North East F-Body Association - my 89 iroc restomod project

North East F-Body Association (http://www.northeastf-bodyassn.com/index.php)

- Project Logs (http://www.northeastf-bodyassn.com/forumdisplay.php?f=34)

- - my 89 iroc restomod project (http://www.northeastf-bodyassn.com/showthread.php?t=2213)

my 89 iroc restomod project

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/u...IROC-Z/1-1.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...0IROC-Z/13.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...0IROC-Z/12.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...0IROC-Z/11.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...0IROC-Z/10.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/9.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/8.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/7.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/6.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/5.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/4.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/3.jpg
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...20IROC-Z/2.jpg

time slip
http://i636.photobucket.com/albums/u...0IROC-Z/14.jpg

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!

whats it look like now joe

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!

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:

Bout Time You posted This Upp ASSHOLEEEE!

lookn good,i like that color

Who cares about posting this work on that neglected thing!

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

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

Quote:

Originally Posted by My84Z (Post 36573)

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!

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.

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

Upgrade the drivetrain and enjoy the car.

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.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLP IROC-Z (Post 36669)

Completely agreed. Awesome work man.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLP IROC-Z (Post 36611)

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!

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.

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

he said ls1 boomer lol

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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

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

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).

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLP IROC-Z (Post 40873)

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

Ha 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