92 z28 25th anniversary
 

Please let me begin by saying g that I'm not really a car person. However, when I was about 10 years old my dad gave me this car. It has been in the garage for years and over time my dad had put new parts on it. Unfortunately, my dad has passed away. All I know is that my dad said that the car needed a new ignition switch. I'm not for sure what exactly I need to do to be able to get it back on the road? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Welcome to the club.
Sorry in reading of Father passing - thoughts & prayers given.
Just a warning, you'll be saked for pictures.

There are two things to look at.
One: What needs done to car to make sure when you start it the first time you do not damage it.
Two: What was originally wrong with the car? (note there can be more stuff that can go wrong while sitting)
The ignition switch is mounted on the top of the steering column close to where your feet are when sitting in the driving position. It is relatively easy to replace and they are not a costly. Less then $50. But many times when I am told the car needs a ignition switch what they mean is that the car needs an ignition cylinder inside the steering column or there is an issue with the security system and the key. Both of these repairs need a little research and possible special tools.

How long has it been sitting?
Do you have the original key?
Does the key turn into run position? (not start)
Does anything happen if it does? (do not try to start until car is safe to start)

It has been sitting for about 12 years now. There was physically nothing wrong with it when my father started to work on the car. The reason he said it needed a new ignition switch was due to the key falling into the lake while he was fishing.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/camarof...89b1c11142.jpg
Currently the only photo i have

Nice car! Too bad key is lost but a locksmith can probably help you. I found this information at this website. Good luck! Keep us posted.

Replace lost car keys

How can you make a new car key without a spare?

The simplest way to make a car key without the original is with the VIN. This unique number corresponds to a key code registered to the vehicle. In some cases, this key code could no longer be accessible or useful (ex: if the ignition was changed/rekeyed). In more complex cases, the locks can be decoded by trained auto locksmiths to manually determine the key code.

So you don't need a ignition switch you need your ignition cylinder re-keyed. I only say this so that if you call for a quote you are talking the right process.

12 years can cause some issues. You need to change oil and drain the gas. You may heed to swap out the gas tank but its had to say for sure. IMO It mostly depends on how much water was in the gas when it was parked. I have seen cars that sat for 15 years and there fuel system where fine and I have seen cars that sat for ten years and needed to replace everything from the gas cap to the intake because of rust and varnish. Your fuel pump is inside the tank, if it sucks up a lot of varnish or rust it will kill the pump. If it was me I would send a bore scope down into the tank after it was drained. to see how bad it looked.
you can find bore scopes that plug into your phone for cheap on Amazon.

If belts and hoses where original or cheap replacements they may all need replaced but if the where newer quality replacement they could be fine for a year or two more. Before you drive the car on the road check all the brakes but first do a stomp test. With the car jacked up on stands or cinder blocks. Press the brake pedal as hard as you can after you get it started, release then push and hold. check for brake pedal fade and get a friend and make sure the brake lock and unlock as you press and release the pedal.

As for the key you should call around for lock quotes from lock smiths. I have done the GM process a few times when I was a mechanic. You disassemble the steering column and remove the cylinder. Take the cylinder to a GM parts department. They can look at how the cylinder is configured and you can get a new key cut or they can change the cylinder to to work with a different key. Then comes the fun part. On the side of the key is a resistor with a OHMs value. One of 16 possible. The dealer had a box with a 12 position switch on it. You would install the box inline . You would put it in position 1 and try to start the car. If it starts then the resistance was listed on the box and you could just tell the key maker that resistance. If it does not start you have to wait 5 minutes then test the next position. Year if you try to start the car with the wrong resistor the security system will disable the car for 5 minutes.

I think I remember people on Ebay selling a full set resistors you can hook inline, That would allow you to not need the box, If you wanted to you can also leave the resistor in place and not worry about the chip on the side of the key.

Doing a steering column and figuring out the resistors is not super difficult but to do it without the proper tools make it a real pain and buying the proper tools could cost more than a lock smith also lock smiths may have developed a better process then we used in the dealership back in the day.

If you know the original dealer that sold the car new they may have the Key info but back then there was no central data base. I kind of doubt any dealer has kept the info that long either way. but it may be worth a call.