I got asked a question the other day, really quite a ridiculous one if you think about it, one of the people who knows me, and knows what a car freak I really am posed the question, what is the best car to restore, this question really has no answer to it.
The best car to restore is all up to you, are you looking for a cheap car to restore, possibly a car that is easy to get parts for, like a Mustang , Camaro, or a Chevelle, or GTO, are you looking for a car that doesn't have a lot of work to do to get it restored, maybe you don't care if it takes 10 or 15 years to restore, because your just doing it for the fun and pleasure of building your own car.
A good place to start, is to think about what your favorite car is, and start there, look for your favorite year, make , and model, once you have found that, that you can begin locating one that's in the condition that your looking for, but keep this in mind, if your looking for cheap, and by cheap I mean $10,000 or less, you should not be looking for perfect either, there is a compromise here, between condition and price, a car will jump thousands of dollars going from number 3 condition to number 2.
A number 2 car is described as a car that's not perfect, but has very few flaws, and most of the factory installed options are still on the car, such as, the original engine is still there, transmission, most of the interior, and the paint is in fair to good condition, whereas a number 3 car would have a bit rougher body, with maybe even faded paint, and a little rust here and there, and it may not have the original engine, transmission, or interior still in the car.
What you should think about is what your going to do with the car, are you a purest, who has to have everything as it was from the factory, or do you want to hot rod your newly found love of your life, if your going to hot rod the car, you certain should not be paying the extra money for a number 1, or number 2 condition car, look for a 3 or lower for a project like this, you can save oodles of cash just by shopping smart.
But if you're a purest looking for a factory perfect restore, then it could be a very wise idea to look for a car that is in very good shape to begin with, it will make the restoration of the car cost a lot less, especially in parts and labor, these areas are where a restoration can sky rocket in cost, so this really all boils down to what you want to do with the car, if it's a show car, then you will be spending a grundle of cash on it any way, if you want to win a show with it, you're more then likely not going to win a lot of shows with a daily driver, and that poses yet another choice.
Do you want to drive the car, or show it, usually a street driver does not make a good show car, if you think about it, that daily driver gets parked in parking lots, and gets door dings, scratches and other anomalies that will happen just because you drive the car, whereas a show car, will never see a door ding, rock chip or any other nastiness that may happen to your daily driver, so think about what's more fun for you, and your personality, and that is the best way to decide what car to buy.
No comments:
Post a Comment