My name is Mark and I live in Charleston, SC. My first GTO was a '68 that I bought for $250 off of a meth head back in 1984. Fast forward to May 2026. I was driving home on a Sunday and when I pulled into my driveway, there she was staring back at me from the other end of the driveway. "Doris" is a 1969 GTO with a 400 and a TH400 trans. My wife and oldest son bought it for me and actually kept it a secret until she got towed home. As you can see by the photos, she needs a lot of love. I am a retired/disabled vet so I have plenty of time to devote to her. It's been a while since I have messed around on GTOs so I'm sure I will be bugging the crap out of everyone while I work on her.

Looks like some good bones there to start some work on. Sure the folks around here are happy to give advice!

Mark - welcome to FP and the madness. Chat things up in the forums.

Doris definitely looks like a project of love. I am sure that you will have lots of time in the Palmetto state to work on her (unlike those of us up north who have to hibernate our babies for the winter).

We love pictures around here by the way.

So what is your current game plan for Doris? Do you plan any specific performance or handling mods? Let us know.

She wasn't running when I got her (the fuel tank and lines were mucked-up). I replaced the tank, the sending unit, and blew out the lines. I have also redone the brake system and replaced the shocks. The previous owner rebuilt the engine. It's pretty much stock but bored .030 over. She's pretty much original except for the drivetrain. The old girl had been sitting out in a field for a loooong time. The current game plan is to replace the timing cover or insert Helicoils into the fuel pump holes (I think my son got a little overzealous when tightening them into the aluminum cover. After that comes the electrical work. As of right now only the headlights and cigarette lighter have power to them.

I will post any concerns/issues/questions to the proper forum as work progresses.

Thanks

Welcome mark !!!!

i am rebuilding a 68 ! and your Doris looks pretty clean !

have a look at my thread on the rust i am dealing with !!!! and i am currently building a stroker engine for it.

we are more than happy to share our knowledge you will need

mark , what is your thoughts on attaching your 69 ?

What do you mean?

31 minutes ago, bellm1965 said:

What do you mean?

What’s your plan ? Motor gear box and diff rebuild first

Or straight into body and paint ?

First I have to repair the fuel pump holes on the timing chain cover (Helicoils). That'll get her back to running condition. After that I want to start working on the electrical issues. Currently, the only things that have power (other than the ignition system) are the headlights and the cigarette lighter.

Hello Mark,

Definitely get the 11 x 17 inch paper, color printed plastic laminated wiring diagram - eBay has these. Get the paper catalogs from the big parts supply companies - Ames Performance Engineering, Classic Industries, Original Parts Group, etc. The Factory Assembly Manual for your year, the Fisher Body Manual and the Service Manual all for your year will also be extremely helpful. And if you are really ambitious, get a 1967, 68 or 69 Hollander Parts Interchange book to assist with finding the same parts / part numbers that you need that could be available on other vehicles in those years.

And welcome to the group here.

Rick

1 minute ago, B52bombardier1 said:

Hello Mark,

Definitely get the 11 x 17 inch paper, color printed plastic laminated wiring diagram - eBay has these. Get the paper catalogs from the big parts supply companies - Ames Performance Engineering, Classic Industries, Original Parts Group, etc. The Factory Assembly Manual for your year, the Fisher Body Manual and the Service Manual all for your year will also be extremely helpful. And if you are really ambitious, get a 1967, 68 or 69 Hollander Parts Interchange book to assist with finding the same parts / part numbers that you need that could be available on other vehicles in those years.

And welcome to the group here.

Rick

Hey Rick,

Thanks for the heads up. I got the laminated diagram from ClassicCarWiring.com and it's been a big help. Along with the wiring schematics, the back side has a diagram for the vacuum line hookup for the hide away headlights. I got most of the manuals you talked abut but I'm always looking for more "reading" material. I will look into finding the Hollander book you mentioned. The previous owner said the engine came out of a '68 Grand Prix if I remember correctly so I believe it will come in handy.

Thanks

Mark

You might want to check out some of the downloaded shop manuals and diagrams we have on the site too.