The original owners of this 1970 Plymouth GTX, Joel and Lynn Euler, had determined it was time to get their beloved Mopar back on the road. Packing a 440ci/375hp engine, the mighty Mopar had provided countless hours of excitement. The Eulers wanted to restore the GTX to its former glory, but a $100,000 concours restoration would make no sense in light of their intent to drive the car to shows and cruise nights. Bare-metal suspension components complemented by a primered undercarriage with factory-style overspray does not look pretty after five years of even sparse driving.

The Eulers approached Mike Goacher, owner of Goacher Street Legends (GSL) in Wathena, Kansas, to perform a rotisserie restoration that would make the car both beautiful and durable. The restoration of this GTX would pay less attention to strict factory assembly processes and more attention to the car's longevity. In so doing, many areas neglected at the factory would be properly painted and protected.

GSL is constantly working on interesting projects, which explains the number of car buddies that drop in during the day. Mike Goacher and son Dylan are to-the-bone enthusiasts who continually build and restore muscle cars and hot rods that can be driven, shown, or raced. Pricing is fair, and the end result is fantastic. Mike's years of building hot rods is being passed down to Dylan. When they are not working, they can be seen wrenching on Mike's Red 1967 Camaro that he has owned since the 1970s, or Dylan's 632-powered, "soon to be completed" 1968 Nova SS Drag Week car.

We were interested in the restoration of the Euler's 1970 GTX because we feel it represents a majority of muscle car restorations going on across the country. In previous issues we have covered factory-correct restorations (and restorations mimicking factory assembly techniques—and the imperfections that come with them) that result in award-winning show cars. But the goal for this car is different. People need to see our muscle cars on the road so that they fall in love with them all over again. Rack up the miles. Buy lots of Coker Tires. With current technology, supplies, and components, muscle cars can be both beautiful and durable.

See all 16 photos 1 The original owners of this 1970 Plymouth GTX called on Mike and Dylan Goacher at Goacher Street Legends for a complete rotisserie restoration. The color combination is Rallye Red paint with a black vinyl top.

See all 16 photos 2 The quarter-panels were cut off just past the jamb and beltline to assess necessary metal repair. Rust had taken its toll on both quarter-panels and the outer wheelhouses. The inner wheelhouses were fine and needed only cleaning up on the bottom edges.

See all 16 photos 3 The trunk floor and drop-offs were toast. Fortunately, the rear cove panel was in excellent shape; it was eventually removed while remaining attached to the trunk gutters to aid in panel alignment. Floors, framerails, and inner and outer rockers were all deemed to be in excellent shape.

See all 16 photos 4 Wearing proper face and hand protection, Dylan went to work on the cancerous metal with a pneumatic cutoff wheel. Spot welds were either drilled out or ground down to provide a clean mating surface for new metal.

See all 16 photos 5 The outer wheelhouse was clamped in place to maintain reference points during surgery. Rusty metal was cut away carefully to avoid damaging the factory framerails and braces.

See all 16 photos 6 More than 200 spot welds attach the trunk floor to a typical Mopar B-Body. All of them were drilled out with a spot weld cutter and then ground smooth. The handy aerosol 3M Weld-Thru II primer was sprayed on the entire rear structural section, consisting of the framerails, braces, and support bars. The GTX was now ready for fresh AMD metal.

See all 16 photos 7 Mike and Dylan placed the new AMD trunk floor in the approximate factory location. Since the original locations were previously marked on the hinges, the decklid was installed. The rear cove panel with gutters was then positioned to ensure proper fit of both the trunk floor and decklid.

See all 16 photos 8 Keeping gaps and fitment where they need to be can only be accomplished with careful mockup and test fitting along the way. Mike and Dylan examined the gaps and scribe marks made to retain original fitment. This process was made much easier by the high-quality panels produced by AMD. When all looked good, the panels were clamped or screwed together. A Miller Synchrowave 200 TIG welder was used to create plug welds that nicely replicated the factory spot welds.

See all 16 photos 9 In order to make the trunk floor as nice as the rest of the car, all trunk floor welds were ground smooth. The inner wheelhouse edges were cleaned and readied for the outer wheelhouse installation.

See all 16 photos 10 Dylan fit and clamped the AMD outer wheelhouse and trunk drop-offs in place. He then TIG-welded the new metal to the inner structure.

See all 16 photos 11 A DeVilbiss FLG4 gun with a 2.0 tip was used to apply a light coat of PPG K36 Primer Surfacer to the trunk floor. While that area was being sanded, frequent use of the vacuum hose kept dust to a minimum at GSL.

See all 16 photos 12 Just prior to paint, Dylan cleaned the entire area with MasterPro Refinishing Wax and Grease Remover.

See all 16 photos 13 Mike used the Anest Iwata LPH400 gun to spray the PPG DP50LF Epoxy primer in the trunk. Though not consistent with the way the factory painted these parts, this method is superior in achieving maximum coverage and protection from the elements.

See all 16 photos 14 Mike masked off the area that requires seam sealer. He then applied a thin coat of the 3M Automix 8310 Bare Metal Seam Sealer. The 3M Automix 8310 can be used on bare metal or primered metal. Wearing latex gloves, Mike dips his finger in a wax and grease remover to smooth out the sealer.

See all 16 photos 15 Because the motive is to bring maximum coverage on the metal for durability, Mike sprayed the PPG Deltron basecoat Rallye Red with the Anest Iwata LS400 gun. After all the panels are welded, Mike will touch up the edges with basecoat. When the basecoat dries, Mike will coat it with PPG D8152 Performance Glamour clearcoat.