Hello all! I'm 16 and somewhat new to the world of 80s Firebird's and Camaro's. My dad has repainted some and I got to take them apart and put them back together. They were fun and easy to work on!
I have mostly been into Fox Body mustangs (I own 4, one of which is a very rare California Highway Patrol SSP that I am restoring).But back in september one of my dads friends gave me an 89 Firebird. One of the cars my dad painted was an original red/silver, gray int., v6, auto, ttop Formula. I really liked that car.
The one I got, is a red(originally), gray int., 2.8 (I believe? I am not familiar with the engines, but I know it is a v6), 5spd, ttop car. It is pretty standard, but it is exactly what I wanted.
It looks like many of you on here are into modding and v8s. I am different, I like things to be original, and if I wanted a v8 I would go out and buy a v8 car.

My car needs a TON of work. A previous owner (the one before the last guy) decided to show off to a potential buyer. He came around a corner and hooked a tree with the left rear wheel sheering it off. Thankfully the body was undamaged. I have Trans Am fenders, hood, and doors for the car that I got for free also. I have a long way to go, but it will be worth it when done.
I have probably forgotten to say some more stuff, but here are some pics of it and what it will be (the clean car is the one I really liked)










She'll be on the road in no time lol

 

Wow that was a amazing restore you did there, when I saw the first picture's I thought you might be crazy buying something with that much work. Kudos to you dude. Great job, looks really sweet!

 

Nice bird, and great job with the restoration!! Nice country down there, I spent a weekend a bit east of you a couple of years ago for an F-body get together with the club and spent a day at Crater Lake. One of my Camaros is a V6, it's my daily driver and does really good for my 200+ mile per week commute.

 

My dad repainted the red one, my car still looks the same as in the first photos other than I cleaned it up. I'm not crazy, I'm smart When I finish the car it will look like a new car.

The car still looks like it does in the photos of it on the trailer. This area is very nice. I would like to live on the coast though. I would say a sunny day driving down us101 with the ttops off would be the ultimate ttop experience. I wanted a v6 because of how nice they are to drive.

 

great to see a young guy likes the old firebirds. enjoy it just dont spend alot of money. is what it is.
whatever you do stay in school and keep your priorities straight.
i had a sick trans am in hight school while the nerds walked to school
i messed with my trans am while the nerds did homework
i still have my original trans am while they drive $100 000 bmw's and mercs lol.

 

just so you know the red car is a firebird not a formula
cool thing is your black car has a formula hood. i like them alot
check and see if its made out of aluminum you never know

 

However, I now run heavy equipment fixing the stuff the nerds driving the high dollar cars can't fix. Oh and my job can't be outsourced or down sized and didn't cost me $100k in student loans to achieve.

 

the things in red do not correlate....

how did he hit a tree and shear the wheel off without damaging the body? was the tree lying on he ground?

good luck with your project, that car is rough - dont spend too much money on it, just get it running well enough to have some fun

 

I see body damage on the front here. Look closely at the dront fender and nose. Looks like someone pulled it out but still there.

 

The red firebird is a real formula. The owner didn't want the stripes put back on (plus when my dad did the car in 09, Phoenix Graphics didn't have the correct decal set yet). Here are a couple pics of the car before new paint.
The black hood is toast(flops and flexes and the bracing has separated, and was off another car). If it is aluminium, I might try to save it




And I loved the interior in the car. It looked brand new still. My car will look exactly the same (some parts on my car will change colors).

 

I prefer things to be stock, but it needed fenders and I already had T/A fenders. And a couple of the interior pieces will change color (from black to light gray). I just don't like slammed, murdered out, or crazily modded cars. Some I like though, but I wouldn't want them.
I don't know the specifics of what happened, but the guy I got it from said the guy hit a tree. The rear suspension is messed up and the LR wheel snapped clean off. I plan on doing everything myself, except the front frame rail work, and my dad is a professional body man.

If you are referring to the chains at the corners of the car, they were there to hold the car down.
The whole front end is messed up though. When I pulled the fenders off and set the "new" fenders on, nothing lined up. When I held the fender in the correct spot, there was atleast a 1in gap from the fender to the inner fender.

 

Hate to burst your bubble but formulas didn't come in a v6 version (or without the wraparound spoiler and 16" wheels)

Looks like you have a fun project ahead of you. Good luck and remember to post pictures of the progress. I enjoy reading a good resto thread.

 

I love your coolant overflow tank!

 

Thanks! It was a $500 option originally, pretty rare now

That Formula was an 80k mile, grandma owned(since new,sold in 09), original car.

 

I think your life would be a heck of a lot easier starting with something cleaner. By the time you replace everything on that car, you will be into it enough to have went out and got a clean car.

 

Half the fun is the build!

That doesn't change the fact it's not a formula. Sorry bud.

 

Im sorry but this "DREAM" is a nightmare! This car looks worse than most I see in the junkyard. I congratulate you on the good intentions to restore this car but this firebird is going to need ALOT of work and the cost will most likely outweigh the value of the car by 3-1.
I would run!

 

WOW that car is a MONEY PIT MESS !!!,I have scrapped/crushed WAY nicer cars then that.

Take advice from some of us old timers, FIND A BETTER CAR !!!!!!

Dave

 

Keep it for parts, go buy something better. Trust me, there's no shortage of work to be done with ANY 3rd Gen, so don't think you're "cheating" yourself of car experience buying something a little nicer.

 

The pics don't do the car justice. Once I cleaned it up it was twice as nice. I have already stripped the interior and cleaned it. Just waiting on another dash wire harness, then I'll put it all back together inside. My dad has a friend with a wrecking yard and he just got a base firebird in. If its too late to save the car, then my dad can get what ever he wants off of it that can go on my car.



I pulled the dash in 45 min.


Looks like a mess at the moment


I kept this car from going to the scrapper cause I could see the mountains of potential in this car. I want to preserve these cars, even if its a base firebird.
I wish this forum cared about 3rd gens as much as the people on the foureyedpride forum care about fox mustangs. This forum doesn't even compare sadly.

 

Don't take offence, just do what you like and make a show car! Best wishes!

 

When I'm done with her, she'll look better than new.

 

I love it when people have a vision for their cars, not matter the condition. Look what they do with 1st and 2nd gen Camaros and Firebirds. You go 89DreamBird!!!

 

SKELITOR Here. Good luck with you restor. Your pretty brave to take on something that big at your age. Maybe a little foolish as well haha. Probably both hah. I got my car when I was 17, and it needed tons of work (Still does haha), But I couln't imagine a full restoration! Best of luck to yah, and keep us posted!

 

A thirdgen in good shape will still require a lot of attention. A thirdgen in good shape is still pretty cheap.

The reason we say avoid base model v6 cars is just because there are highly optioned, v8 cars out there for pretty cheap. $3k will get you something drivable and powerful that needs a little work to get in tip top shape.

But hey if you want to restory it, all the more power to ya. Good luck with it. It's not a bad idea, it's just for the money involved you can start out with something better and go a little farther with it.

 

Don't listen to them. Sadly enough you'll get little respect on here without a 500 hp ls1. Just remember that this is your car and your dream. Don't let the people on this forum bring you down at all. It's just not worth it. Who care's if your car isn't the fastest, at least it's not a honda.

 

I really don't think you are seeing the point. You could have found a base v6 car that was a heck of a lot cleaner and complete then that one and would have been happier, and spent less in the long run. When a car is a dime a dozen, you should start with the cleanest one you could get your hands on. By the time you refurbish, and gather the parts needed to make that into something, you would have been done had you spent a few thousand on a clean car. My prediction, is that car will never get done. You will get fed up with the project. I am not trying to put you down in any way. I have been there. I was a kid with big ideas once too.