I have a 1978 Pontiac Phoenix coupe that spent the first 25 years of her life as a daily driver in Northwest Ohio. Rain, humidity, sun, salt and use had taken their toll. We had her restored at an body shop in the early 90’s for about $8,000.
Here it is 2009, and she’s rusty again. (Left her in outdoor storage when I moved west) and I don’t really want to spend another $8 grand to have someone else do the work. I have some skilled friends and ambition, so I’d like to do it that way.
Anyway, the question is, new body panels for this car are VERY hard to find (just spent the last two hours swearing at Google for the crappy results). Does anyone know a reputable online business where I can order new sheet metal body parts (quarter panels / door skins / floor pans, etc) for this car please?
… thanks, but JC Whitney – who’s slogan at the top of the page is We have your parts, no matter what. was nice enough to tell me sorry, no parts could be found for that vehicle… see what I mean about HARD TO FIND… grrr.
Originally posted 2009-07-09 20:50:34.
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Try J.C Whitney. They sell a wide variety of body repair panels
The ‘78 Phoenix is very similar to a Chevy Nova, so it is possible that doorskins, rear-qaurters, etc. will be the same. The main difficulty would be if you have to replace the nose and front fascia. Most people have never even heard of a Phoenix so yes, parts are very hard to find.
Nobody will ever produce any new body parts for that car again. I agree that some nova parts could work, and you may find some leftover new parts around somewhere if you enjoy looking for that sort of thing. Search the internet for people who sell NOS Pontiac parts. Also, make friends with somebody at a GM dealer and they can search all the inventory at all the dealers for discontinued stuff. That’s what it’ll take.
For everything you can’t find, you’ll need somebody to saw you off solid metal from a Nova/Phoenix in Arizona somewhere.
You know, it’s kind of funny. I’ve been looking for some of the same body parts for the same car for my 1978 Pontiac Phoenix, 2 door hatchback. I’ve had this car since I was 16 years old. I’m now 33. This car has been sitting in my driveway now for about 5 years. No garage to keep it in. I know how you feel about not being able to find the parts you need. I’ve been all over the place trying to find body parts, without having to shape metal myself. I’m not a body man, but do have some mechanical skills. I can’t afford to have someone do the work for me, so I have to do it all on my own. Maybe I’ll come across some somewhere, hopefully soon. The long the car sits, the worse it gets and I’m running out of time.