How much does a restoration really cost?

[skierkaj]

Sooo, what do u think? Not bad for $630 huh! The guy misaligned the door and the front fender on the pass. side, and it chipped the paint, so I took it back and he redid it free of charge. Also had him touch up some stone chips free of charge. Take in mind, the car hasn't even been buffed yet, and still appears pretty shiny!

[Salvatore]

Ain't a bad lookin car...son. That interior is so white it looks like he sprayed the vinyl along with the stripes. So how does it run? Come on guys, He is just a kid. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beers.gif[/img] Oh sorry, not yet!

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Actually, it doesn't look bad, looks like you got a good deal. Enjoy!

[skierkaj]

The car runs awesome, but is lacking in the performance category, hence the 305. Runs awesome, shifts pretty good (could probably use a shift improver kit from B&M), and hasn't let me down yet. Car was totally rust free when I got it, and the underside looks great (sorry, no pics). What I'd LIKE to do is add a ratchet shifter, traction bars, new rear gears, beef up the tranny, and install a Bill Mitchell 454 small block (yes, a 454 small block!). That motor is insane, and can outdo the ZZ502! Approximately 600HP, and 570some pounds of torque. With that kind of performance, I'd probably need some slicks! The car is just my daily driver, but isn't getting used much, as I'm away at college. I would've posted some pics of it doing a monster burnout with slicks on back, but unfortunately I never took them (didn't have a camera with me). I couldn't believe it when that little 305 burned so much rubber (at least a 1/2 inch) off the tire, and was so much smoke, that you couldn't see the car! I had to use some bug & tar remover just to get the rubber off of the rear quarter, and I even had huge mudflaps protecting the quarter panel (bigger ones than in the photo). In regards to the interior, It's a special "krylon" interior [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/haha.gif[/img]
Just some krylon plastic spraypaint, and the seats were sprayed with some spraycan vinyl dye. It's been about 2 years, and the seats seem to hold up pretty well with it on. Hope you enjoyed the pics. Just goes to show you, you can do a quality "rebuild" by yourself!

[skierkaj]

Hey, havin a few beers is no problem, OOPS, it slipped! Seriously guys, what do you think most kids do for fun in college anyway? I've had my fair share of "beverages" [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beers.gif[/img]

[68l30]

I'm just finishing the assembly of a Camaro now...just for paint I hit $3000.Good materials are not cheap.....Throw in labor and other expenses and the paint/body cost can hit 16 to 20k alone.Now replace NOS parts and finish the job correctly and 40k and up is not totaly insane for a resto...I had several people wonder why I ripped my car apart...To them it looked fine.To get to a level where you are happy is what's important.The next step up is always a killer. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] Just remember to do it because YOU want to!Don't do it to make others happy and you will always enjoy it no matter what the cost.... [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

Steve

[DjD]

There's a shoe box wagon running around here that has a $500 macco paint job on it that would knock your socks off!! The owner did all his own prep work, had the base coat shot, took it home air brushed the flames on in his garage and took it back for the clear coat... It's been published in several mags and gets lots of attention where ever it's parked.

Micky touches on it with restoration vrs rebuild but there is so much more too it. The orig question was "frame off" restoration so that means (IMO) the car taken apart and every piece cleaned, plated, polished or painted as well as making sure it's structurally like new. Every piece and part or as someone said already one old unrestored part mixed in with a bunch of like new ones will stand out like a sore thumb. Mind you, you will pay 3 times for the end results, once to take the part off the car, once to restor or bring it back to new and the third time to put it back on the car...

All that said if you are mechanically inclined you can see how you can reduce the overall costs by quite a bit... This being the supercar site that it is most of the time we are talking about high end collector cars and to spend $40,000 on a car worth $100000 or more doesn't shock and isn't out of place... To take your typical $10000 camaro project car and pour $30000 into a frame off there is going to be some sticker shock... There are much less spendy ways to have a very respectible, showable car... [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/[/img]

[skierkaj]

I was thinking of redoing the plastic panels by covering them with some white vinyl. How do u guys think that would look? The panels don't like to hold paint, and I know that it's probably just an issue with the prep job before-hand, but I just don't like the plastic. How would you go about fastening the vinyl to the plastic? I know to use a super-duty adhesive, and use a heat gun to slightly heat the vinyl to form to the panel, but what kind of fasteners could I use from the back side, without them poking through the front? I know yearone sells the vinyl (i might be able to get it cheaper than their price), and I have some Super-Strength 3M adhesive, and a heat gun, just need a method of fastening the vinyl from the backside. Opinions?

[Pantera]

I would not cover them as they will get hot in the summer and sag. Try taking the panels off the car and wipeing them down secveral times with Laquer thinner and or acetone and then spray them with "Marhide" or other interior specific paint. I have done seats this way and they looked new for years. This paint is flexable and will color the parts you want and it is easy as long as you have a spray gun or you can get it in spay cans from a profesonal automotive paint store. Just be sure that you use 2 or 3 light coats so it will flex and not come off. Too heavy and it will crack just like a regular paint.