Starting Project Advice

[rip-cord]

Starting Project Advice

Hey everyone I am just looking for some honest opinions on starting a new project. I currently have a 1990 stang convertible that I have done some work to, engine, interior, top, brakes, suspension, tires the usual. I am somewhat happy with it now and I am looking into starting a new project. I have always wanted a classic stang thus I am thinking of doing a full or partial restoration/mod. I am partial to the 66 and 69 years as I like the lines better but I don't want to buy a completed car. I would rather invest and build it the way I want.

I am very comfortable with engine and drive train work and interior and trim work but I don't have a welder and I would not be interested in doing the body work. I know everyone would love a car with no rust but based on my skill level where should I start? I don't want to pay a body shop to build me a car. What type of car should I look for, what is good value? I love to cruise in the stang and would like to be able to take it on long trips. I am not really into going to the track but I am not afraid of a little power (I think I hear 331)

My car is away for the winter so thinking spring but just wanted to start with a little research. I am thinking of coming down to the US east coast to get the car, the prices up here are crazy.

 

[rbohm]

i would look for a car that has a straight body, or as straight as possible, and spend my time building the rest of the car.

 

[krash kendall]

Oh my goodness, do not by a car in NS, or NB. I don't know if you could even find an affordable rust free car there that old let alone one that has avoided being condemned at inspection. My family is from Winsor NS and cars get old fast there. My mom and her husband still live out there (actually in Oromocto NB now) and I remember back when I was kid they had a '65 fastback and a '67 cougar. They weren't particuliarly old, but they were rustbuckets!

 

[rip-cord]

I agree, my stang that I have now is from Florida that I brought up. It would be from down south I am just not sure where to look. Up here the cars are crapola .

Should I look for a I6 cheap and convert it over to a v8 or look for a v8 vert. Should I stick with a vert or go coupe or fastback, in terms of resale and working on them.

Is it easier to find parts for the 66 or 69 or does it matter, is one easier to work on than the other?

I am making the assumption that these will not be numbers matching cars as I would not want to resto mod a concourse car.

 

[Orange97GTVert]

You can buy ANYTHING you need for a 66 Mustang. 69 Mustangs are hard to buy parts for, the resto business has not reproduced a lot of parts, so you have to rely on used parts for a lot of things. If you get a 69, look it over really good.

 

[krash kendall]

My opinion only, is that fastbacks and convertables have two many nooks and crannies with potential to become corrosion problems for the area you live. A coupe is very durable to the elements in comparason if you want to drive it from early spring into the fall, without being paranoid of a rain shower. They are also cheap like borsht and as Orange97 said, everthing is available for the '65-'66.

As far as I6 or V8, it all depends how much work you want to do and money you want to spend. If you can find a V8 with front disks and are happy with that technology, than it would be more cost effective to look for a car with those features. The same goes if you would be content with a V8 with four wheel drums. You can easily convert an I6 car to V8 with stock components, but in your case you would have to find them which presents its own set of problems and sellers want good money for the V8 components. If you know of any rusted out donor cars around you may want to check if they are V8 and the owners are willing to part with them before buying an I6 you plan to convert.

If you have the plan of going aftermarket, high performance blingin' big brakes, nine inch rear, massive aluminium radiator, and a motor with sewer pipes for fuel lines, then it doesn't matter what you find so long as it has a rust free shell.

 

[rip-cord]

That is good to know about the parts. In Canada it is a pain in the ass sometimes to get parts as it is.

I don't mind putting the work into it but in terms of cost I think it would be cheaper to start with a v8 then have to convert everything over based on the fact that you would have change the whole drivetrain.

I am not going for sewer pipes for fuel lines

 

[Orange97GTVert]

Not just the drivetrain but the suspension and brakes too. Always better to start with a V8, even though 6 bangers are cheaper to buy.

 

[rbohm]

you could always dare to be different and hot rod a six cylinder engine and surprise a number of V8 guys. there is a new aluminum head on the market from argentina that is based on the sp head. it will support 300 n/a hp, and if you put a blower on it, it will make evn more power. or you could wait a few months and see how the head that fordsixparts.com works out. they have one in the prototype stage that should support 400n/a hp. check out www.fordsix.com in the forums there for more details on both heads.

 

[zookeeper]

The only advice I would offer would be to carefully and honestly assess your finances and your ability to complete a project. The body style and year are totally subjective depending on what you like. All the parts you could imagine are all available, the days of combing swap meets and scrap yards are gone. That only leaves your ability to pay the bills a project can rack up. First look at what your project car would be worth when finished. Ebay is a great place to get an idea of what your car could sell for when you get it done. Once you establish a rough idea of the finished value, see what a starter car is going to cost. Next get out some catalogs and do a little math to see what the parts you'll need are going to cost. Don't forget paint and bodywork, either. Since paint and interior usually represent at least 50% of the cars appeal to the public, figure it to cost 50% of the build. Don't laugh, a buddy of mine recently spent $17,000 on paint and bodywork for a '67 coupe and while it looks nice, it's still a $10,000 car on a good day. My point is, if money is a concern, you are always better off buying a finished car rather than build one. I've got nearly $20,000 in my shelby clone and it's not finished! I did everything myself, bodywork, paint disassembly and reassembly. I searched for the absolute best deals I could on everything and I started with a very nice, rust-free fastback that I only paid $7,200 for, yet it's taken me three years and every spare dollar I have to get it this far. Another factor is space, do you have a decent garage to build a car ? You'd be amazed at how quickly even a large garage can fill up when you tear the car down to do paint and bodywork. I have a 24' x 34' shop with an upstairs storage and even then I had to move my wife's car to my parent's garage for months at a time just to get the free space to work. I'm not trying to discourage you, just trying to help you know full well what you're getting into so your project doesn't end up getting sold for pennies on the dollar, half finshed and abandoned two years down the road when you realize how much work and money really go into a full-on build.

 

[rip-cord]

I do have a decent size garage, single but right now I have my 90 stang in there with our outdoor swing and BBQ and all my tools plus I have a full unfinished basement so that should be ok.

I agree with the money lets a assume I get a 66 with minimal but typical rust (floor, doors quarters) but otherwise ok what would the body shop bill roughly be from blasting, repair, priming and paint. I have gone through and done a budget already with some research I expect the car will cost me around $20K but I am not sure on the body shop estimate since I can't do the work myself.

Thanks

 

[zookeeper]

If you start with a nice enough car, paint and bodywork is something any detail-oriented person can pull off. Buy some books and videos before resigning yourself to paying a pro to do it. I did just that and I'm thrilled with the outcome. Going into the project I knew I couldn't afford to pay someone to paint the car and I always wanted to try, so I bought as nice a car as I could find and picked a color combo I felt would give me the best chance of success (white w/ blue stripes), bought the best quality paint I could find (with House of Kolor, high quality doesn't mean most expensive) and gave it a shot. Trust me, if I can do it, you can do it. Everyone who's seen the car has been amazed that it's as dirt-free and orange-peel-free as it is. I bought a $400 (on sale) Sears compressor, plumbed my shop as per House of Kolor's advice, bought a $140 Devilbiss spray gun, a couple extra tips and borrowed a fresh air supply from work and block sanded the car three times until I was sure it was straight and it was easy. I have a little over $2,000 in my paint job and a whole lot of labor, but if a door gets dinged or the hood gets chipped, I know how to fix it for next to nothing, rather than haul it to a pro and lay out another $1200 to fix a minor problem. You can, too just take it one step at a time...