The Basement

So I arrived home with a trailer packed with parts, a spare engine, 3 sets of wheels, fenders, doors, T tops, transmission, wheel arches, containers full of parts, a complete (re-finished) interior and every nut and bolt Lee had ever removed from the car. Helen helped me with unloading it until her arms ached, then my Dad showed up to help with the engine and other heavy bits. We put things wherever we could find room, protecting the fragile parts with blankets. I thought we did pretty good... until my wife complained she almost broke her neck walking through the basement to the laundry room! So, first thing Monday morning, off we go to Lowes to buy some shelving. I'd made plans to buy the wood and build some, then my wife found a heavy duty ready made shelving unit which was ideal. We got home, put them together, rearranged every part and voila! A fairly organized basement/workshop which just needs some drywall on the ceiling, a coat of paint on the walls. Not only have I got my workshop, my wife is happy it's now tidy! 2 birds, 1 stone LOL.

As a side note, I have made an amazing discovery!!! While we were moving the stuff around in the basement, Helen noticed a piece of paper under the rear seat of the car. When we opened it, she asked me what it was and lo and behold, it was the original build sheet from when the car came off the line, still legible after sitting under the seat for 30 years!!!! Here is a pic of it!!!

The Purchase

The following day I called Lee and told him I wanted it. We arranged to meet, Lee wanted to sit down with me over dinner, go through with me everything he'd done, what needed doing, pass on numbers of contacts to me. We got the paperwork out of the way, did the deal and I planned to pick up the car the following Saturday. I had to hire a trailer due to the engine not being hooked up and running. I'd have to come back the following week with a box trailer to pick up the rest of the car. One problem I had was storage. We don't have a garage, our basement is unfinished and full of clutter. My other concern was I had promised my wife we would have a new bathroom by the time her parents came to visit mid October. She told me I could buy the car on one condition.. the bathroom came first! I ordered a canvas garage online and started the nightmare task of clearing room in the basement, throwing out crap, boxing up things to be kept, piling them neatly in one corner. Basement finally straight, the garage arrived. I put it together, it was huge! The car and some other stuff was going to fit perfectly in here. The day arrived. I went and picked up the beast! Typically it poured from the time I got up til the time I pulled in the driveway. By the time I got home with it on the trailer, the neighbors were out, the family were there, everyone wanted to see it! After a thorough wipe down with a chamois, she was back to her gleaming best. We unloaded it and pushed it into the new garage. Where I promised my wife it would sit until the bathroom was done! The following week I hired the box trailer and drove back up to Lee's. As the doors, trunk lid, fenders and hood need painting, I spoke to Ron, the guy who'd done the awesome paint job on the rest of the car. I left the trunk lid with him to work on at his leisure. I'm in no rush, it's not like I don't have anything else to do on it! Plus I know his work will be worth the wait.

The Find

So my main resource was Craigs List. There were a ton to choose from with varying price tags . Then I found one that piqued my interest.. 79 Camaro Z28 with T Tops, 80% restored... price was right, most of the restoration was done, it came with a majority of the original parts, along with a shit load of extras. I emailed the seller, wanting to know more, see pictures (fearing the worst). The email from him arrived, I was scared to open it. My eyes widened, my wife was shouting "show me, show me!" I turned the computer screen to show her.. her first words were "it's a shell, it has no doors!". She lost interest in it and went back to her phonecall, as I studied the pictures, in awe of a fantastic paint job, seeing the potential in it, imagining the car shows. I emailed the seller straight back, saying I was definately interested and could I arrange a time to meet him and view everything. We arranged to meet on a Sunday afternoon. My wife reluctantly agreeing to come with me, me hoping that this viewing would make her more enthusiastic about my project! Lee, the seller was a great guy. Knew the car inside out, I don't think an inch of that car had not been touched by his hands. We spent 2 hours going over every part of it, Lee explaining to me what he'd done, how he'd done it, why he'd done it. I couldn't have asked for a more informed seller. He told me to go away and think about it. Within 3 feet of our farewell handshake, my mind was made up! I wanted that car and I wanted it now!

In the Beginning

Firstly, some background. My wife Helen is English. We met online in 2001 and finally met in person in 2005. She came to visit for 10 days. After her trip, she asked me to come to England to meet her family and friends and so that she could show me the sights. Knowing that this was going to be a trip of a lifetime and wanting to see my love and meet her family, I sold my beloved 1981 Camaro to fund my trip. Fast forward to early 2008 and my wife tells me it's always bothered her that I sold the Camaro to come and visit her. Despite the reassurances she was worth it, she said my constant comments when seeing Camaro's made it clear to her that I had some regrets! So she'd been looking out for one for me to restore. But being pretty clueless on what I wanted and what was good or bad, she wanted me to have some input into a purchase. Great!! I have a green light for a new project! So the great hunt began. I looked at different years, different colors, different levels of restoration. I had to decide how much money I wanted to spend on the initial outlay and how much time I wanted to devote to the project.