77 Sunbird

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77 Sunbird

Postby Yellowbird77 » Sun Mar 09, 2008 7:12 pm

Here's my yellow 'bird, it has a 231 Buick even-fire V-6. That may change in the future, but for now I want to get everything else sound with it before I start considering a bigger engine. At this point I'm looking for a set of front lower control arms. I've done some basic maintenance on it so far, new brakes and master cylinder, plugs/wires/distributor/rotor, new center link and idler arm, replaced gas tank and fuel pump, rebuilt carb(Rochester 2GC). Anyway, I've been meaning to get some pics on here for all to see, so here they are. If anybody wants shots of any particular area, let me know!

Trevor
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Postby spyder_xlch » Sun Mar 09, 2008 7:30 pm

That's a very nice original looking car.
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Postby Yellowbird77 » Sun Mar 09, 2008 8:11 pm

I bought it from a local elderly couple, I met them through my father's appliance repair business. He went to fix their refrigerator, and the fellow asked him if he knew anybody that might be interested in an old car. My dad said he thought I might be interested in it, so the guy was happy--as he intended to just take it to a junk yard! :shock:

When I saw it, I knew I wanted it. He kept mentioning how he'd gone for the v-6 option, which he felt was a very good move. It started right up there in his garage and had a nice sound to it.

He had it appraised by the local dealership where they had it maintained pretty regularly and they said it was probably worth about $500. So, I wound up getting it for $450. They had been the original owners for nearly 30 years-they still had the original sales receipt! :D

This is my first attempt to really overhaul a car, fortunately it's not in as bad shape as many of the other projects that are up here--no offence to anyone working on a project here, I have great respect for all you guys saving these cars from the crusher. Some of the work I've seen here has really inspired me, I wish you all the best!

I'm sure you'll see me looking for parts/advice pretty regularly...

Trevor
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Postby greg72 » Sun Mar 09, 2008 10:31 pm

That's the deal of the week! ok maybe the month! :lol:

SWEET! have fun with it!
Greg
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Postby AusRs » Mon Mar 10, 2008 3:18 am

THAt is a great buy ,wish mine was like that so i didnt have to spend so much time before driving it !
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Postby marco_1978_spyder » Sun Mar 16, 2008 9:02 am

Hey cool, just like the one in that crazy sunbird commercial from back then. (its on youtube).

Great luck with it. what a super lucky find!

I'd have some snowflake rims on it, with blacked out trim and tinted windows.
factory spoilers and a handling kit would be on my to-do list too. It looks sweet bone stock too.
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1978 Sunbird Formula V6, 5 Speed, Hatchback
1980 Sunbird Hatchback 4cyl, 4spd.
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Postby fyrftr50 » Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:10 am

Hell, steal of the year, that car looks stunning!!!
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Postby Yellowbird77 » Tue Apr 08, 2008 8:06 pm

Not much to report since getting pics up. I have acquired a replacement set of front lower control arms, since the drivers side arm on my 'bird has actually rusted through where the bottom of the shock attaches to it! :shock:

I will definitely get some pics of the old arms up here(and probably the others, just for comparison)...

Right now I'm waiting on replacement bushings/ball joints/cam bolts/sway bar bushings+links...I've been PB Blasting the cam bolts on the control arms nearly every day for a month. In fact, I was going thru PB so fast I decided to pick up one of those gallon-size jugs that comes with the sprayer($22!)...I must say for the kind of 'blasting' I'm doing, the spray bottle makes so much more sense-I can jut spray all around each of the control arm bolts instead of having to aim the stream at every part I want to hit. Plus, I can spray with the bottle sideway or pointing up since it is a hand-pump sprayer. I REALLY hope these bolts come out without too much trouble! :wink:

Once I finally get the front end rebuilt, I'll probably pick up a rear sway bar, since the rear arms have the holes drilled, but it has no bar. I'm also going to be in the market for another carb pretty soon I think.

Thanks for the comments and compliments!

Trevor
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Re: 77 Sunbird

Postby Yellowbird77 » Fri Nov 14, 2008 3:34 pm

Been a long time since I've been here, lots has been done with the 'bird though. Lower control arms have been replaced--only one cam bolt was seized, but made it a real job to take off the old control arm. Huge thanks to Heinz057 for his help and vast knowledge of H-Bodies. The whole front end has been rebuilt practically at this point, it's nice to be able to go over a bump and not hear: ka-KLUNK! I also picked up a replacement 2bbl carb-a Holley 8993 I believe. It was a direct bolt-on replacement for the Rochester 2bbl the car originally came with. It made a HUGE difference, car actually runs pretty sweet now. Next up I'm planning on replacing the engine mounts(trans mount done already), I got a flywheel cover to put on, rear sway bar, and a nice dash to install. It's been a lot of fun working on this car, and it gets looks everywhere I go. 8)

Just thought I'd give my project journal a little update...

Trevor
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Re: 77 Sunbird

Postby monza75tc » Fri Dec 05, 2008 11:47 am

Trevor,

WIsh I had the Sunbird, but will live with my Monza. The little Buick V6 really runs great. I have the smaller 196 in my Monza, but was nicely surprised with the performance and economy. I would look at the Grand National 3.8 with a turbo like VegaTex if you need a lot more performance. There is also the 4.1 with 4Bbl. They respond nicely to cam and exhaust just like the V8's. Keep up the good work, just need more pictures.

Dick
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