Part 1: Fixing the neglect

Once the car made it back home we sent it to our local mechanic. My father used Ditos Motors in the past with the '99 and they do great work. With no real knowledge of the car we had them do a once over, identifying everything that was worn out or just plain dangerous.

The list went as followed:
Suspension
Brakes
Engine
Drivetrain
Interior

With the car in expert hands the decision was made to have Dito do the front suspension and engine. The motor held great compression, almost to factory spec in '75. So there was no need to tear down the block and send it out for machining. A simple top end rebuild was done. My Dad has always wanted a performance camshaft, one that grunts and shakes the ground. Since the bottom end was stock, we opted for the largest Comp Cams camshaft it would allow. Just enough of a lobe separation so that it had a strong idle and grunt, but not so much that it would lurch at idle in gear. An Edelbrock intake capped off the top end and the stock GM Quadrajet was rebuilt. The belt pulleys were replaced along with the mechanical fan. A new stock replacement radiator  and water pump solved the cooling problems.




Other interesting things found while at Ditos was that someone in the past tried to jack up the car using the oil pan as a lift point. Why that was a great idea still puzzles me, but it was replace with a Milodon Racing oil pan.

The front suspension was completely replaced with factory spec parts. From bushings to steering tie rods, the complete replacement kit included every component. As you can see in the photo above, the front end is almost completely new.

After about a month at the shop the car was finally done. The delay was mostly waiting for parts to come in. This allowed for the mechanics to search deeper into the car to look for any more damage, luckily two cracks were found in the frame and repaired.

The '75 then went back home and transitioned into the hands of my Dad and I to do the rest of the repairs.