Need some advice

[camcojb]

Originally Posted by fatlife

Just remember that people who tell you 60-80K have a differnet standard of what they want in a car. IMO it could be done for less, maybe not the super extravagant(sp?) suspension and motor, but you could do %70 of what you wanted with that much money, but it all depends on who you can find to do the work. I know of a few guys who could put a car together for a little over that, but don't expect to have a Sema car. AND no matter what you do, just remember that on any level of car build that its going to go over budget no matter who you are or what you think

The biggest chunk of cash will come from him paying someone to do the work. That adds up in a hurry. Plus it appears he's budgeted $10K for the car, and if you can find one for that price it will likely need everything.

And like you said everyones view of a nice car is different.

Jody

[Weaver]

My plan is to find a nice driver, i.e. not a lot of rust repair. The condition of the interior or exterior is not an issue. Also, it needs to run solid and don't want any issues with the engine or transmission. I am not looking to build a show car as I know that would cost at least $50k if not a lot more. I could always upgrade later to a better engine/tranny. I would just like to get the suspension, brakes and wheels done. If I could get that done for $30k with the purchase of the car as well, then that is what I am looking for. I figure I could get a car for $15K, so an additional $15k for parts and labor for the suspension, wheels and brakes. I want to run 18's in the front and 20's in the rear, so it would have to be tubbed. I figure wheels and tires will set me back a few thousand and the brakes a few thousand, so that would leave about 8k for the suspension. Of course, this isn't counting any rust repair. This won't be my daily driver, so I could work on it as need be.

Maybe i just have a pipe dream after all.

Weaver

Originally Posted by camcojb

The biggest chunk of cash will come from him paying someone to do the work. That adds up in a hurry. Plus it appears he's budgeted $10K for the car, and if you can find one for that price it will likely need everything.

And like you said everyones view of a nice car is different.

Jody

[4mm]

Your actual cost will ALWAYS be more than your anticipated budget. I just don't see how you could do it even if you did most of the work. As suggested, find one that already has that which you most want and then tweak it to your liking. You will save a bunch of money that way.

[camcojb]

Originally Posted by Weaver

My plan is to find a nice driver, i.e. not a lot of rust repair. The condition of the interior or exterior is not an issue. Also, it needs to run solid and don't want any issues with the engine or transmission. I am not looking to build a show car as I know that would cost at least $50k if not a lot more. I could always upgrade later to a better engine/tranny. I would just like to get the suspension, brakes and wheels done. If I could get that done for $30k with the purchase of the car as well, then that is what I am looking for. I figure I could get a car for $15K, so an additional $15k for parts and labor for the suspension, wheels and brakes. I want to run 18's in the front and 20's in the rear, so it would have to be tubbed. I figure wheels and tires will set me back a few thousand and the brakes a few thousand, so that would leave about 8k for the suspension. Of course, this isn't counting any rust repair. This won't be my daily driver, so I could work on it as need be.

Maybe i just have a pipe dream after all.

Weaver

minitubbing is $4K to $5K in most areas. Maybe get a tire combo that doesn't need tubbing?

Jody

[Weaver]

Maybe I can start selling crack rocks. That would help.

JK

Weaver

Originally Posted by camcojb

minitubbing is $4K to $5K in most areas. Maybe get a tire combo that doesn't need tubbing?

Jody

[Stuart Adams]

For me it has always been almost double what I thought the cost would be. I'm not very bright!

[Weaver]

It sounds like I am just going to have to give it a shot and look for a finished car and then eventually change it like I want.

Thanks,

Weaver

Originally Posted by Stuart Adams

For me it has always been almost double what I thought the cost would be. I'm not very bright!

[rocketman]

The best car building advice,take your budget and add 20% that should cover building it.