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Question about old project cars

M

Mears

Platinum Member
I want to buy and work on an old car. No Mustangs though. Just don't like them. I don't want to spend a lot of money initially, but I want the car to have potential. Does anyone know of a good board for learning about these sort of things.
 
Well it will be used as a daily driver kinda. I live in a college town so it won't see too much use. I'd like to add mods as I go. I want it to be really fast eventually. I just have no idea on where to start. I really don't know a whole lot about cars so I figure this could also serve as a way to learn more about some of the more basic things without worrying about some of the newer technologies.
 
my uncle rebuilt an old shelby cobra and it rocks... coolest car ever, and its definetly fast... its really small though, probably the most unsafe care ever.
 
I'm assuming you will have other transportation in the meantime while you're working on it. Don't get anything that involves major mechanical work. This will take some time, anyway. Get something that is not hard to find parts for. Get the shop manual. Keep an eye open for tool sales (get a Craftsman membership which will get you discount on top of any other price they offer).
 
have you looked into an old f-body? parts abound. If you can find a Pontiac GTO, take a look at one of those. classic muscle cars are great 🙂
 
My dad and I rebuilt a 1960 Triumph TR-3 and a 1962 Triumph TR-4. Nice little sports cars and we are planning on rebuilding either a TR-250 or TR-6 next.
 


<< Well it will be used as a daily driver kinda >>

There isn't many cars more reliable then a 89 Chevy Blazer. Build one of these 🙂

And yes, you can shoehorn an LTI into a Blazer. The 4.3L V6 is pretty peppy though
 
big old chevy nova

Slap a 454 or bigger in that baby... sand it down and just leave on primer...
Get a new rear axle and put on 20" wide tires.

You will be good to go.
 
If you get a VW, the ppl at vwvortex are very helpfull. I got a lot of support and info about my Scirocco. I just got a rabbit GTi too!
 
The single most important thing, IMO is to find a car without rust. Bodywork is the biggest PITA (and probably the most expensive PITA) you will run into while restoring a car, and that's saying a lot because there are a lot of headaches in a restoration. Pay more to get a rust-free car, it's absolutely worth it. I'd much rather be pulling an engine than re-welding a floorpan or a firewall. If you have friends who will do bodywork for you (or if you're one of those masochistic types who likes doing bodywork) then it may not be as big a deal, but IMO rust is the most important thing to avoid.

ZV
 
No VWs. Just want to get some American Muscle. I want it too look nice too. I don't like really, really long bodies like the mid 60's chargers and GTOs.
 
My two favorites are 70-73ish dodge darts and 67-70 mercury cougars. Both are pretty cheap and both look really nice, atleast when set up right. The darts either look like granny cars or bad ass hot rods. There isn't much of a middle ground 🙂.

There are mailing list for just about every car made if you do figure out what you want.
 


<< Just want to get some American Muscle. I want it too look nice too. I don't like really, really long bodies like the mid 60's chargers and GTOs. >>



Aren't most American Muscle Cars, "long"?
 
I like minendo's suggestions on British sports cars, especially the TR250 (if you could find a reasonably priced one), but if not if you want reliable transportation. 🙁 I think the early Datzun 240Z might also be an interesting collectable car, although it's not really "muscle". If Mustang's are out, how about the rival Cameros; a Z28 might fill the bill. Good luck.
 
Alright, I think I have it narrowed down to either a Nova or a Challenger. Does anyone know how these two compare? It seems the Novas are a bit more expensive, which is a definate negative. I'm wondering about in terms of power, quickness, reliability, availibility of parts, and gas mileage.
 
if you're taking an old muscle car, and rebuilding it, and want it to go "really fast" eventually, you're going to need to pull the motor out eventually and rebuild it, or replace it with something else.I beleive chargers were available with bigger engines than Novas, but you could definitely swap a built 350 or something into the Nova.
 
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