New Build - '73 Z/28 Pro-Touring

[Gumball]

Well, I've decided to jump back into the fray with yet another project. After clearing my shop and just enjoying 7074 for the past year, I gave in to the desire for something more to work on. I was still looking for an early '60s station wagon, but came across a one-owner '73 Z/28. I've always had a soft spot for 2nd gen F-bodies, especially the early ones with flat rear windows... and more so the Camaro with round tail lights.

The seller bought it new in Jan '73 when he was 21 and immediately turned it into a drag race car, so the majority of the 16k original miles on it were racked up at a quarter-mile at a time. He worked at Ford for 30 years, then retired and did a ten year stint at Roush Racing (mostly on aviation engines) and another 10 years at GM racing (Cadillac ALMS engines). He was super meticulous with the mechanical work and did whatever he wanted to from the standpoint of preserving the underside - meaning there's not much of the original finishes left.... lots of gloss black Imron paint from the '70s and '80s. Living in the Ann Arbor / Detroit area, he ran it mostly at Milan Dragway, but it sounds like it also got regular workouts late at night along Woodward and other Detroit haunts.

Through the years, the original engine was blown and replaced with an early solid lifter LT-1 (which is currently in the car), the transmission was blown, rebuilt, and replaced, and same for the rear end center section. So, it's an all original metal and paint survivor, but without any of its factory birth markings or underside finishes - and the numbers matching drivetrain is long gone. As a result, I've been referring to it as a hot-rod survivor - basically trapped in time around the early '80s. He retired it from racing in the early '90s and then it sat for quite a few years before being returned to the street to live a life of car shows and cruise nights. Recently, he refreshed the engine, including the addition of Edelbrock heads/intake/carb kit, and upgraded the transmission to a TKO600, which now has just under 500 miles on it.

It's also a bit of a unique car - it's a true Z/28, with a "T" in the fifth place of the VIN and "Z28" on the cowl data tag. It also is a true 4-speed car. But, instead of being optioned from a base coupe, it started out on the line as a "Type LT" - '73 was the first year for that model, which replaced the "SS" version that year. The LT added creature comforts, but not A/C, and replaced all the exterior badges with LT, rather than Z/28. Between that and the fact that you couldn't order stripes from the factory on the LT models, it was the ultimate sleeper Camaro for the times.

My plan, since it's been a hot-rod from the beginning, is to continue that tradition and go full-on Pro-Touring with the build. I'll probably shy away from the 4-link conversion kits, as those are more track oriented, but will do a complete suspension upgrade, as well as big brakes, super light forged wheels to fit over the 14" rotors, aftermarket A/C, a decent stereo, some interior upgrades, and non-original stripes in matte black vinyl to match the roof, rockers, and rear panel. The last thing to go will be the engine - which will be replaced with either an LS427 (the wet-sump version of the LS7 that was found in the last generation Z/28 and Z-06) or one of the current LT engine offerings. The LS427 is in the top spot right now, as it would be a perfect fit with the existing TKO600 transmission.

Here are a few pics of it back in the day......

[Gumball]

..... and here are a few of it today.

[Gumball]

.... finally, here is my goal - except for the wheels, as I'll go with something a little less "blingy." Leaning towards something from Forgeline, for now.

[Jazzman]

Welcome to the black hole, Gumball! Nice to have company out here. Since our posts never show up anywhere as fresh posts, very few people venture out in this neighborhood. The few that do, however, are loyal and true friends! I like your project choice. I hope you have a bit better luck with your starting point than I did. I will subscribe to your project and enjoy watching your progress.

Jazzman

[RoadRacer]

Showed up as a fresh post this morning jazzman!

That's a beautiful car gumball, amazing how clean that looks. I have a 70.5 split bumper camaro on my bucket list so following along!

[Gumball]

Thanks for the kind words, guys. I've been doing a bunch more research and planning lately - I guess that's one good thing about the return of limits to our other recreational pursuits.

My initial reluctance to going with one of the available 4-link kits has subsided a bit, as it looks like I'll be going with the RideTech bolt-on suspension kit that includes just such a rear suspension. Their full kit includes the rear set-up with coil overs, an optional sway bar, and a full front system with tubular control arms, modified spindles (taller to provide better geometry that combats bump steer and other bad habits), new steering linkage, and sway bar.

I've also decided that 13" rotors are big enough and allow me to take advantage of the availability of some really nice 17" cast aluminum replicas of the original Z28 wheels. I can always add some superlight, forged wheels at a later date in whatever larger size suits my fancy, but initially these wheels will help to keep the vintage vibe that I want to retain. The front calipers will likely be Baer's 6Pro+, which are six piston forged, and the rears will be their SS4+, which is a four piston version that is paired for appropriate bias.

It's going in later today to have matte black vinyl stripes added, so I'll post pics of the car when it's done. For now, here's a pic of the wheels I'll likely go with initially on a car of similar color (but without the vinyl top).

[MPTech]

Looks great Gumball and the plan sounds like a good one. The split bumpers were always my favorite. What years were they made??
Like the color & rally stripes and the interior looks new.

[Gumball]

MPT - Not an original split-bumper car.... that was a feature of the RS package only. The original owner put the split bumpers on it back in '74 or so due to front end weight savings. Though, the pictures he gave me show the car in various bumper outfitting over the years. My plan is to return it to the full width bumper, but without the vertical bumperettes, as the ones that came on it in '73 were huge... not the tiny lower ones that were on the '70-'72 cars. That bumper is currently at the chrome shop, as a few of the no-longer needed holes have been filled with weld and ground down, so we need to make the bumper pretty again.

Speaking of pretty - I just got some pics from my buddy who does vinyl signs.... he finished adding matte black stripes in the original configuration to the car just this afternoon. These were taken in the shop, as he wanted to leave it in a cool and dry climate for curing, so I won't get it back until tomorrow. After 47 years of running around naked, this Z28 looks like I think one should have from day-one. The nice thing about vinyl, as opposed to painting them on as original, is that my friend is going to save the pattern and we can now change the sheen and color on a whim. The matte black will stay for now, but I may switch to a gun metal matte in the future if I want something a bit different.

[Jazzman]

Yes!! That is what it is supposed to look like! Very nice!

[Gumball]

Here are a few better pics of the stripes - very happy with how these turned out.

[Gumball]

For anyone looking to rejuvenate a black plastic part, you may want to look into Eastwood's "Plastic Resurfacer" - basically a very high-solvent spray bomb with some black pigment.

The front spoiler is original to the car and had seen years of use (although not many miles), as well as a bunch of Armor-All and other products. It was in good shape, but the surface finish was a combination of shiny, milky, and matte - so was ripe for a do-over.

I cleaned it really well with Dawn detergent and warm water, then lots of wax remover / degreaser paint prep solvent. After letting it dry for a while, I lightly scuffed it with 400 grit sandpaper and then cleaned it again with the paint prep. After a couple days to dry / outgas, I applied four light coats of the Eastwood Plastic Resurfacer. I was really surprised with the results and would highly recommend the product. It appears to be fairly durable, but time will tell.

Here are before and after pics of the spoiler.

[GoDadGo]

Chris,

I have a Harwood L/88 bolt on unpainted hood.
I don't know if you'd be interested or not.
It uses the stock latch and hinges.
It is a discontinued part.
It's about 4" tall.

Steve

[mburger]

Very nice! I had a ‘71 Z28. Your pics bring back memories.
What a great find.

[Gumball]

Chris,

I have a Harwood L/88 bolt on unpainted hood.
I don't know if you'd be interested or not.
It uses the stock latch and hinges.
It is a discontinued part.
It's about 4" tall.

Steve

Steve,

If I wasn't planning on going for a low-key survivor look from the outside, I'd for sure take you up on the offer of that L-88 hood. In fact, it'd be somewhat period correct for the car, as it had a similar hood installed in the late '70s and ran it until it was retired from drag racing in the '90s.

Here's a pic from back then.....

[Gumball]

Okay - so I decided for sure on the RideTech full suspension kit, including their triangulated four-link rear suspension. I ordered that kit, along with the Baer brakes and a brand new Currie 9" Ford rear end with the RideTech brackets installed (with 3.70 gears on a Eaton TrueTrac diff). The first of the boxes started arriving the other day, so now it's sorta like the early days of building the FFR - lots of unpacking and inventory.

I also ordered the wheels and tires - 17" cast aluminum versions of the original Z28 5-spoke rally wheels with Continental ExtremeContact-Sport in 255 (front) and 285 (rear).

Here are a bunch of pics......

[Gumball]

And, earlier today, I stopped by a local race shop that specializes in Porsche stuff, but they also sell quite a few different brand of seats and have lots of street performance seats on display to try. I found a pair of Corbeau seats that I really like and I'm waiting to hear from the upholstery guy who did my FFR's seat covers as to whether he can make these new, modern seats have the appearance on the seating surface of the originals. The fabric is available by the yard, and I can also get him a reproduction seat cover kit that he would cut up and incorporate into re-done covers for the new seats... more to come on this sub-project, for sure.

[Gumball]

Just placed an order for some additional ponies - the new LS427, which is a wet-sump version of the LS7 that was used in the '14/'15 Z28 and the C6 Z06. This new version has some upgrades, including a revised cam and other valvetrain mods, as well as the same style oil pan used on the '98 - '02 F-body cars (which should fit in my '73).

Nothing like 570 hp and 540 ft. lbs. to wake up a second gen Camaro.

[broddins]

Really nice. Those stripes made a huge improvement in the visual look of your car.

[Gumball]

Now this is going to be fun..... just have to drop this new beauty under the hood over the winter.

[Gumball]

Brakes arrived recently - good thing I bought larger wheels.

[Gumball]

It's been a couple of months since my last update - I was actually still driving the car up until a few weeks ago, but now that everything else is in storage and the lift is open again, I've finally started the project in earnest. I've been gathering parts for the past few months and still have a few things to get, but most of the stuff I'll need is on-hand.

I'm in the deconstruction phase now, getting the old engine ready to come out, as well as emptying out the interior so that I can do all the behind-the-scenes work that will go on in the passenger compartment (new HVAC system, stereo wiring, sound damping, insulation, rear suspension mounting brackets / holes, etc....) as well as some of the more overt things, like a 4-point roll bar, Recaro Speed seats, and harnesses.

Here's a pic of the gutted dash area, which also shows a bit of the floor - I'm astounded at how clean the floor is for a 47 year old car that spent its whole life in the Detroit area. So far, no surprises on condition..... it's as clean as initially thought.

Also, here's a pic of the new seats I ordered. After looking closely at various Corbeau models, I decided that the Recaro seats are just a better alternative, given the forces that I'll put into them on-track. The Recaro seats have locking mechanisms on both sides, the recline is an infinite-adjustment style with a knob on both sides of the seats, and the back is a solid metal pan, not just a perimeter hoop. I went with the ones that are vinyl on all but the seating area, which is a grippy cloth. I'll have the upholstery shop then pull the covers and replace the cloth with the OEM "comfort-weave" vinyl with the row of buttons just under the headrest - which will mimic the original seat covers.

[Gumball]

Front clip is off the car and the engine and transmission are out. Today was an important day, as I needed to get it up in the air and drop a plumb line from a bunch of chassis and unibody points, then take measurements for front subframe and unibody alignment. I had high hopes, based on the condition of the car so far, and I wasn't disappointed - all of the measurements were within spec and actually the cross-measurements all were exactly the same, to win-win.

So, with that out of the way, I swapped out the old rubber subframe isolators with solid aluminum versions from Detroit Speed, along with ARP stainless hardware (making sure to use the dreaded anti-seize that gets everywhere). Before and after torquing everything down tight, I dropped plumb lines again and was glad to see that both when semi-tight and torqued, everything fell to the exact same spots on the floor.

Next up - getting it back down on its wheels under load so I can install the through-the-floor subframe connectors and then the fit the 4-point rollbar.

[Gumball]

Up on the lift so I can measure and mark for the upcoming surgery. I'll be slicing open the floors (3" x 16" or so) to fit the subframe connectors and taking out a small section of the rocker-to-floor pinch weld to fit the footers for the 4-point rollbar. I haven't started cutting yet, but after laying out the cut lines, here's my double-check with a laser - the yellow dots are my inside-cut line so that I can work my way up to a tight fit.

Also, a pic of the connectors and the rollbar - waiting to be installed.

[NC Cobra]

Gumball,
That is one “*****in camaro” to borrow a phrase from a period correct song. Great to see you keeping the feel of the car. I spent far too much time as a kid out on Gratiot avenue in the early 80’s and your build would fit right into how I remember it. Going to try and find a reason to get my cobra back up there over the summer as we still have family up in Detroit. Wish you all the best on your build and hope to see you on the road some time.
Cheers
Jeff

[EbourqueIII]

That is sweet, I have always liked the 70-73 Camaro

[Gumball]

Just over four months after my last update, so here's a bunch of pics.

That pile of tubing a few posts above this are now a completed 4-point roll bar with an extra cross-brace in the trunk, as well as channeled subframe connectors. I also did a bunch of other welding, including reinstalling the factory-style console mounting brackets (originally a part of the body assembly) and filled a bunch of miscellaneous holes from that were drilled in the car during its life as a drag racer.

As with most of my projects, I fell prey to the "while I'm here" syndrome and ended up pretty much disassembling the entire car. The doors and trunk lid have never been off, though, so I left them in place. Even though I took out the entire interior - including wiring harness - I did leave the headliner in place, along with all the glass. I covered the exterior with bodyshop plastic and the glass with 3M welding / grinding protectant paper. Then, I dug in with cutting, fitting, and welding.

My goal was to preserve the overall patina and make the changes blend in with the car. This included finding just the right undercoating to match the aftermarket schmutz that was sprayed on the underside at some point in its life, using the real-deal trunk spatter paint (to refinish after adding a huge access hole for the new OEM fuel pump module that is in the cool stainless tank), and freshening up the gloss black Imron that the original owner applied to the front subframe back in the '70s.

I also had fun doing a few small other projects - adding a front tow eye that will protrude through a slot in the front air dam, trimming and edging the package shelf to give the roll bar installation a finished look, adding an LED shift lamp to a previously vacant position on the dash bezel, and re-purposing the "fasten seat belts" lamp.

One nice addition is an OEM-appearing instrument panel from Dakota Digital that will be nearly plug-and-play with the wiring harness / ECU from GM Performance.

So, here are the latest pics.......

[Gumball]

A few more pics.....

[Gumball]

Ok, so I'm not very good at keeping this "other build" thread up-to-date, but here's a recent pic as the Z28 was rolled out of the hangar for some springtime sun and to shift things around so I could get the track-car up on the lift for some preseason work.