my 89 iroc restomod project

[SLP IROC-Z]

alot of you know about my car, alot of you dont so i figured id post up the history behind the car and photos of the progress. this is the condensed story behind the car lol. i bought this car in feb 2002 for a steal @ $1800. as many of you know its extremely hard to find a hard top 5 speed tpi 3rd gen especially one in nice unmolested condition.
the car is an 89 iroc-z hardtop, factory metallic blue with black cloth. 220hp 305TPI w/5 speed, 3.08 posi drum rear and rare 15" iroc wheels.
i started restoring this car back in the fall of 2003 after a lady took a left on red and drove down the side of it. my father and i worked pretty steadily on it for a couple years and got a lot done, but i slowly lost interest and couldnt find the time or money to get anything done on it. i actually sold it in feb of 08 to a kid in new york which i still kick myself for. after selling the entire project to him i knew i made a major mistake but i got the chance of a life time when over a year later i talked to the new owner and he said he wanted to sell it, i had no money but i did have a 91 Z that was rotted badly but had a lot of desirable parts on it that he needed for another project he started. we traded even, i pretty much only got back the shell of the car, the title and original console. it was hard to get over having to start over collecting NOS parts etc but i was so excited to get the shell back i didnt care. ive had it back since spring of 09 since then my father and i finished the engine bay and painted it and the front frame rails and wheel wells. we also cleaned up the interior sheetmetal where there was bare metal from shaving the fire wall and fixing rust. after cleaning it up we primed and painted the interior. i havent had much time or money to work on it since ive had it back but things have turned around and its looking like ill be making alot of progress on it over the next 6 months. i need a complete drivetrain for it and alot of misc things. ive decided my best option is to find a wrecked 01-02 4th gen 6 speed car and transplant the entire drivetrain and any other compatible parts.
in the near future the cars going to my shop to be put on the lift so i can strip the por15 off the underneath thats pealing off and get it ready for a nice coat of epoxy primer and base/clear.

Pics from when it was on the road
first day i owned it:
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/1-1.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/13.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/12.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/11.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/10.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/9.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/8.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/7.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/6.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/5.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/4.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/3.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/2.jpg

time slip
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/14.jpg

[irockidz28]

wow beautiful car man, sucks that you put so much work into it just to start over. thats the color i wanted for my car, but i couldnt find a decent one. but good luck with it, cant wait to see it come together!

[SLP IROC-Z]

thank you!

[c4boom]

whats it look like now joe

[irockidz28]

lowered?

[ebs]

loveeee blue.

[SLP IROC-Z]

pics from progress last feb
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/15.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/16.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/17.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/18.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/19.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/20.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/21.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/22.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/23.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/24.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/25.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/26.jpg

[SLP IROC-Z]

pics from accident:
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/27.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/28.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/29.jpg
Resto Pics
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/30.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/31.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/32.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/33.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/34.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/35.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/36.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/37.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/38.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/39.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/40.jpg
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http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/42.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/43.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/44.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/45.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/46.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/47.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/48.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/49.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/50.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/51.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/uu84/AffinityAuto/89%20IROC-Z/52.jpg

[941LE]

looks good joe!

[Formula413]

That car looked awesome, can't wait to see it reborn. With an LS1 swap it will be all kinds of badass. I can't believe that TPI ran within a fender of my LT1!

[c4boom]

the five speed cars are no joke when set up properly. mine was running as fast as my SS before I went to carb then I picked up another 8 tenths with a manifold swap :EEEK:

[ls6monte]

Looking good Joe!

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

Bout Time You posted This Upp ASSHOLEEEE!

[*LS1* Queen]

^^ agreed

[frankzlt1]

lookn good,i like that color

[My84Z]

Who cares about posting this work on that neglected thing!

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

mmmm sad but true. wish he would finish this with an LQ4 under the hood!!!!!!

[*LS1* Queen]

y dont u donate some money to him then..im sure that would help it get done lol

[SLP IROC-Z]

Who cares about posting this work on that neglected thing!

haha the longer its off the road the longer itll stay nice.

its getting rarer and gaining value by the day!

[My84Z]

So put it to stock

[SLP IROC-Z]

the exterior is going to be 100% stock right down to the iroc decals, stripes & 88-90 style wheels. but it definitly is getting something decent under the hood, 200 horsepower isnt going to cut it, it needs to be faster than my truck lol.

[My84Z]

you said it was going up in price and only way it'll be worth more is if it is stock.

[Formula413]

Upgrade the drivetrain and enjoy the car.

[SLP IROC-Z]

in low mileage all original 100% stock condition id say your correct.
if the car was a 1LE, firehawk, tta or any other extremely desirable 3rd gen i would put it to stock condition.

these cars arent like 60s/70s muscle cars yet where the price of an all original mint low mileage car is astronomical in value compared to a restoration.

in low mileage mint original condition my car would prob be worth 10k tops. in restored form the value is going to be less. in my situation i feel that the cars value in restored condition will probably be higher with the more modern drivetrain and other special work done to it.

[KLAB]

in low mileage all original 100% stock condition id say your correct.
if the car was a 1LE, firehawk, tta or any other extremely desirable 3rd gen i would put it to stock condition.

these cars arent like 60s/70s muscle cars yet where the price of an all original mint low mileage car is astronomical in value compared to a restoration.

in low mileage mint original condition my car would prob be worth 10k tops. in restored form the value is going to be less. in my situation i feel that the cars value in restored condition will probably be higher with the more modern drivetrain and other special work done to it.

Completely agreed. Awesome work man.

[bottledbird68]

haha the longer its off the road the longer itll stay nice.

its getting rarer and gaining value by the day!

See! Tell someone else that for me so she'll stop telling me to get rid of my third gen lol.


Now go get it together!

[SLP IROC-Z]

should have some more progress by the weekend, in search of a wreckd ls1 01-02 6 speed car for drivetrain transplant, keep an eye out for me.

[c4boom]

if your on the cheep man go 4.8 5.3 t56 for the time and then when you have the cash go ls1, ls2

[*LS1* Queen]

he said ls1 boomer lol

[SLP IROC-Z]

i want a whole car, its the most cost effective way to finish this thing. there are alot of compatible parts on a 4th gen i can use on my iroc. motor, trans, driveshaft, axle, wheels/tires, brakes, wiring, interior, computer, fuel system.

[c4boom]

ya i hear you there I keep forgetting how much you need

[Formula413]

Nice thing about getting a wrecked car for the drivetrain is that you can part out what you don't use and get some money back.

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

ill plant the bug for Joe(AXP Rogers Cuzin) to keep a look out at the repairables auction in taunton!

[SLP IROC-Z]

brought it down to the shop today and got to work. i f'ing hate por15, they should spell it poor15. if youve got smooth clean steel that you want to paint stay far far away from that stuff, its junk. thankfully paint stripper ate it right off. rear wheel wells are bare metal again after a few hours, going to bite the bullet and strip the under body as well.

[mormjatt]

Hey man i see your in Salem NH. I'm in Methuen, where is your shop?

[SLP IROC-Z]

we are right off rt38 across from the stone yard behind dunkin donuts. the name of the shop is affinity auto repair.

heres a little more progress

[TBerry95z28]

damn got that bitch stripped right down lol. can't wait to see it with an LS

[black heartbeat]

looking good man

[lancerus]

That was a nice looking car - good luck on bringing it back to life. I had an '89 years ago but it died a nasty death (head-on).

[ZFreie]

we are right off rt38 across from the stone yard behind dunkin donuts. the name of the shop is affinity auto repair.

heres a little more progressHa no kidding, I might have to stop in some time and say hello. I know exactly where you are and live like not even 10 min away. Are you the owner? :idontknow: lol

[KLAB]

Hey man i see your in Salem NH. I'm in Methuen, where is your shop?

He lives right up the st from nick!!

[mormjatt]

He lives right up the st from nick!!

Haha damn no shit. It's a small world.

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

kick ass joe!!! im just happy to see the car getting worked on!!!!

[KLAB]

Joe lmk when me and Matt can come up sometime and check it out!!

[SLP IROC-Z]

The start of my parts collection... 9" center section compliments of Mike E. i have a lot to order, full spohn tubular front suspension, spohn rear suspension, lsx swap headers and a 9" housing w/axles. waiting for the right car to come along at the auction so i can pull the trigger. spending this kind of money makes me cringe but i want the car DONE.

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

^^^ TOILET!!! ^^^^ hahha

[SLP IROC-Z]

figured id give the air compressor a break, its been workin hard for the last few hours and decided to post up some pics from recent progress. these pics are about a week old, getting very close to having the under body 100% stripped and cleaned. also been doing some welding, wasnt to happy with my original welds on the SFCs so i ground them out and redid them, looks much more professional. have been working on making some bracing for the LCA mounts and custom SFCs that will go down the pinch welds. since a powerful motor was never in the plans i didnt see the need to do this before but with the plan being an LSx, t56 and 9" i know im going to be hard on it at the track.

[SLP IROC-Z]

more

[black heartbeat]

Looking really good Joe!

[Formula413]

That thing has obviously kept up on so it wouldn't rot, looks great underneath

[*LS1* Queen]

that cars a pita!! lol

[SLP IROC-Z]

why do u think its been nearly 8 years!

[SLP IROC-Z]

BMR SFCs will be here monday, hopefully have the under body painted next weekend! these sfcs look really beefy, also bmr is the only company to offer a choice of sfc based on exhaust, since im running LTs i went with the sfcs for inboard style exhaust, the passenger side connector looks much stronger vs the one for a stock exhaust setup. she should be stiff with these and the alstons.

[c4boom]

so your going to run both sets dam man

[SLP IROC-Z]

yeah, best of both worlds.

[TBerry95z28]

no flex here lol

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

Damn! thats gunna be SICK!!!!

[KLAB]

Joe PM me your # I will come up and check it out next week!! I was going to come last night but I had a few assignments to finish and I knew if I came up I'd never get them done when I got home hahaha.

[SLP IROC-Z]

BMR SFCs are here!

[941LE]

those things are no joke

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

Damn those look SICK!!!!

[SLP IROC-Z]

itll be as stiff as it gets without doing a cage. heres a pick with one mocked up:

[ZFreie]

those things are no jokePlease correct me if I'm wrong, but from what Ive read about 3rd gens is the frames are pretty weak, and don't stand up to much power before twisting stuff. Dunno if this is true or not but would explain the really beefy sfcs. Cause the two point sfcs for are cars arnt half as beefy, them are two point sfcs going on the iroc yes?

[SLP IROC-Z]

the chassis between the 3rd and 4th gens are identical up to the front of the floor pans, the front subframes and front clip are completely different. as far as strength goes the two are probably pretty similar comparing hardtop to hardtop, i can see the 3rd gen t top cars being weaker than a 4th gen t top car due to there being less roof.

my car was pretty tight back when i drove it, with a stockish 305 under the hood i dont think it had the chance to be twisted. i put the alston SFCs in a while ago, theyre the tubular ones u see in that pic that connect the actual subframes together. the bmrs go from the lca mount down the pinch welds and across to the subframe. running both types of SFCs triangulates the chassis on both sides and is the strongest chassis you are going to get without a cage or serious chassis work.

[84ta406]

Those look Identical to the UMI ones. Did you do the alston ones recently or where they there a long time ago(dont see them for sale). I like what you did to stiffen that thing, wouldnt mind doing something similar myself.

[c4boom]

my roof on my third gen says that the bitch will twist given a hard enough hit but I think your way ahead of me on that entire thing any ways

[SLP IROC-Z]

Those look Identical to the UMI ones. Did you do the alston ones recently or where they there a long time ago(dont see them for sale). I like what you did to stiffen that thing, wouldnt mind doing something similar myself.

i didnt care for the umi ones because of the bend in the passenger side connector and the brace that goes to the pass side subframe. i installed the alstons 7 or 8 years ago, theyre still available off their website.

[SLP IROC-Z]

my roof on my third gen says that the bitch will twist given a hard enough hit but I think your way ahead of me on that entire thing any ways

like any car theyll definitly twist, buckle, flex, etc given enough force. i dont think these cars deserve the title "loosest unibody ever" like everyone says, in my opinion i think foxbodys live up to that title. i dont really want to molest the body anymore but i figured it would be a good idea to run the bmrs so i dont ruin it beating on it.

[84ta406]

i didnt care for the umi ones because of the bend in the passenger side connector and the brace that goes to the pass side subframe. i installed the alstons 7 or 8 years ago, theyre still available off their website.

I hear ya, forgot the UMI's had the bump on that side. I couldnt find the Alstons but I could be having a slow day lol

Looks great though man.

[c4boom]

ya the fox bodies suck. almost have to threw floor them and back half them if your putting down hard power to keep them tight

[SLP IROC-Z]

I hear ya, forgot the UMI's had the bump on that side. I couldnt find the Alstons but I could be having a slow day lol

Looks great though man.

idk why they arent on chris alstons site but top down solutions sells them heres the link
http://www.top-downsolutions.com/frame-connectors-1982-camaro-firebird-body-p-90.html

[84ta406]

Theyre Alston Racing, not Chris Alston Chassisworks. I figured it out before I left earlier, forgot to post.

[BOTTLEDZ28]

Joe, did you weld in the SFC yet? If not then I suggest you either hold off or figure out what exhaust you are going to run. I chose not to use any sfc on my car becuz most of them get in the way of any LT setup witha custom 3" ypipe or tru duals. Ya the cage gets in the way sometimes but I have more room under the car now.

I even made my own T56 crossmember that allows me to tuck my Lts and 3" y pipe up tighter to the floor.

Here is the crossmember I made. I am still able to use my Spohn torque arm.


http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y98/BOTTLEDZ28/crossmember/installed.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y98/BOTTLEDZ28/crossmember/crossmember33.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y98/BOTTLEDZ28/crossmember/uninstalled2.jpg

[941LE]

nice work

[Formula413]

nice work

+1, awesome

[KLAB]

nice job. threadjack but too awesome

[SLP IROC-Z]

hey brad, my alstons are already in, but the BMRs i bought are for long tube style headers/exhaust. these ones wont work worth with the stock exhaust routing. you did a nice job on your x member and exhaust.

the alstons may get in the way of a double hump style x member where they connect to the front subframes but im sure ill be able to make something work

[black heartbeat]

very awesome

[BOTTLEDZ28]

hey brad, my alstons are already in, but the BMRs i bought are for long tube style headers/exhaust. these ones wont work worth with the stock exhaust routing. you did a nice job on your x member and exhaust.

the alstons may get in the way of a double hump style x member where they connect to the front subframes but im sure ill be able to make something work


Is that a picture of the crossmember you are running or is it someone elses? Id like to know the thickness of the material used to make it. I had a setup like that prior to the one I have now and I noticed it flexed a little bit under heavy load. I ended up scrapping it and overbuilding the one I have now. I had Spohn send me a new replacement torque arm mount and I just welded it to my mount.

Keep up the good work. Maybe this will give me the motivation to strip my car down and start fresh again.

[SLP IROC-Z]

iroc is going on a rotisserie so we can get the underside DONE. i borrowed one from a friend of mine and hope to have the car on it before the end of the week! talked to midwest chassis works about a fab 9" housing last week, need to get that ordered up. cars been put off too much, i want the underside painted and a suspension/axle under it by august.

[SLP IROC-Z]

thanks to mike!

[ILuvPizzaTimes10]

SWEEETTTT!!!!!!

[941LE]

thank you Joe! I finally got the fucking bolt on and the seats in!

[SLP IROC-Z]

haha np man, and thank you. howd you end up getting that bolt out?

[c4boom]

with Weasel juice

[941LE]

Used the impact with a extension layer under the seat for leverage. Came right out.

[SLP IROC-Z]

car is finally on the rotisserie!

[irockidz28]

about time!

[KLAB]

Text me I wanna come see this soon!

[KLAB]

and we need to organize a meet for us in this area you me maddie tony some other peeps