need pics for better advice..and the vin number qouldnt hurt either.

 

You didn't say if you have any experience in restoration work. If you have little are none, walk away, and find a driver ( the best you can afford ) that you can enjoy while improving it! I paid 10k for mine, in 1991, and it was better than this one and had a drive train.

 

Even at $10,000 you may come out better by parting it out

 

Surely they don't expect to sell this car without giving the VIN number. At some point before the sale they're going to have to give up that number. Seems very odd.

 

....Let's see some pics of this car. It sounds like a typical barn find to me. We are dealing blind!

I sold a '61 3 years ago for $15,900 that didn't have any tops, needed a front clip and had birdcage damage... Yep I know the market has changed...but it wasn't half the car this is.

These cars don't depreciate to what it cost to build one economically, they just become parts cars.

I agree that it may not be a restoration candidate except for professionals. That's not the question I didn't think. The value of piece is. I don't care what it cost to restore the piece...it doesn't devaluate to nothing just because it needs a lot. It just becomes a parts car, a nostalgia race car, a less than perfect driver....etc. That's why they are still costly to find and buy.

Providing it has a negotiable title, that alone has value for a custom restomod builder ...and on and on. Most of these junkers don't have a top of any kind, especially not two! If the frame is good..value! I sold a rolling frame 3 months ago for $3200 and ...made a mistake ...I could have gotten more.

Windshield hardware and door post...costly stuff.

I suspect the OP is over describing the rough condition of the piece. He says it's stripped...I guarantee any car that is stripped looks like hell. That's a very good thing though. Every crack, every repair, everything is visible. A "real" advantage!

Most people would be horrified if they could see what their pride and joy looked like stripped....

This car sounds like it needs some body work ...not like it's been crashed. They all have been bumped and cracked.

Let's gets some pics of this thing and see if we are all on the same page...!

At this point we all may have totally different visions of what this car really is...

Best regards....Stan M.

 

Jeff: I am trying to send them let me know if you get them.
dbvthree at a o l dot com
Dave

 

how do I send you the pic I am not a paying member?

Dave

 

Good point Stan....but I' wouldn't touch it..

Like my old Grandpa used to say, "...if everybody liked the same thing we'd all be after Grandma"...

 

Here are Dave's photos...

 

Well....I have to eat some crow here....as Stan surmised the car is more intact than I thought. Seats, gauges, (Wonderbar radio), hardtop doesn't look all THAT bad, still a TON of work but if you wanted to pop in a crate motor with a generic 4-speed and do all that other work the car could be brought back. This assumes the frame is SOLID!

But, again prob not cheaper than you could buy an NOM driver already to go...

 

Looks like a typical barn find to me. Needs plenty...but I don't think it needs a front clip. Looks like tires got into the rear fender wells...a pain but not big $$ to fix.

...and we can add a set of seats to the list of costly items.

If it has a good frame and a good title, and two tops...it's worth more than 10K in my neck of the woods. In fact I could sell it before the sun went down...and make a substantial profit.

I'll buy it and pay the shipping if he'd like to pass the deal to me. I won't even go look at it.. other than to get the title and VIN verified by someone in the area.

 

Frank ...you and I and I posted at the same time..

You're right ....drivers are cheap right now, so it would probably wind up costing nearly as much as a driver.

Darn good start on a resto mod car though..and worth something if that is idea.

Stan

 

There's alot there! I guess it could easily become a driver. The glass work is not that bad. You can get a new baffle for the front.

I would go the old style hot rod look and not go restomod. Too much money to dump to do a restomod. I would say get it and put it together as much as you can then drive the snot out of it.

 

$15k, RESTOROD.......SRIII frame, LS3, 6 speed.......when you are done you will have one hell of a car but you will also have the better of $80 to $100k unless you can do an awful lot of the work yourself......

 

...I'm doing all the work on mine and I'm pretty sure I'll still have 70K in it. I don't think there is a cheap way to build a restomod..at least I haven't figured out how?? That's why I've been plodding along on mine for 5 years .... I've done a lot of horse tradin' for parts during that period too....and saved a considerable amount there, but it's still expensive...

 

did she ever give a price ,did you buy it, it looks like a steal to me, it looks like a mid 20,s car,by what it looks like ,thats the going price on long island these days , i know a few people that would pay that then take the goodys out and resell for more money

 

Hi Dave,
This car is in much better shape than we all thought based on your description. Judging by the tachometer it was originally a low-horse 327.

What do you really want out of the car? This may seem like an odd question, but your goals for the project are particularly important. If you want a car to drive and enjoy but buying a project seems like the only way to do it – you’ll probably spend a lot of time and more $$ getting the car to the driver state, than just saving a little longer and buying a driver. Is the extra time it will take worth it to you? If you want a project, then this car could be perfect as it gives you a lot of big things to work on.

In 1991 I bought a 1956 Oldsmobile and began restoring it. It STILL is not done. I’ve never driven the car, and I’m a long way away from being able to do so.

In 2006 I bought a 65 vette that had been in storage for a while. This proved to be perfect for me, because it had lots of little projects to be done that could be completed in a day or weekend, but I was able to drive the car about a month after I got it, and then kept myself busy improving various bits. In hindsight that was a perfect project car – able to enjoy it quickly, but still able to experience the thrill of improving the car.

Here’s my thought – you indicated you are 57 now. Are you willing to wait until you are in your 60s before you can drive the car? Are you limber enough to get into and out of the car now, or will you be in a few years? That's not a comment on age, just an observation that I have to fold myself into my 62, and I'm not sure I'll be able to do that in 20 more years.

I’m 6’2” and to get into my 62 I have to stick my right leg in, put my butt on the seat and then scoot over. Grab my left leg and pull it into the car.

All of the above are things to consider.

Jeff

 

62 jeff ,you did a geat job posting the pictures for all to see ,now we ,all forum members have to convince him to buy the car so another can hit the street ,hopefully it is a dream of his as it was me ,no one ever thought i could or would finish my project ,i was 50 when i got it, it took 3 years to completely finish, after it was done i had a void so i bought a completely destroyed 72 coupe as a challenge, that one only took a 18 months, now at 57 i was looking to buy a drag boat, i found a 16ft tahiti and just picked up a blown up 468 ,all my friends ask why ,i say whynot

 

Dave and Jeff, thanks for posting. Lots of experience and wisdom on the forum. I'll second the notion that even the barn finds continue to appreciate. Here is a local Craigslist ad for another 62 project/driver, as a reference point, it's only $35k. If the frame is solid on your 62, I'd say it's worth somewhere in the range of $15-20k.

http://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/1704770743.html

Let us know what course of action you decide to take.

 

Learned my lesson, I won't go blathering away and opining on a car's potential (or lack of it) until I see some pictures... This car is better than I thought at first, but still a sink hole for money and labor. Still say there are drivers out there for 2/3 the money that it will take to resurrect this car to even a half-@ss driver.