Back in 1977, I was involved in a major accident with my 1969 Camaro. The car had substantial front end, sub-frame too damage. The passenger door was also compressed to the rear. Most people would have junked the car, however, I located another 69 Camaro in a bone-yard that had been rear-ended and junked. I bought the front half of car for $400 (they literally cut the car in half) and had the bone yard drop it off at my home. The repair was substantial, but also somewhat easy. I pulled the undamaged 307 engine & auto trans from my car, then I jacked up the front end of my car and removed the entire front-end (4 bushing bolts and two brake lines, various wires, etc.). Bottom line, the repairs cost me less than $1k which included a color matching paint job from "Apcoa Paint & Body." Remember them? Funny, I still have a lot of the unused parts from what remained of the carcass including the complete and mint dashboard (showing 67k miles on the odometer), the steering wheel, steering column, etc. These couple of parts today, especially the dashboard, are worth much more than I spent to fix my car back in 1977.

I'm a retired auto body, frame, unistructure, paint and suspension tech, I used to love to work on cars hit in the side! They would throw the insurance adjuster into a panic trying to figure out how to write the estimate! Most of the time they would let me figure the estimate! If I were doing this car in my shop I would have put it on the rack as soon as I had the sheet metal off of it and I would have left the ''A'' pillar attached! Plus I would have left the door hinges attached to the cowl and used them for pulling points along with the area where the power window harness goes through the side of the cowl As far as the rocker goes I would have to see the car close up to decide where to hook onto it. I always liked to use the panels I was going to replace to pull the rest of the car into shape! It's been close to 10 years since I've pulled one hit like this one though, I just use my frame machines for getting under cars to work on them now! I'm really glad to see that you're fixing this one, I'm more into Pontiacs Olds and Buicks but the 69 Z28, 70 Chevelle SS and the 55 Belair Hardtop and convertibles are beautiful cars by any standard!

I rolled an 8 month old 65 mustang drag racing back in the day. I came up over the peak of a incline on a 4 lane, with a grass center isle with rumble strips. The car came off the ground, and landed on the inside lane then slid to the outside lane before hitting the rumble strips, and rolling 3 times into oncoming traffic on the opposite side of the hyway. The car didn't have a straight panel, and the "A" pillar on my side was bent down to the top of the door frame. The auto body shop who were dispatched to tow it off the hyway that night bought it from the insurance co. I went to see it after being released from the hospital to get my personal effects. I was amazed they had the doors off, and had a portapower braced against the inside of the rocker panel. They got that A pillar as close to original as possible and cut the quarter panels off. I didnt think they had oam replacements back then. I came back a week later to see how it turned out, and was amazed at how it looked like the day I got it off the showroom floor. The only small detail of the wreck was a little crinkle in the headliner over the A pillar Otherwise, I was completely amazed at the ressurection of that car. As it turned out I was drafted into the Army in June of 66. Never looked back, just wondered if I would ever see the day I could Hotrod the streets of home again. Obviously, I did.Next Hotrod was a GTO.

Awesome series. Kudos for taking such care and respect with a #s original classic. Two thumbs up!

Thank you for what you are doing and the care you are exhibiting. This will be an amazing resurrection.

Luv this stuff.great to see the right people saving this cool camaro

I used to jog past a house where a 69 Camaro was being restored. Day by day I saw the car come together, mechanical work and bodywork progressing nicely. One day, it was done. Beautiful, looked like a brand new car that just drove off the showroom floor. Within a week it was wrecked.

It is so nice to see this piece of history being rescued. I know you will do an amazing restoration, you always do.

Danny Casler is right....put it on a frame machine first, and pull everything back into the original shape before taking "anything" off. Pull straight ,pull the side etc. The main thing to do is to pull it backwards from like it was hit.....makes the job a helluva lot easier.

I have only been doing collision repair for 46 years so still learning. I agree 100% with Danny below this reply, if you put what we call a collision pull before disassembly you would get most of the panel you are saving where they go before cutting it apart. Plus you would have a lot easier time getting at the bolts. Windshield pillar could have been saved if done that way and drill out the welds at the bottom after pulling. I worked on those when they were just used cars.

Great job Peter. Love your videos

Nice video. The roof is not the problem and should have not been cut and would have came back to place in the pulling process. The cowl,left drivers floor area,left rocker. You will spend alot of time on the left cowl piller post after removing the dash board and steering column. You will have to pull from outside and also push from the inside with a porta power. I could write more in this area but you get the picture. Do not get in a hurry as its not a race. Easy does it and do not set a dollar amount to fix this area of repair. A smokin deal would be 100.00 a hr. for the customer x actual hours of pull and repair time anything less and you are giving your shills away. Also a used cowl section and including left inner and outer rocker would really be a huge positive for this repair. The longer it sits unrepaired the more likely it will become a dust collector.

Nice work. I am a collision expert too I am not scared to fix smashed up cars either

Your crew is doing an amazing job, wow.

So worthy a save enjoyed so far 👍🇺🇸

It was a warm summer night.my grandpa had just bought the car.he finished up with a fresh coat of wax as i found myself admiring the lines of car.the candy apple red made me hungry for speed.i decided to take the car for a joyride that same night. Midnight. My granda had just polished off his nightly 6 pack with bourbon chaser dinner.asleep on his recliner...i with the tactful skills of a ninja...slid the keys from under his playboy magazine. I knew from the cover girl approving smile i was making the right choice.i tip toed to the ferocious z28 and quietly popped the door open...and painstakingly closed the door.pummped the gas pedal 3 times and the horses all woke up very angrily. I immediately backed out of the drive and as soon as i was was in 1st gear...my grandpa was at the side window with a demonic look in his eyes.he said " its time to die son".i panicked..floored the pedal...but i just sat there...engine revving...a cloud of smoke ensued the entire car.i let off the gas and peeled away.as i came to my senses...i started navigating the night.i came to a corner...i heard a can crack open beside me.my grandpa was sitting beside me.he had gone around to the passenger side of the car during my long burnout. He chugged his Budweiser...crunched it over his head.i was in shock when he said..." it time to meet your maker son".i screamed " papa no!!! I just just couldn't help myself...the car is too damn sexy"!!! He told me he understood but you never touch another mans lady.he punched me across my face...we slid sideways into the local gentlemans club.the end

Great stuff guys!

The damage on the rocker panel and the corner of the firewall/ a pillar section reminds me of how my truck 93 F150 is destroyed in the same way now unlike this car my truck can get a new cab on it and yeah. man that car looks so much better without the damaged body panels I see what he means where the panels make it look worse than it really is

Back in the 70 that car would have gone to the crusher thanks for saving it

in 73 my shop did a 70 trans am 455 insurance company paid it but we saved it , it had been rolled it is amazing time and efforts what can be done

Love this series! Only ask is make the videos longer. Cant wait for the next one.

next video coming soon? I am anxious to see how you straighten that thing out!!

i saw this same hit but on the pasanger side repaired on a 63 split window corvette. the sill was into the tunnel.

For me . I would have left the screen frame in place until the initial pull, and l would have left the right fender in place . It would tell me when the bulkhead is responding , each to his own . However, taking the running gear out and then placing it on the jig is the way to go.

Nice job, so glad ya saved the girl

You guys are badass to tackle such a project. I do not understand how this car could switch hands and the story of the car get lost 🤔

ooohhh that bad ass E30 in the background :D

Hi from Australia. I'm restoring my 69 Camaro at the moment. Doing some rust repairs. I look forward to seeing you restoring this classic 69.

Very interesting indeed, wish I had these skills

This channel is awesome!👍🏾👍🏾 Should have more Subs🤔

I enjoy your videos.

Love this!

i love to see old cars fived and scraped. I am a Chevy guy by hart but as long as it is cars from the big three and not an import. I can't afford one but like to see them fixed up.

Are you going to put a light weight body on it

i worked at a junk yard in the early 70s and we stripped so many muscle cars that were a lot lot less damaged than this car .. i bought a 69 r code stang needing only a front fender / bumper and grill all which was at the yard already in the same color .. later bought a 69 a12 super bee with a dented quarter panel that was damaged in the great tornado outbreak in 74 .. a GSX stage 3 buick was dismantled needing a front cap .. so many more stories of this nature ..

Very interesting, glad I found videos. Was any thought given to putting this on a frame machine & pull it back into shape somewhat 1st?

Where do you source parts for a car like this and if the car has frame damage like a classic car could it be fixed?

Looks like a car I was watching on eBay a couple of weeks ago.

Tacoed just behind the A-pillar on the driver side. That's a tough fix. I did 10 years in a body shop. I'd look for a donor body with the front clip and subframe intact. If you have the paperwork, the plates and the vehicle tags- you can build one. Right down to the seam sealer. All you need is tattoos and a felony. "Iron American Dream" on KZfaq

VIN is fine. It was only a partial VIN under the heater box.

cool project.

On any 69 camaro you have restored have you had rust on the the sides of the firewall and do they make a replacement panel for that?

D80 just means the car was originally equipped with spoilers. With the stripes missing on the hood, and the rest of the car having original paint it gives me the impression it was added. You may want to look for more clues to verify, like the factory punched firewall hole for the wire harness just above the fuse block behind the brake booster, and whether it actually has a hole where the solenoid would have been mounted on the firewall near the wire harness gutter, I'm not seeing one. Hope that helps.

It's going to be an Awesome car again when Finished !!...But after a lot of Hrs of Hard work

The nice man said to subscribe, so I did. Good job, one question though? Should it go on the frame machine first with the subframe on, and then unbolt?

Brother, what a hit ! Hope you have the braces to weld/ bolt into the body to hold the uni body in place to replace the lower rocker & floor. Are you going to get a used cowl to replace it with ?

Damn that looks unfixable but if u got the tools and shop anything is possible

Liked subbed notifications on

Did it hit the inside of a house? Dry wall is not generally used for exterior construction.

What's that sitting in the back trunk ?????

Car was wrecked when the transmission mechanic took it out for a test drive on a rainy day after alignment of the blow proof bellhousing. I was told he went off road and into a tree. Walked away from accident and still works at the shop. It originally had a flat hood too.

Why wouldn't you pull it first on a frame machine so you could straighten it out as much as possible first? Straighten the pillars and roof

any updates on the z28 camaro

That's not a survivor anymore it's a salvage

It looks like its bent round like a banana and i really hope it gets fixed up. These wete all time great cars and its avoided the crusher. Another one was the one pulled out of foss lake with a 52 chevy , how sad and for those who perished in it. What ever happened to the one that got pulled out of foss lake ,i guess thete was no point in recyling that one it was just a great big chunk of rust.

So your going to restore both Z28s at the same time

It has to cost as much as the car is worth to fix that a huge job

going to use original oem sheet metal? Awaiting the next video

Hé doesnt want to bring more damage to the car..............And use a sledgehammer for the roof????????

I'm assuming this shop has no cutting torches.

hope you did a vid pulling that dent out would be interesting to see.. dont leave us hanging bro lol

What happened to the car

That car is a unibody and its been hit in one of the worst spots on it , its also twisted there’s only so far you can pull on these unibodys before you start twisting and distorting and affecting other alignment points of the unibody . It’s a endless circle , I get its a numbers matching car but the labor is going to far out weigh its value if its even repairable correctly . To many hours on the frame rack and you’ll be cutting out the entire floor and replacing sheet metal and more . Will be entertaining watch this series of repairs . Peace friend

Live longer with a jack stand under the car when a working on the car👌

I must be one of the people that confused the 2 cars, red & blue. I could have sworn I saw someone take the red fender off & underneath there was blue paint next to the firewall.

I believe that mopar guy on tv has fixed worse than that buy pulling the sheetmetal with a frame machine Doesnt replace stuff like that...idk im just sayin alotta that metal can prob be saved

is it going to be a U.S. CAMARO or TIAWANA CAMARO

I'm sure you know by now that the hidden VIN is always a partial an no camaros have a complete VIN in that location.

What happened you never finished

I’m restoring a 1968 Camaro by myself and I’m 14. Any tips?

Just imagine how many cars were crushed because people were stupid back then and would say they were totaled. I have always told myself when I was younger in my teens That any car that is total is still fixable..I was right!

Why didn’t you put it on the frame machine and straighten it out first that would’ve been the first thing I did

Some fool was probably doing donuts near a house.

Driveway donuts, hit the corner of the shop

So according to you, all D80 69 Camaros had spoilers and a cowl induction hood? Not sure that is correct. I enjoy the channel, but some of the information is a bit off.

Yikes! It got t-boned!

Way too much work, better thee than me. Hope you're getting paid well. Got my first Camaro last week, it's a 1976 383 stroker, after owning, Super Sports, Olds 442s, Formulas, Gran Sports, etc, I'm 65 and it takes a little work to get in and out...

this is a resurrection. not a restoration.

No matter how Good the car turns out and I’m sure it will. it’ll still be a salvage title..🇺🇸🛠🇺🇸

🤔🤔.... y’all are fun swap a whole different chassis aren’t you???

This car was parked on the street and was hit and run by a 2bdr 1bth

Cool video but that car will never be right again.

Z Axis !? YYZ , X GM Welder + Gm Dealership , AME +++ Retired ; I Know Stuff & this Krate does Not Belong back on the the Road , Period ... How Many Spot Weld's Pop ??? Side Rocker's Were the Structural Link Sharing in Combination with the Unie-Body 2 Complete the Structural Link to the Fore & After Frame Mount's . Structural Integrity Has Been Lost & Can No Longer Be Trusted . Internal Sub-Assembly Part's & Weld's Can't B Duplicated From the Outside , Not 2 Mention Coatings & Sealer's . Good Luck & Happy Trial's , YYZ , Rock-Crush'in Ratman . Mind the Upper 1/4 Panel's & Roof Weld's as They Are All Part of an Integral Unie-Body Shell & Structure / Z Axis ! ... That's Y When Hp went Up , Convertible's went Out , [ Early Unie-Body's Bend & Flex ] !

Nothing about that car was worth fixing except the resale.

Am I the only one that noticed the blower motor bird cage is missing??? And this car is still a big piece of shit.