This car was my mom and dads car. Remember riding around in it as a very young kid. Mom drove it as her car up until 1981. Back in the mid 1980's it was repainted and repaired enough to where it was drivable. My dad and uncle went through the engine. It was what car I really started to learn to drive a stick shift.
After I joined the U.S. Navy in 1987 the car basically sat for the next 20 years. Dad had some work done on it again, restored, it was painted and stripped down to the bare bones and put back together in mid 2000's and he had it and drove it for a few more years and really enjoyed it. Would tell me people would step out in traffic to see it and stop him. When I retired from the Navy back in 2012 and on my way home from California stopped for a week to see mom and dad he gave me the car and told me to take it home with me to Florida.
For the next few years I repaired all the little things that were not right and drove it whenever I could. Nov 2019 on a Sunday afternoon out for a little drive and running errands I got hit from someone who ran a stop sign and hurt the left front, just weeks after rebuilding the frontend. Luckily I had Hagerty insurance and they were awesome to get the car back to what it should be. Before It went to the body shop for that I fixed what rust was on the body(right rear lower quarter panel). Rebuilt the frontend suspension again, with its rare sway bar front lower control arms and I was able to find one. Then it was ready for paint because it needed entire paint done, the roof and trunk had the bad clear coat issues and it wasn't quite the right green.
Have been working on getting things fine tuned, have updated to MSD ignition box and distributor, phenolic carb spacer to help with heat, disc brakes on the front. Possibly going to add a sniper efi setup? Have had to redo seals for rear end, rebuild brake system, convert left side wheel studs so someone doesn't ruin them and also able to find lung nuts for new style wheels. I have had to replace lots of other things, speedometer gear, flush trans, replace all foam for interior, as they just recovered what was there. Found and replaced steering wheel, glovebox. They are never done, and my grandson is also involved with a lot of this, he's car crazy from day 1 he's almost 5 now and gets dirty with me whenever he can.
