Full frame on a GT Convertible

[vikesman101]

So now the belly is reworked and the engine compartment is prep ed for paint. I used an acid etch primer on bare metal to get the best bond and uniform color. My lovely wife picked out the color.... she wanted a color that would make the car "pop". Sooooo after 5 color chip books she went with 69 Cuda Green. It definitely "pops" Now a few more details and it will be ready for partial reassembly. My problem I have is that the 38 Chev showed up and will require my attention for 2-3 months most likely. I will keep working on this as much as I can fit in, this much was truly the worst part.

Tom

[GT Tim]

Lookin great too bad the momentum needs to go to another project.But I also understand.I am going to pick up a 50 5 window on Thursday.My Opel is close enough I am waiting the build on the truck until after the GT.Good Luck

[Ricky Slade]

Check out a few pictures of my 69 GT. Look at my members albums under Ricky Slade. I have built a 2x3 inch frame with a Ford 9 inch four link and a Fat Man Fabricators front end with Mustang II steering. It has really worked well so far. I will be glad to share any of my mistakes with you. I can be e-mailed at Bbayou@msn.com. I am not building a drag car although it looks that way. By the way I would also do some shoring on the body if you start taking doors off or even opening them for that matter. Still this is one strong body as mine has the entire floor boards removed. You really appreciate the worksmanship when taking one of these apart.

[vikesman101]

Well I to am frustrated by having to stop work on the Spyder for a few months, it does break the momentum. But, fixing other peoples cars is how I fund my Opel addiction, and this one will probably give me enough dough to finish up the Spyder. It seems like every week now different people are starting to talk to me about doing the body work on their cars which is good as it keeps me busy but I need more help . Maybe a custom shop in my future..... hmmmm already have 3 businesses why not one more Well I will keep doing what I can and post every bit that gets done. Thanks for all the advice and I do check out all the threads as you all suggest they are helpfull.

Tom
Vikes 7 New England 31
Im not sure why coach Childress gave our offence the night off but Im sure he knows best. lol

[PeeWee]

My GT has a frame. haha Just playing. I'm new here because my new GT drag car I got has an Opel front suspension and I needed a little info on it and I must say I have seen alot here. I had a GT 25 years ago and always wanted another. Now that I have the drag car I've been eyeing a GT and am going to look into it.
Thanks guys, alot of info here.
Jerry

[vikesman101]

I set out to take only 2-3 months off for a customer car and it turns into 7 months! grrrrrr Carsile came and went... We got so busy with customer cars that I was unable to get anything done on the Spyder.
Well, FINALLY I am back at it. With much nervousness I cut the top off yesterday and it looks good so far. The cut is conservative but better to keep cutting than to have to weld back on. And now with my recent vacation to Jamaica my budget is a bit wiped out. My plan is to finish the body and run the stock motor and keep the stock interior for awhile until some upgrades can be done. Same holds true for the wheels and tires. I will keep the updates comming.

Tom

[newman27]

I'm sure making that cut is a bit nerve wracking. The GT really does look good with its top cut off.

[DennisGardiner]

Excellent progress for only 7 month, with all that work you have done.
Dennis

[vikesman101]

Right now we are working to get the roll bar set up properly in the car, I will have to have the metal bent and hope to accomplish that today. A lot of small stuff is getting done as well, painting little parts and reassembling areas of the car that are finished. Next up are the side pipes and a few parts I will need to replace. Both control arms are shot and the auto transmission mount is junk.
I have decided to incorporate a modern fuse/relay box under the hood, it will clean up the wiring a good deal and have a nice look. I have been following Opelspyders thread on the '72 restoration, he does exceptional work and gives me a new standard to achieve with this and future builds. What I like about his and my project is that with a little time and patience we can save our rusty ole buddies from the junk yard and turn them into head turning car show favorites.
More to follow....
Tom

[Nick Connelly]

You're doing an awesome job! I wish I could follow in your footsteps, but getting the funds sounds a little tough. I am curious as to how much time and money you spent on the frame alone. I am not sure that I want to do something as extensive as a spyder, but saving an opel would be fun... I hate how any opel anywhere within a days drive of eastern iowa has a junk frame! I also hate that everybody thinks that just because it turns over it is worth gold, regaurdless of how much rust it has or whether the frame could take a 10 mile drive! -.- I am kinda in a jam as far as money goes, but i can get a fairly cheap opel with almost no frame or wheelwells for a thousand bucks.... :P so how much would it cost me to fix and how long would it take?
thanks
-Nick

[Nick Connelly]

are you using a wire or a stick welder? i forgot to ask this when i had the ability to edit.

[vikesman101]

Nick

Believe it or not this has not been very expensive, more labor intensive. The steel is nothing fancy, I have less than $100 in that and 35 more for the roll bar bending. I will no doubt have more before this is over but I take it one bit at a time. I buy my sheet steel in 4'x8' for around $35 a pop and it goes a long way. I use it for floor patching and to build the deck lid and any where else its needed. I do use a wire feed welder, bought it 8 years ago for around $600 and it works well up to about 1/4", after that I use my neighbors stick welder. Don't be in a hurry, find a worthy car and just take one part at a time to rebuild, make a list of parts you need and post it on here, people will be glad to offer what they have at a reasonable price. I will also help in any way I can, maybe we can take them both to a car show someday.

Here are pictures of the roll bar, it is just a test fit and much will be done before it is finally welded in. Also, this is intended more for structural integrity than safety. I really was only trying to eliminate any remaining flex in the body. Most convertibles do not have roll bars, however, that said, I am making it very strong cuz you just never know. Soon I will post pictures of the rear cover in process, it will be integrated into the body and function as a trunk in reverse and eventually cover the convertible top I will be adding.

[vikesman101]

OK I have been hard at work on the Spyder and to get you up to date I will let you know what we have done.
We built the rear cover from a donated trunk lid from a Dodge Spirit as it was nice and mostly flat. We shrunk it to fit the GT and worked the channel into the cars rear opening. I know this might be a bit confusing so I will explain, the rear cover will function as a trunk lid in reverse, opening right behind the seats. This will allow for storage and better access into the rear of the car. The whole idea from the start was to integrate it into the body and be fully functional, not unlike the Corvette convertibles. The goal will be to eventually install a custom convertible top.
I have spent many hours on the reassembly of the motor and such and getting it back to running. I still need an automatic trans mount as mine is shot. I will post some pictures as soon as I can, my PC had a melt down and I had to rebuild it losing just a few recent pictures in the process. This weekend I will get the rest of the roll bar installed and burned into its final position. More to follow....

Tom

[vikesman101]

Well here are the promised pictures, hopefully this will help clarify my muddy explanation. Keep in mind EVERYTHING is still roughed in and will have a much better fit and finish before I am done. I also go a really good deal on a convertible top the other day and with some modifying I might be able to get it to work properly. I really wasn't worried about getting the top done this year but since I got one I may just have to adjust my time table for completion so as to allow me to get this working as well.

Tom

[vikesman101]

We are well on our way to trying to fit the convertible top and it will not be easy. I will do my best to show what we are doing but its hard to document every detail. I did search the site looking for anybody who has already done this and came up empty, unless I missed something. I guess in the long run its better to take my time and get it right than rush it out and have to redo anything later on, but I really wanted to hit some car shows yet this year. Oh well.....

I did see one that used a modified BMW top but I'm not sure its any easier than what I'm doing. Any thoughts?

I will keep posting.

Tom

[newman27]

Originally Posted by vikesman101 ...I did see one that used a modified BMW top but I'm not sure its any easier than what I'm doing. Any thoughts? I will keep posting. Tom

Tom,

If I understand the configuration you are trying to achieve, you might want to look into the Pontiac Solstice / Saturn Sky top. These cars have trunk lids that hinge at the back of the vehicle with the opening end directly behind the seats (exactly as you are doing). The top folds into the trunk cavity and then the trunk lid closes over the top completely concealing it. In addition, the operation is a manual process so there aren't any extra parts with the top to support a motorized operation. Maybe you would get lucky and the dimensions would work for your GT.

Matt

[NorwegianGT]

Here is what I did to prevent the car from bending during replacement of new rocker panels.Worked out fine.

[vikesman101]

Matt

I appreciate the input, I had thought about using that top but they are cost prohibitive. I also looked into a Corvette, and that was a close fit as well, but again a bit expensive. What I found is a Mercury convertible top for 80 bucks. Its not a perfect fit but then again none really would have been. We have started to fit it into the car and so far so good, but with any project like this it is a lot of trail and error. I'm a little concerned about getting a custom cover made to fit it tho... lol I did keep all the outside edges unchanged so a cover would be the same as original only shorter and less wide. I will keep posting on the progress and take many pictures.

Tom

[vikesman101]

The roll bar is finally welded into its finished location. I tested it by jumping up and down as hard as I could to see if the body flex was gone, and it was. The door gaps do not move any more. However, the car hitting bumps on a road will be the real test, but so far so good. We scraped the rear cover I had made in favor of a different design by my friend Dave. He found a way to get a much cleaner look and better fit. I will take more pics of that soon. I had to slow down as 3 more customer project cars came into the shop, a 84 Monte Carlo, 70 Opel GT, and a 69 Camaro. I will try to put a few hours every week into the Spyder, we are ready to install the new rear cover and create the deck. I expect to see the final shape within the next month or so. the car is read to run but I don't want to put gas in it till we are done welding around that area....might end poorly

More to follow.
Tom

[vikesman101]

Well I am back at it AGAIN.... So far behind schedule that I have just decided not to have a deadline for this project.
A few months back I got an email from Dallas asking me how the project was going and I told him I would get back on it soon. I was very saddened by his untimely passing, he is never far from my thoughts as i push forward with this build.

I have now scrapped the original deck lid in favor of one that my friend designed. Its a much cleaner look and better fit. We also fabricated a rain channel and latch for it. The hinges were the worst part, 4 different sets from the junk yard before we came up with a complete custom built hinge. I am preparing to weld down the deck metal and begin the finish work on the inside as it is a bit rough right now. It is amazing to me how much thought even the simplest parts take. Everything effects something else, tons of tweaking to get the fit right.
Next up will be the convertible top, or to be more accurate, the "umbrella top". I cant afford to have a complete top made up for this car so we are just going to make our own, it will function more as a rain stop then anything else. It will do little for road noise and such. First I need latches for the windshield area, any thoughts? I need something simple to secure the top in place on the windshield frame. I am using inexpensive electrical conduit to mock up the umbrella top frame, later I will have better stock bent up to replace it. Let me know any of your thoughs, I am always open to ideas.

The pictures here show a rough rain channel and some of the inside restructuring. Under the rear rain channel is 2 pieces of 1x1x1/8 to keep strength in the rear of the car.