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how lame is it to turn a 4 door car in to a two door?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by hotrodlolita, Mar 22, 2008.

  1. hotrodlolita
    Joined: Feb 18, 2007
    Posts: 144

    hotrodlolita
    Member

    Im thinking of getting a four door 58 chevy
    and peopel keep telling me i could make it into a two door....

    i think it kinda sounds lame... i mean why not just shave the back door handes and keep the virstiality of a four door?
    but i haven't seen one done yet..

    do any of you have pictures of this compleated...

    oh and why don't people enjoy four doors?
     
  2. JimA
    Joined: Apr 1, 2001
    Posts: 4,796

    JimA
    BANNED

    If you like it- leave it. Guaranteed this will turn into a 3 page fight that gets locked down. Don't worry what other people think unless they are paying for your car.
     
  3. buckeye_01
    Joined: Jun 20, 2005
    Posts: 1,441

    buckeye_01
    Member

    There are quite a few pics of 4 doors with shaved rear handles around here. Nothing wrong with a 4 door man. The man hours and price of the parts would put your 58 over the top, unless you are loaded. Just drive it dude!
     
  4. eric
    Joined: Jun 4, 2001
    Posts: 1,643

    eric
    Member

    its your car, who cares what others think! only person you need to please is yourself! one of the guys on the board built a pretty bitchin' '58 4 door a few years ago, it was a pearl white with a metallic pagan gold roof with scallops.
     

  5. hotrodlolita
    Joined: Feb 18, 2007
    Posts: 144

    hotrodlolita
    Member

    ha ha aha i didn't think about the panty wad factor o this question...
     
  6. I say leave it. I like four door cars. I've had both, and I could care less how many doors it's got. What does matter, is what you do with the car.
     
  7. eric
    Joined: Jun 4, 2001
    Posts: 1,643

    eric
    Member

  8. leave it a four door and enjoy it...although, shave all the handles instead of just the rears..I've done that on several cars and never liked it...looks way off balance
     
  9. Motorbreath
    Joined: Nov 14, 2006
    Posts: 539

    Motorbreath
    Member

    Its really lame to make it a 2-door IF your trying to fool someone into buying it as an original or IF you are just doing it because its what the majority says to do. But if its what you have and YOU WANT a 2-door for you then its not lame at all just a little more work.
     
  10. hotrodlolita
    Joined: Feb 18, 2007
    Posts: 144

    hotrodlolita
    Member

    i don't care about the four doors i say theres just more to love ha ah

    i was just curiouse about this convertion thing... i haven't seen it done except for in a magazine but they didn't really give good after pictures so the thing looked haggered.

    i keep trying to do searches for this and can't find any thing on them what am i doing wrong?
     
  11. The minute you start trying to hide the fact that it is a four door it's going to start looking like an OSR, piece of shit, wannabe, "something". Shaving only the rear handles is the most ignorant thing I think I've ever seen done on a car. It's like frenching only one headlight......

    Give it the attention you would a 2 dr. hardtop & it will be a nice car.

    (Don't spend 2 dr. hardtop $$ on it though.)

    JH
     
  12. DE SOTO
    Joined: Jan 20, 2006
    Posts: 3,857

    DE SOTO
    Member

    Harrison is right, 99% of them look like crap.

    Embrace what you have & build a neet Mild Custom out of it.

    Shave ALL the handles, Nose & Deck, Maybe a '58 Impala Roof Scoope, And a Bitchen paint job & interior and Drive it.

    The roof & side windows will NEVER look right if it was a fake 2dr.
     
  13. tfeverfred
    Joined: Nov 11, 2006
    Posts: 15,791

    tfeverfred
    Member Emeritus

    Do your car, man.
     
  14. C-1-PW
    Joined: Jun 11, 2006
    Posts: 357

    C-1-PW
    Member

    I seem to remember that the two doors used slighty longer doors than the four door models. Correct me iff I'm wrong about this. So, unless you also move the pillar back, and lengthen the doors, the proportions aren't going to be quite right. That is, it'll look like a four door made two door.
    I'd leave it and enjoy it for what it is.
     
  15. Gigantor
    Joined: Jul 12, 2006
    Posts: 3,823

    Gigantor
    Member

    Like others have said, it's your car, but I don't think it's lame at all if you're up to the amount of work it takes to make it look even remotely right. I'll admit, there is a HAMBer on here who did a tech a while back and HE made it look GOOD, but DAMN it was A LOT of work, at least in my opinion. If 4 doors don't bug you, then fuck it, roll as is. If you really want a 58 Chevy that's a 2 door, think long and hard and don't half-ass it, plan it out.
     
  16. BOBBY FORD
    Joined: Oct 6, 2007
    Posts: 700

    BOBBY FORD
    Member

    Like the song said, "it's your thang dowatcha wana do"
     
  17. hotrodlolita
    Joined: Feb 18, 2007
    Posts: 144

    hotrodlolita
    Member


    i can understand about how it would look stupid now that you point out how it would look off balance...

    thanks desoto for some other useful tips about what can be done to it... i'd like more if anyone has some to go around

    and if i didn't say what i was thinking clearly enough about why i think it would be lame you hit the hammer on the head i think anytime you try to change something there is always going to be something off when you look at it. like choping off one leg and replacing it with a cane the concept might sound like a good idea but really it's just not.
    i'd like more if anyone has some to go around.

    i really like this car.. it has a lotta personality at least thats the feeling i got when i drove it around.

    i don't want to follow the trend or do something just because everyone is saying that because the type of car isn't popular to change it so that i get accepted but i do want to make a badass car on a budget that i can afford.. and this car offers me both.

    and since this topic kept coming up i wanted to eduacate myself on what it was about...

    Im not even thinking of doing this.
    like i said first off i think it's lame.
     
  18. dbradley
    Joined: Jan 6, 2007
    Posts: 1,036

    dbradley
    Member

    I say 3 door, One on the driver's side............two on the other.
     
  19. So did you buy the 58? Good on you if you did. If it's a pillarless 4 then don't worry about it. Shaving all of the door handles will look good. I've got a 4 door right now, and plan on keeping it that way. I'll find another car first before I spend time and $ converting a 4.

    Here's a link to one of the 4 to 2
    http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=228873

    A heck of alot of work, but looks good.

    Get everything mechanical up to snuff, then concentrate on custom touches IMO.
     
  20. rusty48
    Joined: Jan 8, 2007
    Posts: 467

    rusty48
    Member

    If you like it get it and leave it 4door,changing to 2door looks funny,like your ashamed of it.Somebody will always say something about a 4door but if you like it go for it.
     
  21. C-1-PW
    Joined: Jun 11, 2006
    Posts: 357

    C-1-PW
    Member

    [​IMG]
    Great work! I love those old Mercs, and you've done a beautiful job of the conversion.

    But I get the impression this thread is not talking the same budget as you've got in yours; dollars or time.:D

    If the '58 is gonna happen on the cheap, I say "love them more doors!" and drive it today.
     
  22. Johnny1290
    Joined: Apr 20, 2006
    Posts: 2,834

    Johnny1290
    Member

    Ether that's awesome! I must have missed that thread.

    I hate 4 drs with the rear doors shaved, JMHO. I like the idea of shaving all the handles or keeping them all.

    If you do the metalwork to chage it over to a 2dr, well that's just bad ass in my book.

    4drs have grandma car/grocery getter stigma, but I notice with the kids these days any old car will do, so if it doesn't bug you heck why not?!?
     
  23. 1.) Im pretty sure a '58 chevy would be HELLA more trouble to convert than say a 49-54 chevy.

    2.) Yeahhhh just shave the rear handles. thats it. It makes a world of difference. Speaking from the angle as a car builder on a budget. aint throwing out show cars here. I shaved all handles on my four door.
     
  24. I cant tell ya the hours but believe it or not, with everything ive bartered throughout the build and help from things like kharma, Ive got less than you think in that merc.
    Im not opposed at all against moredoors, if I wasnt lucky enough to get some of the parts for the prices I did, I would have built it as a 4 door.
    Do what you want and do it within your budget or it will get put on the back burner or never get done at all!!!! The only thing I ask is KEEP US POSTED!!!!!! ETHER
     
  25. Kustom7777
    Joined: Mar 3, 2001
    Posts: 5,184

    Kustom7777
    Member
    from Austin, TX

    not lame converting a 4 door to 2 door,,,,,

    now,,converting a 2 door to a 4 door,,,THAT'S lame,,hahah,,,,,
     
  26. axeman39
    Joined: Jan 15, 2006
    Posts: 423

    axeman39
    Member
    from Saco Maine

    Here's my 39 Pontiac, it started out looking like this one[​IMG]
    and now it looks like this.[​IMG]
    No its not the same car but the first pic is for reference only, Still a long way to go. Has a 400 Pontiac and 4 speed from a 77 trans am, rear end from a 69 camaro, front frame clip from a 70 nova, 2" drop spindles and monte ss front brakes, S10 3" drop rear leaf springs . I don't think it looks too bad for a 4 door to 2 door conversion do you?
     
  27. 37coupeute
    Joined: Aug 1, 2005
    Posts: 136

    37coupeute
    Member

    Well Ether, with your talent you would have a full time job down under........we got heaps of fourdoors awaiting! lLookin good Brother!
     
  28. Squablow
    Joined: Apr 26, 2005
    Posts: 17,388

    Squablow
    Member

    Here's a link to a tech article I did.

    http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=78120

    You don't want to just weld the back door shut, nor do you want to shave just the rear handles.

    I'm not saying I don't like 4 door cars, I have a few of them. What I am saying is that if you really want a 2 door '58 Chevy, this is a way you could do it. It takes some time and you have to have the right parts. But it's not impossible to do. And if you do it right, it's just like factory.

    The Merc and the '55 Chevy are both really well done and probably required more planning and metalwork than my '60 Plymouth due to the fact that the Mercury got a whole different roof (I think, right?) and the '55 Chev only had doors to work with and not quarters (and still turned out great I must say)
     
  29. Chevy Gasser
    Joined: Jan 23, 2007
    Posts: 718

    Chevy Gasser
    Member

    '58 Chevy Impala's have a diffeent roof height than the sedan models. The Impala hardtops and convertibles had a shorter windshield. There is also a Belair 2 dr. hartdtop model that has the taller roof of the sedans but they are very unusual. Personally, I think a 4 door would look better left alone. If you want to make a 2 door out of it you might as well drop the top a couple inches too.
     

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