Have you ever changed your mind about a project car? Maybe you were in the midst of a project, and for some reason, you just decided to change directions. It happens quite often, and sometimes, it even happens while you are looking at what might be your next project.
William Pastoor happened to be on the hunt for a classic car to fill his time and empty his wallet, and he found exactly what he thought he wanted. “I was looking for a car, and came across a car for sale magazine. Inside, I found a 1970 Oldsmobile W30 at a classic car broker,” William relayed.
“When I got to the broker’s, I found out the Olds was already sold,” William stated. This is where Williams plans changed directions. “I then saw a 1971 Monte Carlo and took it for a test drive. That’s all it took,” he quipped. Not only was the second-chance ride a good-looking Monte, but it carried the bonus of a 454 big-block and SS badges.
The car was in decent shape, but needed a little TLC. The body was stripped down to bare metal, and a new GM quarter-panel and front fender were installed on the passenger side due to rust. The original doors and hood were in decent shape, and the trunk lid was replaced with a rust free used one from a Buick. “Due to limited space in my parent’s garage, the body stayed on the frame. I did all the bodywork and then primed and blocked the body several times. My friend, Ray Standard, then painted it white with PPG Concept acrylic urethane single-stage paint,” he said.
The engine is the original matching LS5 that came with the car. It has been bored .060-inch over, and the holes filled with TRW pistons. Inside is a Crower cam moving the larger 2.19/1.88-inch Manley valves. The heads have been ported-matching to a Weiand Action Plus intake manifold topped with a Holley 750 double pumper. The exhaust runs through a set of Hooker Super Comp headers and a Flowmaster exhaust. The engine was rebuilt by friend and co-worker Dave Vos.
William rebuilt the original Turbo 400 with a kit from TCI, and he added a shift improver kit and a deep pan for good measure. A Hughes torque converter stalls at 2,500-rpm, and the drivetrain converges at a 12-bolt rear with a Moroso Brute Strength positraction and 3:31 gears.
The interior is mostly original, but the cloth on the seats replaced with vinyl before William bought it. The carpet was also replaced but the rest of the interior consists of the original dash, headliner, and door panels. Interior amenities include: power windows, four-way power-adjustable bench seat, tilt column, air conditioning, AM radio, rear window defroster, and tinted glass.
Do you want to read about more Home-Built Heroes? All you need to do is click here. If you own a Home-Built Hero, we want to hear about it. Since we’ve started the series, we have received more than a few candidates, but we still want to see more – we can never get enough. If you want to see more cars built by you the readers, send us a few pictures of your car showing the engine, interior, and exterior, along with all of the pertinent information, and we’ll make you Internet famous. You can send your submissions to chevyhardcore@powerautomedia.com.