1967 El Camino

[Maverick]

My son recently bought a '67 El Camino. High miles but complete, unmolested, and no visible rust under hood (radiator support, firewall, inner fenders, ...), in the door jams, bed, etc. Had a repaint in its past. The only Bondo I found is in front of the ends of the rear bumper. Looks more like lousy dent repair than rust repair. I'm guessing it was hit in the rear end at some point.

Originally came with a 283. Could be the original engine still in there. Would there be an engine number on a '67 Chevy that matches the VIN? Runs nice! Very quiet.

Has some minor wiring or maybe headlight switch issues and leaking power steering pump. No AC installed but loose parts (compressor and brackets, under-dash unit, condenser) came with it. Doubt it'll get installed.

This probably won't be much of a project thread but thought you guys would be interested in it.

[Basement Paul]

Car looks super solid! What's he planning to do with it? Drive it, sell it?

-BP

[Maverick]

Not sure. Time will tell what he'll do with it.

[Maverick]

Hoo Boy!! I've been bitten by the El Camino bug. Would love to trade my Explorer for one that didn't need too much. Problem is, they're mostly quite expensive.

Think my son found a gem.

There's a really good Classic Chevy Club here. I've been to two of their annual "All American" shows. Once with the Maverick (got a nice trophy) and once with the Lincoln, which was largely ignored. They host a monthly, any car cruise-in South of Raleigh. If its not storming this afternoon I'll take the Lincoln down. Plan to meet the NC/SC contact for the global El Camino club there. Their forum is second only to TS.org.

Think I'd better drive my son's before this goes too far. Wouldn't want a repeat of the F100 experience where I didn't like driving it.

[wxo]

Maverick, since you are well versed in the Ford culture, why not expand your horizons to include the Ranchero?
http://tinyurl.com/hyod6pt

[Maverick]

The El Camino has some advantages. Not a lot of Ford culture around Raleigh. The Piedmont Classic Chevy club is huge, active, and has a bunch of good guys in it. The El Camino forum is first rate and the National El Camino Owner's Association (NECOA) NC/SC region looks pretty cool too.

Too bad they're so danged expensive ...

[TireSmoker]

That thing looks like a time capsule -- good find!!

For the engine code, look on the front passenger side of the block, right in front of the head. There should be a pad with 2 sets of some numbers/letters stamped in it. I think the first set should match the end of the VIN. If those match, it should be original. The 2nd set should end with three letters, which will be the suffix code. If VIN doesn't match, can at least help identify what it came out of.

-Dave

[MostMint]

El Caminos were made well into the 1980's so you can find them more affordable in that era. For instance: http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/5672016071.html

[Maverick]

Right. I'm finding some more affordable El Caminos. Just gotta find the right one. 35 years and older is an advantage because no inspections are required in NC. No emissions inspections for pre-OBDII (pre-1986) but a zealous inspector could do a visual and notice headers, etc., in a safety inspection, which is required for 1981-1995. And, I like the older ones better. Need to find one in the 70s in condition like the Lincoln. Excellent driver i.e., low miles, no rust, good interior, decent paint, and AC.

I'm coming around to justifying replacing my 2002 Explorer. Never expected to have it this long. Anyone need a nice V8 Explorer with 66K miles?

[Maverick]

You might know the story -- bought an '81 that needed more rust repair than I want to do (again!).

A large tree limb fell on the roof of my son's '67. He's not sure what he'll do with it. Hasn't heard from the insurance company but I don't expect the news to be good.

Put a "Wanted" ad up on Elcaminocentral.com for a replacement top https://www.elcaminocentral.com/showthread.php?t=239806 in case he wants to go that way. It would be a good project if the top is fixed.