No entry in three weeks, so I figured I would provide an update. Dusty finally finished the work on the car (well, the fuel pump has been replaced, I'm not sure about the wheel bearing) and I picked it up rather than have it sit out in the rain at the shop any longer. I drove it home and parked it in the garage, my A4 Avant being relegated to the driveway. I've slowly started investigating the car more thoroughly, inside and out, and I've been doing a lot of reading and learning in preparation for starting the project. Yesterday I applied for a new title and got the car registered; this will at least make me legal when I drive it over to the bodyshop for an initial nose-repair assessment. I'm still not sure what the order should be on that repair. Should I strip the car completely, and do the nose repair only as part of the other panel repair that needs to take place? Or should I have the nose repair completed, and then begin on the rest? Because I'm not paying for that part of the repair (umm, I hope...) I'm not sure how I'm going to be able to work this out.

I've driven the car some since it got home, getting to know it (at least in its current state). I feel better about the brakes now as well, I guess I'm simply not used to non-boosted brakes. Firm pedal pressure does stop the car just fine. Also, the pedal stays firm even when pressed hard (i.e. it doesn't sink to the floor) so I believe the master cylinder is OK.

A couple of questions have arisen, such as:

• Sand blast, media blast, or chemically dip the car to strip paint and remove rust?


• Should I learn basic MIG welding to save some money, at least on panel repairs not readily visible?


• Where am I going to fit all these parts in my garage when the car is disassembled? My restoration books claim you will need 3x the space of the car. :)


• Can I possibly get the car back in running shape by September 2003 (East Coast 356 Holiday at Biltmore Estate!)

Questions, questions. In any case, this weekend I'm going to try to get the car over to MillerSport Porsche for an opinion on where to get started with the body restoration. I got a floor jack and jack stands, so I'll be putting the car up, pulling off the front bumper, broken light lenses, and twisted horn grilles. Maybe I'll attack the interior a bit too, it all has to come out.