Build Costs
 

I’ve been a member of the site for quite a while now and love watching and learning about all of the builds. The posts always offer a lot of information and provide motivation to work on my own project. My question involves the financial portion of car building. I watch all of the awesome builds on here, go to numerous car shows every year, subscribe to magazines, etc. and the one thing that I seem to have the hardest time understanding is how do people afford some of the cars I see. I am 40 years old, married, two kids, we have what I would consider an “average” or comfortable income, excellent credit and we are very responsible with our money but I couldn’t even come close to being able to afford some of the builds I see. I know this is a personal or private subject for most people but I would love to see any responses on how “most” people do it. Are they in crazy debt, credit cards, inheritances or just filthy rich??:G-Dub:

Just so you know, this question has been discussed a few times before.

Going into debt for a car like this is not the way IMHO. You gotta ask yourself, where are my priorities and do I have the disposable savings / income to make this a reality? If it was a boat or a plane, would I be able to swing it? No matter what your reality is, if the answer is no then scale back your project plans.

I bought my car in 2005 and started putting money away and buying parts as I went along. I did't start the car until I had the money in place to do the car right. It took some time but it worked for me!

In my case this car has been a decades long dream to have this completed. When we built our house it was always a thought of how and when I would do work on the car. It has taken much longer to finally get started but we are getting near completion. My family has been blessed and favored to the point of being able to plan and afford the work and parts on a single income. We have sacrificed other things to be able to bring this creation to fruition.
My wife and I have been and are in agreement on the cost and completion of the car. We have committed to making it a priority in the area of finances.

:gitrdun:

ALL the customers we have had that have built cars are SELF EMPLOYED, or have been and are now retired. you CAN'T build one of these cars in a reasonable amount of time if you are working for someone else.
I know there will be guys who say "I DID IT" and I am sure it can be done but like the previous post said it has been 10 years. Personally I would be WAY past it and on to 5 other things before I spent 10 years building a car.

Ron is the Exception to the Rule LOL but honestly he has been building that car for what 6 years and it just gives you too much time to change things and there for drives the cost UP, ASk Ron

I built my car in my home shop with a budget made from side jobs and extra income I could scrape up wherever I could. I try real hard to not take money from the family budget to put towards my car habit, doesn't always work but that is the goal. Point is, be realistic with what you can willingly afford BEFORE you start a car build and realize that if done properly you can build a real nice Pro Touring Muscle car for less than what your daily driver costs.

The average guy cannot afford to build cars like the best of the best on this site. But that does not mean that he cannot build a car that is in the spirit of the best cars on this site with suspension, engine, brakes etc that they can be proud of and also have lot of fun building and driving. None of the cars I have assembled come anywhere close to the best cars on this site but I had a great time and learned a lot. Each one was sold to fund the next and build on what I had learned. Key is to understand your budget and generate a plan accordingly before you begin.

Don

What's a resonable amount of time? I built my car in three years working for someone else. It's nowhere near some of the things that the pros build, but for two fat kids in suburbia- it's not junk either.

with in reason and results may vary.

If you can't afford it don't even try to start. You are either going to have the talent to build it on a budget but parts still cost money. So factor in what you cannot do yourself into $$.

Average joe next door "standard" built will still be an honest $50-60K. If you can't afford that, budget $30K and buy one done.

Slightly off the point he raised but I would encourage the original poster to realize that it sounds like he is a very rich man in the most important ways.

There are people who can afford to spend lots and lots of money on hobbies but who are not lucky enough to have a nice family (like the one it sounds the original poster has been blessed with)

Everything is relative. The secret is to enjoy whatever we can afford, to its fullest, each and every day.

^^ that was funny Blake! :D

Lou great point and post. :cheers:

Knowing what I know now, I would just marry up and go way above my pay grade. Look at Jesse James. That guy can pick some big money girls.

I have built 3 nice cars for guys whose father in law foot the entire bill for 3 very nice cars. I was unaware of those deals when I was in the market 6 years ago.

Hindsight is always 20/20.

Hahahahaha. When you looking you never find it but when your not looking there all over the place

To be honest, I was fortunate to fund Dust Off. I could just as easily have wound up with nothing. I had been saving for the build for several years and had a little over $15,000 saved. When the housing market and stocks took a dump during the 2007-8 recession and everyone was getting out of the stock market, it became increasingly apparent to me that stock prices were not likely to go much lower. Then when I heard one economist comment that stocks were at a 60 year low, I purchased $15,000 worth of stocks and crossed my fingers. This was either going to be the best or the worst investment decision I had ever made. Three years later my stock portfolio had increased in value by a cumulative factor of more than 4 times and it was time to sell. Believe it or don't, but that is how I funded my project.

I would caution assuming everyone can really afford the cars they have and/or have built. I can easily see guys everywhere who do not have financial priorities in order. It's like lots of people who APPEAR to have money and are well off with fancy new cars and a big house, etc etc but behind the scenes are debt poor. It's the American dream unfortunately all too often.

This is what I was going to say as well.

So funny that's it true! :lol: :smiley_smack:


Now you're getting it. :G-Dub:

I just gotta chime in here since I might have a dang good original answer. First off I bought my dream car. I was a child of the 80's and when everyone else had the Lambo Countach and Ferrari Testarossa posters on their walls, I had the General Lee. I also have excellent credit and have'nt charged a dime on the card for parts. I got married to a wife who also works and loves our Charger, have a teenager and bought a house. Our daughter works and goes to school. She buys her own stuff so she will NOT rely on mommy and daddy's magic money tree when she moves out. I have a nice collection of tools and a crapload of patience. I've been working on 1 car for the past 15 years only on weekends (family time is important!!) and it'll be ready this Christmas. Did I mention this was my dream car? I have sunk 65K into it, I am 44 years old, and will probably have another 20K into when I die.
So, buy your dream car, don't go into debt by keeping up with the Joneses, don't spoil your kid, have patience and an understanding wife who loves the car as much as you do. Oh yeah...plan a budget and then triple it. This hobby ain't like stamp collecting!! Good luck!!

My 67 Camaro is my first car that I bought in 1983. I had several friends that wives forced my friends to sell their cars in the past. I only know of 2 friends that have their cars from the past. I am single income, but I am paying for a house, new truck, etc. I can buy anything that I want, but I won't go in debt over my car. No loans, no charging on the cc, etc. I just pay it in cash.

The best way is just start buying parts, before you start the project. I have less initial investment than any of the cars on the forum. My project officially started in December 2004, and I worked on the car till 2011 at friend's Dad's garage. He stopped it twice in the past, because he had other projects. If you get in a money bind then just stop it for awhile. I have it up north now at the alley, but it is being tweaked some more.

Jeff

IMO it's all about balance. Sure I'd love to have an over the top build, but that would put me in debt and take away from so many other things in my life that are important. If I took that route I wouldn't be happy and that would take the fun out of the car for me.

I put together a build sheet that had every cool and trick part on it that I wanted. Then I priced it all out. The total of all those "cool" items was shocking and that total didn't include the car, body work or paint. So I took a hard look at what I needed vs wanted. There are a few items that will really make a car and following some good advice I went ahead and add things that will connect me to the car and enhance my driving experience, but not break the bank.

I suggest you search around and get a solid idea of how much the type of car you want to build will cost you. Find a car that is solid and all there. If you're smart about it, you can sell off items that you won't be using and recoup some of the cars cost. If you buy a running car, you can drive and enjoy it while you save your money and stock pile parts. If you have everything before the tear down stage, your car will spend less time off the road. Not saying to be super cheap about the process, just smart.

In the end, build a car that fits what you will really do with it and don't let it rob happiness from other areas of your life.

That is an excellent way to fund your project.

Yup. Should have married into a rich family, that likes you. My inlaws hate my guts.

My case, I built my 67 over the course of 4 years by myself. Did everything other than final paint and engine machining. One small purchase at a time, set the game plan and stick to it. Doing things over will cost you $$$ and time.

IMO, the more you work on the car yourself, the more money you will save.

No offense intended here but IMHO, "excellent credit" (assuming you are using the credit) and "responsible with our money" are contradictory statements. In the context of your post it seems you'd contemplate building a car on credit. Not wise.

I had Alchemy built in 1 1/2 years at Best of Show on a monthly budget. Was not self employed. The income was good at the time but we didn't have GW money.

I love my car. But, I love being debt free much more than having the car.

Don't feel bad, I don't particularly like my in-laws either! :lostmarbles:

I would interpret this as he is making this statement to indeed show his financial responsibility and good habits. You build credit by making good debt purchases and timely payments, as most know. Not running up bad debt.

I guess the OP can straighten that out for us. :)

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. :)

I don't see any reason to ever have debt. Period.

Did you buy your house with cash?

Buying a home, a vehicle, or having student loan debt are all "good debt" as Dave is trying to point out. A very small percentage of people are completely debt free.

Lifestyle debt is a foolish thing to take on. Buying a house is not but puts you in debt as well. Some debt is acceptable.

OP, just stay grounded and not get caught up in trying to out do the next guy. Curtis' post has some excellent points. While I didn't write it all down, I put in a lot of thought on my build and what items will truly cost and is it worth it to me. I've decided against many high dollar parts that were must haves before I started building. I've also realized it's not a race, and it's going to take me a while to build this thing. So, I save my money as I go keeping my eyes on good deals along the way. Patience, having a plan, and being very realistic and honest with yourself is what I recommend. Also, make sure you enjoy the ride along the way as that's will be very important.

Something to think about....


I built "Blue Hour" and it wasn't "cheap" and I had a ton of fun with it. It handles great, great power, felt strong and I loved that car. But if I were on a budget and wanted to have some fun with cars... Why not buy a spec miata and go club racing? You'll learn how to drive well and fast and not break the bank!

I've thought about this many times as I'm elbows deep in a project.

Something else to think about. I'm at the place with my low budget car where the car is already better than my driving. No amount of high dollar parts thrown at the car are going to make it faster without me improving as a driver...which I'm steadily working on. And I'm able to work on that now because I'm out driving and racing the finished (for now) car.

Unless you are just building a car to look at in a parking lot, there is more to the equation than just high dollar parts and paint.

Well said

Haha, great post Dave...you left out those 2 kids have a boat load of talent!!!

Someone just tell the guy to stay away from this hobby....screw this crap. :lmao: :lmao: But, seriously, it's all relative to what you want and can afford. Everyone's different in all aspects. Like other's mentioned...you can buy a $30k car cash or you could build a $300k. We don't know what you earn and can afford. But, yes and no!! Yes, some guys are rich/wealthy and no some guys cannot afford this hobby at all and should never have gotten in it. Take me personally, guys may ask why am I taking so long to finish my car. Well, I'll answer that for some. I can finish my car ASAP if I wanted to and wanted to put myself in debt, behind on bills or just simply void myself of all fun. The latter that I just stated...void myself of all fun. NOPE!! What I mean is, this past summer I traveled a lot. I mean extensively. I went to Dominican Republic, Puerto Vallarta, Costa Rico, Chicago, North Carolina. All trips were purely leisure and for fun. I spent a lot of money that could have been used on my car. But, I refuse to not have fun over a car just as I refuse to not go into debt. Right now I'm gearing up to go to Canada on a ski vacation in January and Brazil next June. That could be car money. It will be finished when it's finished. Rather that be 6 more months of 4 more years. I don't live my life trying to be like everyone else. Because at the end of the day, those same guys who you are trying to be like and impress will still be who they are and you'll be the one in debt, with bad/poor credit, broke and worst of all...DIVORCED!!!!

I completely agree. I do have a wonderful, understanding and very selfless wife, two great, healthy kids, etc. and I am VERY grateful for that! Like most on this site (I assume) the car hobby is and always has been a passion for me...it's all I've ever wanted...a dream to have that car like the ones I see and it seems so many others have. I can be honest and admit it's a lot of envy and jealousy.


Steve - Thank you for the honesty and openness. I guess this is the kind of information I was looking for. How does the "average" guy do it?

Bryan,
No offense taken, I basically just meant that I have an excellent credit score, always made payments on time, never written anything off, not paid someone I owe, etc, etc. My only current debt is my house, my truck and my wives car, all of which are what I would call reasonable amounts for those things. We don't live above our means. I fund my project now as I can with side job money but it's a very slow process. I have always put my family, kids and so on first and always will, but there comes a time when you start to think if you will ever have "your time" and be able to do something you've always dreamed of.

Yep, when the kids are grown and gone and you're either retired or very close to it. I, personally, am not at that stage. Looking forward to the retirement aspect of it though.

Not sure if the credit score is even relevant. I owned my 67 Camaro at age 18, but it was in 1983. I was able to do upgrades to my car, but it was based on my budget. Minimum wage at that time.

One of my friend's dad has several cars, but his family is like the brady bunch. (6 Kids). He worked at Delco Products as a janitor, but he has been painting cars since 1955. His wife never worked, but he made money on the side painting cars. He always owned around 5 to 6 old cars. He do the swap meets and always been looking around for parts. There is some old junk yards that have parts, but it is rare now. I have another friend that filed bankruptcy, but he still kept his 1969 Camaro. He has a daughter as well. His job was moving furniture at the time. He put his daughter through private school, and paid for her college as well. He is still in the furniture moving business, but he is a dispatcher now. He drove semi's for years, but just changed to the dispatcher job. His 1969 Camaro runs in the Xtreme Outlaw Series. Actually, it is former SS 396 car. He pays for his parts in cash same as me.

I worked on my 67 Camaro for 6 years on the restoration. The only problem is that I change my mind on my car, so I do upgrades along the way. Pro-touring has different levels, so you can cut corners in order to save money. I had to buy a new truck this year, but drove my old one for 14 years. I do use a CC, but I always pay it off each month. I have been doing since I was 21. I had friends that would just use the CC for their builds, but all seemed to go bankrupt. Short term loans is high interest, so it is better to pay cash. If you can't afford it, then just save up for it. Simple!

Jeff

I could never pay someone to build a pro touring car for me, so I made a decision and I set my budget at the cost of a new SS Camaro. I made the decision from the get go, either I buy a new car and enjoy it, and it is just another new Camaro... Or if it is going to be a pro-touring car, then I'd do it myself for that budget, and stick to it, and be proud of it when I'm done.

I restored a First Gen Camaro back in the late 1980's mostly by myself, so I knew doing a pro-touring car myself was within my ability. So many of the pro-touring parts are bolt in, or if not there are good instructions for a proficient jack-of-all-trades hot rodder to do it successfully. So far, I've been right, and when I can't figure it out, I look here at other similar builds and figure it out.

I have the ability to do some mechanical, metal and fab work in a pretty well stocked machine shop at work. Can't do engine work, not that kind of machine shop, but I can do a bunch of other stuff for the cost of material and my labor. Yes, I have access to lot of tools, and some skills to use most of them, and that was a BIG factor in my decision to do a pro-touring car myself. All I'm going to say here is if you get into the hot rodding or racing scene, there are actually a lot of guys out there that have access to machines and tools if you just ask around it isn't uncommon that you can have access too. Might not be free, but it can be really reasonable if you help and do the work along side in the shop.

Regarding the car, I looked for a project car for a long time, and when I found a really good deal, jumped on it. Buying the car was not simple, or fast, but I knew patience would pay off, and it did. Car came with a lot of new sheet metal and a fresh paint job. There have been a few surprises as I tore into the car, but not anything that I couldn't handle myself. Did the mini-tubs myself, and have been able to buy a bunch of other things second hand, like an unused full roll cage kit for $200. Found a barely used for 9 inch with the gears and locker I wanted for $800, had to upgrade the axles and brakes, but I easily saved 35% if I bought a new Strange, Fab-9 or Moser third member complete. Be patient and look for deals, they are are out there.

I also knew that I could buy a donor car that would make the engine, transmission and other swap costs really reasonable, especially when I sold the parts I didn't need from the donor car. And some of the specialty welding has been done by a professional.

Rebuilding the drive train is being done by somebody else, rear end, transmission and engine. I'm still within budget, as that was part of the cost calculation.

Unfortunately it has not been fast, as life, family, work and other pursuits get in the way. Thought I would be done last year, but I've been working on the kids cars instead.

If I paid somebody to do the build, it would be a whole bunch more.

If I blow the budget, it will be because I decided to go supercharged, instead of naturally aspirated.

I would think your credit score is relevant for the few good loans a person would probably have. Like your house loan or school loans. If you have good credit you will pay less interest on these, leaving more money in your pocket to pay that debt off sooner or to buy parts with cash.

To the OP, I just do a little at a time and pay with cash, most of my projects are a multiple year build. My advice is buy something running and do small projects one at a time. The second the car comes off the road its easy to go down the path of a full resto and scope creep sets in, then unfortunatly things start getting costly.

Sorry it is not relevant to him building a car. There is people that don't spend their job income on their cars. Some are doing bodywork, building engines, etc on the side. That money goes into their cars. Their regular income from a their job pays for their mortgage and other loans. One friend goes to state auctions, and he buy a a few skids of engine parts. One time he got several 427 engine parts, then he turns around and sells them on ebay. He made about $4500 on the deal, so he spent it in his cars project. While his business was paying for his loans. This is most common practice....

It took me many years to get to the point im at with my car, bought it in '86, probably over $50$k spent .i did it all myself at my own pace when money was available and there is nothing better than knowing you own it 100% .

He already explained it pretty clearly. It is an indicator of overall financial responsibility. For him and everyone else who has a FICO score. He is not saying he is going to go out and get a big loan to fund a car project.

Are all of these friends you talk about generally financially responsible and do they take good care of their finances? If so, then they likely have GOOD CREDIT.

That's the point.

The right answer could be ANY OF THE ABOVE.

FACT. You can bet each of those categories has more than 1 member. :)