At one time I would have thought that the extent of this work was a bit crazy (not that I haven't fixed rustbuckets) and logic still dictates that you try to find as clean a shell as possible.

However, E-bodies were moisture traps: even cars from very dry climates will often have damaged trunk floors, extensions, lower quarters and dutchman panels. So one may wind up replacing much of the same metal anyway.

Given the extensive amount of high-quality reproduction sheetmetal available now it enables a hobbyist to buy a car reasonably and to end up with a shell as good or better than new over time.

Again, I'm enjoying the progress on this one and can't wait for the next update!