Father-Son Restoration Project Enters Year Twelve, Son Now Has Own Children

A father-son classic car restoration project, begun when the son was sixteen, has entered its twelfth year with no definitive completion date, as the son is now twenty-eight, married, and the father of a toddler who has been designated the project's "third generation." Richard and Jason Crankshaft purchased a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS roller — a body with no engine or transmission — in 2014, with the stated intention of building it into a running vehicle "by summer." "We didn't specify which summer," Richard, 61, observed from a lawn chair positioned next to the Camaro, which sits on jack stands in the same position it has occupied since the Obama administration. The project's timeline has been interrupted by Jason's college education, his relocation for work, his wedding, and the birth of his son, each of which Richard describes as "valid but inconvenient." Work sessions now occur approximately four times per year, typically on holidays, and last between two and four hours before one party suggests getting lunch. "We've done the bodywork," Jason said. "Most of the bodywork. The passenger fender still needs attention. And the floor pans. And there's a section of the trunk that's more Bondo than metal at this point. But the driver's side looks great." The engine, a 396 big block that Richard purchased separately in 2016, sits on an engine stand next to the car. It has been partially disassembled since 2019, when Richard removed the heads to inspect the valves and then got distracted by a kitchen renovation. "My grandson is two," Richard noted. "If we maintain our current pace, the car will be running by the time he's old enough to appreciate it. That's not a failure of planning. That's multi-generational vision." Jason's wife has described the Camaro as "the most expensive piece of furniture in the family" and has asked twice whether the garage space could be used for something else. Both times, Jason and Richard responded in unison: "It's almost done."