You know, people always talk about CALIFORNIA CARS being the rust free ones. Unfortunately mine (which has always been a CA car from what we know) had some pretty bad rust in multiple areas. Granted, sitting outside for 40 years in the desert did it no good. When I say desert, I don’t mean a populated city either. Literally in the middle of NOWHERE.
For those familiar with CA, you may know the 166. For me at least, it’s the route that will take you from Santa Maria to Bakersfield. Along the way just past New Cuyama (an awesome little town btw) is the exit for the 33 down to Ventura. Down the way is an area known as Ventucopa and that’s where this car sat, on a vast hillside property with over 1,000 other cars just rotting in their so-called graves. Here’s an idea of what this place was like!
I’d say my girl didn’t do so bad if I say so myself. The car body wise didn’t have any rust. No rocker rust, but the floors. That’s where they were bad, and the rear window too. These cars I believe were moved around with forklifts. I think someone tried to move this one with a forklift and pierced the passenger floor pan. It had no tranny or driveline so maybe he thought the driveline would’ve prevented the forks piercing through? Have no idea, but it really messed up the floor. Not only that, but somehow water got inside the car, like a lot of it and from what it looks like - it was sitting on a slant because only the passenger floors were badly rotted. The combo of rat pee and poop from probably hundreds of the dang things didn’t help either. It took me days to clean everything out, and to this day as we dig deeper and deeper I occasionally still find some specimens… gross
Oh silly me, sure - the guy said “Just add a tranny and I bet she’ll start.” Not like we could have easily put a socket on the crank because the clutch fan and shroud were in the way. I had no idea what lay in store.
This guy’s been here a long time!
Bad floors… Front passenger floor pan was bad as well as the rear. I don’t believe I got any pics of that one.
You may also remember when I cut out the rusty trunk!
For those familiar with CA, you may know the 166. For me at least, it’s the route that will take you from Santa Maria to Bakersfield. Along the way just past New Cuyama (an awesome little town btw) is the exit for the 33 down to Ventura. Down the way is an area known as Ventucopa and that’s where this car sat, on a vast hillside property with over 1,000 other cars just rotting in their so-called graves. Here’s an idea of what this place was like!
I’d say my girl didn’t do so bad if I say so myself. The car body wise didn’t have any rust. No rocker rust, but the floors. That’s where they were bad, and the rear window too. These cars I believe were moved around with forklifts. I think someone tried to move this one with a forklift and pierced the passenger floor pan. It had no tranny or driveline so maybe he thought the driveline would’ve prevented the forks piercing through? Have no idea, but it really messed up the floor. Not only that, but somehow water got inside the car, like a lot of it and from what it looks like - it was sitting on a slant because only the passenger floors were badly rotted. The combo of rat pee and poop from probably hundreds of the dang things didn’t help either. It took me days to clean everything out, and to this day as we dig deeper and deeper I occasionally still find some specimens… gross
Oh silly me, sure - the guy said “Just add a tranny and I bet she’ll start.” Not like we could have easily put a socket on the crank because the clutch fan and shroud were in the way. I had no idea what lay in store.
This guy’s been here a long time!
Bad floors… Front passenger floor pan was bad as well as the rear. I don’t believe I got any pics of that one.
You may also remember when I cut out the rusty trunk!
