Which one of these beautiful Third Gens will be TGO Car of the Month for February, 2017?



Topspeed 1984 Firebird SE




DonW 1983 Z28




ev305tpi 1987 IROC-Z




customblackbird 1987 Formula



akanitro 1989 GTA

 

People...
Its very important that you correctly spell the user name of the person you nominate for COTM, right down to which letters are capitalized and/or not capitalized.

When you overlook these things, it makes it very hard for me to find that member's profile so i can inform them that they've been nominated. And I have to go in and edit the polls. So please pay attention to what you're doing.

Thank you.

 

Thanks for the nominations guys. It really is an honor!
I had one of these cars back in highschol, and like many here, kicked myself for the next 25 years for ever selling it.
My day to own one came when my wife (who is from Switzerland) finally took notice (after many years of dropping hints lol) that allot of people in our town drive classic American cars on the weekends and made the suggestion that it would be fun if we did too. Music to my ears as you could imagine!

Here she is: A super clean cut 1983 Z28
This car needs nothing the way it sits, but that wasn't always the case. The first year of ownership was dedicated to putting her back together and wiping away the 30 years of neglect. Not abuse, but neglect.
I wanted the theme for the car to be a throwback and a wink to the old school muscle car look of yesteryear.
Throw a new interior at it along with the aggressive hood and a sharp set of wheels and tires with the fresh quality paint job and we have what you see here in the pics.
Partial list of new parts include:
New Holley 600cfm carb on a Edelbrock performer intake.
New headers and all new bigger exhaust all the way back
New Dizzy, plugs, wires, belts, and every rubber hose
KYB gas a just shocks
Spohn wonder bar
premium k-member braces
multiple interior plastics.
T-top and door weather seals
New brake setup. All stock replacement parts, nothing fancy.
New interior including: carpet, headliner and visor kit, dashboard, console lid and seat belts.
New wheels and tires
4th gen leather seats.
Completely rebuilt instrument cluster
New wiring harness for all lighting.
The original 305 is still in there for the moment and is as clean as a whistle and runs excellent. Every pony has been squeezed out of the 305 with the carburetor, intake, and headers and exhaust system. I do however have a 350 on my engine stand now looking bold and beautiful ;-)
The car is in such great condition with just these additions that it just doesn't need anything else to be a great weekend cruiser/show car. It runs and drives like a new one, and I have been in no hurry to finish the 350 build. It really is a beautiful car! One saved from the crusher!
Its an honor to be nominated! Thanks for your consideration!

 

If there was ever a time to say more, now is it. Just trying to help.

 

Hi Everyone!

A huge thank you to Charlie and Arnold for the nomination!!!

It's an honor to be able to compete with such an awesome selection of cars, this is a tough month for competition for sure! Good luck to everyone, I really like them all!!

My car is an 87 IROC-Z with an L98 and 11k original miles on it. I have owned the car for 4.5 years now and have had a tremendous amount of fun with it. It was a dream car for me to buy and I have loved each minute of ownership. I have put a couple thousand miles on it since I got it driving it to cruise nights, car shows, and a fall cruise that I host each year. Of all the cars I have ever owned and currently own, it is among my favorites! The car is an incredible survivor with original gatorback tires, original paint, floor mats, etc. What I do like about it is that it's not a perfect pebble beach show car. There is a small amount of patina on the car if you get real critical... I could make it perfect but I chose to keep it detailed and clean yet be able to enjoy it. Even though the mileage is low, i'm not the type of guy who just leaves it untouched in the garage... it's still a good amount of upkeep and love to keep it just like it is so I can enjoy it with my family.

It's a Norwood car, fully documented, and was an executive car when new, being sold with 3800 miles to it's first owner. It's the most loaded '87 I have ever seen, with over $8k in options new. It has leather, Bose, auto-dimming mirror, factory louvers, etc. It has been alot of fun using it as a reference car to a few friends currently restoring their awesome thirdgens and I plan to keep this car for many years to come.

Attached are some pics! I will try my best to take more (though it's tucked behind a vette hibernating). Thank you all that vote for it!

Take Care, Erik

 

 

 

DonW has my vote.

I love aggressive looking cars and his fits the bill to the tee.

 

While I find it hard NOT to vote for an Iroc, especially an immaculate STOCK Iroc, and with red interior to boot!!!!!! (which I LOVE) .....per my nomination I have to go with Akanitro.

 

My 1989 GTA with 176,000 miles that is still pretty much daily driven(unless it is raining) and still drive it to car shows and other events.












gta1



gtawhm



2nd Place Winner 2015 DAPA Southern Nationals Car Show

 

hey guys! Thanks for the nomination! There are some beautiful cars here and its an honor just to be nominated.

I will say that I built his car with my bare hands and had no outside help with any of the fabrication,electrical, paint or mechanical. And I did all this from my TENT (yup no garage) in these cold snowy NJ winters. That means on my back with a car on stands lol... no lifts or insulated walls... hell even a level surface lol!

Now on to the good stuff.

Car was an original 1987 formula 350 TPI that I purchased for $500 and it didn't run and had a shattered pass window and that was like 15 years ago. Got the car running and did the basic bolt ons and had fun for a few years but wanted more power of course. Saved up and acquired parts for a few years and built my own 383 HSR with aluminum heads etc and I also built my 700r4 to handle the power. I started tuning myself and didn't have the car on the road for more than 3 months before it was stolen and gutted. I lost over 10 grand as they hacked the car and stole everything from the engine bay (cooling system everything!), headlights computer, and just hacked up the harness. It was a rough 2 weeks just staring at it and since I got no money from insurance it was going to be even harder to get back into it. But I decided that I wasn't going to let someone else ruin this for me and that this car meant more to me than the money and time, blood, sweat & tears I had already put into it. So began the search for a new powertrain and setup. I decided to make the motor so big and difficult to put in that the next person who tries to steal it won't be able to lol. And they would dace to cut the car in half to get it out. So I decided to be the first person EVER to put a 521 Big Block Ford into a 3rd gen. It fit and was like a puzzle to get it in and out lol. That thing turned a lot of heads and no one hated it, first was shock and then confusion... most thought it was a pontiac or olds block. I had a fun couple of years with that setup but decided it was time to get something more street worthy and comfortable to drive and at the time (last year) I had my first born son on the way. So heres the final setup and mods thus far!

Engine
1999 Silverado 5.3 LS 150K miles
Ported rebuild Stock 862 heads ( I ported them) with howard high lift springs
Cam motion custom blower cam 218/230 .562 118+4.5
Retrofitted stock rockers with straub busing kit (done myself)
New cloyes timing set
GMPP HV oil pump
Moly 5/16 1 piece pushrods
Morel 3515 high lift lifters
Fbody oil pan
72lb matched bosch Injectors
Billet fuel rails
Stock truck intake with truck accessories and 160amp power master black powder coated alternator.

Power adder
Torqstorm billet centrifugal supercharger running 12psi
Custom made Front mount intercooler with dual blow off valves (by myself)
dual stage progressive water meth injection system (my design)

Exhaust
Full length SS headers 1 7/8" primary 3" collectors
3" from collectors to flowmaster 3" dual in 4" out Merge
reduced to 3" summit Catback with dynomax ultra SS muffler
CME Center exhaust mount tips

Tuning
HP tuners pro, stock LS PCM and harness
I retrofitted the harness and modded it myself for stand alone operation

Transmission
2004R build for 800hp with billet internals, kit from CK performance built by me
10" Billet lock up 2400stall converter
3" Dennys nitrous ready DOM driveshaft (un breakable)

Rear end
Custom made and fit ford 8.8 with 3.55 gears. converted to 5 bolt pattern by hand and has moser support girdle, carbon fiber SVO clutch packs (no fun to do) with posi and ARP cap studs.
Custom made tq arm mount to the case for bolt on install (no welding) my design and fabrication as well as all suspension brackets etc.

Suspension
Nothing is stock!
Moly race craft kmember
UMI tubular front control arms
custom made myself 3pt STB
TDS wonder bar
WS6 swap bars, poly everything
Solid motor mounts
custom 2004R crossmember I made
hand made perimeter and through floor SFC
UMI double rod ended rear LCAs and PHB
Vogtland lowering springs
Hotpart caster/camber plates
KYB AGX adjustable front struts
Viking double adjustable rear shocks

Brakes
hydroboost custom setup
Front 13" BAER black label brakes with drilled and slotted rotors on hawk pads
Rear stock ford 8.8 11.5" disks with drilled and slotted rotors
stock prop valve delete and adjustable SSBC prop valve for rear only
All SS brake lines with Hurst line lock

Wheels and tires
18"x9.5" Corvette C6 Z06 black with machined lip reproductions
275/45/18 sumimoto HTRZ II tires
Front 1.25" billet spacers
Rear .5" slip on billet spacers

Interior
Summit reclining 5pt racing seat with sliders, Made my own mounting brackets
5pt simpson harnesses
8pt roll bar with swing out door kit (installed and welded by me)
New newark auto black carpet
custer is a redesign, all custom speed pro gauges in new ABS panel
B&M mega shifter
Pleather wrapped headliner and sail panels, full black interior
Power 1 touch express window harness upgrade

Exterior
Custom painted in my tent lol
Summit 2k urethane black base sealer, dark charcoal medium metallic top coat and 2 coats of clear
smoked marker lights
TA tail light swap with LED upgrades/rewire for 3 brake lights each side and turn signal on the outward most tail light, they have been tinted and cleared
Z28 high rise rear spoiler
85-90 TA body kit
Quad Bixenon projector retrofit with 55w HIDs, with lazy eye mod
Stock power bulge hood


This car makes about 700hp, idles with a 550rpm idle and I take it to work, gym, grocery store etc during the summer. Sounds like a stock 3rd gen with an exhaust and looks mostly stock as well. Its a good looking sleeper I like to think. But its a complete animal and I love working on it.

I appreciate the nomination and these are all great looking cars!

 

Just a few more of my favorite shots of the car😎

 

Some other pics of the car. I have 2 hoods I swap on and off depending on if I want it to look more aggressive or not. The other hood is a glasstek 4.5" cowl hood.

My other 4.5" cowl glass tech bolt On hood for the aggressive days lol




Don't mind the tuning wires, only there when I'm datalogging.
Same with this one.
Sick and twisted sums it right up!

 

Some very nice cars here this month and I'm also honored that I even nominated. When I was building this car I couldn't do everything I wanted to, budget didn't allow for it. Maybe in a few years I will drop a boosted LS motor in. I have a few threads on the build that you can look at to give you a history of my car.

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/hi...ebird-s-e.html

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/fa...cide-hood.html

As far as the car goes:

Body:

Taken down to a bare car - no electronics, no fuel or brake lines. Had it media blasted to get the old paint off and have a clean slate to work from. The only rust spot on the car was under the drivers seat which a new floor panel was welded in. The radiator support was also shot so I had to weld a new one in as well as put a new crossmember in. From my thread you can see that the car barely had a life. It had 334 original miles on it when I bought it and I know that to be true because the car was only registered for three months before it was stolen, trashed, and thrown in a junkyard where I bought her from.

Engine and Drivetrain:

Got rid of the original V6 the car came with and bought a 350 TPI motor for her. Here is a list of what I have in the motor:

Edelbrock aluminum heads
SLP original load mouth exhaust from headers all the way back to the tailpipe
Performance chip
24# injectors
competition cam
magnum roller rockers
52mm throttle body
ported and polished plenum
Aluminum drive shaft
K&N shift kit in 700r4
SLP cold air intake
TPIS runners
BW posi rear with 3.73 gears

Suspension:

Hotchkiss rear suspension
bilstein shocks
lowered 1 1/2"
PBR full brake setup
Subframe connectors
wonder bar
All new urethane bushings throughout
18" BOSS Motorsport 338 rims

Custom Features:

Suicide hood hinges - not store bought or off another type of car - they were made by me
Hood vents - off a 1976 Firebird and welded to a stock hood
Rear spoiler - this was aftermarket but I think it fits the car
Fully Dynamatted interior
Battery relocated to the rear spare tire spot

Here are some pictures for those of you who haven't read my threads

The car after I got it back from media blasting




Putting the car back together

 

What she looks like now:







Thanks guys and girls for taking a look and best of luck to everyone who was nominated this month.

 

All deserving third gens! Good luck to the nominees!

 

Just a few more from this past summer

 

That is a beautiful car, Topspeed. My favorite of this group, but I wish you would show interior picture.

 

Akanitro I dont know how you drive it regular and keep it looking so good! Gorgeous show quality car! Customblackbird I would love to shred some asphalt in that beast of a car you have! All you guys have great cars makes a hard decision here every month.

 

Thanks, these cars are meant to be driven. Even though I drive it all the time, the car is waxed monthly and when I mean waxed, I mean even the engine bay and undercarriage. I am fortunate to work for a car dealership so there are many nights that I have it on the lift wiping down the bottom of the vehicle and suspension. As of today I am at 176,859 miles and counting.

 

I will see if I can find some pictures and put them up for you

 

This is going to be tough, two of my favorite White cars are battling it out.

 

All these cars are great vehicles in their own class. Question is how many are actually daily driven?

 

I'd love to see some undercarriage shots next time you get it on a lift.

 

I will take some next weekend when I am at the dealership on a Saturday.

 

I wish I had time to drive mine more, but the reality is it only gets about 2 to 300 miles per year. It stays clean and is wiped on all the time though lol

 

My car is away for the winter. She doesn't stay in the garage, I drive her as much as I can. I built her to drive.

 

All the time we spend building these cars. Drive them, beat the heck out of them, repair/rebuild and repeat.

 

Everyone is different, and everyones situations are different... As long as you have fun with your car, whether it's driving it across country or polishing it for judged shows, it's all that matters to me.

I had completely restored my old 86 IROC and made it a best of show car and have daily driven thirdgens for a number of years. But to me, at my point in my life, I just truly love getting to use mine for cruise nights and car shows with friends and family. With some hardships going on in my life right now, being able to enjoy this car is something I truly look forward to. I drive it 500 or so miles a year and to me, it's about all I have time for and makes each trip fun and special.

I drive 600+ miles a week for work, so it's not practical to drive one of these as a DD anymore, and I'm quite alright with that.... I still love my car just as much as others who drive theirs more Rest assured, my car still breaks traction often, chirps 2nd, and gives me permagrin

 

thank u kindly! It's pretty fast and can get alittle squirly when u mash it on the highway but it's just as happy cruising at 80mph at 2200rpms. I've taken it for 1hr trips each way out west NJ to my brothers and it's very comfortable and not
annoying loud for cruising so it doesn't attract alot
of attention.

All these cars are nice... they're trying to make it hard on you guys! Lol

 

Mines warm weather only but gets driven almost every day in the warm months. I had a 383hsr and drove mine year round DD and one cold night the *** end swung out giving it alittle gas going over a hill and slid into the curb on the other side of the road. Snapped the axle, bent the axle tube and LCA and took out 2 rims. I learned these cars with anything over 350-400hp Is wrecklessnin colder weather. For the safety or myself and others she goes in the tent for the winter and gets more mods!

 

Customblackbird, you've got the best drivetrain in this group by a long shot.

 

Thank you! thats where all the fun is!

 

Congrats on the win ev305tpi, beautiful iroc!

 

Thanks Ron. Your car was a big inspiration for the look I was going for. I look forward to nominating yours!