[Alfajay]

Well, after a year at the media blaster, bodyshop, and upholsterer, my Sprint GT body has returned to my garage where it will be assembled into a car. Here are pictures of it leaving my garage last August, with the paint stripped, and then returning home today.

Think I can pull some all-nighters, and have it ready for Friday's Concorso?

Man, it's been a long process getting the body straightened, painted, and some upholstery added (headliner, sound deadening, trim that glues to the body - but no seats, side panels, carpet, ... - they will come later). But, the result is worth it.

Watch this space for more pictures!

 

[pathung]

That's very nice, Jay! Will it be original as can be, or tweaked somewhat look-wise/performance-wise?

 

[Alfajay]

Oh, definitely tweaked. I seem geneticly incapable of putting something back together stock. Nothing major - the goal is a reliable, fun, clean street car - but I have a 2L engine, hydraulic clutch set-up from a '69, LSD diff, ATE brakes, Cromadora Daytona wheels, Milano alternator, blade style fuses, and "flying butress" seats lined up to go into the car. I got the car in 2000, and have been collecting parts for it over the past seven years.

Dunno when it will be completed - I had set Concorso 2008 as a target, but with the paint & upholstery taking a bit longer than I had anticipated, 2009 is probably more realistic. Plus, I swear that this is the last car I am going to restore from the ground up, so I want to enjoy the assembly process.

 

[pathung]

Body and upholstery take the longest, it seems. Since you have everything else all collected and ready to install, a year seems realistic. I'll hopefully see you at Concorso '08 with my finished Spider; I'm working on the wiring right now.

 

[Ricardino]

Regarding the flyin buttress seats, can you tell me what restoring them was like...did you use kits...etc.

Thanks,
RP

 

[101/105guy]

Just beautiful Jay!!
If you need any assembly tips/help, let me know. I added the same '69 clutch set-up to my '67 GTV only with a meager 1750 engine ;^)
Randy

 

[italcarguy]

It sounds like it's going to be a nice car once it's done. How are you going to do the dash?

 

[Alfajay]

Ricardino: I'm having the upholsterer sew up the seats from raw vinyl. We may have had this discussion a couple of weeks ago. Recall I had observed that whenever I bring a pre-sewn kit to an upholsterer, they grumble that they could have made one that fit better, cost less, was easier to install, ....

Randy: Well, the photos that I took of your Sprint at "Cars-n-Coffee" have already been a big help. I'm pretty clear on suspension, drivetrain, wiring, having restored a Duetto, and maintained several 115 spiders. But, yea, the intricacies of the Sprint interior will no doubt result in some questions.

Anthony: Not sure I understand your question about the dash. This is an early car with a pebble grain grey dash - not wood grain. I applied some fiberglass mat + resin to fill some holes in the dash, and also to reinforce the areas where the cardboard was cracked, crumbling. So, I need to re-texture it. My bodyshop (Ital Meccanica in Huntington Beach) is going to spray on some truck bed liner material, trying to duplicate the pebble texture. Then I bought some Imron in a charcoal grey color that we will apply over the texture. I hope to see you at the Concorso, and check out your newly-assembled GT.

 

[italcarguy]

I didn't notice it's not a Veloce. It will be a lot easier to re-do than that fake wood crap they put on in the Veloce's. I think it's tacky, but it's what it came with so we went with it. Stop by and say hi at the concorso. You can take as many pictures and ask as many questions as you want

 

[franjo mokina]

Hello

Can you send me a detail photo of the pedal box carrier,please?I have early 1968 mechanical clutch,new floor pans,see the photo.
Regards

Franjo