Quote:
Originally Posted by GregWeld
Go to the "for sale" section here in the forums --- you just missed 3 or 4 cars that were REAL REAL nice cars - DONE - for way under 100 grand... and had all the right stuff.
With the economy the way it has been - there have been some fire sales... so if you are looking for a done project - check the for sale sections here and over at Pro-touring.com.
As you can see - there's just no way to tell you what something like this will cost - without a full description of exactly what parts you're wanting to use.. what your base car is - and it's condition. (I just checked in... to see what condition my condition is in....  ).
I worked for a year and a half with a buddy that had NO LIMIT... he just knew exactly what the end result was to be. He did NOT want a car that had to have any bodywork or paint... but EVERYTHING ELSE was to be replaced. So a new Art Morrison frame w/Ford 9" - LS2 motor - Tremec 6 speed - Wilwood brakes - Budnik wheels - full new interior (stock appearing) - all new wiring - power windows - power door locks - new steering column and wheel - new stereo and speakers - Vintage Air - Billet specialties Tru Trac serpentine belt - new SS fuel tank w/internal pump - SS brake and fuel lines - new crossflow radiator and core support - new HID headlights - new driveline - new fiberglass inner wheel wells - SS exhaust "kit" - STOCK headers slicked and porcelianized - new windshield wiper system - every square inch of interior covered with Dynamat - including trunk - new factory appearing gauges . Cost of base 55 chevy 2 door post car - $25K - fuel to fetch it - 1 grand - total parts INCLUDING the cost of the base car and fuel - $99,700
NOW FOR LABOR (in this case FREE)
Body was removed from stock frame and mounted on my rotisserie - gutted - floor and trunk pan mods - new tunnel for tranny - firewall slicked and painted - Chassis lines and electrical run and SS exhaust with trick hangers built - blown apart and powder coated then reassembled. Modify rear floors (raised) - modify trunk pan - built mount for E brake handle - Body undercarriage scraped and cleaned - painted with POR 15 - and undercoated - Body required ZERO repair or paint except the firewall and inner fender wells - cover in Dyanmat - install motor and trans in chassis - drop body - install core support - mount reservoirs - scribe and cut inner fender wells - remove for paint - re-install - complete new wiring - dye headliner - rebuild door hinges - drill for door looms - rebuild windows (rear) - install new power windows - rebuild wing window regulators - install power door locks - install all dash items and trim - install custom hoses for A/C and heat - build custom closeout for trans shifter - build custom mount for DBW throttle - rebuild clutch and brake pedals - custom fabricate hydraulic clutch reservoir mount - modify steering column mount in firewall.... and a whole host of little things which I can't even remember now... my point -- MOST of these mods done with the body in white (ie not finished) required many assemble/disassemble/reassemble check for fit/modify/reassemble with proper hardware (polished SS)..... So the amount of LABOR in a build like this is double or triple the amount of time that would be used to just "R&R" a stock part. AND THIS IS NOT A FANCY BUILD!! It's a very nice modified STREET hot rod. I have EASILY 1000 hours in this build with all the cleaning - and assembly / reassembly. Wiring alone took two people two full days (long days) to finish. Here's the deal on that - It's a 1955 --- with everything new - we get to the bulbs in the turn signal/parking lamps... and I end up rebuilding them with new receptacles.... no way you're going to do all this and leave stupid little stuff like that go "untouched"... but it takes LABOR.... and more little "un budgeted" parts and time to find and fetch said parts....
So - If I was keeping track of all our labor - and charging for it @ $45 an hour - you'd add $45 GRAND to the parts bill - and we'd be at $145,000 "so far" ---- and that is with NO PAINT OR BODYWORK....
Thus my "$150,000" real money - real life - guesstimate. You'd have a real nice - nothing fancy - very squared away car - that wouldn't win ANY trophies... but you could drive without fear and enjoy the heck out of it.
FIRST PIC -- AS bought -- second pic -- "near" being done... |
The car would probably be done by now if you weren't on here so much!!
