My 1989 GTC: The Red Baron

[Polygon]

Even though it's come a long way it's still got a long way to go.

This is my 1989 Lebaron GTC TII. It's one of 1,033 produced that year. I bought it in Ohio for $600 and drove it all the way back to Utah. This was what the car looked like when I got it home. Cracked tires, warped rotors, dead pads, busted vac system, and a goat ---- brown interior. It also had some mudflaps and pin strips which I removed before I took this pic. The engine was also covered in yellow hose. There was still one left that has since been replaced.







First thing I had to do was get some wheels a tires. The stock ones are alright but they were too small and a pain in the --- to clean. So, I bought some lighter wheels that were and inch wider and an inch bigger in diameter. They're Konig Reasons sized 17"x7" and the tires are Falken Azeni RT215. I'm going to be replacing the tires soon with something stickier.



Next up I decided to take care of the exhaust. The stock one is hugely restrictive and I was sick of the makeshift muffler I had to use to pass inspection. It's a full 3" mandrel bent pipe, with a Catco cat, a Dynomax Race Bullet muffler, and a Borla Intercooler tip. The system is minus the downpipe and the new Turbos Unleashed swing valve thanks to a wrong part being sent. So, now they wait until the new turbo and header are installed.





How it sounds.

Next up was the vac system. The lines were all pretty much trashed. So, I added a vac manifold and silicone lines. I also deleted the evap canister. Soon, a boost controller.

[Polygon]

The latest thing to be done was the body work. This is probably the most expensive thing I'm going to have to do on the car. The car had been hit on the driver side by the previous owner's son in the family Buick. It dented the quarter panel and the door. Then there some rust issues, mainly on the rockers.

[Polygon]

Now here's what planned for the next month.

Koni Dampers
Eibach Springs
Poly bushings and mounts all around
New strut components
All undercarriage metal blasted and powder coated black
New ball joints, tie rod ends, and wheels bearings
New 4 puck clutch and flywheel
Replace the rear main seal
New PS pump
Fix the A/C
Interior with SRT-4 "Viper" seats and custom black/gray interior
HU, speakers, and amp.
Ground kit
Rotors, Hawk HPS pads, ATE super blue fluid, and SS lines
PCV valve, plugs, wires, coil, general tune up to track down fueling issue
Strip the undercoating and reapply truck bed liner

There are some other small odds and ends, but I'll get pics up of everything as it gets done.

[135sohc]

Eastwoods chassis black is absolutely kick *ss for underbody coating.

[Polygon]

How much does it weigh compared to the stock undercoating?

[135sohc]

Its a paint not a tar based coating. So I'd say almost nothing compared to undercoating. I used a brush to put the stuff on, was like brushing on water.

[Polygon]

Thanks.

I wanted to use some spray on stuff but I don't think that will work out under the car. Now the hard part, getting it all off.

[turbokid]

ohhhhh I still love this car evertime I see it

[omni_840]

very nice, I remember when you posted the finished product on here

[neongary]

Looks incredible. How much of a pain is it to change colors? I'm thinking of changing my maroon to silver if it's not a real big deal. Figured that the tough areas have to painted anyway...(door jambs, etc.)

[WickedShelby88]

Wow. Amazing transformation and I applaud you for putting that time, money, and effort into saving it! Color looks sweet. I imagine you plan to lower it a tad. Would look better IMO. Guessing that is what the Eibach's are for. No matter what your getting it how you want it and still at a fraction what most people pay for a newer used car.

[Polygon]

ohhhhh I still love this car evertime I see it

Thanks man. I can't wait to see your car finished. I'm sure it will look just as great!

very nice, I remember when you posted the finished product on here

Thanks!

Looks incredible. How much of a pain is it to change colors? I'm thinking of changing my maroon to silver if it's not a real big deal. Figured that the tough areas have to painted anyway...(door jambs, etc.)

Well, it's not that bad, you just have to remove some seals and trim and mask off the inside. If you're doing the paint job right in the first place the extra work is minimal to do the jambs. Under the hood is the tough part. I held of on that and I'm going to paint it when I pull the engine to do all the engine work. However, I've seen people do it with the engine in with good results. I think it's worth it and your car will look a lot better IMO. I'm not a fan of maroon at all.

Wow. Amazing transformation and I applaud you for putting that time, money, and effort into saving it! Color looks sweet. I imagine you plan to lower it a tad. Would look better IMO. Guessing that is what the Eibach's are for. No matter what your getting it how you want it and still at a fraction what most people pay for a newer used car.

Yeah, the Eibach's and Koni's will take care of the wheel gap mod. That's the only criticism I get about the car now.

I've had people actually bring the whole price thing up. Confused as to why I wasted my money. I respond with the fact that my car look just as good if not better than 90% of the new cars on the road. It's just as reliable, if not more so. And the fact of the matter is that I can't buy that car new and I love that car, money isn't of a concern to me. In fact, I don't even have a real budget. It will end up costing what it cost. I finish it off by saying that every hobby is really a waste of money anyhow.

After that, they have no retort.

[2.216VTurbo]

Wow! What a transformation Maybe you should leave one underhood piece yellow just for posterity, like the dipstick cap?

[CoolV300C]

Yeah, loks great. But I was wondering about the yellow myself!
Nice work withthe car, and good paint choice too. Looks killer.

[Vigo]

In fact, I don't even have a real budget. It will end up costing what it cost.

Spoken like a true 3si owner! lol.

Car's looking good.

[Polygon]

Wow! What a transformation Maybe you should leave one underhood piece yellow just for posterity, like the dipstick cap?

Yeah, only because he actually painted it. It will be taken care of.

Yeah, loks great. But I was wondering about the yellow myself!
Nice work withthe car, and good paint choice too. Looks killer.

Thanks!

Spoken like a true 3si owner! lol.

Car's looking good.

ROFL!!!!

Yeah, I've found that budgets are the enemy.

[J&H Ryan]

Awesome - looks like you had a shop do the work? Smart man. After doing the Daytona myself, the GTC is getting shop-done. Question on the window trim/mirrors - did you paint them in agate or black? (mirror especially looks black) I think agate looks more unique, but its beautiful nomatter what you did.

[Polygon]

Awesome - looks like you had a shop do the work? Smart man. After doing the Daytona myself, the GTC is getting shop-done. Question on the window trim/mirrors - did you paint them in agate or black? (mirror especially looks black) I think agate looks more unique, but its beautiful nomatter what you did.

Thanks Ryan.

Interior, electrical, mechanical it's all good. But body and paint and have absolutely no skill with. It was definitely done by a shop. I'm still kind of upset about the work. Body guy was awesome, paint guy was so so, the guy who reassembled things pisses me off. Plus they took forever. As for the mirrors and the cowl, they're done in black. That's an interesting idea that I hadn't really thought of. I had contemplated the body color, at least for the mirrors but I think I prefer this. I think I made the right choice. Thanks, again.

I'll update this tomorrow. I polished up the reverse lights, added clear turn signals, got new tires, and it is going in for tint tomorrow. Hopefully I can get everything else done the first week of October. That way next year I can go to town on the engine.

[Mopar318]

Sweet looks good. I got most of the center console lid done. I hope to get it sewn and covered this week so you can get this things back together.

[Polygon]

Sweet looks good. I got most of the center console lid done. I hope to get it sewn and covered this week so you can get this things back together.

Thanks man, I can't wait to see it. I'm not having trouble figuring out how to make the rest of the center console looks as good.