Hey guys! ok heres whats going on... in 4 days ill be back home in houston from college to work on my elky. (85 ss). Now as beautiful as this car naturally is, id like to clean it up some. I really doubt there are any problems with it, but id like to uhh.. "spruce" it up some. Here are things i KNOW i am doing: going over the interior, replacing straps, seat belts, and stuff like that. I need to get some rust off of the car (any tips on that?) and i need to pull some dents out (ive read a few ways to do this.. but still, tips from a veteran would be nice :D ) and i need to run my speaker wires under the carpet, and somehow get my "check engine" light from coming on and off randomly. OK this is what ive been told to do and i think these are great ideas, but once again i am left clueless on what exactly is needed, price, etc: I would like to raise the rear and put bigger tires on, give it that mean looking "street rod" look, and also i would like to put a better exhaust on not only for the awesome growl but for better gas mileage as well, because 500 miles from lubbock to houston eats my funds heh. And i am also looking at some sort of bed cover, something nice but in a reasonable price range. ( are tonneau covers decent for caminos?) Thank you for your replys, and haha thanks for not flaming me for not knowing ANYTHING (that is, if you dont flame me... heh) I understand this may get costly and may not be doable right away for me, but ive been kicking around these ideas and id like some factual info. THANKS!

The first thing to do is the tonneu cover, this will be the single best thing for fuel mileage.
Go to somebody that re-upholsters cars, and get snaps

body work: if you are going to be doing it yourself, go to www. harborfrieghttools.com and get the body work gun, (it uses little pins that can be pulled on. (do not drill holes and pull because then you have to fill the holes.) :mad:

the interior parts can be had from any number of places like OPG
read through the suspension forums for the ideas on the rear tires

as far as rust goes, it is your preference. body shop costs money or you can use something like rust bullet or por-15 and other catylysts
I would reccomend the rust bullet, there is a post in the forums somewhere about rust bullet and por-15.

exhaust: do not cut yourself short here,(unless you have somebody that can weld and get pipes at cost :) ) pay for it once or you'll pay the difference in new pipes that rust out. do some research on which muffler you sound you prefer. LOTS of choices in choices here.

I agree with all that he just said. I get the catalogue "El Camino parts" They have E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G- that you will need LMAO You can damn near buy the dirt from any year. There are many more sites like Honest Charlies and so on. Bed cover app $150 all parts included. Don't be affraid to ask questions either here or at local shops. If you are going to do this, take your time and do it right. send us pics.

I would like to raise the rear and put bigger tires on, give it that mean looking "street rod" look

You could get some rear springs from a early 80's Malibu station wagon, and get some air lift bags.

thanks for the input fellas!

i have decided, as of now, to do this: lowering springs on the front, (but 1 or 2 inches?? will 1 in. make a noticeable differance?) a soft tonneau cover, and some minor interior work, aaaannnnddd just maybe a new exhaust. and of course, dent pulls (BLEH!) No work is being done now, for some reason its raining in houston hahha, so when this clears out, ill have something to do!


yessir! i will post pics as i work on it!

I have a pair of Moog rear springs P/N 5391 for sale. Less than 3,000 miles on them. Email me if you are interested.

I would/will do 2 inches. If you want to see the difference especially.

when you repair the rust,treat the metal with epoxy primer before applying primer/surfacer.the epoxy seals the metal from moisture & other contaminants.do the same on your dent repairs before you spread your filler.as for filler,use a good quality,lightweight product.try to get the panel as close to it's original shape as possible and use as little filler as you can.take your time.http://evercoat.com/ should answer some of your questions.your local paint shop will help,too.enjoy!

Ok folks. Here's the tip of the day. The only body filler I will ever use is Tech Flow. It costs a lil more, but it sets up quick, and sands/feathers very nicely. I got it at NAPA here in central Pa.
Good luck on your car Dude. And I hope it stops raining there in Houston.
P.S. don't forget the pics.
LATER