William Maxwell
My name is Bill Maxwell and I live in sunny southern Washington State. I tell my wife I purchase, restore and sell GM muscle cars, she will tell you I only do the first two since my collection is rising while her patience with my hobby/habit ebbs.
My newest addition to the GM corral is a 1977 Trans Am, black and gold SE Y-82, with T-tops, PW, Locks, Tilt, RW defog, 4 bee hives, a hundred former hive inhabitants, a squirrel’s nest under the hood, horrible wheels, 3 flat tires and the strangest Firethorn and White standard interior I have ever seen. That particular feature of his car is about the only thing due to change during restoration.
I picked up the car about 500 miles from here on the east side of the state where the weather is a bit dryer (they get more than 2 months of sunshine). The car had a Pontiac 350 under the hood but the numbers matching 400 was loaded into the bed of my truck for the ride home. Like I said, It had a 350, In the three days since I bought it I have already gutted the interior, de-nosed and de-framed the car in my garage and I am busy repossessing all of the 400’s brackets, manifolds and original Q-jet off that 350 residing in the sub frame. I ordered quarter skins, trunk drops and a tail panel yesterday to repair the only metal trouble and plan to have it bolted to the rotisserie in a month or so after my welding is complete so I can prep and spray it. The 400 will come apart tonight so I can inventory of its internals and drop it off for machine work. Original turbo 400 and Posi still were in the car and due to be freshened while the body is being refinished.
All body, paint, mechanical, assembly and detail is done at home in my garage (remember my wife’s tolerance). She won’t leave until she does so under her power (I meant the car). Unlike my wife, I was not blessed with patience evidenced by my ambitious plan to finish the car by spring/summer 2012. Like the song says, “…A long way to go and a short time to get there”.
