Scrap is currently at about a 15-year low, even the day-to-day, hand-to-mouth scrappers aren't buying unless they have the room to store junkers on speculation that the price will go back up
Good a plan as any, I'd say.
CUTLASS So......I bought a car....(smh)
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Scrap is currently at about a 15-year low, even the day-to-day, hand-to-mouth scrappers aren't buying unless they have the room to store junkers on speculation that the price will go back up
Good a plan as any, I'd say.
If you want to learn mechanical and body skills, this would be a good project to start with. Along the lines of what others have said before, check the floors, rear frame rails, door lips and quarter panels for rust first. Post pics of them and this group can give you a good indicator of good/bad. I did a similar project some 20+ years ago. Didn’t recoup my $, but didn’t take a complete bath either since I did all the work (sometimes twice) myself. A mild olds 350 for motivation didn’t hurt either.
I say get to work!
I say get to work!
Why??
The investment is negligible. The wife is on board. A pre-teen is apparently willing to learn mechanical skills ( as is the owner ). It could easily become the coolest 4 door sedan in the neighborhood... Have fun!
I dig it and you are in cheap. Leave the outside alone, build the drivetrain, then drive the crap out of it all while learning. Forget all the naysayers, you aren't going to find anything cheaper to hone your automotive skills on.
"Locked up engine" could just be a dead starter, too.
Welcome to the site! You didn’t do too bad for $350. Like others have said, I’d look for rust issues first, then if it’s not too bad, I’d turn to the engine next, and then decide from there. I dig the patina on that thing, and would leave it be if it were mine! Looking forward to seeing what happens with it!
p.s. if you end up deciding to get rid of it, sell me those hubcaps! Love those things!
p.s. if you end up deciding to get rid of it, sell me those hubcaps! Love those things!
Get it road worthy first drive it get a feel for how you like it then MOD away
Welcome to the forum nothing wrong with a red 4 door in my book
Welcome to the forum nothing wrong with a red 4 door in my book
Being one of the handful of 4 door owners, here's my take:
Four doors have a few advantages and disadvantages over the 2 doors. The disadvantage is that 4 door specific parts are damn hard to find. You can get away with a few things that are shared with wagons in catalogs, but mostly you are hunting junkyards or modifying other GM parts if you need to replace something behind the drivers seat.
The major advantage is that 4 doors have a frame around the windows instead of the frameless design that the 2 doors have. Doesn't look quite as cool, but generally seals a whole lot better. This also means when you happen across a project like this, it is unlikely that there has been any water intrusion into the cab. No water intrusion means you are ahead of the game on interior quality and floor pan rust. They could still be rusted out but not as likely.
Another advantage is there is no difference from a 2 door when it comes to drivetrain other than driveshaft length. Assuming the worst case scenario, a motor swap is pretty straight forward and is pretty well covered in different threads on this forum. You can stuff pretty much anything your wallet can tolerate in there, but any running motor is better than any non-running motor. A cheap truck small block may be an easier ask to get going than an LT1 drop in drivetrain or an LS swap. Not that it can't be swapped to something cooler later, but a running and driving project is far more likely to get finished than a pile of cool parts under a tarp in the garage.
I would absolutely get it running and driving and make it a fun driver. I would also let it be ugly. It has a good patina, and pristine paint didn't make anything go faster. I bought mine for $300 and have put two different motors in it and put 10,000+ miles on it. It's still baby sh*t green and has a big dent in the rear passenger door. It is also mechanically perfect and will go as far as 16 mpg will take me.
Also, Vegeta wasn't a better father than Goku, he just cared in a different way.
Four doors have a few advantages and disadvantages over the 2 doors. The disadvantage is that 4 door specific parts are damn hard to find. You can get away with a few things that are shared with wagons in catalogs, but mostly you are hunting junkyards or modifying other GM parts if you need to replace something behind the drivers seat.
The major advantage is that 4 doors have a frame around the windows instead of the frameless design that the 2 doors have. Doesn't look quite as cool, but generally seals a whole lot better. This also means when you happen across a project like this, it is unlikely that there has been any water intrusion into the cab. No water intrusion means you are ahead of the game on interior quality and floor pan rust. They could still be rusted out but not as likely.
Another advantage is there is no difference from a 2 door when it comes to drivetrain other than driveshaft length. Assuming the worst case scenario, a motor swap is pretty straight forward and is pretty well covered in different threads on this forum. You can stuff pretty much anything your wallet can tolerate in there, but any running motor is better than any non-running motor. A cheap truck small block may be an easier ask to get going than an LT1 drop in drivetrain or an LS swap. Not that it can't be swapped to something cooler later, but a running and driving project is far more likely to get finished than a pile of cool parts under a tarp in the garage.
I would absolutely get it running and driving and make it a fun driver. I would also let it be ugly. It has a good patina, and pristine paint didn't make anything go faster. I bought mine for $300 and have put two different motors in it and put 10,000+ miles on it. It's still baby sh*t green and has a big dent in the rear passenger door. It is also mechanically perfect and will go as far as 16 mpg will take me.
Also, Vegeta wasn't a better father than Goku, he just cared in a different way.
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For some reason I love that car. I don't know why. Could be the poverty caps. Admittedly I am odd. In a room full of weirdos, I'm the guy they all call weird. So here's my 2 cents on the subject. Leave the exterior alone. Stay away from some late model fuelie swap. Don't pay anyone a red cent to build a car for you. Your best bet is to go traditional V8 and carb. It the best place to start (cue The Sound of Music). If you pay someone to build it you won't be able to maintain it. If you start at the very beginning (it's a very good place to start) like I suggest you will be able to keep it on the road yourself and if you get stuck in Idaho in a no stop light town, the local barber/mechanic will be able to help you get it back on the road. As much as I hate to say this. A SBC is the easiest way to go for a new guy. Everybody still makes parts for that and it's a bolt in. When you are ready to move up, you will know.
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