Team Camaro Tech banner

73 RS LT Z28 4spd restoration

14K views 32 replies 8 participants last post by  firstgenaddict 
#1 ·
This is my brother's 1973 RS LT Z28 which he has owned for 20 years and has been apart in his basement for 15 years. It is matching numbers 4 spd 3.73 posi. LT RS Gold exterior with Sandalwood deluxe interior. Most would kill for a car this solid.














 
See less See more
7
#5 ·
That car replaced my brother's first 1973 Z28 which was bought new at Stott Chevrolet in Tryon NC, nothing wouold get it...

He also has a 1997 Camaro SS 6 spd and a 2003 Z06 Vette which would go if he ever needed money...

Even though I primarily deal with First Gen's, my brother and I had 15-20 early 2nd gens in the 80's. This was one of the nicest cars we ran up on and the same year as my brother was born.
 
#8 · (Edited)
very interesting car , seems to be a huge hunk of sheetmetal missing from the cowl area ( soild?) . it does look good though . the tag decodes a 73 LT Z28 in 60/60 paint ( light copper ) and the LT neutral comfort weave interior built the first week in january at the norwood plant ( all 73s were built at norwood ). i have a 73 RS Z28 . you should introduce yourself over at www.nastyz28.com more a second gen site . interesting color combo should look good when your done . your car very well might be a RS also but no real way to tell as its has no front end . 73 rs car were different than the earlier cars as the government passed a 5 mph impact law and it sent gm scrambling to come up with a way to pass it . the 73 RS has 13 extra reinforcement pieces that the 70 - 72s don't have . i hope you still have them as they are very hard to find and will co$t . notice as your car is an LT it has no stripe code after the Z28 on the trim tag . all type LTs with the Z28 option had no stripes and emblems would be type LT and NO Z28 emblems . is it is a 73 type lt R/S Z28 ya might not want to chop it up . how much of the original stuff do you have ?
 
#11 ·
The car is matching numbers, (missing the carb) and we have the braces,they add about 200# to the front end LOL.
The interior has been in his shop for 15 years plus tons of NOS parts bought in the 80's including Fenders ($55 each at the Chev dealer) - LT trim, trim rings, LT Emblems, center caps, interior fabric, grilles, weatherstripping, all the front end hard parts, rear suspension parts etc etc.

The windshield corners were cheesy with a few holes about 1/8" however my dad wanted to ensure there was nothing left to infect it at a later date. (typical of what pine needles do when left in place for years).
The floors rockers and bracing have not a trace of pitting, it had a hole about 2" around in the pass quarter, dad put a lower rear quarter in it, over all the car needs very little metal work.
 
#14 ·
As an aside, this Gold car was purchased in the early 90's as a replacement for this car.



I (firstgenaddict) found this car on North Hwy 25 in Greenville SC approx 1985, 1973 LT Z28
90% original paint which was VERY WEAK! NOM replacement 350
1. It was built 07A - the same week my brother was born.
2. It was no more than 30 miles from the selling dealer, Stott Chevrolet.
3. Stott Chev and The hospital were also approx 30 miles from one another.

Stott Ford is still in business in the same location and Quain Stott is an IHRA PRO DRAG Racer.
 
#15 ·
After painting and 2 new fenders emblems etc... $300 for all the NOS GM (2 fenders and all the Emblems) in 1988.





And this will make you SICK...

all of it happened with the car parked, him inside at his job, and my parents in Hershey PA at the AACA Fall National Meet!

 
#20 ·
This is a correct car although I am painting 2 hoods for the car and it may end up with a bundle of snakes sidepipes with wide slots but there will be no stripes painted on it nor anything done which cannot be removed in a day or two to return it to stock.
It will be the correct color, it will have the correct over spray, sealers in the seams, floor joints etc, the trim holes in the rockers will be there even though it has no lower trim (because it is correct) it will be laser straight, with a mirror finish...
I always tell my customers that the way to ensure you get the most return is to restore the car correctly, modify it to your individual taste in a DAY II/period correct style retaining all the original parts for when the car is sold. You will get the most for and have the largest pool of buyers if the car is as close to original as possible, it is especially the case for a numbers matching 4 spd RS Z28.
 
#21 ·
For color matching clips, primers, inspection marks etc I use a set of PANTONE color chips as a standard. Pantone Matching books are available worldwide as the printing/graphic arts industry uses them as a standard. If you have ever picked out colors for a business card at a commercial printer... you've used it.

The RED-BROWN primer...





New sub frame bushings and cushions, Double checking everything for panel alignment....

After I get my alignments I mic the shim packs and write the figure down on a copy of the assembly manual page that has fender attachments.









I'm waiting on the NOS urethane nose to check everything then we are going to give her some color...
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top