Opportunity

Working in the jambs of the car brings the opportunity to paint a bit of body color before a long stretch of working on the chassis, which is coming soon. It seems like a good time to work on the headlight assemblies since the headlight bezels are painted body color and can be painted at the same time.

The headlight bezels are fiberglass and are very detailed and intricate and will be fun to restore. There are a few cracks around the holes for the screws that hold them to the headlight assemblies, but for the most part they are in great shape.

The headlight assemblies on the other hand are in terrible condition. Other than the structural parts, little will be able to be saved.

This car has been running a radical camshaft since the mid-1970s so the engine has produced little to no engine vacuum for decades. With low vacuum, the headlights — and most everything else on the car — have not functioned since the Carter Administration. That inactivity has taken its toll with the headlights rusted into position.

These will of course look stunning when done, but seeing a little body color is really exciting.