As much as it would be nice to return this car to its original state it is not really what I want to do. As I said before, I have always wanted a 396 SS Chevelle. I do not want a trailer queen. I want a car that looks good, runs good and feels good. What I want to do is to build the car I would have ordered from the factory in 1967. I do want a stock (not necessarily original), 1967 Beaumont just not one optioned out like the one I have. I am not overly concerned about matching numbers, but do want to only equip the car with available options for the year. The car comes off the road in September and I hope the big three changes ( body, interior, 327) will be done by May 1999.
Exterior
The
car paint as you can see is not the original Sierra Fawn Metallic color.
I know why. Sierra Fawn Metallic is butt ugly. Sorry Sierra Fawn Metallic
Beaumont or Chevelle owners....thats the way I see it.
Somewhere along
the line an el cheapo paint job of 1981 Ford Metallic Blue with a heavy
dose of metal flake was sprayed on. There was also bondo used behind the
rear wheels that has to go. I don't think replacing the whole rear quarters
is necessary. I also have to replace the right/left portions of my trunk
where the body brace is.
The present color does look good with the non stock black vinyl roof, but I would prefer to have an available 1967 color on the car. If you have ever seen this Butternut Yellow Beaumont (scroll down the page) then you have seen how I hope my car will look when I am done. No offense to Mac Logans Beaumont, a beauty in its own right, but I do love that Yellow.
Interior
The interior is a gold vinyl job, in very nice condition.....too bad gold only seems to go with Sierra Fawn Metallic....looks like it has to go as well. I am dying the interior black, using SEM's dye system. I do not know how this is going to turn out but it will have to do until I can afford to either find an original black interior in good condition (unlikely) or until I can afford to put in a repro (likely).
Drive line
The original 283 2 bbl/Powerglide/3.08 10 bolt non-posi rear end is kinda lame. I can't pull away from a Blue Bird schoolbus. I have located a bone stock 1967 327 4 bbl 275 hp engine that will be going in the car. This engine does not have the correct block code, (it is from a Camaro, but it will do to maintain stock status. It has the old Quadrajet as well as 1.94/1.60 heads. The cast iron exhaust manifolds are kinda ugly and don't really help performance but stock is stock....I wouldn't mind doing a little work to the heads though... Oddly enough it is now installed in a 1967 El Camino (the owner of the Elky bought a big block).
The Powerglide will be staying. At some point I think a rebuild may be in order and perhaps then I can look at "sporting" it up a little. See below. The rear end ratio most likely will change to either a 3.36 or 3.55 (most likely). I do have some highway driving to do so I have to be realistic. Besides as you read on there is long term logic here.
Suspension
I would sure like
to do this disc brake conversion. This is probably number three for me
after the paint/body and the interior. It would give me a real good chance
to clean up the whole front end. Although I do not find it sloppy, and
the car seems to stop well I think this is an almost automatic upgrade
on any daily (weekend) driver, drum brake Beaumont/Chevelle. As things
like ball joints and bushings are the originals, now would be the time
change them. I am also looking at replacing the springs if I find out that
big block springs with not raise the front end *too much* when used
with a small block. If the big block springs are too much then new small
block ones will go in for now with big block ones to follow...see below.
Long Term
There is more logic to this than meets
the eye. My long term plans are to shelve the 327 and put in a 350 hp 396
(Option L34). On my model of car the 327/275 when ordered with a Powerglide
could only be ordered with 3.08, 3:36, 3.55, or 3.70 gears. The
3.55 gear is the only common ones across the 327/275 and 396/350 power
teams when using a Powerglide. I am still researching this and as it is
in the future things may change. I also have a small problem with the Powerglide
in that when used with the 327/275 and 396/350 engines the changed the
first gear ratio to 1.76:1 from 1.82 as I have now..not a big deal but
then stock is stock, no?