This 1972 Pontiac Lemans Sport Convertible is the first car I ever owned, and was the prize for my first summer working. It was in rough shape when I first got it, we couldn't get it started, the top was bent, the seats were ripped, and the floor was rotted. With my Dad helping we were able to get it running, and running well, before we started to tackle the other issues. I started by addressing the floor. We removed all the interior, and I patched all the holes in the floor by getting down to clean metal around all the holes, welding in sheet metal patches, and then putting fiberglass on top to seal it all together. We installed a new carpet on top of the now solid floor. While the seats were out we had them repaired by a professional and they came out mint. The same person also put a new top on, I decided to switch from the white top that originally was on the car to a black top and saved a little money by going with a plastic rear window instead of glass. I was able to get my hands on 5 Rally II wheels, to replace the wheels and hubcaps that were currently on it. I had to prep the wheels, and painted them all, before mounting them and putting them on the car. At this point I started driving it to school when the weather was nice, and it was always a blast with it's 3 speed transmission on the floor. I learned how to drive a standard shift on this vehicle and I still love putting it through the 3 gears and letting it rumble. I did a few more things here and there to address other issues, but the main thing now was addressing the body work and I was not a body guy. I did not have as much patience when I was younger and ultimately I left for college in Colorado before I got to finish everything I wanted. I hate leaving projects unfinished and I always had my Lemans in the back of my mind over the years. Fast forward 15 years and I've got a house and job where I can afford to get the car shipped out to continue to work on it. There were a few mechanical issues after sitting for a long time, I put in a new alternator, got a new battery, changed the spark plugs, and did some carburator work to get it running well again. I was still able to start it right up after it was delivered and drove it around the block to our house. I got the house all setup to start doing body work, and chose to start with a trunk lid we had gotten from the junk yard that was in better shape than the original. Once I got it stripped down I realized there were a number of dents, likely from hail, and this was going to be more work than I expected. I put in the elbow grease and really worked hard to get it looking excellent. I am very happy with the finished lid and learned a ton in the process to utilize as I continue to all the other panels and get the car looking as nice as I always envisioned it. Stay tuned for updates.
