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Let me give you the back story. In 1999 when I was 19, I bought a 1988 SC v6 2.8 5 speed manual with 126k miles from my good friend Seth. I loved the car and loved on her. Replaced the clutch. Replaced the brake pads. Drove the hell out of her. In November of 2002, I had a caliper that was hanging up completely lock up. No matter, I was headed for USMC Boot Camp the next month, so I parked it at my grandfather's in upstate NY. While I was still in the Corps, he died 2005. 2 years after I got out in 2008, I was married and renting a house in NC working as a cop while my wife was finishing her residency. My grandfather's widow, NOT my grandmother, began pestering me to get the car off HER property. Great. Well, my dad went to church with Seth's dad and by proxy of our respective dads, (Seth was now a high power lawyer in California) arranged to sell the car back to him for $1500 and tow it over to his dad's farm about 15 miles from my grandfather's. He would get to it someday and love on her again. Fast forward to three weeks ago. I am now a stay at home dad to two boys 2.5 and 7 years old. Have my own great farmhouse with a barn in upstate NY and too much quarantine nostalgia on my mind. I look up Seth on FB and ask him about the car. She is still sitting in his dad's barn on blocks (19.7 miles away from my house). He agrees to sell her back to me for same $1500 since I am in a place physically and financially to love on her and he is still in cali and didn't know when or even if he'd get to her. Point is, I'm going with a trailer to bring her home again tomorrow. Happy 40th birthday to me and thank you Trump for the quarantine money.
I'm really looking forward to being a part of this community where I can display my car ignorance without being judged. This is my first project car guys, be gentle.
Pics are in upstate NY fall of '99
Last edited by 88coupedoop; 05-01-2020 at 03:05 PM.
Reason: Added dates
subscribed. I am starting my resurrection tomorrow.
Other than bringing it home, I don't know how much work will be getting done with the two little boys strapped to each leg all day every day. Especially since Herr Cuomo just today closed school for the rest of the year.
We'll get her back on the jacks, get the hood and wheels off and go from there...
She's home! I took my good camera and got really good detailed pics from the arrival to the farm, the pick up, the loading, and unloading. Unfortunately I have to figure out how to format them properly for this forum. But the pics from my really old galaxy s5! upload no sweat.
So, she is in better shape than I expected. Not as great as I had hoped. The interior plastics are in GREAT shape. The dash is awesome. The carpet and seats are unsalvagable. The engine bay metal so far looks pretty good. My marine corps bumber stickers from when i enlisted! Picking up Shes home!
I'll take your guys' advice. Will be pulling out the seats and carpets and making an attempt at washing and saving them!
What about the drivers seat? From what I've been seeing and reading this is not an unusual problem?
I'll let you guys know as soon as I pull everything out. Or maybe sooner if I have questions when I'm doing it.
You could always swap covers from pass/driver side. That'll put the worn spot on the inside.The exit side gets like that from sliding in/out over the years. Maybe sew it up a bit too.
Whenever I bring a project home, I always make a list of what's wrong with it. In this case, I would start with a list of questions: For instance: Will it start?
Despite all the years, you were still the last one to drive it. Nice.
Looks like it's still a nice car.
DR.K.
I've been good, not meticulous, about plastic bags with labels. There's a bag that says "trim screws" but some are different lengths...another that says "center console", but again, they're different but all go to the same place.
I'm going to get the vacuum and some other cleaning tools out and scrub up some. Question: Sticky where they attached the insulation. Does that need to come up? If so, how?
I've been good, not meticulous, about plastic bags with labels. There's a bag that says "trim screws" but some are different lengths...another that says "center console", but again, they're different but all go to the same place.
I'm going to get the vacuum and some other cleaning tools out and scrub up some. Question: Sticky where they attached the insulation. Does that need to come up? If so, how?
depends, what are you doing? Are you painting/sound deadening or just cleaning?
depends, what are you doing? Are you painting/sound deadening or just cleaning?
Painting/sound deadening. I mean, it needs to be cleaned too. Can't even count all the nests I found. They were even using the space under the drivers side carpet as a corn silo (see pic).
That is my car's twin! The black/grey 88 sports coupe with that spoiler is in my opinion the best looking third gen Camaro.
Ok it's not my car's identical twin... Mine was originally a 2.8 auto and was black/gold with black interior and manual windows, but the previous owner spray painted the ground effects grey. Yours looks a lot nicer! I did change to manual windows in mine though.
My parents had an 88 just like yours but with a 305 5 speed, deluxe grey cloth, and t-tops. For some reason it had rs decals on it. I really miss that car but rust did it in so it was sold off. I am going to make mine nice again, and 5 speed convert it with a 383. Black 88 sports coupes seem to be few and far between, it took me awhile to find a solid one.
88rs, when I finally get to paint, I'm keeping it the same paint scheme. I love the black and grey. The red pin stripe sets it off. The spoiler is loose, the plastic(?) that goes around the places that it is attached to the car is all cracked, dried out and broken up.
Glad to hear that! I agree entirely about the red pinstripe too. I'm not too sure what those spoiler gaskets are made of, but I also have to figure out what to do about them as mine too are destroyed. Our original 88 had a red pinstripe with another smaller grey pinstripe, going to do this to my current 88 when it gets painted, and put RS decals on it since the other car had those for some reason and I think it looked cool.
Yeah it is red, I got it off of ebay years ago but can't find the poster currently. Very similar to the centerfold picture in the 1988 Camaro sales brochure. I also have one of these hanging in the shop:
Got the ground effects off...found some cancer behind the rear wheel on the drivers side. Drivers side front of the rear wheel From where the lockable rear cargo container looking down into the drivers wheel well More cancer
Spent the June budget replacing the 6 light bulbs in the barn to these 100w 4 panel 10k lumen babys. LOVE. Literally just screw em in to the light socket.
05-01-2020, 02:40 PM
