and it's finally time! I moved into an off campus house with a nice sized work shed that will be the base for this operation, and I couldn't be more excited.

I want to keep some originality about this car, and the nice thing is it already has the WS6 handling package.

My goal: A car I can drive on the street, enjoy south GA back roads, windy mountain roads, Autocross, daily drive, and take to the drag strip. I'd also like to keep the originality of this collectible, rare Bird.

The first step is going to be to get it into the workshop once I get all my Jeep parts moved out and sold. We're starting with a complete tear down. I'm going to strip the interior, front body panels, motor/trans and sub frame all to start. First order of business is the suspension and subframe. We'll be using the Eastwood frame restoration paint and sealant on the subframe to clean it up, and through all the research and phone calls I've made, the final decision on suspension is Pro Touring F Body's Comp kit with solid mounts and the connecting rails. It's already got 4 wheels discs, but I'm also thinking of upgrading to drilled/slotted rotors with bigger calipers from SSBC possibly.

I also have no intention of going Fuel Injected (I know going injected is a big part of pro touring...) I love the feel, and fun of driving a car with a big fat carb sitting on top of a built motor...nothing ever feels as good as those secondary's opening up on a straight shot down a flat road.

I'll be moving the Trans Am into the work shop in no more than a week from today, and will be keeping this thread updated through the entire tear down process coming up.

I know how much everyone loves pictures, so here we go!

The BMW:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/6870231712_956eb2e69e-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870231712/)
BMW 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870231712/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

This was with the coils spun all the way down, and it handled great once I tuned it correctly this low!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/7016342657_e862d333aa-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016342657/)
Slammed (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016342657/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

And here is the GATA build starting point:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/7016261723_bf8938a979-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016261723/)
TATA 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016261723/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/6870154466_b73a0f0724-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870154466/)
TATA 4 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870154466/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/7016262483_2e960e2b80-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016262483/)
TATA Int. 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016262483/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


And the heart of the beast!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/6870151244_8fb9af6d69-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870151244/)
TATA Motor 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870151244/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I'm going to do what most frown upon and say can't be done, but we're rebuilding this "useless" 403 up and making a great motor out of it. They bore on these motors are ridiculous, and with the right components can SAFELY make great torque.



A few more random shots for ya'll:


In my dads garage before I brought it down to mine:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/6870185242_c5603819f8-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870185242/)
Front (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6870185242/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


And I'll end it with my favorite angle of these 2nd Gen TA's:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/03/7016259145_ee0f666ba8-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016259145/)
TATA 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7016259145/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr




I've been sitting on this car and project for 2 years now, working harder than I've ever worked for anything in my life and can finally start on it and see my dream car take shape. Starting this thread is kind of my first step towards it and am glad to be part of the family!

-JJ

[GATA79]

I was finally able to snag my girlfriends camera and get some pictures of the progress:

Stripped out most of the interior, will be finishing that up this weekend

Back
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7138854667_cd9bf21709-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138854667/)
StrippedRear (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138854667/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Front:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/6992779244_10aa857fa1-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6992779244/)
Stripped Interior (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6992779244/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Started to work on the front end also so I can get ready to pull the 403 out:

Started here

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/6992766456_f805377115-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6992766456/)
Engine Bay (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/6992766456/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Got it down to:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7138865753_51b464ced6-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138865753/)
Front (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138865753/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Then stripped to the core support, but broke too many of those rusted metal clips and hit a stand still for the evening at about midnight:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7138862489_90ede1a6cc-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138862489/)
FrontStripped2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7138862489/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I'm still working on getting the fenders and good off, then the rest of the core support. Also got to get the rest of the interior taken care of.

I'm planning on towing it to the paint/body/restoration shop in about 2 weeks to do all the body work. While it's there I'm going to have the TH350 rebuilt, and start tearing down the motor. I'm at a stand still on the motor though. The shop can do Crate motors, installed for 3,000ish. So I might go with this option instead of putting the 403 back in, but keeping the 403 to maintain originality. It's all up to the wallet.

I'll post more pictures after tonights work. Thanks for looking!

Input is MORE than welcome!

-JJ

[LeighP]

Great project. TATA's are a really nice car and fully loaded.
Check in at www.realoldspower.com for some tech tips on improving the 403. Unlike a lot of 2nd gen owners, I have respect for the 403 as its not a real big heavy engine for the cubes.....some better heads and some attention to the bottom end and they are a good engine choice. Don't let someone talk you into a SBC crate engine...theres a lot of little changes to the engine bay required to run a SBC in a Trans Am, I'd stick with the Olds. Spend some money on good parts for the TH350, and it'll live quite happily behind the 403.
Good luck.

[GATA79]

Great project. TATA's are a really nice car and fully loaded.
Check in at www.realoldspower.com for some tech tips on improving the 403. Unlike a lot of 2nd gen owners, I have respect for the 403 as its not a real big heavy engine for the cubes.....some better heads and some attention to the bottom end and they are a good engine choice. Don't let someone talk you into a SBC crate engine...theres a lot of little changes to the engine bay required to run a SBC in a Trans Am, I'd stick with the Olds. Spend some money on good parts for the TH350, and it'll live quite happily behind the 403.
Good luck.

I recognize your name, are you over on 78ta? Also, I wouldn't go with a SBC, I don't want a chevy motor, I'd go with a 400 or 455 Poncho crate. But Odds are I'm going to put some good work into that 403, the bore and stroke of this engine is phenomenal. I was thinking upping the compression with some KB pistons, overbore .030, and building up the valve train and porting and polishing the heads up.

[GATA79]

After a very long day in the office, my boss and I both managed to wiggle some time away from our girlfriends and make our way out to my workshop. Here's what progress we've made tonight. It's coming right along!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7140991613_cae29146e8-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7140991613/)
Front 3 5.3.12 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7140991613/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

The next few days will be devoted strictly to cleaning up and getting all my save-able parts labeled and stored.

Hope you guys are enjoying my build as much as I am!

[LeighP]

Always fun taking them apart...even better when they're going back together all clean and painted. yeah, I post sometimes on 78ta...more often on TAC.
I don't know that I'd spend time/money on the 403 heads...I seem to recall that there are better (earlier) 350 heads to use that will also up your compression....or Edelbrock is doing alloys now, too.

[GATA79]

There were so many rusted on retaining clips, and so much rust in the fenders and hood, it took us a whole case of Budwiser, a deadblow hammer, and a lot of perseverance to get all that old metal off. Looking forward to the clean stuff.

In ya'lls opinion, would you do all the suspension work while the car is at the point it's at, or wait for it to come back from the paint/body shop?

[brownz]

Mock up as much as you can before you paint!

[GATA79]

Yeah, I was thinking about putting all the Pro-Touring F-Body stuff on before sending it to paint/body. It just seems easier with all the stuff out of the way. Will have more updates tonight! Things are moving quickly.

[LeighP]

I built all the mechanicals and suspension before it went to paint. My shop took care to mask the underside and the engine bay while spraying anything. Worked well for me, I didn't like the idea of doing all the heavy work around new paint.

[GATA79]

Leigh,
they're doing the subframe/underside/firewall and engine bay all for me as it needed new metal and wheel wells all the way around. I think I am going to go ahead and call Dave this week and get my suspension stuff in. It just seems easier.

[GATA79]

Now that I've got all the suspension stuff figured out, it was time to move on to the powerplant of the beast, the original numbers matched Olds 403.

I spoke with my engine builder, and a 403 custom cam grinder guru today and got everything mapped out for the build:

As far as the build goes, this is what I've pieced together:
Main girdle on the bottom
New oil pan
High flow water pump (already running an upgraded radiator)
Bore over .024 => 407ci
KB +6 Pistons
0 Deck the block
BBO 445 Ga heads with the big valves (These huge bore blocks love them)
1.6 Comp Cam Rollers
Custom Grind Roller Cam => .544, 224/228, 110
The cam is a roller tappet setup, so roller tappet lifters
Rebuild Quadrajet
Hotter distributor
Headers/exhaust (Dougs and Pypes)

This build was predicted to do exactly what I wanted, huge torque numbers. Should easily push 500 ft/lbs at ~450hp.

Not bad for a "Smog 403 with a weak bottom end." This motor should fly!

Thanks for following, I got the original motor and tranny pulled finally, my girlfriend took her camera back, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow to grace y'all with some new pictures!

JJ

[LeighP]

Good sounding specs....cams actually pretty similar to the one in my 455. Girdle is good insurance for the windowed mains.
Only comment I'd venture is as long as the KB pistons are forged, thats cool...the KB hypereutectic's had/have a rep for tearing the top ring land off ....some debate over whether thats because of the wrong ring gaps...but still, its a reputation.
Should rev nicely....

[WS6]

Good project. You'll need to get rid of the 2.73 rear end that's in the car for the engine to do any good. I'd go right to a 3.42. This will allow you to upgrade the transmission later on and not change rear gears again. You can easily put a 2004R in there or go to a T56. You'll suck the gas down with the TH350 for now though, trust me. The 403 has gotten a lot of attention from enthusiasts over the last few years. There are a number of packages that perform quite well. This includes using the existing 4A heads that should be on the motor. Your combo should work great too. Glad you're putting the girdle on the engine. You'll need that for sure.

Good luck and keep the pictures coming.

[E-Vukets]

That car is going to look great! I love that interior, it looks like set up a bat mobile would have

[GATA79]

Glad you guys are following! Here's a bit more to add on to the story:

So I got the engine and transmission pulled out, without any help or a balance bar. It was a PITA and real hot in South GA, but I got it right out after a little love. Here's a shot of the empty space:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7231102044_5ba1014c47-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231102044/)
Engine Pulled 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231102044/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Looks so lonely! Can't wait to get the fresh built, 500 ft/lb torque monster back in there.

A shot of the original transmission and intake manifold (I'm going to clean up that intake so I've still got all the original stuff what folks ask)

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7231093436_3a4eb9c248-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231093436/)
Intake and Trans (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231093436/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Engine on the stand, all accessories, valve covers, valley pans etc removed:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7231106186_3aca871ed2-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231106186/)
Engine.Intake Off 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231106186/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Had a little "help" tonight with pulling some of the head bolts from the girlfriend, she's not bad with a wrench! :

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7231088776_ab07ee5f3e-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231088776/)
Rebekah 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231088776/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Finally off, flipped the motor over, and went to work on the underside. We got all but 2 pistons out before calling it an early night:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7231114964_9ce13ed829-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231114964/)
Crank and Pistons (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7231114964/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Lots of good work on the motor got knocked out, the tear down is almost done! After this evening, this is where the project sits as of now. I'm still piecing all my new engine components together and ordered my new custom grind roller cam setup this afternoon.

I'll have more updates tomorrow night when I get the rest torn down, thanks for following the build!

JJ

[GATA79]

Quick teaser for you guys, I walked out of my work shop this evening and there was a nice package sitting on my door step:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7298786596_7d0752fc5c-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298786596/)
Roller Tip (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298786596/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7298792324_b12206e185-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298792324/)
Roller Lifters (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298792324/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/05/7298803548_03314087aa-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298803548/)
Roller Lifter (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7298803548/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

These are some NICE pieces! Can't wait to get the camshaft in now.

That is all for now,

JJ

[john31s]

You said you were going with Pypes exhaust, which mufflers? I have the Race-Pros on my Lemans an they drone like crazy.

[GATA79]

Well, today and tonight have been somewhat depressing but also joyful! Spent the first half of the day on the phone with the shop making sure they had room for me. Spent the second half tracking down a trailer (Sometimes living in a small town sucks), and the third half getting the Trans Am ready to roll, and loaded up. Here it is 1 AM and it's finally all loaded up. My barn is empty, and the Trans Am will be leaving my possession for the first time since I drove it 400 miles from North GA over 3 years ago. I guess it's great that it's finally going! Just sad to not see it out front anymore.

Anyway, enough of my blabbing, here's some pictures!

Forgot I took the interior out...and we needed a driver, so this was the best we could come up with ,here's my fraternity brother and roommate "driving."

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/06/7464964118_3319304e2d-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464964118/)
JB Driving (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464964118/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Got it up on the trailer!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/06/7464973442_ebe8dd1921-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464973442/)
Car on Trailer 4 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464973442/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Me and one of my childhood best friends, my "little brother" in our fraternity, and favorite buddy to work on cars with. We've been working on cars since 17 years old with our first rides and he's helped me with this car every step of the way (I'm the SHORT one by the way):

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/06/7464991848_f1fd8b4e9c-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464991848/)
Car Me and Jon (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464991848/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


And off we go!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/06/7464982794_9c9991a142-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464982794/)
Car on Trailer 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464982794/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Here's the barn...empty. It's bitter sweet! Time to start building that monster 403.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/06/7464969378_a1ec437a6f-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464969378/)
Empty Barn (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7464969378/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I'm headed on a 300 mile journey to the restoration shop tomorrow morning bright and early. I'll have TONS of pictures, they've always got cool stuff in there. See ya'll tomorrow, hope you enjoy!

JJ

[SparkyRnD]

looks like a lot of fun, and a cool project too

[LeighP]

Good to see its all happening for you. :)

[GATA79]

Well the trip was a blast! It was 645 miles, all over GA. I'll make a big post with tons of pictures in a bit. Now the real work starts! Working with Dave at PTFB to get the suspension in order, and the motor build is taking off.

JJ

[GATA79]

For the first time since I bought the Trans Am, it is no longer out in my driveway or workshop! It's now sitting up at a family friend's restoration shop in Marietta. Took some fun pictures of the travel there and back yesterday. I left South GA at 8, got home around 2:30 AM, driving a grand total of 646 miles! Here's some pictures from the fun:

Ready to head on out in the morning, about 7:45 :

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482341818_c832b3bd79-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482341818/)
Morning (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482341818/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Freaked me out a few times rolling up I-16 wondering who was about to rear end me! Then I realized...it was just my car:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482350870_f5d889a016-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482350870/)
Mirror (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482350870/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Made it through downtown Atlanta around 11:30ish AM or so, no traffic! :

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482376532_5df7e1df17-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482376532/)
Atlanta Morning (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482376532/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482385926_fe07096635-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482385926/)
Atlanta Morning 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482385926/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Pulled into the shop, and to my excitement saw my long time high school buddy's old Tonka truck parked out front. His dad owns the business, and the shop manager is now driving this truck. It is a highly modified (luxury mods that is) Ford F-150. If you can name it, this thing has it going on inside, we lived it up in highschool in this truck!:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482315164_869fcaab42-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482315164/)
Tonka (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482315164/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

And here's the last two sights I had of my favorite thing I've ever owned. Next time I see it...well who knows what it'll look like! C'ya!:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482359576_3828a06735-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482359576/)
Last Sight (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482359576/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I had terrible timing and managed to hit ATL in rush hour, which made for a very unpleasant ride but downtown is always a decent change of pace from the backwoods:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482395906_e10d9a2cc8-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482395906/)
Atlanta Afternoon (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482395906/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Heat index of 121!! Unreal!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482405226_989b962583-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482405226/)
121 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482405226/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Passed my old high school hangout! Spent many and many summer days right here at The Ted:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482294658_1d96fe3152-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482294658/)
Turner Field (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482294658/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Got south of Atlanta, and swung by Summit and picked up some ARP rod bolts, they had a great car on display!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482323970_18341496f1-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482323970/)
Summit 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482323970/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482332720_3aaf4f17ba-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482332720/)
Summit 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482332720/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Finally, back to my country back roads and no more traffic:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482304888_e5e6170255-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482304888/)
Country (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482304888/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I made it home, 646 miles and 19 hours later! It was a blast, got to visit my family, sister, and girlfriend as well. Dad met me at the shop. Going to miss my car, but now I can focus on building this engine to put back in it!

I'll keep the updates coming a lot more steady now as well. Going to miss not having this car out in my workshop:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7482368010_6db6d71785-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482368010/)
Last Sight 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7482368010/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

JJ

[GATA79]

Alright guys, finally got around to getting some good work done and taking pictures of everything I've been working on, story time:

I know you guys are more into seeing big things like drivetrain and suspension work, but this is what I've got to work with for now and want to keep this thread alive! On that note though, the only thing left I need for my big 403 engine build is pistons and I can get the bottom end all balanced and start assembly, so if you're enjoying this build and want to see some serious power made on an underrated engine platform, stick around!

Started working on the back seats first, got the upper and lower frames stripped down, polished them up, primed a few good coats, then hit them with black Rustoleom to protect them in the future:

Seat Frames:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587430234_e67b168879-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587430234/)
Rear Seat Frames (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587430234/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I took these down to bare metal, cleaning and removing all the crap, paint, and pounds of rust

Upper:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587397876_fa6d3d3aff-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587397876/)
Upper Rear Seat Frame (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587397876/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587406062_a37b214e83-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587406062/)
Upper Rear Seat Frame 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587406062/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Lower:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587446442_645e14e9e3-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587446442/)
Lower Rear Seat Frame (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587446442/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


Knocked out all the springs as well, got them cleaned and painted and stored away in a box.

Then moved on to my seat which was rusted BAD to say the least. I was able to clean it up pretty well though..

Here's where I got the top half of the driver's seat down to:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587413966_39851ebc14-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587413966/)
Upper D Seat Frame 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587413966/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587422012_89ff623ee9-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587422012/)
Upper D Seat Frame 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587422012/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Nice and polished, ready for primer tomorrow.

Got the bottom to look alright as well, also getting primed tomorrow:

Start:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587453702_85ed938da2-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587453702/)
Lower F Seat Frame Before (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587453702/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

Almost finished:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587461106_f8de7da64c-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587461106/)
Lower F Seat Frame After (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587461106/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

I moved onto the sliding brackets and mechanism. Got the 40 year old pounds of residual crap build up out of there, wire brushed and lubed all the joints, and polished up the rest of them. Didn't spend too much time on the parts that won't be visible once it's all assembled, but just wanted them to look decent. I hit them with Duplicolor clear coat once I was done to help prevent them from rusting out again:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587469014_bfb1c9e75d-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587469014/)
Driver Bracket 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587469014/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


And that's all the work I got done the past few days. I've been helping my girlfriend move all weekend, and was just too tired to do much. On the upside, she got me these two little things as a "thank you."

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/07/7587382264_d7d293c1d1-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587382264/)
American Plate (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/7587382264/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr


Anyway, thats all for tonight. Will have more pictures tomorrow!

JJ

[ed1le]

Cool project. Always been a fan of these cars too.

[GATA79]

FINALLY!!

I spoke with the guy doing the work on my car, and they finally had time to roll it inside their shop and start getting at it. Had my dad go over (sucks living 300 miles away) to the shop and snag a few pictures for me, so this is where we stand as of 3 days ago:

Thought we were going to have to replace the door skins, lucked out! He got all he rust out of em:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/12/8293344171_540b8cdbd4-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293344171/)
Door Primed 2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293344171/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

The ONLY spot on the car that's really bad and has rot:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/12/8293345127_0459806f02-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293345127/)
B Pillar (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293345127/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

And here it is, all stripped down and ready to get torn into:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2012/12/8293341361_d3f9706def-1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293341361/)
Stripped (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76495204@N05/8293341361/) by MercurioJJ (http://www.flickr.com/people/76495204@N05/), on Flickr

That's all I got for now. Great to see some progress being made. I'll be headed up that way around Christmas and will hopefully have more progress being made and a few new pictures.

[LeighP]

Glad you're seeing some progress!

[turboclevor]

wow that is awesome, the npd by me has a 79 golden anniversary on display every time i go get parts i check it out

[GATA79]

Yup, it's great to finally be coming together! We discussed running the torque arm setup in the rear, so that's now in the works as well. Been workin on building my 403 too, but currently on hold while I assemble a 351 ford for a friend. Nice to see it finally coming together though, I've owned the car for years and am ready to make it happen. Thanks for following! Many more updates to come.

[Grim]

Hahaha small world! I noticed your car in their lot over the summer and figured it was a part out. Sounds like your from the area. I live right up the road by Frankie's.

If you notice the specs on my car in my Sig It's sporting the motor your car would have had it it had been built before March of 79.

[GATA79]

Hahaha small world! I noticed your car in their lot over the summer and figured it was a part out. Sounds like your from the area. I live right up the road by Frankie's.

If you notice the specs on my car in my Sig It's sporting the motor your car would have had it it had been built before March of 79.

Ha, yeah my best friends dad actually owns that shop, I'm from Paulding county though, and live in Statesboro now. I brought the car to him to just get my body work done, they actually do pretty good work right there. Funny you saw it out there in their lot, that's really cool. VERY small world!

Sounds like you've got a nice little 400 build in that LaMans too.

[Grim]

So where you at? I noticed CARS is no longer in that shop. They move or fold? Did your body get done?

[Grim]

So any updates? I saw that body shop is no longer at that location. They move or fold?

[GATA79]

Wow- Bringing this guy up from the dead.

Grim - if you're still around - the shop relocated. My best friends family owns the shop, and they bought a much nicer facility out in Roswell, and closer to home for them. So the car moved with them.

I switched careers midway through this project, and started working for a start up. Needless to say, I had to put the project on hold as funds were super tight. I've since moved on to working for the industry leader in that field, have my feet settled, and am firmly back into this build. Some things have changed though...

-Power Plant: I'm now running with a full engine swap. Really want to go Fuel Injected after spending a few years really researching. So the game plan is to rebuild the stock 403 back to it's original specs and shelf it. After all, this is a very collectible car. While I have 0 intention of ever selling, it's nice to maintain the original parts and not worry about grenading the bottom end.

In it's place, I've got a stout LS platform build plan coming together. I've got an LQ4 short block being assembled right now. Including dished pistons, polished crank, and forged rods. Overkill, but it's all coming with the package.
I've got a nice set of port/polished/3-angle valve job 243's on the way.
Pat G is working on a custom radical cam profile.
FAST 102 coming in.

The goal is to have the motor assembled, suspension pieces in, and the body back in my possession sometime before February.

[USAZR1]

Get the body and paint work done on the car?

[GATA79]

They stuck it in storage while they were moving shops. They've pretty much gone from classic resto's to insurance claims. Lot more money in it. However, they kept on some of their old hot rod guys and do one resto at a time in the back of the shop. THey're working on the owners car now, and mine will come out of storage within the month. Should have paint and body done by the first of the year. Big project now - I'm building the motor rather than having one built or dropping in a crate. So I'll keep you guys updated on the LS build at a minimum. First round of pictures in a few days.

[T/A Addict]

Good to see that this project was not given up on!! Keep on. I also own a TATA so I'll watch as you restore her.
I have a Pontiac 455 HO in mine but have been considering going back to a 403 since that is what it would have come with.