Thread: Some Basic Advice

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Before you ever turn a wrench on this car, have a plan. What do you want out of this car? Is it going to be a daily driver? A bracket racer? Show car? What are your final expectations?

In your planning, a decision needs to be made on a location. Is this being done in your garage? Or a friends garage? Is this a driveway project?

Have you decided on a drivetrain? What engine are you going to use? Are you going to build it (do you have the skills to handle this work)? What about a crate motor? Will your car have a manual or automatic transmission? What rear end?

Who's going to do the body work? Or the interior?

What is the realistic condition of the car and the parts that you hope to reuse.

What is your expected budget? Double it! What it your expected time frame? Triple it!

Do you have a parts manual for your car? A service manual? Do you have a plan to store the parts removed until it's time to put them back on the car? Will you know where they go? I use zip-lock bags, wire tags and a P-Touch labeler. I mark these with the appropriate part numbers and the parts diagram for it's location. These are then boxed by subassembly.

Do you have a game plan to the disassembly and reassembly. Is the body coming off the frame? Do you have a final assembly sequence in mind. Have you thought of the minor details? Where will you route your wiring? What about the pad between the firewall and the intrument panel?

I bought my Studebaker last July. I have a plan in place. I feel I have a realistic time frame (5 years) and budget ($80K). You don't need to spend big, but understand what you're getting into. And when you've thought out your plans, write them down.

I think you'll find that in going into this project with a plan, it will be a lot smoother. As for the V-6, if you plan on selling the engine, I'd make sure it runs OK. If you're just junking it anyways, I wouldn't bother. But leave the car intact until you're ready to get started.

Good luck!