[chiefpontiac66]

At the request of another member, I've put together an album with photos of my 62 project. 8 years so far and still goin. To give some background, my brother and I picked up the car in fall 2003. If you look at the photo on the trailer behind the Blazer, you can see the gas prices. Wow! And that was California price! I had it transported back to MO in 2004 and found sooo many issues. The HEI conversion was just a mess with kill switch and wires just twisted together and taped. The conversion to 4 speed left various brake and carb hoses disconnected and either plugged with screws or just left open. Also, although the 4 speed conversion was done with later year parts, they seem to be working well, so I decided to leave it as is. The car is not being done for the purist. I knew there had been changes made when I bought it and it was all good, because I wanted to be able to build the car the way I liked, rather than having to worry about whether or not it had the right bolt head here or there. I am trying to keep the engine compartment somewhat stock looking, but I have used the chrome air cleaner and valve covers from 65/66 and my favorite engine color, 66-70 silver blue metallic. I also put in a 65/66 reproduction wood wheel (much cheaper than recasting the 62 wheel). I've updated the braking with front disc and the steering box is a closer ratio. The exterior and interior colors were originally kimberly blue. I know some really like that combination but it isn't my personal preference. I had thought about Yorktown blue, but now am leaning toward a dark blue of some sort with white interior, and the body shop said they will take care of changing the dash color to match the exterior. As far as wheels, right now I plan on using Rally IIs with redline tires, but that might just change by the time we get there. Even though the car was in primer and "ready to paint" when I bought it, I decided to strip it and start over. I'm glad I did, because I found a thin layer of bondo completely covering the lower part of the car. All glass has been removed. As far as the rest of the car. The engine is a 389, .040 over, trans and rear differential have been rebuilt, carb rebuilt, heads done, front and rear suspensions have new bushings, springs and shocks. New brake and fuel lines front to back, new parking brake cables, new fuel tank and sending unit, new M&H dash and engine harness properly converted for HEI, new Hurst shifter, new radiator and power steering pump, complete new exhaust with flowmasters and trans am style splitter extensions. I've tried to do most of the work myself, with some help from family and friends. What started out as a budget build has taken on a life of it's own, but when she's done, I think she will be a pretty sweet ride.

To access the album, click on chiefpontiac66 at the top of the thread and then public profile.

[Engine-Ear]

Hey, great pics and progress...making the car you're building YOURS is the only thing that matters.

My GP is Ensign Blue (the dark purple blue metallic) with a white painted top and light blue interior. (PM me if you decide to swap interior parts to another color)

[ho421]

Looks good and a nice solid car.

[Derbs24]

Awesome pics, looking great! I love the wood wheel and may put one of those in my GP also. It really looks at home in your car.
I'm with you guys, I think every rebuild should be unique to the car's owner. I just like that there is another old Pontiac on the road, save from the weeds or the crusher. That's always a reason to celebrate!

[kustomlarry]

That car is straight and solid...

Did you pull the body off the frame or work on your back under it?

[chiefpontiac66]

Unfortunately I worked on my back. There are times I wish I had pulled the body off, especially when running the new fuel and brake lines, but honestly, I just am not set up for it. Once I got to the rear differential work, I took it to a relative's shop with a lift and we finished up underneath. It does have some typical rust in the lower rear quarters, rockers, and front fenders, but the areas under the windshield and back glass are rock solid. I was really surprised when stripping it, because there was a thin layer of bondo all over the rear quarters. I hadn't planned on stripping it, but the body guy highly recommended it and man was he ever right. There was a crease in one of the doors that was also just filled with bondo, so it has been sanded out as well. Overall though, for a 50 year old car, yeah this thing is solid and really straight. I also wasn't going to pull out the front and rear glass, but again, that's just how my guy does it, so he came over to my home and helped me one Saturday. Awesome! And I will tell you, he is the best in the business, so I gotta listen to his advice. Here is before and after of a 2+2 he did for me 10 years ago. I can't wait to see this 62 when it is done!

[kustomlarry]

I really like 66's. My father has a 66 cat 421 ho 4 speed car. I can't wait to get into my house to get going on mine. I have to pulled the motor and trans from my gto and sell the car then the cat will come home. At least I will have the 62 gp to drive during the summer.

Are you doing Black with blue interior?

Nothing like those big pontiacs....

Here are my two 62s. I don't want to hijack your page....


By kustomlarry at 2011-01-11


By kustomlarry at 2012-01-05

[chiefpontiac66]

Wow. Those two look really straight! At this point I am planning on a dark blue with either dark blue or white interior. I really like the dark blue/white combo but not sure about keeping white clean.

I also wanted to share something about the wood wheel. For those of you who know, the transition of the 65/66 steering column to steering wheel is a little smaller than 62. The last time I checked, a few years ago, it was $1200 plus shipping to have a wheel recast. Well, I had bought this wheel as a spare for my 66 and just never used it. The only problem was that it didn't meet the column very well. So one day I notice that the collar on my pos 62 wheel had finally cracked and had just fallen off. Hmmmm. so I sanded the end smooth and with the tension keeping it round, it just clips on the end of the column. There is just a small gap at the bottom that nobody notices. LOL! Well, at this point its fine, but I am wondering if I should have the body shop make me a piece of metal like this that fits perfectly, and have it painted to match the column. Let me know your thoughts.

[kustomlarry]

Sweet. Nice work....I had a 64 gp parts car that was dark blue with with. Awesome look.

[1963409]

It's not quite the same time frame, but I'm into mine since 2007. Here's where I'm at now, back from paint, I need to assemble and fine detail. 62- 4spd- 425A Mandalay Red/with White int.

[chiefpontiac66]

Now that is one sweet car! Nice work! And a 425A. That is awesome.

[kustomlarry]

SQuirt!!! Awesome

[Engine-Ear]

Man I better get back to mine or all the in-progress GPs will be done before me!

1963409, your project looks fantastic.

[carcrazy]

Originally Posted by 1963409

It's not quite the same time frame, but I'm into mine since 2007. Here's where I'm at now, back from paint, I need to assemble and fine detail. 62- 4spd- 425A Mandalay Red/with White int.

Great looking car!!!

[chiefpontiac66]

Well, this process has turned out to be quite the challenge. I stripped the car to bare metal back in January and started taking parts to the body shop. 6 months later I ended up pulling all of the parts out of the shop due to inactivity. I hated to do it, but really had no choice. On the positive side, it got me back into completing more work on my own. There has been progress, since I now have the a/c system working and the dash is back together. The dash pad is done and I have all the chrome and trim ready to go on once she is painted. I also have used some POR 15 on some areas of surface rust. I found another shop in the area that has agreed to finish up the body work and paint in Sept. In the interim, they are getting the doors and fenders ready for block sanding. They also have agreed to make some minor rust repair to the top in mid August so I can get the headliner and glass in. Since this is going to be more of a mild custom, I have opted for 65 Pontiac blue charcoal for the color. Man, I just love that color with redline tires and a white interior! Here are a couple of pics of the dash and the area underneath the fender/door area. I plan to have the seats and door panels done in white and in a custom pattern. I also will probably have a custom console installed. Cup holders might be nice. LOL! If any of you have or come across some good looking patterns for the original bucket seats, please share. I have a pattern in mind, but you never know, I might change my mind.

[chiefpontiac66]

Geez! Hard to believe its been a year since I got the second body shop on the car. With a little encouragement along the way, the body work got done and the car just got painted this past Sunday. Yes, I am a bit biased, but I just freakin love redlines with that Pontiac Blue Charcoal paint!

[Deadhead]

Hot Wheels!

Looks amazing. The hard part is over on that project!

[tom s]

Had that color on my 65 when bought new.Liked it so much I painted my 63 Lemans that color.Was on it when I sold it.tom

[ho421]

Chief... two carbs up! Love it. Congrats on following thru on your project.

[chiefpontiac66]

Thanks guys. The car is about 4 hours away from me since we relocated. The pics look awesome and I can't wait to see it in person. One thing I think is amazing is that it hasn't even been sanded and buffed yet. This body guy does incredible body and paint work in my opinion. Interior will be white and we are thinking about a red pinstripe on top body line of front fenders that continues onto the doors. If you hadn't noticed, the front fender spears have been deleted. Should be done just in time to put away for winter. LOL!