florence henderson

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

Hi Nick,

the original color is white, but after that it was tomato red, and now it is a reddish moroon.

As you can see someone painthed the aluminum panels white

[dlh61olds]

That is a very nice complete car. I can see it has the electric vent windows as well as all electric windows. The saftey sentinal speedometer is also a very nice option as well as the automatic headlight dimmer and the clock.

A little hard work and some of your hard earned dollars will make that a wonderful driver.

Trying to restore it to factory original would be too pricey for me. The aluminum trim panels are available as a set from "JASWEST" and are very nice ($3000).

Keep in mind the console is exactly the same as the 1961. All the body parts from a 1962 88 or S88 conv. will interchange. The stainless trim and the aluminum parts are really hard parts to find as well as those items unique to the Starfire.

The engine and most of the drive train are mostly the same 1961 thru 1964. The stripped down doors are the only body parts that will fit from a 1961.

Good luck with your project, Dave Holt

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

Thank you Dave!

I am buying all the trim work off another 62 Starfire this coming week as well as some other parts. He says the aluminum is very very nice with the exception oh the left quarter panel piece, it has a scratch... I will be the judge of that this tuesday.

Are the interior parts in demand???? I know the console is, not sure about the dashboard and other stuff.

As far as my car goes I am a pastor by trade (if you would) but I am also a retired autobody man, so the body is not an issue at all. I am thinking of painting it black... is that a SIN in the Starfire world? Was thinking silver/charcaol interior.

Thank you again!

Vinny

[dlh61olds]

It looks like you have all the parts you need to restore the car.The interior door panels would be hard to find

since they have no openings for the window cranks. The arm

rests are rather delicate so be very careful with them. Also

the console plastic is very brittle, it breaks just looking at it. I have not found a good product to repair the cracks.

Dahboard is a fairly easy recover. The bright dip anodized parts can be redone now. When I was restoring my 61 I could

not find any one to do it. EPA reg's and such made it very difficult.

Dave Holt

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

Hi Dave,

When you say bright dip anodized parts, what exactly are you refering to, the aluminum panels?

As far as the door panels go, I was told that SMS is now able to heat stamp new ones, although I am not sure if that includes the silver bright work where the arm rest goes.

Thanks

[dlh61olds]

The bright dipped anodized parts are:

All of the aluminum around the headlights and grill includung the lower filler.

On the 1961 Starfire it also was the aluminum rear panel with the tail lights mounted thru it and the bottom exterior panel on the trunk lid.

I could be wrong but I believe the center part of the console was also bright dipped.

Dave Holt

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

ahhh ok I see now.

I bet the retoration process of re-anodizing is costly???

I will fill you in on the parts I pick up once I get em all home

Thanks

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

I will try in english this time...

I bet the restoration process of re-anodizing is costly???

[Starfire61]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Hurst_Olds_1968</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I am thinking of painting it black... is that a SIN in the Starfire world? Was thinking silver/charcaol interior.</div></div>

It's your car- do what you want with it.

However, since you asked for opinions, I’ll gladly give you mine. Remember that you have a solid, California-built example of a very desirable Olds. This isn’t an 88 convertible, or even a lightly-optioned Starfire coupe. The car appears to have almost every factory option, including power vent windows & a limited-slip rear. I'll bet a closer look at that hacked-up radio plate would show that it once had a Wonderbar. Best of all, it still has the correct Starfire engine. Though the market for these cars seems rather depressed at the moment, I'd expect nice examples of them to appreciate strongly over the next five to ten years.

Think long & hard about where you want to go with this project. Properly done, this would be a high-dollar car. I'd encourage you to consider how this car would look in its original color scheme with the correct interior. While a full restoration would be an expensive undertaking & perhaps not something you wish to attempt at this time, you’re still starting with a decent car. If you play your cards right over the next few years with some carefully planned fixes here & there, you could have a very nicely restored Starfire that’s not quite a frame-off, but one you wouldn’t be afraid to drive, either. For instance, the incorrect paint & upholstery that your car currently sports are fairly easy to reverse.

The very last thing I’d do is take this car even further away from its stock configuration. Unfortunately, it sounds like you're planning on destroying what remains of the car's original interior. It's certainly no "sin" to do such a thing- (though you may be ridiculed mercilessly by those who know better.... ) By doing this, you will make the car all the more difficult & expensive to restore down the road & ruin it in the eyes of a serious collector/restorer. Besides, I’d expect the cost of a quality custom interior for this car to easily match or exceed the cost to do it correctly.

Trust me on this one: it’s notoriously difficult & expensive to work on ’61-2 Starfires even when they’re stock, & once you start customizing stuff you open a Pandora’s box of epic proportions. Furthermore, unless Chip Foose has signed up to do your car, a customized ’62 Starfire convertible will NEVER have the value of a restored car, or perhaps even a tired survivor- especially one as well-optioned as yours.

Like it or not, the ’62 Starfire doesn’t have the mass-appeal of a Mustang or a ’57 Chevy. Your typical cruise night attendee has never heard of it & doesn’t even know who made it. Consequently, the fraternity of guys out there who are enthused about these cars is quite small, but very passionate, & I think the vast majority of them like to see these cars restored to stock. Why? Many are old enough to recall the cars when they were new, & compared to everything else then on the market, the Starfire almost seemed like a custom straight from the factory. Another consideration is the simple fact that the Starfire is such a difficult car to restore in the first place. It’s not the best “starter car” for the old car hobby. It takes something extra to restore one of these. Most die hard Starfire fans realize this, & tip their proverbial hats to the owners who go the extra mile to restore these very elaborate & complex cars in the face of almost zero aftermarket support. This same hardcore group of fans also comprises the lion’s share of the market for these cars. In my experience, it is a very educated, interconnected group that can easily spot a well-done car & pay accordingly.

Given that you recently bought the car, you may have no interest in its potential value, especially since it’s never going to come up for sale….right? Besides, everybody thinks that value stuff’s overrated…. until they need to sell the car.

Again, it’s your car to enjoy as you wish, but as a rabid Starfire fan, I hope I’ve at least been able to convey to you the notion that this isn’t your typical run-of-the-mill early 60’s ragtop. Before you get started on your project, please pause & consider the significance of your car, along with the potential ramifications of altering it even further. One of the most costly & painful aspects of auto restoration lies in undoing your old mistakes…

Chuck

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

Thank you Chuck!

I appreciate all that you said.

Just a few notes... car did come with a wonderbar as the foot switch is still present. The rear is non posi.

As far as the interior goes, I do not have any desire to customize it, I was thinking if the exterior is changed to black, fawn interior in my opinion would not complement the paint. The Starfire interior color options were Red/maroon, Light blue/dark blue, Fawn (light goldish/dark mustard), Silver/charcoal. The latter one was common with the Sunset mist pink exterior.

here is a picture of the silver/charcoal

[dlh61olds]

Another nice original touch are the floor mats if they are all there and in good condition. They are not too durable so it's best (IMO) to use them for show only if you restore the car.

Dave

[Guest richopp]

Chuck and Dave are the experts on these cars, but as a person who's dad owned them new, and one who has been looking for one for years (that I could afford!), I can only offer what I have learned over the past 10 years of research on these cars:

The interior, properly done from SMS, will run at least $10K. The leather alone is pretty much custom dyed, according to the nice people at SMS. I did not ask about the processes to make the door panels since the car I was considering wasn't one I would start with. Given the rarity and small following that these cars have per the notes so far, it might be best to go with the original interior since you are going to spend the same $$ either way--assuming you go with SMS and the proper leather materials. Naturally this is your call, but given that as a body man you will want to do the metal work yourself, I assume, you will be in for a huge project just with that part. It looks like (from some of your pics) that there is bondo around on various panels. To get the lines back to factory, you already know you will have 200+ hours sanding and blocking, etc. A new top and the various items that go with it--I don't remember if the boot is pleated like the '61--will run way over $1000 with the proper Electron top and all the supporting items--pads, cables, etc. If I were going to pay $3K for the side pieces and invest in a new interior from SMS plus all the bodywork you will personally do, I would certainly consider taking the advice here and restore the car to original. Like I always tell people, it costs $8K-$10K to paint any car today (properly) regardless of the color. At the end of the day, the small group of people who love these cars will certainly pay more for one that is factory correct.

Just my 2 cents worth--whatever you do the bills will be the same! (Wait until you start re-plating the chromed pot metal pieces with pits...you won't believe the prices!!) Anyway, good luck, have fun and enjoy the car. That is why we all do this. Post pics as you begin the project.

For your fun and enjoyment: on the Buick board (I'm a Buick guy mostly) here is one that they are trying to do a complete frame-off on a very good base car in a couple of months, and these are people who do this daily for a living. Enjoy!

http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=178713

Cheers!

Richard

[Hurst_Olds_1968]

Thank you Richard,

we will see how it goes, who knows I might even sell it