Mike, theres no such thing as a Cheap classic thats going to certify for little or no money. You should know that from the last "episode" You get what you pay for & you don't have the place, tools, or experience to repair one. Wait till you can get a GOOD ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

theres a decent 63 2-door down this way @ $7000 or $8000

I know of a good 66 4-door hardtop for $7000

Thanks Ray for jumping in on this, thought I might have to "adopt" Mike to keep him on track!!! When it comes "time" & he's ready, one of us is going to have to go with him to see at "least" 4 or 5 cars & get the best one possible & CERTIFIED so he doesn't get in the "bucket of SH&^T" he was in before!!! OVER & OUT 1 of the many "mikes" DADS here!!

Turn2Stone wrote:

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  I too am looking for an old caddy for the wife, something year round.

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I highly recommednd the 93-96 Fleetwood.

 

Yup, I think its a disease. Fortunately for me, i just recently got infected, and am now looking for my 4th classic in 2 years. I am considering building a shop on my property to house some more. The way I see it, everyone is passionate about something, you just need to find out what it is and go with it. The grim reeper is looking at his watch and looking back at us, so why wait.

You should be able to get that car for closer to $1,000.

What is a cheap classic?

I'm thinking that there is really no such thing, because you have to spend money on them one way or another.  Either you spend more up front to get a car that has had the work done on it (or is a nice original that doesn't need the work) or you spend less up front but more in the long run to keep it going and fix it up to your satisfaction.  Either way you are spending money.

Now with that said, there are more economical ways of enjoying a classic, and these are some of the lessons I've learned over the years with some of the old tanks I've owned.  I'm sure others out there can add much more, but I'll just toss in a few things off the top of my head.

(1) The most important rule to me is AVOID RUST.  Ok, this is Canada and rust-free cars are few and far between, but they are out there.  If you can't find a completely rust-free car then choose a car that has minimal non-structural rust that can be repaired relatively easy.  Fixing a rusty car is the easiest way to eat into your restoration budget big time - you will always find more rust than you thought was there and it will always cost more to fix it than you thought. 

The best advice that I can give when looking for an old car is to look it over carefully - putting it up on a hoist is the best way to find rust issues, but if you can't do that be sure to bring a pair of coveralls and a good bright light and crawl all around and underneath it.

Remember, with rust you not only have structural and cosmetic body issues to deal with, but a whole host of other components that will likely be equally rusty and likely need replacement at additional cost/time to you.  Thinks like fuel tanks and lines, brake lines, suspension arms, etc etc.  It adds up really quickly.

(2) Be realistic with yourself.  What are your capabilities?  How much time and energy do you really have to devote to your old car?  How much money over and above the purchase price of the car can you afford?

Take the Caddy with the engine knock, for example.  The $3200 purchase price seems attractive at first, but what will you have to do to make it drivable?  Sounds like you'll have to pull the engine, tear it down, find the source of the knock and repair it.  While you're in there, you might as well freshen it up with new bearing inserts all around, new rings, new seals, etc etc.  If you don't have the place/skills to do this yourself, you'll have to pay somebody else to do it - count on more $$$.  But then, you might need machine work done which might necessitate the purchase of more parts as well - keep adding on the $$$.  At that point, the car may sit and deteriorate because you can't afford to fix it - not much enjoyment there, and no value for the money you already spent. 

(3) What do you want to do with the car?  Just have a neat old car to cruise around in and enjoy the experience of owning/driving one?  Or do you want to fix it up to "dream car" level someday.  Again, be realistic with this one.  I've had a few old cars in the past that were drivable and fun as is, but were on the cusp of becoming "money pits". 

That is, I was faced with the choice of just keeping them running, but putting up with chalky paint, dents, poorly-repaired rust issues, torn-up interiors, pitted/faded chrome, missing trim, minor but annoying mechanical/electrical/functional issues, etc etc.  I had to decide whether I wanted to keep going as is or take the dive and start throwing money at them to bring them to where I want them to be.  There's nothing wrong with either decision, but just be sure of where you want to go before you start because once you start throwing money at them it's very easy to get in over your head. 

Bodywork and paint are expensive, but once you've done those the chrome looks terrible so you throw $$$ at chrome.  Then you notice that the fresh paint makes the interior look all the worse.  Then you decide that your car looks great but doesn't drive as nicely as you want it to, so you go at the suspension.  Then you have a nice car that smokes a little or is down on power or doesn't shift quite right.  Suddenly you've got twice the money into the car than you'll ever get out of it.

It's not all bad, as it can be quite satisfying in the long run, but I'm just saying be realistic with yourself and don't bite off more than you can chew.

(4) Car choice.  Well, obviously you have to choose a car that interests/excites you but some cars make better "cheap classics" than others. 

Some may not agree with me on this, but I'd tend to avoid the top-end luxury cars for two main reasons.  Firstly, the luxury models all had more stuff on them - that means more stuff that can break and can be expensive/frustrating to repair.  Sometimes all that electric/automatic stuff can really be a pain to deal with.  The simpler the car the easier it will be to fix.  Secondly, the high-end luxury stuff - the Caddys, Buicks, Imperials, Lincolns, etc tend to have less of a following among the mainstream of the hobby and are thusly not very well supported by the aftermarket.  Parts can be tough to find unless you have some good junkyard contacts, or have the time/patience to scan the internet ads or auction sites to find them.

Age and practicality can be an issue as well.  While I think the finned Mopars are some of the coolest cars on wheels, they are also hard to find in decent shape and were less popular than their Ford and GM contemporaries.  They were also prone to serious rust.  Again, be prepared to spend money on them.

Safety systems might be something to think about as well.  For example dual-chamber master cylinders and seat belts.  Those finned Mopars will have neither.  Anybody who has popped a brake line while driving a car will attest to the fact that there is nothing scarier than having no brakes - on a dual chamber (1967 or later) setup you always have half of the brakes remaining to get you to the side of the road, but the single-chamber setup leaves you no options except the park brake and gearing down.  They can be upgraded but again, at a cost.  Ideally, one should ensure that all braking systems are at 100%, but reality of keeping a car at a low budget often means that systems are left to be "good enough" - which for obvious reasons can come back to bite you.  Seat belts can also be upgraded, but again at a cost.

Notice the common thread here?  Cost!  It's all good and fun, but ya gotta be realistic about what you want/need and how much it will really cost you.  The more work you can do yourself, will obviously result in less cost financially but more cost to your personal life.  If you have a wife or girlfriend (hopefully not both!), they will likely want to occupy a part of your personal life, so unless they enjoy getting their hands dirty under the hood of an old car this will have to figure into the equation.

Sorry for the long ramble... I ended up typing more than I had set out to do, but it's just a few of my personal thoughts on the subject.  I constantly have the struggle of wanting to get back into an old car as cheaply as possible and often my emotional reaction to an old car clouds my judgement somewhat, so you're not alone... I'm sure most people in the hobby deal with this at one time or another.

Good luck on whatever you decide!

Good write up MC. Memories, of all the mechanic inspections, fees, tow charges, appraisals, taxes, are all coming back as well.
Has put some more thought for me. I will have to back off for now, and get that one thing that is priority. But I will be back for a classic, and I will be ready one day.

Halfbreed, sweet car, good price. But
Pete and Ray reminded me what has to come first. When I get that, then I will come back and talk.



-- Edited by mike667 on Wednesday 8th of September 2010 04:25:41 PM