I got a new car!!! [LOTS OF PICS!!!]

Well, its got 4 wheels and an engine, so its kinda a car.
We got there early, and the guy said that he was going to roll it out onto the driveway, and we could pick it up if hes not there. My cousin, whos truck and trailer we were using, was all like, free car, hes not home, and we're allowed to just pick it up while hes not there? ...riiiight.

We decided to get a bite to eat before heading on over there so it was only a few minutes till the generous man arrived home. This engine is a pre KC 5000, which I believe means that the crank is smaller than my old one, havent looked at it yet. But if it is, at least everything else bolts up. Again, havent torn apart the engine yet, it does turn over, but theres no telling if theres any damage or not.

I joked with the guy about how he "claimed" it was a "rolling chassis" as this car technically was not rollable without help. Each tire was on roller carts, but there was no way we could get that on the trailer. We had to drive over to a home depot and buy a "come-along" to help pull it up.

Chassis came with mkI rear end, drive shaft, engine w/carbs, front valence, two nice bumper guards (one actually has a dent but still better than mine) Two wire wheels, two steel wheels, 2 Sears tires, 1 Phillips 66 tire, and one unknown. I did not know these companies made their own tires... ...and Im still not too sure that they can be considered "tires"







What stinks is the body that was in his garage. It looked to be in good shape. Story was that it had gotten in a rear end collision in 68 somewhere up north and had been sitting in a junk yard ever since. But I swear that car looks to be in excellent shape (minus the absense of fenders). The guy showed me the battery box as proof of how good shape it was. I am a little confused on the story as I am assuming this was its chassis, but if so, it couldnt have been a MKII as in the picture, plus how could it have been wrecked in 68, unless it was just recently purchased as a 69 model?

Anyway the guy mentioned that it had a MK1 hood (against the wall) and I was all like, "No way!!!" I told him about my Mk1 that came with a MKII hood that I had been trying to find someone to trade with or buy. And that I had just picked up a hood from Denver which wasnt in that good of a shape, it was over $400 after shipping. We could have so traded!!! (and yes, I had put up an ad, thats how I found the one in Denver, someone emailed me from my ad about it)




He had another GT6, a MK1, in pretty good condition. The story on this one was that it was imported from GERMANY by a "tennesse country star" but it had never been registered.

I took a lot of reference photos since I never saw a COMPLETE GT6 up close before, but heres just a "handful" since I know you guys love pictures. It had very low numbers, KC 1878, the engine KC 1939

...TO BE CONTINUED...

More pics!

UmmYeahOk said:

...I am a little confused on the story as I am assuming this was its chassis, but if so, it couldnt have been a MKII as in the picture, plus how could it have been wrecked in 68, unless it was just recently purchased as a 69 model?

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Good point! That "wrecked in 68" statement might be off a bit, since it's unlikely the GT6+ (MkII) actually arrived in the States much before calendar year 1969, although it was announced in the October-November 1968 issue of the TSOA Newsletter (no idea when that might have been printed and mailed to TSOA members). It does look like a nice solid body, though.

And it looks as if you scored a nice chassis and engine; congratulations! Hopefully the early, early engine doesn't cause problems with parts availability (at least not the parts you might need)!

Congratulations!

Don't know much of anything about GT6's, but I love the picts. Good luck on the restoration.

Awesome project! Congratulations!

Nice going and good luck with the project. Keep the pictures coming!!

Very nice deal there - and I'd be happy to take that 6 bladed fan off your hands from that donor engine, since I think it is similar if not the same to the 'tropical' fan TR3/4 people like to get!

Randy

TR4nut said:

Very nice deal there - and I'd be happy to take that 6 bladed fan off your hands from that donor engine, since I think it is similar if not the same to the 'tropical' fan TR3/4 people like to get!

Randy

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I think its like a 6 hour drive from where I am to Katy. But I did tell the guy that since this was free, I was going to try and "pay it forward" so I'll see what I can do. I probably wont be parting anything out until everythings back together and running, but sure, if you are planning a trip to the DFW area, Im going to miss the White Rock British show though. (I'll be in France - I begged to spend a day or two in England, but we compromised by allowing me to go to Euro Disney)

Im trying to get the car done by May, but we know how deadlines are. =)

May I ask why they are called "tropical?" palm tree?
Just to let everyone know, Im not parting anything out until the car is finished. I've already bought several things already that I apparently could have gotten from this freebie donor.

As a matter of fact, I'll probably be in DFW in early March if things work out -I'd be happy to work out a deal or trade in something GT6-ish that I have in all my junk - I have at least one of those GT6 Lucas dash switches you can see in the pic above if you need one for example.. I'll pm you if I get serious about a trip!

Tropical I think described places where Triumphs had a tough timing coping - like Houston stop and go traffic in August..

Euro-Disney? That'll probably start a whole new thread! My advice, spend your entire time wandering around Paris, and if you run out of time, tour Normandy and the memorials. Nothing better in my opinion!

Sorry if I'm being dense, but did you pick up the chassis or the chassis and the car?

TR4nut said:

Euro-Disney? That'll probably start a whole new thread! My advice, spend your entire time wandering around Paris, and if you run out of time, tour Normandy and the memorials. Nothing better in my opinion!

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If you only have a couple of days Paris will keep you plenty busy. Just give yourself some time to wander, and if you get closer in ping us for some specific ideas. Trust me, you'll not regret staying in Paris.

Great project car! Few LBCs are easier to restore than a GT6, you're gonna have fun with this one.

I especially like the dash in the MKIs, more "antique" looking than the later marques.

Keep us posted with lots of photos, please!

I agree on Paris skip Disney been here done that and not worth the effort
take good walking shoes and buy a metro pass for the days you will be there
check out Le Bourget, Louvre, get some bread and follow the Seine
you won't be disappointed

I'm trying to get this straight..... You just got a rolling
frame,not a body - correct?If so,why would he keep the body.
Is the Red car his also?And the Green/White one too?Free is
a good price.
There's a free body near Charleston,South Carolina,if some-
one's interested.

- Doug

Niki:

Have a great trip, and none of my business, but Euro Disney is a bit of a joke! AND EXPENSIVE!!!
Paris is to die for and <span style="text-decoration: underline">do not miss the Louvre</span>.

Old Blimey, on the other hand is, well, I can't ever have too much of England!

All of the above IMHO

If for no other reason, stay in Paris to eat!







How I felt after eating all that;



But plenty of "stuff" to see while walking it off....

I lived and worked in the Paris area for nigh on seven years, and it's one of my very favourite cities.
Forget EuroDisney, soak up Paris.

UmmYeahOk said:

...I am a little confused on the story as I am assuming this was its chassis, but if so, it couldnt have been a MKII as in the picture, plus how could it have been wrecked in 68, unless it was just recently purchased as a 69 model?

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it's possible that he bought the chassis and body seperate. My guess is, he was going to restore this until he found the red mk1. He would need what he gave me to make his abandoned project more sellable. Or perhaps he still will restore the mk2 but realize they used different engines, heads, suspension, and since it was missing a transmission he may as well get what he needed.

TR4nut said:

As a matter of fact, I'll probably be in DFW in early March if things work out -I'd be happy to work out a deal or trade in something GT6-ish that I have in all my junk - I have at least one of those GT6 Lucas dash switches you can see in the pic above if you need one for example.. I'll pm you if I get serious about a trip!

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that would be awesome. I know I'm missing a few switches but haven't written down what I needed yet.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]Euro-Disney? That'll probably start a whole new thread! My advice, spend your entire time wandering around Paris, and if you run out of time, tour Normandy and the memorials. Nothing better in my opinion![/QUOTE]

Thing is I've already been to France but my husband hasn't but always wanted to go. I pretty much did everything my first trip but the louvre was closed because the workers went on strike. How difficult is museum work life? Anyway out of the 4 European countries I went to, France was my least favorite, which is why I begged him to spend a day or two in England. But I also told him how disappointed I was during my last trip passing that eurodisney exit sign.

It's more successful than it was back then, and they've got two parks. I figured since WDW Orlando is full of Europeans, euro Disney will be full of Americans. I've been to WDW so many times that having different rides and layout makes me excited. Plus WDW has kinda lost it's magic, but I'm sure it's hiding somewhere else, like at euro Disney.

tdskip said:

Sorry if I'm being dense, but did you pick up the chassis or the chassis and the car?

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chassis, engine, rear end, wheels, no body.

TR4nut said:

If you only have a couple of days Paris will keep you plenty busy. Just give yourself some time to wander, and if you get closer in ping us for some specific ideas. Trust me, you'll not regret staying in Paris.

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How abou a place to eat. Whoever said Paris is known for their food was a moron!

I suffered eating snalls. I thought a hot dog would be safe but it was really a "pig in a blanket" only the bread was hard as a rock! Luckily I found a mcdonalds. There's a chain over their called hippopotimous that was a life saver despite being how offensive it was (mascot hippo dressed in uncle Sam clothes) I know it's American food, but really! I thought seafood would be safe but they presented everyone with live lobster crawling around the table, then after steamed the slpit them right down the middle displaying every organ. Not fun when you're just used to seeing the tail. I had ordered shrimp. They were huge! And not only were the exterior and feet still on it but head and feelers!!! I seriously contemplated vegitarianism that day!

Anyway, my husband claims that we'd be eating nothing but french food, so I don't know how I will survive! If you know of anyplace that serves both French and American or Italian food that would be awesome. I'm just assuming they don't have TexMex in France. We have a Texas Embassy in the UK, you'd think we'd have one in France.

AngliaGT said:

I'm trying to get this straight..... You just got a rolling
frame,not a body - correct?If so,why would he keep the body.
Is the Red car his also?And the Green/White one too?Free is
a good price.
There's a free body near Charleston,South Carolina,if some-
one's interested.

- Doug

Click to expand...

the green and white car is mine, both the primer red and polished red are his, no idea why he'd get rid of the chassis and not the body but oh well

UmmYeahOk said:

How abou a place to eat. Whoever said Paris is known for their food was a moron!

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Stay away from the snails and other things that you don't recognize, grab some stuff that you do, and I guarantee you will find an enjoyable meal. Worst case, try the Royale with Cheese! :laugh: