MikeW

How was the car stored? I must be under the mistaken impression that termites only travel under ground and into wood or through small cracks in a foundation in order to get to wood. I didn't think they ever exposed themselves; they even go so far as to build a mud tunnel up the side of a cement or brick wall in order to get to the wood. Given your profession and location I'm sure you know far more about this than I ever will.

That's a very appropriate name. I've got both sitting in my garage and was planning on throwing them out but now I've got a new idea ...

Thanks for the correction. Are there other bumper differences to be aware of between markets - perhaps related to the inclusion of the vertical bumper guards? Were the aftermarket bumper "overriders" unique to the U.S.?

I was under the distinct impression that European models did indeed not come with the rubber strips and hence no holes for them. Unlike other "Euro" parts like taillights the bumpers without the holes drilled actually cost less from VB. I wasn't even aware that there were aftermarket bumpers.

Post your VIN here and we'll be able to tell you about your car. Keep in mind that these older and smaller numbers don't contain any encoded information (color, options, etc.) that newer VINs do. However, the first few letters, HS30, HLS30, etc. will help us identify the specific model and the actual serial number part will help narrow down the manufacture date and/or model year.

1-5-3-6-2-4 Therefore, if the carbs were labeled A-B-C from the front of the car you'd have ACBCAB instead of the normal ABABAB. Each carb would be used once, have a one cylinder gap, be used again, and then have to wait for 3 cylinders.

I'd always heard that about Halon but not CO2. The first place I ever saw a Halon system was in a computer center with big expensive mainframes. Halon would put out any fire without damaging the equipment. Obviously you wouldn't be able to breathe properly (i.e., get enough oxygen) if the room was completely full of CO2 but CO2 is heavier than air and will sink to the floor. Breathing some CO2 itself is not harmful as you're constantly exhaling it anyhow. Breathing Halon is apparently dangerous in concentrations above 5%-7%.

Yes, but there's an ID plate in the engine compartment that lists both and therefore ties to two together. This is how you know if the car has "matching numbers".

I used to have some on my side windows. It's just a film that can be peeled off fairly easily but may require a razor blade to scrape. You can't really put any on the quarter windows because they aren't flat enough. I decided that it wasn't worth it and took it off.

I've never heard of any state caring if the engine serial number matches the ID plate inside the engine compartment (which also lists the VIN). After all, plenty of people around here swap out engines for an L28 or even a V8. As far as value goes the matching numbers thing really only matters to someone who wants to do a proper restoration.

"miniature televisions"? As I recall, in the late 70's / early 80's when this thing probably came out a "miniature" television would have been about a 5 inch B&W CRT ...

If you look really close and squint you'll notice that the VIN plate is still attached to the dash and appears to be HLS30-163XXX. Definitely a '73.

Cool!! Will, I'll take the titanium headlight covers ...

Some people/organizations/jurisdictions consider an automobile antique at a mere 25 years old.

Awesome!! No hurry, of course. My car has been missing this for 20+ years.

You need to determine if it's raw gasoline you're smelling or just the standard exhaust fumes getting sucked into the hatch. If it really is fuel and the fumes are coming from the engine (resulting from work on the fuel pump) then there should be a visible leak. More likely it's coming from the fuel tank itself by way of the aforementioned vent hoses. You may smell more fuel right after filling up the tank or when sliding around corners (we all know you do that) thus causing the fuel to slosh around a bit.

Wow, you're right. I'll have to go back and look at my car. I didn't realize it wrapped around that far. I guess since I've gone without that panel for so many years (and haven't gotten around to fabricating one from your template) that I didn't know what I was looking at.

I'm referring to the attached picture from the eBay ad.

Which picture is that? I see what looks like a patch panel in a couple of pictures of the right rear wheel.

For a car that appears to be in amazingly good shape I'm surprised that the reserve on the auction was set so low (it's already met reserve at the current bid of $3900).

I suspect you meant to thank Enrique (EScanlon) as his post was helpful to me as well.

I used a heat gun as well. However, instead of the commercial "goo gone" I used Xylene. Xylene is the main ingredient in the commercial goo removers and it's much cheaper to buy a quart of the stuff (also at Home Depot). I would advise working outside in the fresh air and/or using proper ventilation.

No, I just used sheet metal screws.

I did this years ago as well. My metal bracket is actually attached to the transmission tunnel and not to the plastic console at all.

Yes, according to http://zhome.com/History/DesignChanges.htm : HLS30 006072 06 Lowest VIN# Sold/Titled As A 1971 Model Year Car HLS30 011618 10 Highest VIN# Sold/Titled As A 1970 Model Year Car Therefore HLS30 072XX is somewhere in the middle.