matty martins project plan, (in his head)...

[mattymartin]

ok...

to turn this shape, the ek wagon, into the "SLED"...

at the moment its sitting pretty low, which i like. but its got a standard 186 red motor, some rust which will be cut out, fixed properly. the interior is badly painted flouro red everywhere. the bumpers have rust & pitting every where, which i dont mind so much as long as they a not going to
harm the body, which is at least nice & straight... the first thing i want to get done is get rid of all the rust, then paint... aaaaaaaarh that f@#*'n tow bar... foul.


the colour choice... i like a matte/ satin finishes...
eggplant feel... not sure if i should paint the roof a gloss off-white, i do like the two tone effect. i also like the sound of spats & some pinstriping...

cameo beige (not matt) & white roof...

or the above colours but a satin body & gloss roof...



engine will stay a 186 not a lot of work just things like twin carbies, extrators, mild cam, dual brake booster (allready has HR front end), elctronic distributoras... i dont want to play with the internals to much

intake... twin stromies


the engine will be painted the original red or grey colour... with a smooth nostalgic looking rocket cover or one of those
cutom one that look all angular where the welds are visible...

i love these extended cut flutes



the exhaust will look & sound tuffer than it actually is and will be extractors & a dual system... i haven't made up my mind yet , the choices are all... rod like, AND FLAMETHROWERS...
i love these the most but i want it to have the same feel & i'm not sure if it'll spoil the feel buy having them at the back of the car...




wheel & tyres...
wheels will stay the same but long chrome nuts & protruding center caps, not sure what colur to paint the steelies yet & i having trouble deciding on the size of whitewalls...

medium

or big





interior, undecided... i love the rat look but being a daily driver it need to be comfortable & practical.
trimming...i was first thinking of red & white fb door trims as i like the look of them better than the ek's ones and then just get the seats to match, then an off white steering column & wheel, with matching gauges... but i'm not sure they'll go with the colour of the car





the dash area... will have orignal gauges but repainted by cam baker in Vic...(OR i might have a go myself like devilrod... not sure on colours yet)...

it'll have a kustomcity center cap on the steering wheel...


no visible stereo & hide speakers as much as possible... i'm not much into the doof doof thing anyway... and check out the wiper, choke nobs... yeah i have some of those too...

some hidden small gauges under the dash, temp, tacho etc..

my new parcel shelf...


a new purchase... olskool looking nasco heater, which will later be painted & maybe even pinstriped... (like devilrods) & demister vents


not sure what colour carpet i should go for yet...

matty martin

[NoMAD]

go for it matty...just keep us all posted with plenty of pics!

Cheers
NoMAD

[thropzed]

Hey Matty, Why don't ya do your own dash gauges? Its not as painful as you might think. I'm sure devilrod would be able to help. How about filling in the back windows to give the undertaker look with landau hinges and all. Sticking with the red and white interior theme might see you through while all the exterior is being done and once its painted stand back and see what works. Looking forward to seeing your progress Matty. Well done.
Theo Z.............

[Sammy]

matty, you should look into a complete vk efi motor and maybe even trimatic, if the 186 is in there already it should bolt straight in .... i think its just less hassle than the 186 being modded to suit efi ...

[smooth]

with a smooth nostalgic looking rocket cover or one of those
cutom one that look all angular where the welds are visible...

Do you buy these from NASA?
Probably Ebay or the Trading Post as I see them offered there pretty often.

Regards, Smooth

[smooth]

This steering column is HD-HR

Regards, Smooth

[EK JAY]

yes it is a hr column and wheel
reason i used the hr one is that it is shorter
and keeps the wheel away from your face abit more
went in very easy just had to file out the holes on the mount
about 1mm each hole took 5 minutes the colour is off white
with pearl over the top will post a picture of a ek column
next to a hr column on this thread shortly to show the
difference

sounds like some cool idea's matty hook in mate
ek jay

[retro]

mate about the efi, im pretty sure that andrew (nsw president of club) has one for sale, ask him at the meeting.

As for the colour, well id add the white roof for some varience, but its your car so its you call.

As for the undertaker look with the boarded up rear windows, that may not be a bad idea as it will not only be easy to do whilst the rust is gettin repaired, but it will hide your possessions while you go for a surf.

Or what about roof racks, air brushed woodie look and and bolt down a board, and you will be the envy of all your surfie mates.

[Devilrod]

Matty I've got a few tips for you. Don't take this the wrong way and I don't confess to know it all, I'm just giving you some pointers to help make your dream a realty without it blowing out of all proportion... or you finishing it only to be not entirely happy. I've watched and helped build quite a few cars now and have seen things make or break a car and their owner. All I'm doing is passing on some knowledge in the hope it will help you.

1. If you are going for a period look (which it sounds like you are) make sure you use parts that will complement the look you want. Under the bonnet isn't so important as its closed 99% off the time. But inside is, so choose gauges to complement the classic look and style. Maybe old style smiths or the classis style autometer gauges etc.. (I think you'll get my drift), or period dress up bits for inside.

2. Don't deviate from the original plan, it costs to re-do things. If you know exactly how you want it which it sounds like you do all bar a few minor details don't change your mind part way through the build. This allows you to get all those bits you want in order of affordability rather than a must need. It also allows you time to look for a bargain. Nothing looks worse than a car that obviously started out heading in one direction then as the owners tastes changed so did bits on the car.

3. Don't compromise purely because you can get something thats "almost " what you want. Hold out till you get the exact bits you want. gauranteed the bit you compromise on is the part of the car you'll be least happiest with.

4. Good things take time....

and

5. The most important thing, build it the way you want not to please any else. In the end its your car and YOU have to live with it.

To me it looks like you have a firm idea of what you want the finished product to be.

So after all that 2 tone would break it up a little especially with the lack of side trim, maybe ditch the idea of to much bling under the bonnet and go for a factory looking install. Steer clear of gimmicky things like iron cross mirrors and flamed add ons (sorry to anyone with these fitted), go for the more timelessly styled peep mirrors and well detailed factory pats or Nasco if you can find them. This will help with the value too of the end product... With the whitewalls look at perhaps a set of flappers (provided your not a kerb cruncher) as radial whitewalls around $350+ a tyre last time I enquired. Or go a Hankook or similar thin whitewall which retail from $90 and up, but you need 14 inch rims. Good luck Matty hope the above helps in some way and I don't sound too much like an arrogant know all ...

Disclaimer: the above is just my 2c worth feel free to ignore or berate me with your differing opinions, after all sharing knowledge of these old girls just helps in keeping them on the road where they belong..

[oldnek]

Fantastic Tips Devilrod,

You have carried through those lines of thought with you EK and is a ripper. I'm the same with the thinking, and with that, which seems to be the trend lately is one off my biggest dislikes the fitment of modern guages in period style vehicles, they just don't go together. The same could be said for the larger modern wheels.

Regards John

[EK JAY]

HI hear are the pics of the steering column's
the blue one is a HR the black one is ek
you can see the size difference

[parisian62]

Hi Matty,

Thanks for sharing your plan. Some words of wisdom there from Devilrod. Add a good dose of patience too.

regards
Stewart

[ekv8ute]

Gidday Matty

Saw your ride on Sunday, good basis for your ideas.Start with easy small

jobs and work your way up to big ones.

Steering wheel and gauges like the pictures of my ute interior (white

wheel and guages)are only a rattle can and a couple of hours away!

[mattymartin]

hey DR,
thanks for all the advice, i took it how it was intended, to help... can you show me a pic of the classic style autometer gauges you mentioned.
with the mirrors, you read my mind... and the two tone sounds like it'll look best the more i think about it, thanks DR & retro for your imput on the roof...
DR i'm still thinking of a trim like yours, would it upset you if a copied your idea with the trim ending at the front door, i promise i'm not going to paint it white & red... lol

not sure about the sides covered as i've seen some car have it done before & it was not my style... but when i fisrt got the car i wanted to turn it into a delivery & chop the roof down about 2 inch's... maybe next time as i love the look of venetians in the back...

sammy & retro, i'll ask andrew re. the motor for sale... as he told me some think about a motor at AHD, but al the nice cars made me deaf... but aat the next meet i'll definatley ask him...
do i need an engineers cert' for a vk efi 202... anyone... in NSW

i've just organised a panelbeater to look at the car next monday, so hopefully paint's not to far away... ooooh

retro, i'll call that trimmer asap, probably fri morning & i'll let you know how i go...

[MINT62]

sounds like a plan matty
youve gotta start somewhere, and the drawing board is a good place to start
got my whitewalls for $340ea, as DR stated flappers are a much cheaper alternative
good luck with it all

cheers ray