As many have said before... a gotta have a plan.
There may be some on here who giggle at the following suggestion, but I have gave it to a few friends who got bit by the TV glorified auto repair shows.
Contact your local community college, and ask about their automotive programs, most have a mechanical course and a body work course and these courses are not that expensive. These courses are often offered in the evening also btw.
By taking these courses:
- You learn to overcome your limited knowledge
- You have others around you focusing on the same subject which is kind of like hanging out with a car club.
- You can often 99% of the time work on your own car.
- You can take the courses over and over usually and finish a project under a mentor this way.
- Great if you dont have the tools or place to work on your car. You can use their tools/garage/paint booth.
I suggested it to 2 guys from work who wanted to get into the car scene... I helped them find a good solid entry car (80's era mustangs of course, cheap and ez to get parts for) and they both did the mechanical and autobody courses 2-3 times over I think and finished their rides at the community college.
I think my friend Brad under 2k total in multiple repeated classes to build his engine/rear end & do all the body work and paint the car in his course costs. Find a shop that will let you use their space/tools and mentor you in both mechanical/bodywork for that price. Working in the classes kept them motivated cause they had a set time/night to work on the cars, and once there they knew what they had to do... the courses provided them with a good plan of attack and kept them from sitting hrs staring at the car wondering what to do next.