If it makes you feel any better i spent 15500 on mine and will prolly put a 100 thousand into it befor i die :lol: there is no instant gratification in this hobby keep looking youll eventually find something:thumbsup:

IMO The cost of a car build now is equivalent to where it was 5- 10yrs ago. Comparing the value of dollar vs dollar from one era to another is about the same. (Im talking parts, not fuel) In todays economy there are some great deals out there on cars and parts. Your not looking hard enough.

These cars are built over time with funds contributed over time. The rich can just get them built quicker or you can take out that 2nd mortgage you mentioned but find I bank that will give you one!

Don't get discouraged! There are great deals to be had if you're patient and look in the right places. www.searchtempest.com (formerly Craig's Helper) is how I found mine. I was looking nationwide and ended up finding a great deal on my 70 Camaro an hour away! It took me months to find that car and it took me years to find the bargain 70 Nova I had before that.

The other comments are right on though about investing more for the purchase of a nicer car that'll save you much more than that over the course of the build. Also, like Steve said, be realistic about what you can actually afford. It's very easy to get discouraged when the entry fee for a top-value, project car SHELL is double what a lower-value respectable driver is.

Plus, it's always cool to do a non-mainstream car. It'll stand out! :thumbsup:

That's kinda my problem. Although I already had the car. Then again, beer budget might be outta reach for me at the moment too. I;d say I'm at the stealing water out of the garden hose budget still.

Yeah there is cheap rust free cars out there look hard and everywhere.If you want one bad enough you can even go out of state to get it.I been looking for a 78-81 trans am for a while every one i find it a t top car or rusted but i don't give up easy.Yes some people ask some high crazy numbers for cars are not worth not even half that.There has been a 3rd gen camaro for sell here for months first it was 10 grand now its 7,200 but its really work like 3 grand maybe 4.Its a 383 and a fresh paint job.Or you see a car on 24s or bigger for high dollars i laugh hard at those adds.

I was under the same assumption about the Pro Touring Car's. Way to much $$$$ for my budget. I decided to give it a go anyway. Prove that you can still build a sick ride for less than the cost of your first Home.

I scored a Rust free 1970 Camro for less than $3000. Going to pick it up this week. Got a 396 BBC engine with the car. Deals are out there. You just have to find them.

I mean really, what is the purpose of the full tilt auto cross/Open track style suspension on alot of these cars? Its all about a comfortable ride and killer stance. You dont have to spend $12000 on your front and rear suspension for that. I am not taking away from the cars that have it all. They are insane looking rides, but how many of them are gonna get beaten on hard?

Supply and Demand. The demand keeps going up and the supply keeps going down. That means prices go up. A lot. If you dont want to pay 5k for a project car, thats okay, somebody will. Does it suck? Yes. Can you do anything about it? Nope. So is it worth getting frustrated about something you cant control? I dont think so but who gives a rats @ss what I think. Cruise craigslist and see what you can come up with, ebay is not the best place to look for cars anyways, everybody thinks they have gold.

you dont have to spend what some people do to have a nice car. just do as much work as you can yourself and be realistic. I have had my car for about 15 years and have gone through many phases. just start out where you can and go from there. no one says you have to buy a car and put 100k into it the next day you buy it.

just my 2 cents

Supply and demand..... people throw these words around they actually understand economics.

Demand is going down down down for pretty much everything... haven't you noticed? They are desperate people out there who cannot afford play things like weekend cars and such because their ATMs (read: house equity) is gone. Long gone.

Keep looking and be resourceful. Don't just look at ebay, craigslist, etc. Look in your newspapers and all those little regional classified car mags like AutoTrader, etc etc etc.

Take a drive threw the country....you never know what you might see in or near a barn!