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10/19/22
Sam: My search for Impala parts led me to the discovery of Hot Rod's Vintage Auto Restorations, a classic car restoration shop in Salisbury, Mass. I came to find the place when I responded to an FB marketplace ad for a '65 Buick LeSabre sedan being parted out. The decklid filler panel, which is rotted out on my car, was in great shape on the Buick, and it was the same size as the one on my car. When I went out to take a look at the car, the business' owner, Glenn, was nice enough to let me take a peek at some of the other cars he had on the property.
Above: Shot of the Lot at Hot Rod's
Above: Shot of the Lot at Hot Rod's
The '73 Chevelle in the middle of the left photo was covered in bondo. The whole passenger side quarter panel looked like it was made out of mud. Many of the cars were missing their front clips or rear halves. Glenn explained to me that one of his friends makes wall art and barbecue grills out of the pieces off the damaged cars. He's able to make a hefty profit on each piece, too.
1965 Chevy Impala Sport Sedan
1965 Chevy Impala Sport Sedan
Glenn took me to the back of the lot, where he had his own '65 Impala sport sedan. In mist blue with AC, this was almost a twin of my car, save the white top. This car was last on the road in '91 and, Glenn told me he bought it to save a friend's '65 2-door Impala that had been involved in a front-end collision. Now it's helping put my car back on the road. Glenn let me pick through the wreckage of this poor car for anything I'd need on mine, and I was able to get the climate control box, both front door armrest pads, the rear windshield interior trim, and the dome light lenses for my car. I couldn't get to the plastic b-pillar covers because all four doors were stuck shut, so I'll have to either find another set somewhere else or come back another time and try again.
1972 Pontiac Ventura Custom
1972 Pontiac Ventura Custom
This was closer to the restoration shop on the property and out of the parts car area, so I think it might be a future project. It's not in too bad of shape, and since most of its body panels are shared with the Nova, reproduction sheetmetal isn't too hard to find.
Ironically enough, I didn't get any photos this time around of the Buick I came out to look at in the first place. Glenn was a really nice, pleasant guy, and he gave me a great deal on the rear sheetmetal from the Buick as well as parts off the Impala. He explained to me that he bought the LeSabre because he wanted to save it, but he just didn't have the time. Nobody wanted to buy it whole, so he finally resorted to parting it out. It's too bad, since it was a very solid car, but sadly, you can't save them all. A couple other guys have bought the bumper and decklid off of it since I cut out the decklid filler panel. Technically, I shouldn't say I, since my parents came back and cut it out for me because my break was over and I was already back at school. I'm really spoiled to have parents amazing as mine who will spend their Saturday taking a 4-hour round-trip to cut parts off some 57-year-old car. Stay tuned, as you might see more of this place in the future. I'm thinking about having Glenn and his son paint my car since a shop like this is my best bet at getting a quality paint job.
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