So! When I was about 19-20 or so years old a bunch of us from S.E BC use to come into Alberta and drink/party- cheaper back then. Anyhow, I have always remembered an Orange '69 Acadian SS that I use to see at the local bar and over the years I lost track of said car. About 25 years ago I saw it sitting beside the railway tracks and then it was gone! Fast forward to present day and my brother proceeds to tell me about a Nova style car that's sitting in someones yard rotting! So this past weekend we had to go and pick up his winter beater- he has a '19 Hellcat and a '17 Shaker Challenger- and he decides to show me said Acadian in this yard. Low and behold it is the same one I have been chasing for the last 25+ years and let me tell you's it was so heartbreaking to see such a rare deserving car indeed rotting into the earth. It actually broke my heart to see this car in that state. It was 75-80% complete less front clip. The Vin and trim plates were gone. I also noticed that the original color was White with Red interior. Owner's Mom said he is building another one using this one for parts-trim only. Then it's apparently headed to the dump. I told her I could save that car as I am a ticketed Autobody tech and that I have repaired worse.
And No I didn't take any pic's as I thought I would respect the owner and the memory of the Acadian and leave it there.
My brother wants me to restore it and bring it back to life being what it is. My question is should I pursue it? It's not about getting my money back- those days are long gone I know. It's about saving a really rare Canadian car that is all there- at least all the important parts are. Thoughts.......
On a side note, 11-12 years ago I sold my '68 Acadian V8 car and I regret it and have had the urge for another one. I know there is not much that can't be bought for these cars as long as the emblems are there it's pretty well all Nova parts.
-- Edited by rebelrouser on Sunday 7th of June 2020 10:56:50 AM
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"No matter how much you change, you still have to pay for the things you've done".
Time I've got. Brother said he would fund the build. It's the passion that drives me to bring it back to life of all things.......Most people don't understand that when they're gone- they're gone. I've seen way worse rotten classic's restored than this one. Sometimes it can't always be about the money but the preservation of what was once a thing of beauty. I also know they are original once but with the proper re-build I could bring it as close to new as possible with a few added options from that time frame that Chevy had to offer. I guess it's an over obsessive gear head thing........
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"No matter how much you change, you still have to pay for the things you've done".
Tough call to make. I don't know your financial situation but sounds like your brother would bank roll you. That can be good or bad no matter how good you get along. I get along good with my brother but I would't ever go that route. I don't know how deep your pockets are but the good thing is much of it is your time. You would have to be pretty committed as it's more than a 2 week project. Good luck with your decision.
As Todd asked, I'd worry about the Tag's for a car like this being in Canada or USA, right? I guess for the car to be able to roll legally on the roads over there you need to have tags in order to get the car's registration too, am I right?
Claudio
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Claudio
Trying to make some history with a '65 Acadian Beaumont SD south of the Equator line...
Sounds like it's not your first rodeo, and that you do have a hankering for another Acadian. On that basis it sounds like a good project to tackle, especially since it has personal significance to you. Some of the cars I saw in my teens and twenties have made the deepest impressions on me, and are the ones that I'm still most enthusiastic about in terms of owning someday.
Perhaps of most concern to me would be the tags and the trim, especially the VIN. Can you get a provincially issued VIN for the car in BC, where it's missing the VIN?
My concerns about the VIN would be twofold: (1) that a provincially issued VIN would be a generic one, and you wouldn't be able to trace the lineage of the car, or prove that it's a rare SS 4-speed by the numbers, and (2) that the original VIN for the car has ended up on another fake car, or if the car was reported stolen at some point (and thus the VIN was removed).
Point (2) concerns me if the VIN is stamped somewhere on the body (I don't know if it is on these cars, but I know on Mopars it was stamped in 2 different places), and if reported stolen or registered in somebody's name, if it might come back to haunt you at a later date, by somebody trying to take the car from you legally, after you've sunk a bunch of time and money into it. We've all heard those stories where a car was stolen a number of years ago, and somehow it came to the attention of the police decades later after some innocent owner had spent a fortune restoring it, and they lost the car due to its status as being stolen. Maybe I worry too much, though...
Point (1) is a concern in terms of resale value, but if you intend to keep it that's not a concern because you know what it is. I don't know if numbers mean much to anybody but serious collectors these days, though, as I'm sure when you were done with it, it'll be a thing of beauty anyhow.
Sounds like it's not your first rodeo, and that you do have a hankering for another Acadian. On that basis it sounds like a good project to tackle, especially since it has personal significance to you. Some of the cars I saw in my teens and twenties have made the deepest impressions on me, and are the ones that I'm still most enthusiastic about in terms of owning someday.
Perhaps of most concern to me would be the tags and the trim, especially the VIN. Can you get a provincially issued VIN for the car in BC, where it's missing the VIN?
My concerns about the VIN would be twofold: (1) that a provincially issued VIN would be a generic one, and you wouldn't be able to trace the lineage of the car, or prove that it's a rare SS 4-speed by the numbers, and (2) that the original VIN for the car has ended up on another fake car, or if the car was reported stolen at some point (and thus the VIN was removed).
Point (2) concerns me if the VIN is stamped somewhere on the body (I don't know if it is on these cars, but I know on Mopars it was stamped in 2 different places), and if reported stolen or registered in somebody's name, if it might come back to haunt you at a later date, by somebody trying to take the car from you legally, after you've sunk a bunch of time and money into it. We've all heard those stories where a car was stolen a number of years ago, and somehow it came to the attention of the police decades later after some innocent owner had spent a fortune restoring it, and they lost the car due to its status as being stolen. Maybe I worry too much, though...
Point (1) is a concern in terms of resale value, but if you intend to keep it that's not a concern because you know what it is. I don't know if numbers mean much to anybody but serious collectors these days, though, as I'm sure when you were done with it, it'll be a thing of beauty anyhow.
Just my 2˘...
Somebody I know here in Chile had exact the same issue with an american car. The EXACT same situation you stated on you point two. After I got to know that story I swore to myself that I'd never even think about buying a car that did not have a license plate, VIN, or did not have the seller's name on the registration. Technical checkout of the car and maybe even registration fee can be arranged somehow, paid overdue, etc. That's my situation right now with my '65, it did not have tech check for aprox. 20 years, no registration fee for another 20 maybe also, but I can sleep tight over the fact the car's registration has my name on it and no one is gonna drop by some day and take it away with legal justification.
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Claudio
Trying to make some history with a '65 Acadian Beaumont SD south of the Equator line...
If only to rescue the key ingredients like all the emblems and tail panel. Door panel emblems are super rare to find in decent shape.
If original axle and trans no matter what condition. Save them.
Gut the car and restore all those pieces. Tilt column?
Save for another project.
Nova guys will buy the rest.
But Do Not Crush.
The day will come and you will find another 69 with papers and tags.
I have a buddy here in Vancouver with a 69 - 6 cyl for sale.
Good luck bud.
