Well, after about two months and at least 50 weekend hours, plus the work of a capable (once again, capable) body shop my 1970 Plymouth GTX is looking surprisingly good. I personally dug into the interior mess, removing the shelf paper from the woodgrain surfaces and removing/re-installing many trim pieces with the correct screws and bolts (just about every item disassembled by the first body shop was re-assembled with missing and/or improper fasteners). Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I repaired the vacuum lines and got the Air Grabber hood working.
With the interior sorted out (except for the irreparably damaged dash pad) I took the car to the same body shop that did the work on my 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T last year (a shop I found after the GTX was in the clutches of that first body shop). The car's paint was uneven and dull, but I hoped the deadpan finish was a result of incomplete color sanding rather than simply sloppy paint application (though logic suggested the latter). Happily, this second shop was able to dig into the paint with wet sanding and buffing to produce quite a deep luster. This shop also applied the side stripe kit I ordered from The Paddock, and they painted the correct flat-black stripes over the hood's power bulge.
I must say, when I arrived to pick up the car yesterday I couldn't believe it was the same vehicle. There are still flaws in the paint if you examine it closely, and no amount of wet sanding or buffing will remove them. However, without a close inspection you might just think the GTX has been properly restored. I'll be driving it back to Denver, along with our Long-Term Chevrolet Tahoe, next week. Should be quite an adventure...
By rick8365
on August 8, 2007
06:46 AM
Very nice - Congrats!
One of my favorite cars from that era - enjoy the road trip!
By scott65
on August 8, 2007
08:13 AM
Good to hear Karl! Looks like a sweet GTX. I'm digging the side stripe
By levyrob
on August 8, 2007
08:28 AM
Looks great, Karl.
Do you have the 1/18 GMP version of your car? My muscle car dreams and automotive nostalgia are wrapped up in 1/18.
Oh, for days when cars truly rumbled instead of screamed......
By carboy28
on August 8, 2007
12:32 PM
I'm glad to hear your GTX is close to restored. I know how much pain you were having to endure with the dash issue, but at least looking at the whole car should ease the pain a little.
Great looking car!
By skierx420
on August 9, 2007
12:01 PM
hmm I see the need for two new rear tires in the not so distant future..........
By editor_karl
on August 9, 2007
01:01 PM
Oh yeah!
And yes, I've seen that GMP model and it is nice! I actually just saw it as AutoBooks in Burbank, and even the packaging is great (period 1970s font and everything). Not cheap though ($130, I think).
By moparbad
on August 9, 2007
04:15 PM
How did you resolve the dash color problem? Or did you leave it as is?
By editor_karl
on August 10, 2007
08:40 AM
Left as is for now. As long as I don't look at too much I'm not too annoyed...usually...