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Project Doolittle, '68 2000


datsunfreak

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Found these at the JY while picking up some other stuff. They were super cheap, so I went ahead and bought them. I'm still not 100% sure I'll use them in this car, though. Thoughts? 

 

2001 Mercedes SLK230, fairly light weight with no electronics and all manual adjustments. Also, no air bags, which is nice. 

 

20151214_173502.jpg

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Found these at the JY while picking up some other stuff. They were super cheap, so I went ahead and bought them. I'm still not 100% sure I'll use them in this car, though. Thoughts? 
 
2001 Mercedes SLK230, fairly light weight with no electronics and all manual adjustments. Also, no air bags, which is nice. 
 
20151214_173502.jpg

 

I hope that's mud in the seat and not what the driver also said just before the crash!

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I hope that's mud in the seat and not what the driver also said just before the crash!

 

It is mud, for sure. :rofl:

 

Matters little, as if I use them they will need to be recovered. Probably change the color on them anyway. Need to see if someone like Katskin makes replacement upholstery for these...

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 they will need to be recovered. Probably change the color on them anyway. Need to see if someone like Katskin makes replacement upholstery for these...

 

Found a place that makes new covers in 12 different colors, and two tone.  :thumbup:

 

If more modern wheels and stance

 

Yes to both. 16x8s, big brakes, lowered, most likely a modern engine, etc. 

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  • 5 weeks later...

My usual trick for removing the windshield, sliding a thin razor blade between the glass and seal and removing the front half of the seal...

20160113_201454.jpg

 

 

I remove the top and sides, leaving the bottom intact. Then lift the glass out by gently pushing on the top center. Popped out easy with no fuss...

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Surprisingly little rust behind the seal. None around the drain holes (usually rusted out on 510s), and just a tiny bit of surface rust a few inches over from the drain hole...

20160113_201920.jpg

 

 

Front end trim stripped completely...

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Left door gutted. Lock, handle, window regulator, etc all out. Left the latch and inner handle on so I could open/close it and they won't fly open on the trailer...  ^_^

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Rocker trims removed, no rust under there either...

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Hoping to gut the right door tomorrow, then pull the dash and console on Friday. Then the only thing left is the back bumper.  :thumbup:

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Got the right door gutted, dash out, console out, heater box out, etc. Pretty well down to the metal now...    B)

 

20160116_132423.jpg

 

 

So my streak finally came to an end. Up to this point I have not had one single bolt strip, break, or jam. Every single bolt slid right out like it was put in by the factory yesterday, which is quite miraculous to me...

 

So I get the back bumper off (those bolts did fight me a little) and I figured I might as well take off the reverse light too. At this point I am "done" with disassembly for paint and I get one bolt out of the reverse light easily, then literally the LAST bolt I am taking out snaps right off.    :rofl:

 

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Should be on it's way to paint jail tomorrow!   :thumbup:

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What color are you painting it? Solid color, BRE stripes, sweet vintage race livery, what's the overall plan?

 

Solid color for now. May do some BRE stripes in vinyl down the road. 

 

As for which color, still torn between two. May force the painter to decide and just surprise me...    :rofl:

 

 

It's either this Acura color, "Midnight Maroon", as a nod to the factory Spanish Red...

 

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Or a Doge color called "Stone White", which is a very close match to the factory Datsun "Ivory" color used on my 1200...

 

ChargerLowered001.jpg

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This car got me thinking of using the Stone White color. I dig it...

 

JCCS_2014_12.jpg

 

 

And I love how when painted black it really shows off the lines of the car. But with so many of them being black, I just couldn't let it be another face in the crowd, so I started thinking of other really dark colors...

 

0507_sccp_01_z+1967_datsun_roadster+fron

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So we noticed during disassembly that there was, inexplicably, about two pounds of sand inside each quarter panel. Vacuumed it out and just thought, that's weird. The car did spend a few years in Lubbock (desertish climate with lots of sand storms), so...

 
As it turns out, in the same area as that sand, was this...
 
01191615571.jpg
 
 
And you can also see, that rocker panel has a fairly good bit of bondo on it. You can see how much sand poured out of the rocker after grinding some of that bondo off. And that was after vacuuming it out... 
 
Mark (my paint/body guy) says he will spend the rest of the week stripping all of the paint off the car to see how much trouble we have gotten ourselves into...   :crying:
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Went for a visit to Mark's this morning...

 

Both of these look good...

 

20160123_094423.jpg

 

 

Right side rocker rust/bondo. Will cut all of this out and replace it soon...

 

20160123_092518.jpg

 

 

Right rear corner rust/bondo. Lots of work to do here also...

 

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Left rear corner...

 

20160123_092538.jpg

 

 

Left quarter/rocker not half as bad as the right...

 

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I knew when I bought the car the right fender was not original, and I had my suspicions about the left. Turns out both were replacements. They were originally light blue...

 

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And appear to be from a '69...    ^_^

 

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They are in decent shape. Just need to redo the light delete and smooth them over a bit. No real rust there...

 

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Both doors in good shape and appear to be original to the car...

 

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Apparently it took a light smack in the front at one point and they replaced both fenders and the lower valence, but there is no evidence of frame damage/repair. Then either at the same time, or in another incident, the right rear took a shunt forcing them to add about ten pounds of bondo to the rocker and quarter panel.   :rofl:

 

The rocker/quarter will be straightened this week, then welding in new metal starts. Stay tuned...   :thumbup:

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Right side rocker now straightened, all the rust has been cut out of right side and new metal has been welded in. The slot for the side molding on the quarter has been welded up and smoothed. Right side is about 90% done. He's starting on the left side quarter rust repair tomorrow.   :thumbup:

 

Also told him that after the quarters are derusted to roll the fender lips as much as possible.   B)

 

Since the wheels I want to use are 8" wide all around, I need all the room I can get...  

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