Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Ellis]

Car restoration is an expensive pastime and I will relate the tale of someone I know who, wide eyed and enthusiastic, bought himself a Daimler 2.5 V8 saloon in 2003.

I will not name him or his whereabouts other than to say he is not a resident of North Wales.
The Daimler is a 1965 2.5 V8 originally in Golden Sand but had been resprayed a gunmetal grey. The Turner V8, a masterpiece of an engine in my opinion was sound. Less could be said of the auto gearbox which was seized in Park. It had probably been towed with the 'box in that position.
The interior was good enough to renovate.
Bodywise, it needed inner and outer sills, better doors than it had, new crows feet to support the front wings and an awful amount of cosmetic work including the boot lid lower section, boot floor and rear valance.
Fairly sound and saveable was an accurate description.

A friend of mine told me he had paid £650 for the vehicle and expected to have it finished for £5000.
The welding alone cost £3000 but the important part, crucial really, had been overlooked. These were the chassis rails which start at the bulkhead and then curve underneath and run along the "chassis".
Water can seep into these from the ventilator in front of the windscreen and rot them from the inside out.
Replacement is a huge job as they have be be preformed in one section before being welded in place. Each car flexes individually and adds to the problem.

Not surprisingly the project has stalled as the owner realises the enormity of the task before him - brakes, suspension, interior, sound better doors to find, rewiring, new chrome and the list continues and the gearbox remains unrepaired.

I feel sorry for him.
There were times I felt I had taken too much on with my Mark 2 but, touch wood, I didn't have the dilemma above.

What should he do - persevere or abandon the project?

Did any of you find yourselves in the same position?
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Starting Handle Expert

1964 Jaguar Mark 2 3.4 litre
1962 Land Rover Series 2a 88"
2002 BMW M3 E46 Cabriolet

[emmerson]

Ellis, you always come up with thought provoking posts!
I'm not really restoring my Range Rover LSE, rather keeping it in respectable, useable condition. Unfortunately, deteriorating health forces me to resort to garages for anything more than simple jobs.
But yes it is so easy to go beyond economical return. I've not kept a record of my spend, but have a box file full of receipts for parts and repairs since buying the car six years ago,so can make a reasonable guess that, yes, I have overspent, if my car was a conventional RR.
But it is a much rarer LSE, and as such appears to be appreciating in value fairly quickly.
However, as the car is never likely to be sold by me, its' value is academic, until I pop my clogs and the kids want to sell it!
I suppose, really, it depends what the car means to you, personally, and in that regard, mine is priceless.

[Keith D]

I believe that if your ambition is to restore an old car, then you need several photos of the car when finished. (Obviously another similar car already restored) Put these photos where they can be seen easily in your workshop. Then whenever you get disgruntled, as we all do, you can gaze at what you are going to end up with and ideally talk to somebody who already has one.

Never, ever, keep a running total of what you have spent! Just keep looking at what you are achieving and don't let your eyes stray to receipts. If your eyes stray to what you are spending you will either start taking short cuts or give the whole idea away.

I have fully restored two cars from the ground up having collected both of them as basket cases. I love them both dearly, but I honestly don't know how much they cost me to restore! I can say that it would have been far cheaper to have bought either car as already restored and saved myself an awful lot of money and time. But then I think that I have brought two very nice motor cars back from the dead and like us all, I get a warm glow inside! And I have also learned skills that I never had before.

Keith

[D4B]

I have kept a running total of my previous two restorations, and am happy to report that in both cases, have been able to recover my costs (just) in the final selling price.
This selling price only covered what I had spent on parts and consumables, nothing for labour..... But then that was just fun (honest)!

I would imagine that the current value of the Daimler when restored should also cover his outgoings in the end, so if it were me,
I would crack on and enjoy the ride

[peter scott]

I used to log everything. Trips to visit prospective purchases, magazines, fuel and oil costs and all materials and parts. Also fuel cost when using the old car and accomodation when away. My record runs from 1992 to 1997. Thereafter I must have got over the guilt feelings of spending all this money on my toys.

Peter
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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Rootes75]

I keep an up to date log of all work and costs for the restoration of my Commer lorry. I don't record spending on any of my other projects though and I am not sure I will on the next.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[Rick]

I kept a log of everything with the jolly green giant, in part for my own records, and also because I was keeping a close eye on the "budget" being worked to ...

Once you're so far in though, you have to carry on to the end otherwise you just end up with a heap of part-restored clutter that's worth very little, and often near-impossible to sell on again.

Once you're in, you're in, just make sure you have a healthy contingency fund in case, or rather when, costs being to spiral and the budget goes out of the window

If the end result means enough to you, then persevere on. If you're not fanatical about the end result, or have no emotional attachment to it, then maybe don't start a resto in the first place.

RJ
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[Phil - Nottingham]

After the second restoration - I used to but it gets depressing when it reaches 4 figures (not counting pence!).

I still keep a detailed log to help me recall if I did replace the item when it fails after a short time which usually turns out to be 3 times longer than I thought or longer than the original part lasted
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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[BigJohn]

I put all the receipts in date order, place them in a folder, and never add them up. They can keep the next owner happy in the case of the Manta, and my son in the case of the Escort. I'd rather not know!

[Ray White]

To be honest, Ellis, it sounds to me like this one is too far gone to be a viable project. Once the chassis rails have gone on one of these, the chances of it not ending up being parted out is rather remote. When, many years ago, I was working on these cars in a garage, they were being scrapped because of the rust. If they were like that then I am surprised so many have survived .

Sad to say but I think the owner of this once lovely car will have to cut his losses and stop throwing good money after bad.

[D4B]

I would think he is already too far in having spent 3k on welding
(is that BEFORE sorting the chassis rails?)
Best get the job done!
As I said, surely this car would be worth a good chunk of money when finished?

[Peter_L]

Perhaps a little look around before taking the plunge ?

This for under £12K in 2008

https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/16255/lot/618/

[Ray White]

I would add that in my opinion there was probably a reason why the car was only £650 in the first place and that's because it was a scrapper. When it comes to Jags from this era you have to take a hard nosed approach which is unfortunate because they were some of the most attractive cars you could buy. I think it would make more sense to write off the money so far thrown at this one rather than spending even more on a lost cause.

[D4B]

Hi Ray,

so what is one worth today, tidy but not concourse, on the road?

Any of these similar?

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/classic_cars.php?category=&make=5&region=&country=&era=6&advert_type=&price=&keyword=&S.x=41&S.y=17

[Ray White]