a friend and I are car enthusiasts and would like to restore something such as a chevelle, or whatever we could get a hold of. The problem is, we are students and can't spend that much time or money on it. Can anybody tell me what we could do. How much would it cost? How much do we need to know? Could we learn as we went? I am so clueless. Please help.

I am just about finished restoring a 69 myself. started in college 6 years ago, found one with a good frame, dead motor, needed 6k worth of bodywork. Its a big undertaking, very costly as well. ( I spent almost 14k,) never mind the little stuff i didnt count, and the countless nights and weekends in the garage. It all depends on what you have to start with. But don't be afraid to jump into it. Buy some good tech manuals as well. I completely built my own stroker 383 by the books, and it runs like a raped ape. and don't be afraid to farm out stuff your not confident doing yourself. nothing worse than building a bigass big $ motor and as you fire it it goes, WHAAAAAAAAAAACLUNK. good luck with whatever you decide to do! Its an incredible learning experience!

Get a few books on muscle car restoration to get a general feel of what you are going to be doing, and when you start your project, invest in a service manual and factory assembly manual for your car. The more work you can do yourself, the more money you will save. There are usually local public school night courses you could take to learn some of the necessary skills. Invest in a cheap digital camera and take lots of pictures when you are disassembling the car. Try to find a vehicle with the best, rust free body and frame possible. The most expensive part of restoration is sheet metal repair, body work and painting. If you are truly looking for a low budget project, try looking at four door cars with fewer options. A running car is a plus, so you can drive it while you restore it. Maybe a six cylinder would work out for you. The gas mileage would be better and you could build a killer engine while you drove the six banger.

My suggestion only, find someone in your area that is working on a project similar in scope to what you *think* you want to do. Offer to help them out. Approach it with the same level of committment that you would if it was your own.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'd welcome the help. Good luck to you.

A car restoration is a monster that devours two things, time and money. Thats all there is to it, either you have the time to do it yourself or you have the money to pay someone else, but it takes huge amounts of either (and both). I don't mean to be discouraging, but it's the nature of the beast. Just be sure you know what you are getting yourself into!

Originally posted by snydes:
A car restoration is a monster that devours two things, time and money. Thats all there is to it, either you have the time to do it yourself or you have the money to pay someone else, but it takes huge amounts of either (and both). I don't mean to be discouraging, but it's the nature of the beast. Just be sure you know what you are getting yourself into! snydes said it all. After purchasing my car I spent close to $2000 on misc parts, etc., no body work. I've also spent countless hours working on it, I'm still not done. I also don't regret it for a minute and would do it again. As long as you know what you're getting into, go for it.

I may suggest looking for a car that is driveable and not a basket case such as what I started out with and seems to be the trend, for me anyways. I always end up with basket cases and it takes ALOT of time to complete. Both chevelles took me 2.5 years each to complete and ALOT of $$$$$. I learned as I went and at this point I am able to do most of the work myself, but it took me 8 years of doing these cars to get where I am now.

one other thing. if doing a frame off you need to plan on some dedicated garage space for a long time. I would say at least a 2 stall garage. think about how much time you think it will take to restore a car and double that. same with money. so far with my car I have spent more than planned but there is always little things that seem to bring up the price.

I would suggest getting something like Tom said above,possibly a late model Camaro or even a third gen Camaro that is still driveable.