advice on buying

[n_samedi]

yo guys im new to the forums and looking for advice. im thinkin about buyin a coupe with a pretty good v8 and tranny, straight body, and minimal rust. i was hoping to spend about 3-4k on the vehicle and another 3-4 "restoring" it. am i in the right direction with the prices? and if i do complete the car and it comes out really clean an nice how much would it be worth. also would this be a difficult task to complete? i understand that it is going to involve lots of time but i just wanted some opinions. thanks for your time. by the ways im located in california in the south bay.

 

[1320stang]

You might come close with a total investment of 8k if you get a decent deal on the car. Difficult depends on how much you have to do and how knowledgeable you are to begin with. Whatever it will be worth in the end will most likely be less than what money you have invested in it, not to mention time. Lots of people discount time because its free, I did as well when I was younger. Let me put it this way, if you were given a disassembled car that was complete and whatever else that was needed to complete it was also there, so as it didn't cost you a dime to put it together, only time, would you give it away when you were done with it? Say it was worth 10k when it was done and you figured you had enough hours in it that if you were a shop, you'd have 5k in labor sunk into it, would you ask 5k for it? That's one thing you'll never recover, labor. I was watching Rides last night and saw part of the build up on Foose's Impression car. They figured 12000 hours of fab time. Most shops here in Oklahoma are $45-$60/hour, I imagine California is probably closer to $100/hr, so we're talking a cool mil just for labor?

 

[LMan]

Larry-Boy gives good counsel. Most of it depends on how good a 'car guy' you are, or are willing to become....

 

[x73mach1x]

yeah i agree as well restoring older cars is a hobby for most of us and what we put into the car usally goes way past what it is worth... but even though we lose lots of money in this hobby we do it for the enjoyment and self pride ..also you cant get much for you money any more 3-4k isnt going to get a car that you can put another 3k into it a it will be restored.... i paid 3k for my 73 mach and im planing on at least 12k all together...even if you sell the coupe when your done you might make a profit of 1k if your lucky and thats not even worth 1/4 of the time you put into it... plus for how much the car would be worth is about 8k for a coupe if your lucky and how rare the car package is... if you want to make some quick cash your better off finding a fastback or convert... coupes just dont bring the cash... my advice is find a car that you really like and restore it a keep it...

 

[Timmy]

All advice above is right on. It’s a hobby. Always remember that. All these old cars are “money pits”. 99.9% of the time, you don’t come close to breaking even if you sell it or get in an accident. (just asks Pakrat about his ordeal)

I have over 20K in my Mach 1 and still need a part or two or three. When I got it, I to looked at it and said 3K to 5K would fix everything. Then I dropped the oil pan and found parts in the pan. The 3 to 5K I planed on was gone just that quick for an engine rebuild.

You have to be able to do most if not all the work yourself. Then comes the tools to do the work. Seems I’m always needing something I don’t have.

I would say plan on 10K for the restore and expect it to be more.

Tim

 

[mustangdave]

Agreed: you will put $10-15,000 in the resto part. Buy the best acr you can to start with. Take someone that knows all of the problem rust spots on Mustangs and check it out good. Bodywork, cowl repair, floorpans,etc... will kill you if you have to pay for it!

 

[n_samedi]

wow thanks guys i didnt expect that at all. ill have to think about it a bit more before i decide now. thanks again

 

[Capt Dan]

I just offset the labor cost with what it would cost me to sit in the bar all weekend.

 

[danny clemens]

It may be cheaper to buy one already restored than doing it yourself. Many of us like the challenge of the restoration and the satisfaction after it is done. If you do it yourself you can learn as you go and do it the way you want.

 

[Jester67]

yo guys im new to the forums and looking for advice. im thinkin about buyin a coupe with a pretty good v8 and tranny, straight body, and minimal rust. i was hoping to spend about 3-4k on the vehicle and another 3-4 "restoring" it. am i in the right direction with the prices? and if i do complete the car and it comes out really clean an nice how much would it be worth. also would this be a difficult task to complete? i understand that it is going to involve lots of time but i just wanted some opinions. thanks for your time. by the ways im located in california in the south bay.

The other are right, if you wont a better investment go to the local casino. Good rule of thumb, take what you think it will cost and multiply it by 4 and you will be closer to what it will really cost. So 12K to 16K plus the cost of the car and you will be closer. The car will never be worth what you put into it. But in my case it is cheaper than therapy and who knows I just might learn something.
Jester67 math (hobby + car = money pit)

 

[John Z]

It may be cheaper to buy one already restored than doing it yourself.

I really believe in this. I bought my car for $7000 knowing that a lot of work was still needed. So I've spent another $8000 on paint, rims and tires and misc. things. I now have a car that would go on ebay for probably $11-12000. I still think I got a good deal. The PO gave me a box of receipts that she never added up. Not counting the cost of the car she had over $18000 into her restoration.