So i decided I need another Car project. I've done the gamut of mostly Ford stuff, Mustangs, Model T, Model A, etc. Had a 62 Lincoln Continental; but I've never owned a Chevy. Decided it was time. As I found it; I'd actually gone to look at a 51 Buick 4 door when I noticed the chevy. First thing was getting it home; Got the rims off; as she sat. 4 jack stands and some wood blocks to hold it up. The sand here would sink a stand without a base in minutes. DSC00263 The good, Bad, and Ugly of the body; Damage to the drivers rear quarter DSC00264 Trunk/Rear Deck DSC00265 Still has the last plate. This is a blessing as I'll have to get a bonded title for this car, and this makes it simplier. DSC00266 DSC00267 Passenger side is very good DSC00268 The hood damage DSC00269 the interior clean out. I figured I'd do this out in the field, not at my house. DSC00270 Is that a bale of hay in the trunk? DSC00271 DSC00273 Super deluxe DSC00272 The only real damage on the floor pan, lots of pin holes DSC00274 I don't know if this is an OEM part but it held the deck lid up long enough for me to get smack on the back of the head when it failed... DSC00275 Some rot on the deck lid seam DSC00276 DSC00277 Rear quarter near the trunk DSC00278 DSC00279 DSC00283 DSC00285 rear pan DSC00280 DSC00284 Oh look, here is where the spare goes. It was full of 'stuff'. Has a decent hole rotted through. I will more than likely cut this out and patch it flat DSC00281 Rot in the drivers rear wheel well corner DSC00282 A view of the field DSC00287 Anyone want a 51 Buick 4 door? DSC00288 Went and got tires put on the rims, good to be friends with the local tire guys. They may or may not hold air for long. But it should be long enough to get it home. IMG_20160901_165642011 HOME, I stopped at the car wash and hosed the inside out first....As you can tell the rear tires only held air long enough to hit the first big bump. Car will go in the garage as soon as I finish cleaning it. IMG_20160901_191515680 I did stop by friend's place to look at some stuff... Pacer front suspension, I can have it for free... hum... IMG_20160901_165600085 The racks are very expensive and so are some of the other parts, but free is nice.
No, I've been going off it being a 40.I just picked it up yesterday. No data plate on the inside, haven't got the hood open yet. That's what I get for being a Ford guy. I see it now. The headlights. Dang...
You basically have a pretty solid old Chevy. GM products of that vintage around here (northwest GA and NE Alabama) were famous for the floors and trunk floor rusting out, so what you have is better than most we find around here. I would consider it a pretty solid old car. The Pacer front end is a good design, but it may be too wide for your Chevy, just have to measure and see. Lots of people put them under '50s Ford and Chevy pickups when they were plentiful in the junkyards. Probably been 20 years since I saw a Pacer on the road or in the junkyard around here.
Thanks, I bought it on a whim, now trying to get it all figured out. Got the hood open, Style Number is 42-1211; which a 1942. 302 GMC has good eyes.
40 Chevy 42 Chevy Any 42 car is super rare. The war stopped all civilian production. The fact that yours has chrome means it's pretty early in the production year.
I'll be very interested to find out the history on the car when I do the title research to get my bonded title. The plate on the car is between 1956 and 1965 "the beef state" series, so it got parked somewhere in that period. I'm hoping to find the last owner and get a duplicate title instead of a bonded one also.
Yes, you have a 42 Chevy. Those taillights were first used in 1941 and last used in 1948. 1940 Chevy has taillights with round ends and mounted vertical. Chev of the 40s carry lots of parts for your car and the majority of the parts are the same from 42-48. The only major difference between the years is the grill. Check out these sites. One is a 42 service manual and the other site is about 47-48 Chevys, which plenty of parts will interchange and great for reference. Oh and welcome to Chevy Heaven. The angels are singing. http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/chevyresto/42index.htm http://www.1948chevy.com/
Thanks for the information from all. I cleaned up the interior more tonight. Going to a few more days of just getting the gunk out of all the nooks and crannies. I need to get under and measure the frame and track width also to see if the Pacer IFS will work. Got a couple motor options, all GM. I just don't think the 216 is going to cut it it for me. I do have a 327 that might be fun to run in this...
Nice find! What you call "damage" is what I would call the "save-able" parts of my car. Looking forward to updates...
Yep, damage is a very relative term with this car. Didn't get to spend anytime with the car today. I work overnight shift and have gotten called in twice today already. Still gotta be back later tonight for my regular shift.
A rare find! Also sign up here and your questions will be answered ... http://www.chevytalk.org/fusionbb/showforum.php?fid/29/
Body tag details Style # 42-1211 Body # J1230 - Assembled Janesville, Wisconsin Trim #129 - Grayish Tan Pile Fabric Paint # 312 - Sport Beige Metallic
Plan right now is to clean everything up and get a good solid idea of what needs to be done. After that I do plan on putting a hotter motor and transmission in which will require a rear end swap. For the front end I can't make up my mind on wether to attempt fixing up the stock IFS or doing a swap. I want to get it running and driving, before winter sets in so that I can use the winter to start the body and interior work. I plan on painting the car as close to original as possible and doing the interior close to original also. Kinda intimidated by the painted wood grain dash that came from the factory. Motor will likely be based on a original 327 block I was given by a friend.
Did some title search work. The engine serial # (used to register a lot of cars) is unreadable on the block. Using the body # or the old plate number, no Title can be found in Nebraska, or any surrounding state. Therefore I now have to proceed with the bonded Title Process. Until I get that done there will not be a lot of work done to the car, as I refuse to put a bunch of money into something I can't title properly. Although I always have the 'Assembled Vehicle" title option.