| During my last restoration job I done, the | | | | 3.Now that you have completed a basic |
| owner of the cat said to me, you just keep | | | | inspection of the body of the car, it's time |
| finding things to repair, this car wasn't | | | | to look at the engine compartment, and your |
| that bad when it came to you. Most people | | | | going to be looking for the same things here, |
| seem to think that their car is in pretty | | | | of course with a few additions, look first at |
| good shape, when in most cases a car that is | | | | the overall condition of the engine |
| 30 years, or older usually has quite a bit of | | | | compartment, look for rust, dents, and all |
| problem areas, and things that needs to be | | | | the same things that you looked for during |
| fixed. | | | | the inspection of the body on the car, also |
| | | | you'll need to look at the engine, do a basic |
| Usually these cars have had a lot of miles | | | | inspection for leaks, fire up the car if |
| put on them, and been driven in bad weather, | | | | possible, and listen for knocks, rattles, |
| snow with salted roads, rock chips that turn | | | | clanks, clicks, and any sound other then the |
| to rust, bad repair work that has compromised | | | | sound of a smooth running engine, be sure to |
| the integrity of the car's body and frame, a | | | | note these noises on your note pad, or make a |
| collision that has been repaired with short | | | | recording of the sounds that you hear, now |
| cuts to save money, and number of things can | | | | we'll talk about the wiring in the engine |
| contribute to the demise of a 30+ year old | | | | compartment, here you want to look for wires |
| car, just think of the things that you went | | | | that are just hanging, and not hooked to |
| through during the first 30 years of your | | | | anything, you want to look for added wires, |
| life, you car has had at least the same if | | | | and redneck wiring jobs, look for things that |
| not more. | | | | don't belong, missing insulation, wires |
| | | | pulled for the harness, or just general wear |
| A restoration is all about locating all the | | | | on the harness, document this with pictures, |
| problem areas of a car and fixing them, to | | | | and take notes on the problems. |
| bring the car back to factory, if not better | | | | |
| specs, most people restore a car for | | | | 4.More on the engine compartment, you'll need |
| nostalgia, for a memory of the past, and just | | | | to look at the engine mounts to see if their |
| want their car to be like they remember it as | | | | broken, or damaged in any way, also look for |
| it was when they first got it, they want it | | | | redneck work here to, like mounts that have |
| restored to it's original glory, of course | | | | been welded to repair them, instead of |
| some people want to take it a step farther | | | | replacing them, look for quick and dirty |
| and do some custom work to their prize | | | | work, look for things that just don't belong, |
| possession. | | | | inspect the rubber in the engine mounts to |
| | | | make sure that it's not rotted out. |
| Before the customizing can begin, the | | | | |
| restoration needs to be finished, there are a | | | | 5.Look at the carburetor, check it for leaks |
| lot of things to consider when restoring your | | | | and proper operation, if it's a four barrel |
| car, and all of them should be looked at, I'm | | | | make sure that when the throttle is all the |
| going to provide you with a short list of the | | | | way opened that the two back barrels are |
| top things that need to be looked at when you | | | | opening, make sure that the butterfly doesn't |
| decide to restore your car, rather you have a | | | | stick, check the carburetor for general |
| shop do the work, or you do it yourself | | | | cleanliness, and take a picture of it to |
| doesn't matter. | | | | document the problems with it, so you know |
| | | | what needs to be done. |
| 1.First look at the overall condition of the | | | | |
| car, or just a good eyeball scan, get some | | | | 6. Look at the radiator support, check it for |
| paper and a pen and write down the things | | | | rust, dents, and holes that don't belong, |
| that stand out, the things that are highly | | | | document what you find. |
| noticeable right from the start. | | | | |
| | | | This is just a short list a a few things that |
| 2.After you do your eyeball scan, it's time | | | | you need to look at, I could not in an entire |
| to go a bit deeper, if you noticed any rust | | | | day write the whole list of things that you |
| spots, or dents of the car take note of the | | | | need to inspect, but you get the idea here, |
| locations of these areas with pictures, if | | | | the job is not a small one, and if your |
| your ready to start the restoration of the | | | | planning to restore a car, make sure that you |
| car, you can circle the problem areas with a | | | | learn all you can about that particular car, |
| sharpie before you take the pictures. | | | | it'll make that work a lot more enjoyable and |
| | | | fun. |