The Official H-Body Internet Community

Getting closer. Found a snippet of details from a Formula Astre.

Jerry Boger has a Formula door and sent me some pictures too.

I am still going to hunt for the GM drawings on these.

I have been busy "nesting" the past few weeks by rehabbing my garage.

My garage was not too great to start with.

My "work bench" was an old set of cabinets from my kitchen.

This meets the electrical code, right??

I had replaced the rear wall last year but decided to finish this project up. Tore the other two walls down to the studs, updated the electric, insulated, added OSB and peg board on the walls, installed a ceiling (with insulation), and new lighting. The lights are LED. They light up the garage nicely and draw almost no power.

Next up, trench in new power, datacom, CATV, and natural gas. I plan to have AC and heat so I can begin my project this fall. (And escape the wife. )

Both cars fit well but the silver one will need to find a place to hibernate this fall/winter when the red one begins its transformation.

SWEEEET!!!

I would also suggest that if possible run out a water line and this one is harder, but if you have a shovel [mini excavator I presume] coming you may as well dig for sewer too, or at least as far as you can. I ran gas, water, electric, sewer, and an empty conduit [for cable telephone internet alarm etc.]. Still need to finish the hook ups of the gas and electric, but the real dirty S T is done! I feel these are almost mandatory mods in a modern garage/Harry Cave! I had a moat around my house for 1/2 a summer, as I water proofed the basement while I had the digging done for my hook-ups. Harry

Harry, I'd love to have water and sewer but the sewer tap cost would be prohibitive. I have considered running a water line. Maybe...

You only have to "tap" into your own No? if you can't do it all at once take it up to the house, put in a "clean out" so you know where you left off, and make sure you add a "trace" wire to the out side of any under ground additions I didn't on a few and I am regretting it. PM me if you need/want what little experience I can add. Harry

Again, really enjoy this thread, love those car's. I have a pair of sunbird formula's. Not the best shape but collecting parts to bring them back to life. I believe I have all the emblems on the car still, faded, but they seem to be there, enough to get pictures and measurements. I'd like to get a set for of vinyl stripes for myself for when I'm done. One of the cars runs and one doesn't. I will do my best to post pictures of all of the stripes and take measurements for you.

Vegavulture wrote:Again, really enjoy this thread, love those car's. I have a pair of sunbird formula's. Not the best shape but collecting parts to bring them back to life. I believe I have all the emblems on the car still, faded, but they seem to be there, enough to get pictures and measurements. I'd like to get a set for of vinyl stripes for myself for when I'm done. One of the cars runs and one doesn't. I will do my best to post pictures of all of the stripes and take measurements for you.

You have two Formulas?! Aw man! I really want to find a real 1977-79 one. I am not a big fan of the 1980 version. I would love to get some decals made for my car as I plan to do a Formula clone even though they never made one with a formal window or in 1976. I want it to look 'vintage' late 70's inside and out with an LS3. I want to LS3 to also look like it belongs there. No fancy stuff.

The only details I have been able to get are from 1977 and 78 body manuals. They don't give details on the Sunbird Formula's decal layout. The detail that have is the Wide Body package. They do have a decent Astre Formula page so I'll reference that to some degree.



I still want to find the actual GM drawings on the decals so I can have them replicated. No luck on that....yet.

I just realized you have a coupe, both mine are hatches. I will still get some pics when I get home and post them. They will help a little and give you some reference to go off of. The project sounds great, can't wait to read more about it, and I bet it'll be the only one, a formula tc, cool. I'm really hoping just to drive one of mine around this summer,...no rebuilding , just have fun while I continue on my wagon, (the one in my avatar). The idea of making it a formula Astre wagon still haunts me, haha.

Vegavulture wrote:The idea of making it a formula Astre wagon still haunts me, haha.

Do it!

The body book I just bought actually has the details of the Formula on a wagon! I'm on the road this week for work but I'll add it here when i get home.

coooool , thanks.

Vegavulture wrote:coooool , thanks.

Here you go. Not sure if they ever made one but here it is in B&W.

Played with some ideas yesterday. Took the side view shot of the Sunbird and converted it to a line drawing. Then played with Window's Paint program which is really a weak tool but it worked. This is my initial plan on how I want to build the car. I want it to look like a vintage Formula car with a modern power plant (LS3) under the hood.

Baby steps. Picked up a pair of 15x7 Snowflakes for the Formula Clone project. Planning on 15x8's for the rear.

Washed the Sunbird and did some limited cruising. It still has an issue with overheating and I am pretty sure the radiator is partially blocked. I'd pull it and get it boiled out but the deconstruction stage is just around the corner. I don't see the point of putting money into it just to tear it down in a month. Besides, I have the 1980 TC I can drive whenever I want to get some serious H-Body cruising in.

I am going to go to a local show with it tomorrow (about 3 miles away) and then she is getting parked. Focus will be on getting power and gas to the garage followed by a new door. Then the real fun starts with the deconstruction. I am really looking forward to getting it under way. Even picked up a 'new-to-me' Miller welder the other day. I'll get to relearn the MIG with plenty of floor work to do.

Slowly gathering parts still. Picked up the two snowflake wheels above (finally got them) and bought some F41 front and rear sway bars. The sway bars will get blasted and power coated; not sure what color but thinking black or a dark gun metal gray. I plan to get either UMI or Spohn control arms and panhard bar in red so I don't think the sway bars will be red. It would be too much red. Front is planning to get AJE a-arms and I may get them re-coated in red as well.

I really want to get the underside done this fall/winter and then move on to the body work and paint. Then motor/trans with an LS3 followed lastly by some interior work. The plan is to keep it stock appearing but with updated instrumentation and audio. Not sure on seats yet. May recover them or do some sort of upgrade but keeping with a stock look. Probably leaving as stock initially. So much to do...