Restoring a Muscle car yourself can be an extremely rewarding experience. Think about it, you get to build it exactly like you want, and at your own pace, without having to wait on shops or others to get it done for you. Also, along the way, you will learn a ton of new skills.
As you come across different obstacles that you may encounter along the way, you will have to find a way to work around them, and by the end of the build, you will be far more adept at tackling issues, than when you first began. Finally, you will save a lot of money – we really mean a lot. For a full restoration, you are talking $15000-$20000 worth of savings from the labor you will be putting in yourself. So, now that we've established that restoring your old muscle car is totally worth it, here are some tips that will ensure you succeed on your next project build.
Start With A Clear Goal In Mind
Goodguys Staff Pick Award went to this custom Jet Black 1965 Chevy Impala
When restoring an old muscle car you need to have a clear end goal in mind. What should the car look like when finished? Are you going for a stock look? A mildly modified one? Or a heavily modified monster? This is important to know as it will dictate the parts you will buy for your classic muscle car restoration and processes you will follow while building your muscle car which in turn will save you money.
The last thing you want is to finish the project and decide that this isn’t how you wanted it to look and perform which leads to stripping down everything and rebuilding; therefore, paying twice (trust us, we’ve had it happen). So, the first and perhaps most important point is to start with a clear goal in mind.
Now, there is one more thing we would like to add to this. You should also have the value of the muscle car you are restoring and whether you will be selling it or not. If you are restoring a vehicle with the plan to sell it, then you need to make sure that you buy the vehicle at a good price.
Furthermore, the vehicle needs to have a good market value that will give you plenty of room to play with. It goes without saying that the vehicle you get should be as rust-free as possible. Rust is the biggest killer and one of the most expensive and time-consuming issues to fix. Now, on the other hand, if the vehicle has been passed down to you and has sentimental value then its end price doesn’t really matter. In this case, the project is done purely for your enjoinment.
Come Up With Estimated Costs And Add A Good 30% To It
Before you embark on your muscle car restoration journey you will probably want to estimate how much it will cost (unless you have plenty of money to spare). When factoring in costs, include everything you can possibly think of that will cost money and then add a good 30% on top of the number you have estimated. Budgeting related to car restorations is very rarely accurate unless you have done it plenty of times, but if that were the case you wouldn’t be reading this article in the first place.
So, why are costs inaccurate so often? Well, we tend to underestimate things like shipping costs, miscellaneous parts that we thought were in good condition but turn out weren't, shop bills (you will probably need a shop for a couple of jobs), parts we thought we had but actually don’t, tools we buy along the way, and many, many more. It really is a rabbit hole, but this shouldn’t put you off. The additional costs come slowly, so you won’t really notice the difference (or so we hope).
Use The Best Parts You Can Possibly Find
This is also something we’ve learned the hard way. Cheap aftermarket parts very rarely work as they should. In most cases, buying cheap means buying twice because the part either won’t fit or won’t last all that long. Therefore, when the time comes to restoring your beloved muscle car use the best parts that your budget allows.
Obviously, we don’t suggest you spend your money on the most expensive parts available, but we do suggest that you stick to OEM or better. Remember, doing this will save you from the hustle of buying parts again and also having to remove and replace them multiple times. It really isn’t worth it unless you know that the cheaper part you are buying is tried and tested with plenty of reviews.
When Assigning Jobs To Shops Make Sure You Trust Them Fully
Many shops won’t do the job you want them to do as well as they should. It is often the case where DIY car restorers assign certain tasks that are difficult to perform at home (like welding or sheet metal bending) to shops. Of course, there is no issue in doing so; however, you need to make sure that the shop you are dealing with is reputable as the last thing you want is to spend money on shop labor and parts only to end up with a sub-par result.
In the end, you will be left wishing you did the job yourself. The takeaway here is to make sure you are dealing with people who know what they are doing or pay the money you would have paid in labor and buy the machine you need to do the work yourself. Of course, this also depends on how difficult the job is, but in most cases, you will find that you can tackle it yourself.
Don’t Forget To Have Fun!
Restoring a muscle car is all about having fun. Don’t be too serious about it, invite some friends over for help, and bring good food, drinks, and music. Just hang out in the garage while you slowly make your dream come true (by doing this you also put more hands on the project making it progress more quickly).
This is the real value of cars, they bring people together. A simple restoration project can lead to unforgettable memories if done correctly and this is one of the biggest reasons you should tackle such a job at home. Remember though, food and drinks are on you!