{"id":17411,"date":"2015-08-14T13:08:24","date_gmt":"2015-08-14T20:08:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/?p=17411"},"modified":"2015-08-14T13:09:24","modified_gmt":"2015-08-14T20:09:24","slug":"doing-a-resto-mod-doesnt-have-to-break-the-bank","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/doing-a-resto-mod-doesnt-have-to-break-the-bank\/","title":{"rendered":"Doing a Resto-Mod Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"<\/a>
Allow me to introduce you to Dan Allen\u2019s 1984 Camaro IROC\/Z28 Resto-Mod build. Dan says it\u2019s almost done, just a few minor things to finish up on. Will it win \u201cBest of Show\u201d anywhere? Probably not, but Dan\u2019s more than happy with it and that\u2019s the only thing that matters.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

There are three ways to breathe new life into an older car that\u2019s in need of some living attention. The first and what most people are aware of is the pure restoration. This is where you try to use only original equipment parts to bring the car back to what it looked like when it rolled out of the showroom. Another option, which is used by many that build for pure performance is to use modified or aftermarket parts for anything that needs to be replaced. MY favorite is the resto-mod, a combination of the two.<\/p>\n

\"Build-Project<\/a><\/p>\n

\":<\/a>
This is what Dan started with, a basic 1984 Camaro Z28 as the Build Car and a 1984 Camaro IROC-Z as the donor car.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

One of the reasons like doing resto-mods is because it can help save a significant chunk of change. Twenty or so bucks for a Chilton\u2019s or Haynes Shop Manual, coupled with some tools that can usually be borrowed or rented if you don\u2019t have them and some spare time is really all you need. Another fun thing about doing resto-mods is that you can build things that the maker never did with factory parts. Take for instance, my buddy Dan\u2019s Camaro Project in progress. It\u2019s got parts from three different cars in it.
\n\"Left<\/a><\/p>\n

\":<\/a>
: Dan began by stripping off the parts he needed for his build car after he discovered the donor car was too far gone with rust to repair efficiently and safely.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

What the Project Has Consisted of to Date<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Build-Project<\/a><\/p>\n

\"This<\/a>
This is what the project car looked like after unloading it from the flatbed hauler<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dan started with this black 1984 Camaro Z-28. The digital dash was dead. The engine ran, but it didn\u2019t appear to be the correct one for the car. Dan went out and picked up a low mile IROC-Z for parts. He also ended up getting the steering column out of another car. The IROC-Z first donated its analog dash to replace the digital dash in the build car. All these changes precipitated a good deal of tracing wires to basically build a wiring harness from scratch, since none of the wiring he had matched up with the wiring diagrams he was able to find.<\/p>\n

\"Donor<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Dan<\/a>
Dan pulled both engines. He was going to rebuild the donor car\u2019s engine prior to installation, but found that it runs great and that the engine in the project car isn\u2019t the right one for the car, while the donor car engine is the correct one.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Although the engine in the project build car ran pretty good, it wasn\u2019t the one that the car had coming from the factory. As providence would have it, the engine from the IROC-Z was. Out came the build car\u2019s engine and in went the IROC-Z engine, after being cleaned up, receiving a small power massage, and receiving a paint job. I\u2019m told that once he feels the project is completed, he\u2019ll go back and rebuild the engine and tranny. The engine that came out of the build car is getting sold to help pay for parts.<\/p>\n

\"a93\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A little elbow grease and some paint makes an old engine look great.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The IROC-Z had the best suspension of the production Camaros and the build car\u2019s suspension was questionable. The upgraded factory suspension components came off, were cleaned up, and then reinstalled on the project Z-28 car. The parts that weren\u2019t salvageable were replaced with aftermarket performance products from Summit.<\/p>\n

\"Water<\/a><\/p>\n

\"If<\/a>
If the engine in either the donor or project car is in good condition, there\u2019s no need to rebuild or replace. Take a little time and effort to clean it up and then paint it. You can then either rebuild the left over engine or sell it to help pay for parts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Low Budget Engine Upgrades for Power<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Dan<\/a>
Dan wasn\u2019t looking for blazing white-knuckle power upgrades, so he stuck with easy and tried and true: A Holley Classic 650 CFM Double Pumper and an Edelbrock Torker II intake.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The IRC-Z engine was also pretty stout straight from the factory. Unless you\u2019re out for gobs of white knuckle power, you don\u2019t have to do much to get respect at the traffic lights. Dan pulled the stock intake and Rochester Quad carburetor and replaced them with an Edelbrock Torker 2 performance intake topped by a Holley Classic 650 four barrel carb. Fire is supplied through an MSD performance ignition and distributor. Eye candy was provided by cleaning up the existing chrome valve covers, timing chain cover, and air cleaner housing and then painting them a flat black with red lettering.<\/p>\n

\"Not<\/a>
You\u2019d never guess that Dan didn\u2019t spend tons of time and effort and money rebuilding this engine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The stock exhaust manifolds and single exhaust would strangle the new intake and carb, so off they came and in their place went a set of custom headers into a custom dual exhaust-this generation of Camaro was surprisingly not really designed for dual exhaust, so this took a little ingenuity. The end result sounds really good for as close to stock as it is.<\/p>\n

Clean and Paint the Engine to Give It That \u201cLike New\u201d Look<\/p>\n

\"Looks<\/a>
Looks Good Doesn’t it?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dan didn\u2019t want to sink the time or money into rebuilding the engine right away; he wanted to get behind the wheel as quickly as possible. After pulling it from the donor IROC-Z, he did a thorough job of cleaning the engine completely. All surface scale and rust was removed and the engine and water pump were given a few coats of engine block paint and gloss clear coat.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The engine all painted and reassembled looks new. The brushed aluminum intake has been buffed to a nice shine.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Paint and Body<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Sidemarkers\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"<\/a>
Even body shops don\u2019t go this far when painting a car unless you pay them a huge amount extra or unless you prep the car prior to delivering it to them. Dan did this all in his garage at home. This is the right to prep a car for paint.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

In order to save as much money on this project as he could, Dan did everything, including the body and paint work. He took the hood off the donor IROC-Z, cleaned it up and then cut a hole in it for the air cleaner. Over this went a pair of L88 style cowl vent scoops. Dan then took the body down to almost bare metal to make sure all the rust was gone. After a few coats of primer, on went a few coats of gloss black and red accents. As you can see, Dan went the full ten yards here by taking out the side markers and glass prior to painting to get the best possible finish. This s something that many people fail to do.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0361\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Good<\/a>
Good prep work tells in the finished product. Dan\u2019s paint job looks better than many professional jobs I\u2019ve seen.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Other than the modified L88 scoops and the hole he cut for them to work, Dan didn\u2019t do much to the body except clean and straighten it some. He did take the body skirting from the donor IROC-Z and install them on the Z28. This gives the car a lower stance and improves high-speed handling quite a bit by channeling the air out from under the car.<\/p>\n

\"None<\/a>
None of the wiring matched up to available schematics, so Dan made his own. It\u2019s not fancy, but it works.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You Don\u2019t Have to Try for Show-Car Quality to Be Happy<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is a biggie in my book. I hear quite a few people saying that they\u2019ve had to wait years to complete their builds because they had to get the car show quality. When asked, they tell me they had and have no plans of entering it in shows. When pressed, I\u2019m told they felt they had to do everything they did, but they felt it cost too much.<\/p>\n

\"Donor<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Dan<\/a>
Dan didn\u2019t like the digital dash in the project car, so the donor car gave up its dashboard<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is an erroneous assumption. If you want to build a strip burner, build one. Put the minimum amount of effort and money into interior and body improvements and upgrades. Then concentrate on building up the engine and, to an extent, the suspension. Dan is extremely happy with the way his car is turning out. He\u2019s actually surprised that it turned out, in his words: \u201cAs good as it did.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The carpet in the project car was ratty, so Dan replaced it with a molded carpet kit from Trim Parts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Dan\u2019s car is an excellent example of a resto-mod, heavy on the mod part. By combining parts from three different cars (and trim levels) he\u2019s made a car that is basically one of a kind. It\u2019s his. It may superficially resemble every other 1984 Camaro out there, but it is quite different. Even better, it fits his personality fairly perfectly.<\/p>\n

\"<\/a>
Some of you may remember my talking about trans brakes in a previous article. Dan\u2019s just arrived as I was writing this. This little \u201ctoy\u201d is going to make for some fun launches.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n