Re: Beware the "restored car"

Posted by Fish'n Jim On 2017/1/16 9:53:30

Some are shady but some just don't know what they're doing. Once they find how much time and money, they end up cutting corners or no money in it.
This, cleanup/fixup, used to be the perveyance of the "used car dealers", we all loved to hate, so why would we think things have changed?
People watch TV shows like Phantomworks, etc, and think they can do this in a week, believe everything they see. Some of these shows do things that are not quality technique also. How boring would it be if they showed every hour of sanding? Don't over estimate your skills.
Always go to the shop where the work is being done and see how they do things, tools, etc, and get a cost estimate, if you can't do it yourself. Don't just take they're word and make sure you specify the parts to be used.
Auctions are another source of concern. They won't let you test drive or get a professional survey done, and once you win the bid, you own it, regardless of the condition/price. I won't buy like that, if I can't be present and crawl over it. I drove two hours to look at some "museum" cars going to auction and they looked great from the outside, but after I crawled underneath were held together by bondo, too long sheet metal screws, and paint. The mechanicals looked nice but were a mess/inoperable. The interior trim didn't match, etc. So "museum" quality varies also. That's the 20 foot rule. They don't let you look inside the ropes, for a reason.
You get what you pay for only if you're a careful buyer.