This is my new project based on a Polish Lublin. I want to build a cheap camper van

I think that I will do a total replacement on the electrical system, but for now I am working on the motor, bearings, cleaning, piston balancing, 3d printing, locking out the distributor, grinding the intake manifold in preparation for efi, and more!

Fixing up my old work truck, started may 2025. 383 built by merkel + rebuilt nv4500, ORD 2” lift, etc etc.

Never bought a project and looking at this, 67 bel air, guy says has trim and is driven, with a 350 and a 2 speed powerglide the only rust and rough spot mentioned is on the driver quarter panel at the top. Asking 8500, which I think is high, I feel more around 4k but asking because I am new to this, it just popped up and I couldn't pass considering it. Would be looking more for a car for me not trying to resell. Is this worth it if I could get more towards 4k, not super educated on these so all opinions and thoughts welcome.

If it ain’t one thing it’s another

Hey everyone. I was trying to source parts for a build I’ve been slowly working on, and kept hitting the same wall which was that the part didn’t exist anymore, eBay felt too risky to trust on the car, or a shop wanted real money to fabricate something small. Someone suggested 3D printing whatever I couldn’t source, which got me thinking: this problem isn’t unique to me. A lot of us independently solve the exact same obscure fitment issue, then that knowledge sits in a five-year-old forum post until it gets buried and the next person starts from zero.

So I put together Zenthi, a free, open library of 3D-printable files for high-performance and exotic car parts, aimed at the stuff that’s hard to find or needs retrofitting. Completely free, no paywall. Acosmetic bracket shouldn’t cost more than the print itself. Upload a file (STEP preferred since it’s editable, what machine shops actually need), tag what it fits, note the material/thickness that worked. Turns a one-off “grind this down and it’ll fit” post into something searchable by car instead of something that disappears.

It’s early, nothing in the library yet so I’d like to know: has anyone here actually solved one of these obscure fitment problems and just never had anywhere good to put it? That’s the exact problem I’m trying to solve for people who enjoy 3d printing their parts themselves instead of taking it to a shop. Link’s in the comments if you want to take a look.

Update: I’m really grateful for the support and all the feedback you guys have given me to make it more user friendly. I’ve taken as many of your suggestions into account as possible. If you guys have any seed files you’d like to share to get the ball rolling or just want to check out what’s changed (we accommodate more file types and don’t limit ourself just to high performance cars now), please go ahead. Thank you :) I’ll try posting this on other forums too (let’s pray that I don’t get flamed😭😭)

I have a highly modified project car with a computer and we believe it or something is drawing power (and to me it seems quite badly at that!).
Not a big problem if we keep it hooked up. But we still keep running in to issues.

We've gone through several Optima batteries, latest ones despite having an optima battery-maintainer hooked to it. It always is hooked up. Detected issues. Swapped it.

Yet still...

This system is extremely fussy where I hook up the maintainer and all looks fine but then 2 days later I'm out to the shop to see errors/red. Just went out there and its' red and the car won't start.

I'm ready to throw away this entire system and I'm asking for something that is excellent for a car with dumb tech drawing power that gets driven now and then. Perhaps a battery that hibernates? Perhaps a different type of battery and a plugin maintainer for it that isn't nearly as fussy as this Optima I have and will actually keep the battery charged.

I finally have an update on my instrument panel project. A lot has changed, and a lot still needs to be done. While I was able to mount (tape) the LCDs into the cardboard, the LED’s legs are too thin to put jumper wires on, so they’re just in the breadboard.

What’s changed:

The power supply had to be rebuilt since someone didn’t notice a broken wire when testing. The demo code has been almost entirely replaced with actual functional tasks. I’ve put in all the logic shifter circuits on, currently only for the light switches. There are functional turn signal indicators and high and low beam indicators. The oil, temp, and fuel gauges are controlled by potentiometers that have a similar resistance to the factory sensors and have warning lights that change color depending on how close to the min and max values it is. The volts gauge is tied to Vin, which for now is not adjustable.

What still needs to be done:

The gauges need to be recalibrated, since through all the versions and testing the ranges are no longer accurate. Hazard lights still need to be wired up. Still need to build the power On/Off switch. The LCDs still need to be programed to display milage readings but before that can be done, the speedometer needs to be programed which requires a separate test rig to generate a simulated VSS sensor signal. The tachometer also needs to be programmed, which also needs a separate test rig. Also need to setup the current sensors for the exterior bulb fault detection, but my current bench power supply does not put out enough current to drive all the exterior lights. And finally a speaker and amplifier to generate the turn signal clicks and warning tones for the gauges.

So there’s still a lot to do but there is progress. Soon I hope to actually start working the final version with custom gauge face, PCB, and housing. As with before here is a link to the GitHub if anyone wants it.

Hey gang!

My post from earlier got an absurd amount of eyes on it, at least from my opinion. So I figured I'd provide an update.

I went with the bulkhead method, which was recommended by a couple peeps (u/lanpu u/sparkplugdog u/lockdown007 u/buildyourown maybe others?) on my original post. It has been working super well, I tested it for about 48 hours before deciding to install the tank.

The hole was about 3/8th inch or 19mm. The bulkhead fitting I used had a 3/8th diameter and the total external was 1/2 I believe, with the gaskets being a little bigger than that.

I threaded by force into the plastic, the bolt wasn't self thread so it took a couple tries to get it straight and not angled. The biggest challenge was ensuring the gasket was evenly pressed down and actually creating a good seal.

No leaks! Thanks for the recommendations everyone!

Picture 1: Bulkhead sticking out- looks worse than it is, once I got the tank in the car it was noticeable but not sticking out too bad. Maybe an inch out but with how the tank is angled it's not even the lowest part of the car.

Picture 2: Leak test set up, put liquid in the tank (2 gallons) for about 48 hours, on some chairs in the garage, not a single leak!

Picture 3: Inside the tank. Floaties are plastic that came from making the hole a little bigger to fit my bulkhead through. I cleaned it out with a towel, was able to drain the tank via the plug which was super nice and will be a good option if I ever need to drain the tank of gas. Used plumbers tape for an extra steal on the cap before installing the tank.

TLDR: Bulkhead fitting worked for me, the fitting was almost exactly the diameter of the hole, the outer measurement was bigger than the hole creating a tight seal with no leaks!

Thanks for all the ideas everyone!

4 pics

Redoing my 2003 cab and was digging out a bit of cracked seam sealer. When I pulled up the bad spot I did about six inches on each side and found each spot weld had surface rust over it under the seam sealer, i now have most of the seam sealer from the whole cab removed and 95% of the spot welds have the surface rust.

So questions being how common is this? Is it a sign the vehicle has been flooded?

Plan is to finish picking it all out, brass wire wheel, eastwood platinum rust encapsultaor then new seam sealer over top.

Folks. It has been a journey. In my last update, I had a lot to share about where things stood and how they'd been going. Some small changes since then - ditched the aluminum driveshaft because mating 1350s to an 8.2 just wasn't doable without spending an extraordinary amount. Instead, I've opted to take the savings from that rabbit hole and apply (some of) them to a carbon fiber driveshaft. I know, not necessary, not that beneficial, etc etc. But I want it, and I can tell myself that I feel the difference every time I drive it, whether that's true or not. Also let's me drop the diameter to free up some room below.

Beyond that, it's just been small things here and there - new axles, sway bars, etc etc.

But also.

After a literal nationwide hunt that saw me get rejections from dozens of shops, I was able to resurrect the custom intake setup dad built. It took a LONG time, and required months of back and forth between myself, the shop where the car is being worked on, and the shop doing the restoration. Countless hours looking at decades-old grainy magazines and photos from car shows to try and figure out how the linkage worked, orientations. Months of shipping parts two thousand miles away and hoping they worked. Weeks of testing to make sure that nothing binds and sends the car and its passengers on a final ride before taking flight at WOT.

So, without further ado, attached to this post is the thing I am most proud to have accomplished during this project. A one-of-a-kind Buick 455 Tri Power. Cheers.

I wanted to make one more post with some extra info on my situation.

I live in a place where cars aren’t very plentiful, and a z28 Camaro cost 12-15k and only 1-2 are available each year.
I need it as a daily for at least this year so I need to trade or sell my car and instantly buy another.
My car has also been listed with and without its sound system for 2 months and no one wants it. Besides some burger trades this is the first ok trade.
I can’t drive a car from somewhere else.
I’ll be building the car if I do in 6 months ish. So have half a year to collect everything.
I CANNOT sell the ls2 and t56 for more money.

I have the option to straight trade my current car (worth 5.5k) for a 2000 v6 Chevrolet Camaro 5 speed manual. I also am in possession of an ls2 engine with t56 6 speed trans. I’m wondering if it’s a good idea to go for this swap as a first time and if it’s worth it?
I’d have access to a shop with almost everything I need I think, and am prepared to spend what I need although I would like to keep it as cheap as possible while not cutting corners. So keeping it safe and reliable. I also loves doing my last build (didint swap an engine though) so I’m excited to actually be the one to build it and so idc that I can go buy one already with an Ls. Also that’s not an option here anyway.
The car currently has had a lot of work done to including fully aftermarket break system and is in great condition body and mechanical wise, it does have 220k miles though.

Is it worth it to drop money into this swap if I should even attempt it as a first engine swap?
It’s probably either this or until I save up enough to buy something around 13k to make the same power.
Also my car is boring now 😂

I ordered 89 dollars worth of weather stripping molded for my car- on top of the 55 dollar shipping. a month later this sht shows up. Guess who is paying the tariff guys- ME!

47% effective tax rate on parts is actually insane. There are no manufacturers here nor is there a market for one. Asinine

I have a rebuilt-title 2013 Scion FR-S with about 75k miles that I’ve owned for years.
When I was around 20, I put a body kit on it and. The body is now chopped up from installing the kit. I ended up selling the body kit when I was 22, and the car has basically been sitting ever since with no kit on it. (Can’t drive around without a kit.)
I am 26 now.

The biggest issue is that I don’t have a garage or even a good place to work on it. It’s just parked outside on grass probably rotting away.
The car is currently in Texas, while I’m now living/working full time in California. With only about 5 days every 3 months to visit Texas again.

My situation has changed a lot since I originally started the project. I’m working about 50 hours a week now and have gotten into a really good career with training. I’m also trying to build my finances and eventually buy a home.
Financially, I have around $30k in cash and a pretty significant amount invested ($55k). If I sell the FR-S, I’d hit roughly $100k liquid by the end of the year at age 26.

Here’s where I’m stuck:
The car probably needs another $4–5k+ to get to the point where I’d actually be happy with it again, body work/body kit, tires, wrap/paint, etc. And that’s assuming there aren’t additional problems from sitting for 2–3 years.
I also have many quality parts sitting around waiting to go in the car. A brand new body kit. Some new avant Garde 3 piece wheels.

Part of me thinks, “I’ve already owned this thing for years. Finish the damn project and enjoy it.”
The other part of me thinks, “You’re 26, working 50 hours a week, don’t have a home, don’t have a garage, live in another state, and building a career. Why are you putting thousands of dollars into a car that has been sitting for years?”

And honestly, if I sell it, the money would probably just sit in a savings account or get invested. I don’t have some business idea or specific thing I need the money for. It would just be another step toward eventually having $100k+ liquid and being in a better position to buy a house some day.

So I’m curious what you guys would do.
Sell the FR-S and move on, or spend the $4–5k and finally finish the project?

I’d especially like to hear from people who have had a project car sitting around for years and eventually decided to either finish it or let it go.

in need of some assistance, im looking to create a “hub” if possible for all of my key-on accessories. if anyone has any wisdom to share i would appreciate it, i have absolutely no clue what the hell im doing when it comes to wiring and im just trying to figure it out as i go

Pic for attention

Title says it all. Looking for some catch cans for my M278. Any recommendations? Is the Evil Energy ones decent? Other options? PFA

The project I am doing currently is retrofitting taillight from a JDM Corolla AE92 Trueno (last photo) to my standard AE92 SE (2nd last photo) .

It started from curiosity, looking at picture of both car, I thought someone must have done a conversion because it doesn't look that hard (I was wrong) . After months of searching if anybody had done this, the best answer I've gotten was a local guy who said someone had done this by sourcing a rear half of the Trueno and mating it to his car. This is the correct method but I know that's way too expensive for me, so I pretty much scrap the idea.

Somehow while scrolling marketplace I found a Trueno taillight someone was selling for really good price, I knew I had to get it. Somehow I had to make this modification work now. The right side is not welded yet also It need further TLC and painting but so far I think I am pretty satisfied with the way it look.

I know some of you might say "that is terrible work" , I agree it absolutely is, it will never pass any standard but as long as the end result is 80% similar to the reference, I will be satisfied with it.

I have a 1989 Datsun 280z in my backyard it was my grandpas I’m trying to fix it up but don’t know where to start and could use some tip and advice since I’m start to fix it

Doing some pretty heavy rust repair on a wheel arch, getting flat spots in the curve and slight waviness, thanks in advanced!

Still messing around with the interior for project MUTE. Could kind of see what I needed in a lower trim out of a proton jumbuck. After quite a lot of heat forming and a little filling they’re complete and they flow really well into the custom headliner and rear window panel

Went home to New Zealand and finally dragged my Silvia S14 out after it had been sitting untouched for nearly 3 years 🇳🇿
The original plan was pretty simple: get it out of storage, see if it still ran, give it a quick refresh and get it back on the road.
As usual, that escalated 😂
Ended up spending a good chunk of my trip sanding, fixing things, painting it and generally questioning why I thought this was going to be a quick job.
Pretty stoked with how it came out though — especially seeing it driving again after being abandoned for so long.
I filmed the whole process if anyone’s into old-school JDM stuff / S-chassis builds. Would genuinely appreciate any feedback on the video too

https://youtu.be/QtzmCBXF0ks?is=sZybny0wdJlAKvP8