1964 Oshawa Impala Wagon Restoration - RHD Export to Australia

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

RE: 1964 Oshawa Impala Wagon Restoration - RHD Export to Australia

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

Next job was to shine up the panels for etch primer. I started with a rapid strip disk on the angle grinder making sure that I didn't generate too much heat. I wouldn't use this method on newer car panels but there's plenty of metal in these old boats!

Here's some before and after showing the build up of 6 years of surface rust. It was particularly cute seeing the outline of some very small hands rusted into the surface from when my boys were toddlers.

There was a little bit of straightening and hole filling on the bumper filler panel before it was shined up and ready.

Next was the phosphoric acid (or Deoxidine) just to be 100% sure the surface rust was gone. Dilute 50/50 with water, wax on with medium steel wool, wax off with wet rag and then dry rag - small sections at a time.

The etch primer I used is a 2k black (as used on the inners in yesterday's post). I love black etch primer - it screams at you when you are blocking grey hi-fill primer, letting you know that you're near metal. If you do hit metal the shiny silver also stands out against the black surrounds:

Out into the Solar Spray Booth!

Done!

From there it was onto the radiator support panel. I left it in place to save the added hassle of lining up the fenders etc. The two issues were the brush painted POR15 back from 2007, and one of the spot welds had failed near the mounting bracket.

So a quick repair on the spot weld...

... and some tie coat primer.

Next was the fan shroud - straighten up the dents and it too had more holes than it should have so more welding:

Here's the headlight bucket that was bent from hitting a kangaroo. Block of wood + big hammer = fixed.

From there it was cleaning up all of the miscellaneous bits before hitting them with tie coat primer.

Primed and ready for semi-gloss black:

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

With etch on the panels, I set about skimming them with filler. My preferred method is to lightly block sand the etch to show the lows and then skim/sand those spots until smooth. These were small patches of filler so used a medium sanding board. I graduated to the long dura blocks for the bigger, more recent repairs.

The bumper filler panel had a few waves in it so it got a skim of filler as well:

Then it was onto the grey Hi-Fill Primer - I 'm using PPG's Autothane Hi-Fill 2K Primer.

Then it was back to prepping the engine bay parts that need to be semi-gloss black (not shiny brushed-on black!)

The garage filled up pretty quickly with parts waiting for semi-gloss black:

More parts ready including some seam sealer on the hood frame. (Grey parts are tie-coat over existing POR15, black is etch over bare metal)

Out into the solar spray booth:

The first splash of colour was on the hood hinges. Some emails to Canada and some close examination of photos confirmed that the correct factory colours were grey with semi-gloss black springs

I painted the radiator support in semi-gloss black and wheeled it out into the sun for the first time in 6 years. The engine and firewall got jet blasted and then I went about removing all of the non factory parts.

Factory 283 Chevs didn't come with 350 Holleys!

Removed a few other parts which I'll detail in a few posts:

More panel painting in the next post tomorrow

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

Loving the build thread!

It's funny the little intricacies that Canadian built cars have, such as your hood hinge spring colours:

The first splash of colour was on the hood hinges. Some emails to Canada and some close examination of photos confirmed that the correct factory colours were grey with semi-gloss black springs

A '64 Parisienne (Canadian built) has baby blue hood hinge springs:

67Poncho · Uber Guru

Great write up with pics and I look forward to the continuing story every morning! With regards to the C/S firewall markings, you already have it pegged... The upper colour, C is Ermine white and the lower S is Saddle Tan.. Interesting how they wrote it on the wall! Awaiting tomorrows page!

-- Edited by 67Poncho on Monday 16th of September 2013 08:35:35 AM

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

Very interesting Darryl - I might have to pick your brains on a few of the other detail bits. I note also the firewall markings in the picture are over the paint where mine were under (as you'll see below).

So...after the high fill primer on the front sheet metal, I gave the bumper filler panel and the fender jambs some guide coat (some spluttery old flat red was all I had) and the grille ends had a few waves in them after being beaten back into shape. These parts on a 64 Impala are argent silver (same colour as rally wheels).

Out into that trusty solar spray booth (I used a base coat/clear coat system, the same as what the whole car will be getting):

Onto jambing the front guards. More spluttery red guide coat

..and then wet sand with 400.

The saga over "what colour is my car" was surprisingly drawn out.

The cowl tag says the paint code is SP4813. The build sheet that I got from GM Canada listed it as "Special Order" A search of every paint database came up with nothing and I even went back to GM Canada to see if they had records - but that too came up empty.

After countless phone calls and discussions with some local Chevy guys, most agreed that it was probably a factory colour but in an unusual combination. After checking out a GM Canada paint chart we guessed Ermine White for the roof, and either Almond Fawn or Saddle Tan for the main body colour.

This is where it got infuriating.

The painter I have lined up to do the exterior only paints in PPG so I went to see the sole distributor in my city. Unlike all of the other paint shops, the PPG guy is part of a major car dealership (in other words, they make their living selling cars, not paint).

To cut a long story short, I provided them with the GM code, the Ditzler code, the Sherwin Williams code, the Dupont code and the Acme Rogers code for both colours.....and not only were they rude and disinterested, but because it wasn't on their database they couldn't help me. I was even referred to as a "nightmare customer" as one of them shuffled off to find an equally useless colleague.

I went down the road to the BASF paint supplier who looked it up on their database and I walked out 20 minutes later with sample pots of both colours.

After some dabs on the firewall, I confirmed it was Saddle Tan Metallic:

Another call to the PPG guys to say, "Hey I've got the colour - can I bring it in and you can match it...?", was met with a "No".

With the project stalled, I dropped in on a few body shops and was advised that it would be fine to use BASF base under PPG clear, particularly on the jambs and engine bay. They also said that when they had time they would spray out the BASF on a test panel and stick it under a spectrum analyser and give me a PPG code.

In the meantime I got cracking with the colour...

and this is my favourite clear (Autothane HS):

Came up nice. Lots of curves and ridges so pretty forgiving when it comes to gun technique ? got a small sag in the clear on one fender which came out with some 1500 on a small block.

Then onto the firewall and cowl. First of all gave it a scrub with thinners and fine steel wool

which as expected revealed all of the factory markings on the firewall.

As these markings are visible under the paint from the factory, I wanted to make sure I preserved them so I went over them again with a chinagraph pencil. The SP4813 is that paint code I mentioned. I have no idea what the others are:

Then the laborious task of masking up the engine. I dropped the steering column and pulled the valve covers to give me more room. Lots of sheets, newspaper, and a freezer bag for the dizzy. A rolled up cloth nappy stuffed down between the tunnel and the tranny. There are some very obvious seams and folds down low so it was easy to determine where to mask to.

Basecoat was sprayed over the markings

Base done

And then the clear (firewall markings are still visible at the right angle as per factory). Very happy with it although it is much more metallic and a much deeper gloss compared to original paint.

Engine tomorrow

67Poncho · Uber Guru

And, when you get time, if you haven't already, take a stroll through the '64 section of the Chevrolet Registry.. Click on the "link" for pics...

http://canadianponcho.activeboard.com/t30628151/canadian-chevrolet-registry/

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

Markings under the paint eh? ... I wonder how many cars are like that and the owners don't even know it! And yes, china marker is the way to go. Good stuff!

Here's a whole thread on the topic: http://canadianponcho.activeboard.com/t33391464/firewall-markings/

Here are my actual markings:

jim_ss409 · Guru

Very nice car and love the build.

CdnGMfan · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I love this build for many reasons.

I love the 64s and especially the obscure 64 wagons.

It is a Canadian-built car with all the idiosyncrasies (different finish on a variety of components, from vacuum reservoir to hood hinges). One thing I have found is that Canadian cars had 2-tone paint combinations not available in the U.S.; in fact it almost appears as if you could have paired any combination, at least based on my 1967 Chevelle documentation.

I love the fact that this build is more about being a labor of love rather than a get-rich-quick flipper. I also love the Aussies and have found that in our world travels they are the most fun to be with by far.

I went to Bali in 1997 and saw a 1962 Impala Sport Sedan with a RHD Pontiac dash. It may very well have come from nearby Australia.

You know, once you are finished with this endeavor you will have so much time on your hands that you may get back into gigging. What better roady vehicle that a 1964 Impala wagon!

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

Thanks for the replies

67Poncho - Thanks for solving the "C over S" mystery and thanks also for the link to the registry - I was pleasantly surprised to see my Wagon already in there (albeit without paint!)

Jim - I got your PM and checked out that site - many thanks.

CdnGMfan - As much as I loved the music business, I prefer family life. I wont be resting after the completion of the wagon as I have a 1964 Oshawa Impala Sport Sedan (RHD export, Satin Silver, Red Interior). I bought it before the wagon (25 years ago) and is minus motor and box and is a basketcase. GM Canada found the build sheet and it's a January 64 car - 2 months older than the Wagon Therefore I have sourced a block, heads, and powerglide all with the same casting numbers as the wagon and have tracked down a Canada intake manifold and the hard to find air-cleaner. Will start on it the moment that the wagon is legal to drive on the road.

Anyway, on with the show:

First job on the motor was to tidy up the exhaust manifolds which were pitted and rusty. My favourite method is electrolysis using a battery charger and some washing soda

This is before

This is during

This is after with all of the rust magically transferred from the manifolds to the scrap iron anodes

I decided to paint them with KBS High Temp cast iron grey as that seemed to be closest to factory colour 250ml tin but 50mls gets you 2 coats. Nice flat dark grey colour. Hopefully it hangs on!

You wont be surprised that in order to get the wagon back to factory correct condition, I spent a bit of time trawling through the reproduction catalogues from the many US suppliers.

It is amazing how easily $1600 fits into 2 relatively small boxes:

And here are the goodie. All period correct repros. Hoses with GM codes on them, correct water pump, correct colour plug leads and cap, correct coil, clips, clamps, bolts, stickers,etc etc..and an assembly manual!

As well as the Asian repro stuff, I did score some NOS valve covers. As unassuming as these look, they were very tough to find. As probably all of you know, these are specific to Canadian cars and have no script, and no breather holes. I nearly dislocated my finger on the buy-it-now button when I spotted them - $130 landed.

but they were in fact a pair of left side covers (wiring loom clips on both of them). Thats not factory original so we cant have that can we!

I prepped the motor with thinners and steel wool and gave the new raw water pump some Metal Ready which leaves a zinc phosphate coating.

Engine paint of choice is KBS Motorcoater in Chevy Orange. Brush on and contains some sort of self-levelling agent.

It's seriously orange!

It flows really nice and covers pretty well although it needed 2 coats. Used about 400 of the 500 mls.

It was a bit of a contortionist act getting in under the sump and in behind the engine mounts. There is no way you could do this on a unibody car or with the front sheetmetal attached. The largest brush I used was 1 inch while for the smallest I had to raid the kids craft box for a 2mm brush.

Here is before:

Here is after:

Despite the tin saying that it brushes on, I wasn't happy with the finish on the smooth valve covers - I decided to spray the second coat after wet sanding them with 800 (photo below is after the first coat):

I also painted the chassis and a few bolt ons. More sliding in and around, up and over the front end with a series of small brushes.

I used the same 2k satin black as before but kept thinning it down until the brushmarks blended. Hard work and never as good as taking the body off altogether but it all came up well.

Tomorrow everything goes back together and it starts

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

Being meticulous brings perfection ... nice job!

Boy, those engine parts look familiar! wink

-- Edited by Pontiacanada on Tuesday 17th of September 2013 06:36:40 PM

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

I'm sure this post below will be familiar for you too Darryl!

The next step on the engine was the air cleaner.

This one is original to the car and still had the all-important paint stamp with the air cleaner service instructions - the rest of it was pretty ratty and rusty after sitting around in a box for 20 years ( I used it for the first few years but accidently killed the original carby)

So, because these paint stamps aren't repro'ed in sticker form (or any other form) I masked them up.

Some gentle wire brush action on the base and snorkel, 240 grit on the sides and took the lid back to bare metal

Etch primer, sand and then some black basecoat. I then removed the tape and shot the whole thing with clear. I give it a 6 out of 10 as I was too hasty getting the clear on and didn't notice the masking tape residue left behind.

From there it was onto the valve covers with some glittery 195 horsepower stickers - I'm sure that was a lot of power 50 years ago! There's been some questions as to whether these would have been on from original - would love to hear anyone's thoughts.

Before bolting all of the new bits on I thought it would be interesting to line up what came off, and what original/repro bits went on in their place. At this point I'd love to get anyone's comments if you spot anything amiss.

So starting from the top...original air cleaner and 2 barrel Rochester replace a 350 Holley and chrome cleaner.

I put the Holley on after a very unfortunate accident with the original carby. I went to rebuild it one evening and went searching for my fathers "carby cleaner". It was kept in a plain black container. He also kept hydrochloric acid in a plain black container. I'll let you guess the rest.

The search for a replacement this year ended well - despite the fact that they made a gazillion of these and any eBay search will find about 50 of them, I needed one with correct casting number, correct date code, with correct ID tag attached. It took a while but thankfully this one appeared, fully reco-ed with tag for $150 landed. M3 is December 1963 so 3 months before my car came off the assembly line.

You've already seen the valve covers but I had to laugh when I pulled off the old finned ones. Thinking for many years they were old skool, US made, ultra rare and extra cool, they actually had "Japan" stamped on the inside.

The plugs and leads are purely a colour thing - black cap, and black leads with orange right angled ends are correct. Since I took this shot however I realised that the old coil which had remnants of black paint on it was stamped "Canada" and is original to the car. It's now re-painted black and is back on.

The old water pump was an aftermarket one with the dead giveaway of the extra outlet on top and a dodgy hot water tap mechanism. The original brake master cylinder needed a rebuild ( possibly even a re-sleeve) so I went for a repro - I have since noticed however that it has an outlet (blocked off) at the front. I put it on but will probably get the original rebuilt. As for the dipstick and thermostat housing - CHROME IS NOT FACTORY CORRECT...AAAAaaaaaahhhhhh!

When I got the car it was partially disassembled and had no fan. I bolted on a replacement 6 blade chrome fan and went on my merry way. I was however oblivious to the fact that without a spacer it sat well outside the shroud, probably working to 30 per cent of it's efficiency. Yes, the engine would get hot occasionally but thankfully lots of highway miles and our cool climate didn't make it a huge issue. So..sourced a correct 4 blade fan and spacer.

I have also downgraded the headlights from retina burning aftermarket globes with unsightly relay wiring to the original low spec units. A repro hard fuel line went on and I put a filter in before the pump.

I mounted up the old fuel pump but my eagle-eyed friend Gil from Canada spotted that it's aftermarket. Correct 1964 "screwed together" fuel pumps are surprisingly plentiful and cheap so one arrived after these photos were taken. In the meantime I attempted to source some fuel pump gaskets but no luck - so I made my own from ACL 0.8mm Gasket Paper.

So then it was a matter of bolting everything on giving me a reason to use my favourite tool - my Warren and Brown deflecting beam torque wrench. I'm not sure it's particularly expensive or special but I just love telling my young boys who are obsessed with superheroes that it has a "deflecting beam". (insert ninja moves here)

Here's a couple from the "I can't believe you bothered" files.

GM installed spark plug wire clips on the oil pan to route the wires away from the exhaust. They repro them in black and even though you cant see them, THEY SHOULD BE ORANGE!! ....and secondly, hands up if you were ever unhappy with the scratches and dings on your alternator bracket......so ended up skimming it with body filler..? ...anyone...?

And finally here's my favourite thing in the engine bay.

The firewall appears to have been stamped at the factory to accept aircon hoses. As mine didn't come with aircon, they would have been blanked off with black rubber plugs. They were just holes when I got the car so being a lazy musician, I just duck taped them up.

After deciding to fix it properly and not being able to find any 35mm blanking plugs I started thinking laterally and came across these. Ladies and gentlemen, these are......wait for it.......earrings! Yep, 35mm silicone plug earrings that those scary looking people use to stretch the holes in their earlobes. They fit perfectly and after a little scuff with some 400, they look factory correct and have the added bonus of being medical grade and hygenicaly safe!

So here it is - what I believe to be the way my engine bay looked when it rolled out of the factory and on to the boat in 1964.

Before...

And after...

Click the picture below to hear it run (excuse the hotwiring - one of the ignition wires was broken)

-- Edited by OZ64Wagon on Wednesday 18th of September 2013 04:48:37 PM

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

Wow, wow and wow! Nice work, great detail.

I have never seen the made in Canada coil painted black before, always that natural aluminum colour. That is interesting...

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

Hey Simon, was there ever a glass windshield washer anti freeze bottle and bracket with the wagon?

Enjoy seeing your work!

-- Edited by Pontiacanada on Wednesday 18th of September 2013 04:55:49 PM

68 427 · Poncho Master!

THE ORIGINAL COIL IN MY '64 LAURENTIAN WAS NATURAL ALUMINUM.

1964 LAURENTIAN 230.jpg

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

68 427 wrote:
THE ORIGINAL COIL IN MY '64 LAURENTIAN WAS NATURAL ALUMINUM.

Yep, a lot of Canadian Pontiacs of this vintage (6s and 8s) have "raw aluminum" coloured coils as original equipment ... mine does.

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

Thank you once again everyone - clearly the coil needs to be natural. I shall put that on the list of "things to do once the car is painted".

Darryl, there wasn't a bottle or a bracket with the wagon. I spent some time looking at pictures of the mounting holes on the bracket to see if they matched the holes in my fender inners but they didn't. I'm off to the 37th Annual Chevrolet Convention on Sunday where there should be plenty of RHD 64's to look at so I will be looking at this.

On with the work which today is some fiddly jobs.

I had the suspension upgraded many years ago which included bright orange sway bars, yellow springs and Koni red shocks. All very non-original so for starters I removed the orange powdercoat from the bar and hit it with some black.

While I was in the engine bay, I did a long overdue repair.

The worst accident I ever had with the car was when it careered out of control down a hill, across a busy 2 lane road, mounting a gutter, and coming to rest in the front garden bed of a house. Interestingly no-one was actually in the wagon at the time.

40 years of column shifting had "rounded" the gear selector gate to the point where "Park" blended with "Reverse" and without a proper handbrake, it one day took off down a hill. I was inside my mate's place at the time and came out and it was gone. To this day I still cant believe it didn't hit anything or anyone.

Here's the rounded bit...

So out with the air die grinder and some Dremel cut off wheels (yes, Dremel bits fit into a $20 die grinder) and ground it back square (ish).

Correct fuel pump arrived - here's a piccie of it just for the record (it's the one on the right). New old stock by Airtex and rebuilldable - hence the fact that it's screw-together construction.

I cleaned up the engine wiring looms using some wax and grease remover and checked for continuity before re-wrapped them in correct repro black tape. I also got my hands on some correct "asphalt coated cloth sleeve" for the temp sender wire and re-used the cloth sleeve to the starter motor.

I also learnt that the temp sender and heater return are flipped on a RHD impala, compared to their LHD counterparts - most likely to save on all that extra heater hose being draped over the intake and looping around to get to the other side.

Before assembling the grille I colour sanded and polished the clear coat on the bumper filler panel. The finish off the gun was pretty good so a wet sand with some 2000 on a block and then a medium foam pad on the DA with some Juice Q-Cut.

From there it was pretty straight forward putting everything back in place.

So with the front end looking like a car again, here is the final "final" stock engine bay from both sides. These pictures were sent to my friend and Canadian Impala Guru, Gil, who said "Good job....but here's 29 things that that are incorrect" Apparently the top radiator hose tower clip needs to be 45 degrees towards the battery.....the air cleaner wing nut should be stamped (not cast).....and the 8 control arm nuts need a copper finish. I should also mention that I have the original canister oil filter but have swapped it out for the more modern version. Apparently painting it black and putting on the correct AC Delco sticker is a reasonable substitute. I'm also missing the thermal spring choke mechanism and cover - any leads greatly appreciated.

If any of you notice anything else, please feel free to comment.

So with the "GO" bit sorted, I focussed on the "STOP" bit. A quick bleed of the master cylinder before hooking it up, some brake cleaner on the shoes and springs, and a coat of cast silver on the drums. The brakes are still very grabby unfortunately so I think some new wheel cylinders and hoses are on the cards.

The obvious next step when a car runs and stops is.....DRIVE IT!! So around the block it was, minus bonnet, doors, glass, seats and interior..... and with my 4 and 5 year old boys unrestrained and sliding around in the back. Plenty of squeals of delight but I think my nomination for parent of the year has been revoked.

Back into the bodywork tomorrow

Budgie · Addicted!

As posted before WOW,WOW,WOW that looks amazing, Great work and time for pics too.

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Re your comment: "Apparently the top radiator hose tower clip needs to be 45 degrees towards the battery"

While the assembly manual may state the clip needs to be 45 degrees towards the battery, don't be surprised if most left the factory with the clip pointing up. According to the late John Sawruck of Pontiac Engineering, it was very common for the guy who put the battery in to get tired of scraping his knuckles on the tower clamp, and walk down the assembly line to the tower clamp guy, and tell him to put them verticle. John said this type of thing happened all the time.

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

OZ64Wagon wrote:
I'm also missing the thermal spring choke mechanism and cover - any leads greatly appreciated.

I found a supplier on the internet for the choke spring assembly a while ago, but I forget who cry I'll do some digging and let you know ... they are hard to find. I reused my old choke cover.

You can see the new one in this picture Simon:

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Pontiacanada wrote:
OZ64Wagon wrote:
I'm also missing the thermal spring choke mechanism and cover - any leads greatly appreciated.
I found a supplier on the internet for the choke spring assembly a while ago, but I forget who I'll do some digging and let you know ... they are hard to find. I reused my old choke cover.

Re the choke spring (choke thermostat). While many may look the same, I know for 1970 the 2 barrel ones pull the rod down as the engine heats up, whereas the 4 barrel ones push the rod up as the engine heats up. They however look the same.

saskyponcho · Addicted!

Will someone explain how to use this method of electrolysis to clean the exaust manifolds. Looks like it works very well.

Pontiacanada · A Poncho Legend!

seventy2plus2 wrote:
Pontiacanada wrote:
OZ64Wagon wrote:
I'm also missing the thermal spring choke mechanism and cover - any leads greatly appreciated.
I found a supplier on the internet for the choke spring assembly a while ago, but I forget who I'll do some digging and let you know ... they are hard to find. I reused my old choke cover.
Re the choke spring (choke thermostat). While many may look the same, I know for 1970 the 2 barrel ones pull the rod down as the engine heats up, whereas the 4 barrel ones push the rod up as the engine heats up. They however look the same.

By the 1970 they had a whole different animal when it comes to chokes.

OZ64Wagon · Veteran Member

SaskyPoncho - rust removal method is here:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Electrolytic-Rust-Removal-aka-Magic/

Doors were next on the list.

Thankfully all were rust free so no stuffing around with patch panels and the paint in the jambs will be good enough to scuff and paint over.

I started with the left rear which was the worst of the 4 - it got tagged in the "big accident" before I owned it. Lots of stretched metal along 4 big creases but fortunately the top and bottom trim lines were in tact giving me something to go off.

I made a template off the other rear door to get the edge profile right and then ran the steel ruler over it to work out where to start hitting it (and what size hammer I needed)

So in behind with a block of wood trimmed to the right angle and a BFH to rough it out

Then some "poor mans dent puller tabs" spot welded along the creases and then pull with the slide hammer.

Getting closer........ some more caressing with the slapper, pushing hard from underneath to lift the lows and then shrinking back down with the disc and compressed air. Body file to check on progress got it close enough for a transparent skim of filler.

The left front door had a crease running lengthways and a couple of dings lower down - a piece of cake compared to the first door

The other two didn't need any belting so were shined up with the rapid strip disk followed by the trusty deoxidine and steel wool and black etch primer

DOORS DONE!!! Very happy with how the bad door turned out thanks to my new favourite tools - Dura Blocks!

Here's the finished bad one:

Here's all of them:

And here's the blocks and adhesive paper:

Left rear quarter tomorrow (60 hours on just the metal work!)