1950-1966 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
Before you start thinking about numbers, I think you should stop and think about what you want.
1) Do you want to end up with a pristine show car, or just a nice car that you can drive?
2) Are you mostly interested in the end product and want to pay somebody to do the work, or are you looking for a fun project you can do yourself?
Naturally if you want a concours 96 (and they ARE beginning to be viable at car shows; check some of Bruce's articles on that 'other' VSAAB website) you'll be spending a lot more, because you'll need to locate or reproduce original parts, trim, etc. If you just want a cool car for driving, you can be a little more adaptable and that helps hold down the cost.
If what appeals to you about this idea is having the finished car rather than the 'project' aspect, your budget goes up by a lot because you'll be paying for a lot of skilled labor in addition to parts. That $20,000 figure Kansas mentioned is very realistic in that scenario, and might even be conservative depending on how fanatical you are about workmanship and originality. You'll probably be mucho money ahead by just buying a car that somebody else has already restored.
On the other hand, if what draws you to this idea is that you enjoy the idea of working on the car, then it gets a lot more cost-effective because the 'labor' is part of the enjoyment of the project, rather than an expense. These are basically simple cars and fun to work on -- even fairly major projects such as repairing rusty floors are within the scope of an amateur, if you know how to MIG weld or don't mind learning.
You'll need to job out some of the technical parts such as rebuilding the crankshaft and transaxle (IF necessary -- read the article about engine rebuilds in the current 'Classic Motorsports' magazine before you automatically decide a full engine rebuild is essential!) but you can space out those things as time and budget permit.
Again, read through Bruce's articles to get a feel for what's involved, check the classifieds here for prices of restored cars, figure out what your real interests are, and proceed accordingly. Good luck!
posted by 204.76.113...
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