Project 1968 Impala: Day 3 – Wash day!

Went back to my uncle’s this afternoon and washed the Impala with help from my younger brother.

There’s a pearl under all that grime.

Somewhere…

I’m sure of it!

Pile of cleaning rags awaiting orders!

This is an empty back seat…

Scrubbing away!

Cleaning the bumper!

This is starting to look fine.

Looking good!

Left side all cleaned.

… Still needs work.

Yeah! Blast that mold away!

Little tougher than we thought.

Nothing’s too hard for elbow grease!

Wow, look at that pretty white top!

You know what?

Needs a liitle more cleaning though.

Very fine.

I must say.

Blasting away again!

Some tough spots that wouldn’t come out. We’ll get to it sometime.

This really IS a pretty car!

Very nice!

Look at that shine!

What glamor!

What a specatular looking vehicle!

Emblem above the glovebox.

Time for a snack!

Bro checking out the new.

I think he likes it…

Hanging out with the shiny car.

A very fine car indeed.

Need I say more?

Ah, so this is where all the coolant leaked from.

I think this picture sums up the day nicely.

Ooo, useful info inside the glovebox.

Bro pretending to be driving way too fast!

Uh oh. Road block ahead!

Ahhhhh!!!

Checking out the driver’s seat!

“I’ve got a need for speed!”

Afterwards my friend stopped by and helped push the car out from the carport and under some trees. We plan on lifting it up and inspecting the brakes as the break pedal is firmly stuck. So the immediate objectives are:

• Get brakes functioning and change oils.
• Change coolant and other hoses.
• Put on spare studded tires that we found in the shed.
• Buy a 3 day permit.
• Take over to a local tire center and have them pull out the studs from the tires… Or maybe put on a used set if they have something.

Every time I go up and work on the car I get all giddy. 😛 There’s just something special about working on a classic car. 😀

Project 1968 Impala: Day 2

After work today I once again returned to the scene to continue my expedition of automotive revival. First thing I did was install the now fully charged battery and try out the lights. Headlights work for the most part, however with the blinkers only the left side works. I then added some coolant because it was looking dry. I tried to siphon as much of the old gas as I could. then poured about a gallon of fresh gas in. then poured about a quarter of a pint of Sea Foam Motor Treatmeant to help deal with any of the old gas remaining.

“Well here are are again!”

Plugging in a charged battery this time.

Making sure the lights come on…

Hazah! They do!

Looking pretty dry on coolant.

Slowly pouring the new fuel.

After several attempts I still couldn’t get it running. Realizing I hadn’t brought any carb cleaner I ran back to O’Reilly to get a can. A few more tries…

There’s still a lot of work to do. Like hoses, belts, tires, wiring, etc. But getting it to start was awesome. 😀

A happy young man in his car-to-be.

Project 1968 Impala: Day 1

Hello all, Ben here. After attending Church service today I went to my uncle’s house to begin work on the old 68 Impala. It use to be Dad’s until we sold it to our grandparents. It’s been sitting for about 17 years or so under a carport so it’s not too bad all considering.

Alright, lets see what we got!

Nice hardtop, 4 door sedan.

Ooo! Rounded tail-lights!

Some rust damage around the trunk.

Bro checking out the inside.

Up to 120mph? Sweet.

Back seat looks pretty decent

time to see what’s under the hood!

Not too shabby.

Original 307 sticker. (Or what’s left)

Beep beep!

How ’bout some tunes?

Anyway, I came with a new battery (slightly used off craigslist) and a siphon hose to empty the tank. But silly old Ben forgot to charge the battery last night so the lights came on for only a couple minutes. 😛 I also did not bring a long enough hose so the tank isn’t completely empty yet. I plan on returning tomorrow after work to finish emptying the tank, add some coolant and see if we can fire it up. 😉 And maybe give it a wash. 😛