Thread: I need a good project...

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The body shop business isn't the best these days in a small town so I've got to look at other avenues. I want to try my hand at building something and selling for profit. I've done builds for myself and many for others, but never a build or "fix-up" to resell. I have the room, tools, some help, and skills, but what vehicle? An older friend told me a while back he used to buy 60's chevy pickups and recover the seat, change the wheels and exhaust, and throw shiny paint on them and sell them as fast as he could get done. That was when they were easy to find. I know you guys will have a lot of different opinions, and that's what I'm looking for, a lot of options. What vehicles do you think there's a good market for that can be built for less than thier value? I'm not looking for something to do a tune up on and make $10,000 profit in two days like the stuff you see on TV. I just want to use my skills to build something I can be proud of and earn a little money as I go. What would you build?

As far as ?what? car to take on as a project, I think I would look around for a solid, rust free "DRIVER" that just needed finishing - - - - that way you can enjoy it while you're getting it ready to sell. My problem would be I wouldn't want to sell it once I got it like I wanted it.

i'd look for something completely solid, rust free, and above all, complete. Little odds and ends can really set you back. If you are in a rust belt, then pay the extra $$ to have it shipped from nevada. Also, i'd look for something different.

once you start, you need a plan, and stick to it. Swap meet parts, sell off the extra stuff, anything you can do to keep the cost down.

The real problem is not what to fix, but the price you are going to pay for a fix-r-upper. Anything that could be considered a "classic" is going to priced out there far enough you would be hard pressed to make any money on it. The guys out west have wised up to that and are charging big bucks for some of that stuff.
I stopped and looked at a '54 Belair Friday night. Robins egg blue, white top and inserts, 235 with split pipes and the interior looked very decent. The car had seen a fresheninig up, probably in the late 80's /early 90's. It DEFINITLY needed paint and both rear quarters would need work. The car had Alambama tags on it and the frame and front body mounts looked solid. The sign in the window said $10,500... You can't pay that kind of money for a car like that and expect to sell it for a profit.... Even if you got him to come down a thou or two...
You know as well as I do that nobody wants to pay for what the work is worth so, unless you fall into a real nice deal or start fixing total wrecks, there probably isn't much out there you can pick up, repair, repaint, whatever and turn a profit.
I'm just sayin', think about it before you jump into a big project.
Mark

Originally Posted by astroracer

The real problem is not what to fix, but the price you are going to pay for a fix-r-upper. Anything that could be considered a "classic" is going to priced out there far enough you would be hard pressed to make any money on it. The guys out west have wised up to that and are charging big bucks for some of that stuff.
I stopped and looked at a '54 Belair Friday night. Robins egg blue, white top and inserts, 235 with split pipes and the interior looked very decent. The car had seen a fresheninig up, probably in the late 80's /early 90's. It DEFINITLY needed paint and both rear quarters would need work. The car had Alambama tags on it and the frame and front body mounts looked solid. The sign in the window said $10,500... You can't pay that kind of money for a car like that and expect to sell it for a profit.... Even if you got him to come down a thou or two...
You know as well as I do that nobody wants to pay for what the work is worth so, unless you fall into a real nice deal or start fixing total wrecks, there probably isn't much out there you can pick up, repair, repaint, whatever and turn a profit.
I'm just sayin', think about it before you jump into a big project.
Mark

so thats what i been doing wrong ? you can make a profit on building cars ? hell ...you would be better by just taking the money you would spend buy some gold or sliver and flipping it over in to paper in one or two years

It's a good time to buy someone else's abandon project and finish it. With the job market and home forclosers so bad, Craiglist is loaded with unfortunate people who have lost jobs or divorcing or moving. A lot of times they just need it gone and are willing to take a big loss on something they've dumped a ton of money and work into.

Just my opinion, the only way to really make any money is to buy rare code 60's & 70's muscle cars irregardless of make. They seem to be very popular still. Just look at what some of the rare cars on Barett Jackson go for. Unfortunately, what it costs to buy a basket case with rare options is beyond my bank account....not ability. I would love to have a 70 Challenger TA (my all time favorite car) but then again I would have trouble letting it go.

David

Thanks guys. I know when I was younger my dad used to buy wrecked fox body mustangs, rebuild, and resell. Things have changed. The newer ones are more expensive to repair. There's not as big of a following for the newer mustangs that are currently coming up at the insurance salvage sales, so you may have to sit on them longer once repaired. The price of salvage is sky high now because theres more profit in selling parts than there is rebuilding the car. The last one we rebuilt was a 2003 Mach 1 and we thought we'd never sell it. Nobody could get financing on a rebuilt car. The repair was nice and all cutting was done in factory seams. You really had to know what you were looking for to tell what had been done. So, that market is not good for us any more. I know a guy that rebuilds late model vehicles and has a very profitable business. The problem is it's a hack shop and they make money by cutting corners, which I'm not into. I've seen them do things like cut a cavalier hit in the front and a sunbird hit in the rear in half and weld them back together. It's essentially the same car and everything fit perfectly together but it said chevrolet on the rear bumper and pontiac on the front. I'm just no into that.

I bought a 1990 Ford Ranger for $600 that needed an engine. I carefully sought after used parts and junkyarded together a EFI 5.0 5 speed setup for it, put a dry nitrous kit on it, lowered it and put on a set of 97 cobra wheels. It made 337hp to the wheels and had cold a/c. I drove it for maybe 4 years and sold it for $5500. I probably doubled my investment on it. But how many times can you do that with a Ford Ranger? How many people out there even want a vehicle like that? If I did another I'd probably be stuck with it forever. Besides that, I have no desire to fool with stuff like that any more.

I forgot about the abandoned projects out there, you really can get them at a song.

Recently I put my nomad on eBay. Hoping to save money not shipping it.

I actually had some clown offer me forty cents on the dollar for the new parts on it, and nothing for the car.

I think there are so many people on the ropes financially, buyers are going to treat you like a crackhead in need of a fix.

The 80's and 90's GM G and F bodies are plentiful and cheap, so are the parts for them!!!! Depends on what the market is doing in your area, if you start with a decent project car, put the word out and often lots of people get interested in how you're doing the car... I've sold some project when they're partially done, then got paid to finish them!!!!

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

The 80's and 90's GM G and F bodies are plentiful and cheap, so are the parts for them!!!! Depends on what the market is doing in your area, if you start with a decent project car, put the word out and often lots of people get interested in how you're doing the car... I've sold some project when they're partially done, then got paid to finish them!!!!

I thought about F bodies. I'm sure you could pick up some parts cars cheap. I've seen a few recently that needed TLC. The thing I like about 80's cars is that when they look good, they are very appealing to the public and fit into a price range that many people can afford compared to muscle cars or streetrods. I painted a 93 mustang coupe on a set of draglites and I've been driving it every day for a while. I have a lot of people come into the shop and ask about it and have had a few phone calls asking about the mustang sitting out front. Theres a good market for those cars but the prices on them are high. Mine is no exception. There's just not any room for profit after a slick paint job goes on it when you consider the initial investment. I could handle some full blown builds like I did on my '35 and the 69 camaro and 54 bel air I'm doing at the shop right now for customers. But, I'm thinking I might be better off to not be so gung-ho and might need to stick with some light work for my "side" stuff for a while and get the ball rolling. I just talked to a guy about a 80's Monte Carlo SS earlier. It's all origianal but it has been sitting up a while. Guy says the engine is tight, doesn't rattle or smoke, and the trans shifts nice, but it needs some minor mechanical work. The biggest problem is the paint is baaaad....right up my alley. Now I've just got to see what the estimated value is and what he will take. We'll see.