I have a big dillema!!!.....
 

As some of you know, after finishing and selling the red and white Road Race car, I decided to finally build my matching #1968 BB 427 /390 4spd 2 top roadster back to stock. I have owned this car for about 3 years and have been working on it on and off. It has 54k miles and the drive train is great. I replaced what body parts needed replacing with NOS parts and I am at the point of taking it off the frame, finishing the body work etc... In the time I have owned it I have collected all kinds of NOS parts to help me with the resto I planned on doing.

Here is the car as it sits now.

http://i243.photobucket.com/albums/f...e/DSC00234.jpg


Then I got this idea about another road race car I want to do. Somewhat different than the rest in styling yet on the same page.

HERE IS THE DILLEMA :

I am thinking about converting this car. I know what the purists anwer will be on this one and I see the point, but it isnt that simple.

I love modified cars as much as stock ones.

This car , if I did it stock, would not be NCRS because My paint work is not, lets just say, stock appearing. Second, I would not go bananas with correct stamping everything , correct hose clamps etc.....

The car is still a correct drivetrain car , still having the drivetrain it was born with.

So in the end it would be a beautifully restored correct car but not to NCRS specs.


If I did it as a race car, I would sell the original motor and other relevant parts, and do it as the rest of my cars.

VALUE when done :

I know that most people think that the stock car is always worth more, but I can say with certainty that the modified cars I build bring enough money when sold to rival a compatible restored back to stock big block car aside from say a very rare model.

SO $$$ value will have nothing to do with my decision. It is six in one hand half a dozen in the other.

Why I dont just start with another car and leave this one alone like I have done for the last 3 years??? Because I only have so much $$$ to invest in cars every year, this one is already about 60% done so I dont have to start from scratch and I am already late in starting my car for next year.

I am at a loss for once:willy::willy:

I almost wish I hadnt bought this car ,being matching # and all, so I wouldnt have to make this decision.
I find my self working on the car now, and worrying about getting to the point of having to make the decision of what to do when the restoration gets to the point of work when I have to take a turn one way or the other:D It is realy bothering me.

Thank you for letting me vent.:D

How do you have the insight to modify or restore a car and make money off of it?

most if not all restorations put the builder upside down.. .only very special rare cars seem to be the exception...

Keep it stock. Get another Vette and make your race car.

Stan,

If I had the talent you possess, I would make another road racer. You stated yourself that the car isn't going to be acceptable to NCRS standards, being that your quality of work is obviously vastly superior to factory as well as other factors. In my opinion, bringing the car back to stock appearance with matching numbers, as beatutiful as it would no doubt be, would pale in comparison to what you do in creating the road racers. I have no doubt that jaws drop and heartbeats race when one of your creations drive into view. Also look at it this way, when you finish with one of your road race vettes, it is an extension of your vision and design for that particular car - one of a kind that won't be duplicated. It's your creation. Plenty of people restore vettes to original condition, but not everyone can do what you and your team do...

Your road racers make me wish that I hit the damn lottery!

Just my opinion of course.

Hi Stan
It's easy... do what YOU want.
You know how I feel about stock cars. BUT...
You're doing something with Corvettes that VERY few other people are doing or can do.
Keep doing what you do.
Regards,
Alan

I say make it another road race vette. The recognition you have been getting should keep you focused on Road race inspirations.. I think you really got something special with the road race vettes. I'm a stock guy but have your Red #1 Road Race as my background:thumbs:

Stan, build another road race car.

Who needs another NCRS correct Corvette? They weren't that great of cars to begin with. Why build another Vette that looks like every other Vette you see at the car shows.

How may people line up 2 or 3 deep to get a look at a top flight Vette at the local cruise-in?

Who cares if "GM" is stamped on the hoses, except a judge, and once the car leaves the show, it has no mre appeal than a wel-restored daily driver.

Your cars get the heart pumping, they make men's hands sweat, they scare children blocks away.

You just can't compare the two...

I just bought a numbers matchin 71 vert, that needs just about everything replaced on it. It was restored 15 years ago, but not stored properly, and the interior is nice, but not show quality. The header bar is rusty, and the body seams need to be ground out and re-finished. The suspension and exhaust is all new, but covered with surface rust. I will need to spend about $15,000 to make it correct, then never drive it in the rain, or spend the same amount and push those new Z06's around Barber Motorsports Park on the weekends. Which seems more fun to you?

I look at ANY vette, even a '53 S#0000001 as being a hotrod, first and foremost.....

why not improve the breed?? modernize it into something more than it ever would/could have been at it's moment of birth....look at as a car's 'education'......it learned something new....

:lol:

RRV - You get gratification out of creating - making your visions become reality. I don't think the canvas you use matters - it's your MONEY! It is NOT about the $$$. The value is in your joy, gratification and satisfaction.

I have 3 C3s - I do with them as I wish and do not ask others opinions. Like it or not, I do what gives me the most satisfation.

Enjoy it to the max!

John

Road Race all the way! To me stock Vettes are kind of boring. They all look alike. I like something different and really liked the red and white one you just did.

I'd go with the first plan. It's similar to what I did. Keep the car basically intact but do the mods that please you. You'll still have a car that a purist could put back into NCRS shape if they wanted to but in the meantime you can enjoy the car more because you're not sweating all the little details. One thing I'd do differently though is to bag the matching #s motor and drop a pumped big block in it's place. No worry about grenading the original motor that way. I'd find a base Vette w/o engine to make into a road race car. With your skills you can make a basket case into a race car if you choose to. :cheers:

I agree with yopu 100%.

What I was saying is that based on the sale of my first two cars, it wont make a difference on resale value if the car is stock or modified:thumbs: If anything, I could get more $$ for the car modified than stock.

I am not talking about $ invested VS. Money gained off a sale of any said car.

Also, I ,personaly , build cars just because I love building cars. I dont build them to sell them.
After I am done building one , I usualy sell it because I get the urge to build another, and the money from a sale helps finance the next project.

My wife calls me a glutton for punishment. She says I just like building cars, not driving them:D:D

Road race.



It's what these cars where meant to be.



Just ask yourself.....What would Duntov do?



But seriously, road race. Maybe low key road race? As in, solid color, stock looking, but high performance?

Talent may refer to:

Talent, a personal gift/skill

You have the talent to create something from nothing...go for it

Your car, your money...make it so... Road Race that puppy

Rod

To go even deeper into the idea of what these cars were MEANT to be....



What does she say to you, man? When you look at that car, how do you feel? What does it look like IT wants to be?



I know that sounds weird...but that's how I kinda made up my mind about my car, and what I wanted to do with it.

Hi Les,
If I did the car stock, it wouldnt have any mods at all. Not even a camshaft upgrade. I just wouldnt use a dated ignition coil, correct NOS shocks, hoseclamps etc.. etc...

The car to most people except for the diehard NCRS guys would look and sound bone stock.

And yes, the cars I usualy use for these projects are ,if not basket cases, not great to start

Easy!! Just start, and let every day be your guide.An artist is guide by the way he or she feels that day.
Tony.
Good luck Stan. :cheers:

go back stock.....NOT just because i'm a purist, i can really appreciate what you can do with the road race cars, but in this case, with a project that has the original drive line, it just seems like a shame to split it up and mod the car. put this one together stock, and then either sell it, or keep it and buy a project car cheap without drive line to customize. JMO.....ultimately, do what makes YOU happy! good luck

Kevin, I think you hit the nail of what I am thinking right on the head.

I have this idea of a car that is going to be subtle. (well...by my standards anyway)
I cant really disclose the idea, but you are on the right track .

:iagree::iagree::iagree: