I have begun; Now the questions begin!

[Jon Kanas]

I acquired an Amphicar 770 from my father-in-law's estate at the end of 2018. I joined IOAC, downloaded manuals and FAQs and am becoming familiar with this very interesting machine. I have undertaken several automobile restorations, and I would like to start getting this Amphicar roadworthy in advance of a good, driver-quality restoration.

1. This Amphicar is titled as a 1963, however based on the information in the IAOC FAQ, I think this is a much earlier car. The chassis number is 100859.
2. My best description is that my Amphicar is a "roller" with cardboard boxes of stuff. As of today, I have not taken an inventory of what I do (and do not) have. Structurally it is in good condition, with only minimal rust in bottom of the rear quarter panels. The floors and basic structure of the Amphicar appear to be excellent.
3. It appears to be mechanically complete, although other parts of the body have been disassembled; Possibly an aborted restoration attempt.
4. I have been in contact with a local Amphicar expert, John Blevins, who came out to my warehouse to inspect it. He recognized it as a parts car that my father-in-law bought to supply a restoration he had in progress, however the restoration vehicle was lost in a barn fire. This gives me pause, as I can now expect that there may be lots of missing "stuff".
5. I am thinking that I would like to attempt to get it running on land later this summer in order to more fully assess what I am dealing with mechanically so I can determine what a restoration effort will entail.

I am seeking to converse with one or more members regarding the steps they recommend that I take to begin to bring it to life mechanically. Better yet, if anyone on the forum recognizes this Amphicar that Dr. Birmingham purchased in 2013 I'd be particularly grateful to hear from them!!

 

[BrianF]

Hi Jon
Very quiet on this site lately. I have been writing and asking questions lately with limited responses. That said, I will say you have some work ahead of you.
Try to get the motor running and if it starts and runs the next step is the brakes. All parts are available from a handful of venders. if it runs down the road and stops you have a decision to make. Complete restoration, Driver/swimmer, or just a runner on land until you make a decision.

If you want to take it for a swim check the site for "water testing with a garden hose"and see how bad it leaks. Basically close and lock doors, bilge plug in and fill up the car in the driveway and look for leaks. Or remove interior, open hood and trunk, tie a rope to the car and push it in the water and stand next to it and look for leaks.

I watched a guy wrap Saran Wrap around the rear quarters, duck tape the doors, turn on bilge pump and splash in with a rusty barn find that hadn't run in over 20 years. Car was in and out of the water for a few hours and the new owner was very happy.

So good luck and let us know what you decide and how your progressing.

Brian

 

[Jon Kanas]

Brian and others on the forum... The restoration of 100859 is actually starting!!

Earlier this summer I spent a few days doing an inventory of my Amphicar stuff (keeping in mind that I received the Amphicar as a rolling shell with multiple cardboard boxes).

• In May, I spent the better part of a day with John Bevins stepson to assess at my car, and also look at the cars and parts that will be sold out of John's estate. The objective was to identify missing components from my car. We decided that my car is an excellent restoration candidate, as there is minimal rust, none that is structural.
• I had my body guy came out and provide me with an initial quote for bodywork. I figured that if I was reasonably confident that the engine and transmission were in good shape that I would proceed with restoration and return the car to service in the next year or two.
• The engine in this car probably had not been run since long before my father-in-law bought the car in 2010. The oil in the engine, and both transmission dipsticks looked brand new, so I spent a couple of days last week preparing the engine for its first starting attempt. Aside from the "interesting" design characteristics of the Lucas distributor that was preventing the ignition from firing, the starting attempt was eventually successful. The engine runs well, and went through a couple of heat cycles during my testing that revealed no issues.

Today's question: Research I have done to date indicates that my Amphicar (VIN 100859, Engine:GK819HE) is an "early" model. I have the Service Manual that is available through the IAOC website. In reading the manual, I find that there are references to two different engine compression ratios, 6.8:1 and 8:1. Is it possible to determine which compression ratio my car should have, maybe using the engine number? I did find a posting from Ed Price on this forum which appears to indicate that my engine should be 8:1 compression.

Amphicar comes to life:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/av01...ey=ynfdki6efr7rdxta1w1hevtia&st=dp3z0sk2&dl=0