74 Challenger Canadian Restoration

[Sleepychallenger]

The original color is some type of burgundy. We haven't decided on a color yet. We both like Plum Crazy, but I kinda want to do it metallic red.

personally I would go red...there are so many purple ones already 

[anlauto]

personally I would go red...there are so many purple ones already 

I would go with the original colour....It would probably look fantastic when sprayed fresh in base clear and you will most likely not see another one like it at any show

[Sleepychallenger]

I would go with the original colour....It would probably look fantastic when sprayed fresh in base clear and you will most likely not see another one like it at any show

[daaboots]

I just can't seem to make up my mind on a color. I don't like to stock color at all. Red would be nice, but so would blue or purple... 

I'll have plenty of time to decide. I'm in the middle of moving to a new house, so the car is on hold until the fall. My new target is to have the car ready for paint this coming spring. Hopefully by then I will have saved enough money to pay someone to do a half decent paint job.

I came across this video a little while ago and I'm pretty certain this is what mine would have looked like stock.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7ZGmSB891M

[usraptr]

Normally I'd go with the original color but have never been a fan of that bronze/brown.  Looks like a grandma's car.  Don't like the yellows either.  That's why I changed mine from Yellow to Black, like my original Cuda.  If you plan on keeping the car go with a color that you like, not what other people say.  I think red would look great with the white top and interior.  My 2 cents.

[daaboots]

Well this I know for certain - the interior will be changed to black, the vinyl top will not be going back on, the wheel well trim will be removed, and I won't be adding any side door bump moldings.

I plan on keeping this for a long time using it as a family cruiser and I plan on driving it to work in the summer. I'm not concerned about restoring it back to stock condition. I agree... it would look too much like and an old grandma car.

[74 challenge]

Well this I know for certain - the interior will be changed to black, the vinyl top will not be going back on, the wheel well trim will be removed, and I won't be adding any side door bump moldings.

I plan on keeping this for a long time using it as a family cruiser and I plan on driving it to work in the summer. I'm not concerned about restoring it back to stock condition. I agree... it would look too much like and an old grandma car.

If you do go purple just remember you won't be the only purple 74 challenger in town! Mine is of course purple, white interior, black vinyl top. Like hell I would ever go back to Avacado Gold.

Where are you going to get your paint work done?

[MOPAR FANATIC]

  Wierd,i tried finding the paint code for your car for '74 in www.automotivetouchup.com and they had nothing,yet for '75 cars the code of E9 vintage red came up and it looks like a match for your car.  if you decide to go with the same color. 

['Cuda Hunter]

Is it GB7 ? 

Kind of hard to read some of the codes.

[ChallengerHK]

Wierd,i tried finding the paint code for your car for '74 in www.automotivetouchup.com and they had nothing,yet for '75 cars the code of E9 vintage red came up and it looks like a match for your car.  if you decide to go with the same color. 

That is odd. Like I said my first parts car was that color, and it was a 73.

[anlauto]

GE7 BURNISHED RED METALLIC

[daaboots]

If you do go purple just remember you won't be the only purple 74 challenger in town! Mine is of course purple, white interior, black vinyl top. Like hell I would ever go back to Avacado Gold.

Where are you going to get your paint work done?

Not sure. Are you in Ottawa? If you know of a good paint shop let me know.

[74 challenge]

Not sure. Are you in Ottawa? If you know of a good paint shop let me know.

I am in Ottawa, Barrhaven to be exact. I don't know a single good shop I was hoping you could enlighten me or after you get it done I could take a look at your car and see.

Honeslty this town is just isurance repair jobs, there isnt a single good place I would take my car too. I think you might find something halfway decent in the smaller towns around or up Montreal way.

[daaboots]

So I'm finally back at it! I moved in August and was busy with that and some home renos.

This is where I left off. I started working on the driver side rocker panel. There was a lot of rusted metal that needed to be replaced.






My very first patch. My brother-in-law has lent me his sheet metal bender which is really handy to have.








Next up was the back section of the rocker panel. This one needed to be a bit smaller so the quarter panel can overlap. I sealed off the inner rocker with POR15 and zinc primer.






Cleaned out the inside of the wheel-well. Removed about 10 lbs of undercoating!






Now this is where things start to go a bit downhill. I cleaned the undercoating off the rear frame rail to inspect the patch the previous owner had put on. I'm pretty sure I'm going to cut it out and make a new one.






I also cut out a bad section of the floor near the wheel-well. I started to remove the rust scale, and that's when I poked through the frame rail in two spots  Not sure how I'm going to patch those yet. I really hope it doesn't get much worse. How hard is it to replace the rear frame rails? Looks like it would be a pretty big job no? I guess I should clean them off real well and see just how bad they are.










I also pulled the gas tank out so I wouldn't catch myself on fire. Had my litter helper with me.




Till next time 

[daaboots]

It's getting serious now. Exhaust - gone.




Rear drivetrain - gone!








I also called a local restoration shop to get a quote to sandblast the shell. Does $1000 for blasting and epoxy primer sound fair?