BG Auto: Fixing up/restoring cars

[Chun Liroy]

So pretty much this whole summer (lol whole summer) I've been saving for a car and my goal has been to get one to use at college. My brother knows a lot about cars and said he would help me fix up one if I got one that needed a lil work. I assume he was joking, but he mentioned that if I got an old mustang that he would fix it up for me. I know next to nothing about cars, I'm sure I could research about it but they never interested me much so I never bothered. I was wondering if anyone knew about the pricing of some old mustangs (been looking up prices on ebay, seems about $1500~ gets you the body and axels lol), fixer uppers and how much they would cost to get in at least working condition. I don't know if this is the right way to go, obviously I have a low price limit being in college and since my parents just spent $4000 on a 14yo dog. With that said, could this possible be an answer would I be better off getting a 1990s volvo or some shit? Regardless of priciness I still would be interested to know how much it would all cost if anyone knew enough to give a very rough estimate.

[Tyche]

Classic car restoration costs as much as you're willing to spend. We've (well, the parents) restored a 72 chevy, 66 chevelle, 72 chevelle, 70 chevelle, 68 64 impala, and a 34 Chevy Sedan (I think that's all). There's no rule of thumb. If you want to spend less than 10 grand to get it running, you can. If you want to spend 50,000 on it, you can.

I wouldn't buy a beater and put minimal funds in it to use as an everyday driver. Get a civic, and fix the pony on the weekends, just dumping small amounts of money into it as it becomes available.

[crocop]

how old is "old"? does body+ axles mean no motor, no transmission?

bear in mind too that your brother would also have to get it up and running well enough to pass inspection. there may be exemptions if it is considered classic or antique, but i believe those are state specific.

now that you have a running car, dont forget added expenses of: title/registration, inspection, insurance, gas, maintenance, parking permit from college, etc.

not to be a negative nancy, but unless your brother can get you parts at cost and will do the labor free or close to it, the expenses add up fast.

[SephYuyX]

Basically what Tyche said. It can cost whatever you want, but itll only be good if you put a decent amount in to it, and by decent I mean 30~40k+

Also, the point of restoring a car is to do it yourself (and friends if you want), so thats a whole other level there. If you dont have the know how, youre going to be paying a lot for the labor.

In other words, unless youre ready to put 50k in to this project dont bother. But obviously, the more common the car is, the cheaper buying items for it will be, mustangs are a dime a dozen, but depending on the year, it could cost a few bucks. TO just get in up and running would be fairly easy and cheap, but to make it 'good', itll take a lot more time and money.

[Chun Liroy]

Gdi fucking ate my post, anyways, Old = 1965~1970, don't like the look of the mustangs past that. Body+axles means no motor, no transmission, most of the ones i've seen have been missing a back window as well. Most of the stuff you listed seems to me like it would apply to just owning a car in general, which I knew of those costs before getting in to this. He will do the labor for free, it's his hobby (has a 2002?ish Mach 1 mustang that he is constantly customizing and shit) as well as his Jeep that he fixed and drove to california and fixed some more lol. Not to mention his motorcycle that he took apart and put back together <_<; He has 6 weeks off from his job because of his neck, I'd be back in school by then. One thing I'm worried about is that it would need to get from NJ to FL. Would it be possible to get it in working condition in 6 weeks, of course workload depending?

I wouldn't buy a beater and put minimal funds in it to use as an everyday driver. Get a civic, and fix the pony on the weekends, just dumping small amounts of money into it as it becomes available.

If I got a civic, then there would be no point in buying a mustang and fixing it up lol. I need/want a car for college and my brother had mentioned that he would fix one up so I put some thought into it.

[Chun Liroy]

Basically what Tyche said. It can cost whatever you want, but itll only be good if you put a decent amount in to it, and by decent I mean 30~40k+

Also, the point of restoring a car is to do it yourself (and friends if you want), so thats a whole other level there. If you dont have the know how, youre going to be paying a lot for the labor.

In other words, unless youre ready to put 50k in to this project dont bother. But obviously, the more common the car is, the cheaper buying items for it will be, mustangs are a dime a dozen, but depending on the year, it could cost a few bucks. TO just get in up and running would be fairly easy and cheap, but to make it 'good', itll take a lot more time and money.

Well if I went this route, I'd obviously try to learn as much as I could about it and possibly create a hobby out of it. Make it better as I went along. I like to fix things and put things together but I've just never had the ability to get into cars as much. (i have always wanted to fix up a car with my dad but it's just meh). How cheap is "cheap"? I mean if I could get it up and running and looking decent I wouldn't care for now, then put money into it as I had extra laying around etc.

[SephYuyX]

How cheap is "cheap"? I mean if I could get it up and running and looking decent I wouldn't care for now, then put money into it as I had extra laying around etc.

However much it takes to get the engine to turn on and for it to move wheels. 1k~5k.

[Chun Liroy]

That's a motor and transmission? What about interior and a paint job, would that cost quite a bit more or no? I honestly don't know prices about anything.

[*Shinzon*]

That's a motor and transmission? What about interior and a paint job, would that cost quite a bit more or no? I honestly don't know prices about anything.

Pricing depends on the quality of the parts and in the case of restoring, how close to original factory you are attempting to get. Older parts are obviously going to be more expensive and harder to find because they most likely arent going to be made anymore and people like to gouge prices on collectible items. That said, modern parts that can typically be custom fit to meet older cars would still be cheaper than older parts and might provide for more practicality. Restoring is all about doing what you want, and if you don't have an idea yet, don't start doing anything. You really need a plan before you start because otherwise you might end up spending money and deciding you want to go in another direction and then get stuck after you've purchased parts that no longer fit your plans.

[Chun Liroy]

Well I definitely wouldn't be restoring, would plan on using the cheapest possible parts. My plan atm is just to have something that runs; I'm not too picky really.

Edit: I know this is asking a lot and I really don't want to put anyone through a lot of work by any means but would anyone have an extremely rough estimate on just getting something like this to run? I just want to know if this is a viable option to get a car that can get me from point A to B while in college.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Musta...item255be6c1db

[Tyche]

You really don't have to sink any more than 20k into an old mustang to get it looking decent. Mustangs are relatively cheap to fix, there are so many parts suppliers, and motors are incredibly easy to find, and everyone knows how to work on them, so labor isn't going to rail you. If you're going to sink any more than that into it, you may as well buy one already finished, because you can buy a good looking 65-70 in the 15,000-20,000 range. They don't sell for a lot unless you have a mach, fastback, or shelby. If you dump 40,000 into a coupe, congrats on just shitting $20,000 because you aren't getting a return on that investment.

[*Shinzon*]

Best bet then like mentioned above is just buy a used car or a new car that would be reliable. You don't want to go looking for something that needs restoring because that opens the door to dealing with a lot of problems that you just might not have money for right now. Spend a little bit more if you have to and get a used honda or toyota that's been maintained and you'll have something that will last awhile until you can afford something new. One car I would love to restore is a Porsche 928, but finding one that isn't completely trashed is so hard.

Probably 15k Leroy even with the cheapest parts, and it'll need custom fabrication work done to repair any body issues which it apparently has, also the rust will need to be professionally repaired or you are wasting your time.

[Tyche]

Well I definitely wouldn't be restoring, would plan on using the cheapest possible parts. My plan atm is just to have something that runs; I'm not too picky really.

Edit: I know this is asking a lot and I really don't want to put anyone through a lot of work by any means but would anyone have an extremely rough estimate on just getting something like this to run? I just want to know if this is a viable option to get a car that can get me from point A to B while in college.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Musta...item255be6c1db

THat's a mach 1. Unless you want to pay a substantial amount to have a mach 1 that needs an expensive restoration, then you should avoid that car. If you want a 65-70 Mustang, you need to find a cheap coupe.

[ozz]

There's a 84 fiero on sample near 95 for $500. Runs, 4-cylinder iron duke...water pump is probably bad, the duke probably needs to be replaced... but they sell reman'd iron dukes with warranties for like 495 on ebay...

i was going to buy it but i have a new car and don't have enough cash to buy it and fix it atm... its really in pretty good condition though, tranny's fine, interior is good....

plus it's one of two american made mid-engined mass produced cars of all time, handles better than the ferrari's of its time and has a sweet yellow/black paint job

[Chun Liroy]

THat's a mach 1. Unless you want to pay a substantial amount to have a mach 1 that needs an expensive restoration, then you should avoid that car. If you want a 65-70 Mustang, you need to find a cheap coupe.

Well would it cost cheaper to make it run, rather than restoring it?

[Tyche]

And you can get a sweet Countach body kit for it.

[Chun Liroy]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1968-...af256532#v4-39

Goddamn, that would be perfect, in Miami too, too bad it's not august yet haha.

[Awoir]

One car I would love to restore is a Porsche 928, but finding one that isn't completely trashed is so hard.

http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforum...ion-codes.html

Then again that car doesn't need much restoring >_>

[gandorf]

I used to work at a car lot awhile back. The best advice I could give you is to shop on craigslist and bring your brother with you when you go check out the cars or find a dealership that might bring you to the auction. I know in Florida you can't bring civilians anymore but some states might be different.

Watch out when you buy a used car "As Is" It's kind of a way of saying if you can drive off the car lot and the engine blows out. You're then pretty much shit out of luck. Cops will investigate it but they wont do anything. It's not like that in every state but it is like that in Florida.

[Chun Liroy]

What do you mean you can't bring civilians in anymore? Are you talking about a police auction? Seems confusing since wouldn't most of the people buying said cars be civilians?