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64ssowner - 1963 Chevy II 400 Series Station Wagon

4K views 30 replies 13 participants last post by  Rusty63 
#1 · (Edited)
1963 Chevy II 400 Series Station Wagon

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Land vehicle


Wheel Tire Vehicle Land vehicle Car

Year: 1963

Model: 400 Series Station Wagon

Engine: 4.8L Vortec L20 V8

Body/Exterior: Bare Metal

Front End: Heidt’s Mustang II with 2” drop, 5/8” narrowed control arms, and power rack and pinion

Transmission: 4L60E

Rear End: 63 Chevy

Exhaust: Fabricated

Wheels/Tires: Budnik G5

Interior: None

Electrical: American Autowire Highway 22

Accessories/Options: None

Sound system: None

Comments:
Kink to the original thread, I thought about re-vamping it but decided to just start a new one because I think the old thread was closed to comments. I thought this way may be a little more enjoyable for everybody.

Old build thread
 
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#2 ·
I bought this wagon way back in March of 2014. I had started a build thread on the site some of you may remember in the build area. Somewhere between then and now multiple things happened. Photobucket decided to go sour and bugger up my thread. I also moved into a new house. The wagon got put to the wayside, as can happen.

Fast forward to now. I have finally gotten settled into the house and plowed through my large list of home improvements. The garage is setup and I am finally starting to get back into my wagon.

As a recap, I bought this wagon in Scottsdale. The plan is to make this a nice cruiser. The main goals are reliability, comfort, and looks. I want the thing to sit right, ride nice, and be something I can trust to get my family anywhere we want to go at the turn of a key. I put a home-built Heidt’s Mustang II front end on it and a triangulated 4-link of my own design. It will be powered by a 4.8L that I got out of a 2009 Silverado along with the matching 4L60E. I am going to run a Holley Dominator ECU, along with their intake, injectors, fuel rail, fuel tank, and everything else that they recommend to go along with it.

Here are some old pictures to catch everyone up.

Day I loaded it on the trailer.
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Out with the old.
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Building clip.
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#3 ·
I fabricated a lot of stuff in our old house that had a 2 car garage before we moved into a house with a much larger, to me, 3 car garage.

This is the car as it sat after I got my garage cleaned up and was prepared to start getting into the wagon again.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Automotive tire


Wheel Tire Car Bicycle Land vehicle
 
#7 · (Edited)
Thank you! The wheels are Budnik G5's 17 x 7 in the front and 17 X 8 in the rear, custom backspace for the application. Been awhile since I bought them so I would have to dig for the specs. I thought they complimented the trim & lines of the wagon well. Tires are BFGoodrich G-Force Sport tires, 245/45/17 in rear and 215/45/17 in front.

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#13 ·
Yes stock tubs in the rear but it is not a factory rear end, it’s actually out of a 57 Chevy and has been narrowed

What process did you use to strip down to bare metal?
I used a $40 gallon of zip strip and a razor scraper from Lowe’s to get 99% of it off. I would brush on a layer, let it sit for 15 minuets and take off the layer that it let me, then repeated until I cut thru the factory red oxide primer. Then the last little bit I got off with a DA and 80 grit paper. Very time consuming and tedious.

is the body on that thing really that incredible? I thought my wagons body was nice. That driver side looks killer.
It actually very nice except for some minor spots. I did discover that both fenders and the hood were replacements somewhere along the line. When I stripped those the last layer was black instead of red oxide like the rest of the car. They seem to be decent so I’m going to use them. The hood even has the correct holes for the 63 hood emblem and the fenders have all the correct holes for the trim. I’m guessing they were GM replacements because they had the factory light blue under the dark blue. I have no idea if there’s a way to tell for sure though.
 
#21 ·
Not currently,I am hoping to see this one through and put some miles and create some memories with it!

Car is looking great! What are the color plans on this one? I'm assuming you don't want another black car...

Bob
Hi Bob! No not black again, we are planning on opposite colors from the SS. Red on the outside, black on the inside. We decided on house of kolor apple red. The interior will be Galaxie grey on the painted surfaces.



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galaxie grey

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do you have to put something on the bare metal to prevent it from corroding?
I am fortunate that I live in a very dry climate. With the car in the garage it won’t even develop surface rust here. I can leave it in bare metal, hit it with a DA, prep with wax & grease remover and prime at my convenience. I am spoiled I know. :)

Pretty cool! I “finished” my 63 in August, 2020, and the 4.8 LS motor really was the best choice. I had only paid $350 for it, and with twice the power on the original 194, she scoots fairly well at freeway speeds, and the DBW engine allowed an easy cruise control switch mounting for travel comfort.

congrats!!
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Nice! I was hoping to get mine on the cheap but definitely paid more than $350. For what I have in mind for this wagon it should be just about perfect, glad to hear some confirmation!
 
#19 ·
Pretty cool! I “finished” my 63 in August, 2020, and the 4.8 LS motor really was the best choice. I had only paid $350 for it, and with twice the power on the original 194, she scoots fairly well at freeway speeds, and the DBW engine allowed an easy cruise control switch mounting for travel comfort.

congrats!!
Vehicle Car Hood Motor vehicle Automotive design

Motor vehicle Automotive design Personal luxury car Vehicle Auto part
 
#20 ·
Pretty cool! I “finished” my 63 in August, 2020, and the 4.8 LS motor really was the best choice. I had only paid $350 for it, and with twice the power on the original 194, she scoots fairly well at freeway speeds, and the DBW engine allowed an easy cruise control switch mounting for travel comfort.

congrats!!
Nice installation! I would recommend to come up with an airbox that takes air from outside of the engine bay. I noticed a huge difference on my car after making an air filter box that took air in from behind the grille. The intake air temps dropped 50 degrees and the engine ran much nicer, less sluggish in the summer heat. The filter location and tune was just like what you have but the filter was in a box and the air cam in the front. (y)
 
#31 ·
i have both sides, but they do have holes at the bottom outside corner, and rust on the inside. basically, it would replace what you are showing in this photo.

certainly, if someone has a rust-free piece, jump on it. these have been in my garage since '06-ish, so no hurry!

-Rusty
 
#23 ·
Tailgate totally stripped.

Tire Automotive tire Wood Automotive lighting Tread


Hard to tell from the picture, but the tailgate is also dented up pretty good at the body line. I’m guessing it got damaged and the skin was pierced. The filler was just gobbed on as a fix. The pierced metal allowed water in from the back side which eventually developed into rust.
 
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