# does anybody know how much a full restore is????



## gizmo201111 (Feb 16, 2009)

hey guys i wanted to buy a project car . what i want to know is how much you guys have spent in restoing your gto's . im planning on buying a car that only has good interior . so i would need everything from fixing rust to painting , new engine , everything but the interior . what price can i be looking at . 

thanks


----------



## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

The car you see in my avatar needs everything, starting with new floor and trunk, rockers, core support, fender and quarter repair/replacement and a frame. Compared to all that an interior is the easy part. I had to buy an engine, transmission and rear axle too. I've estimated the replacement sheetmetal at approximately $5,000.00 and a complete interior at around $2,500. That doesn't include any labor. I plan to do most of the work myself except seat upholstery. Final bodywork and paint 6-10k. Bumpers, trim, brakes, wheels, tires, blah, blah, blah, I'll have more in it than I could sell it for in today's market. I wanted a solid body to start with but couldn't turn this one down. If I just took it to a restoration shop and told them what I wanted it to look like when they were done, it would cost 30-40k.


----------



## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

it pretty much cost ALL of your money hahaha
good luck finding a car that needs everything but the interior- interior is also gonna be 40 years old- and if your gonna do it might as well do it all


----------



## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

I just did mine myself, no frame off, no not every nut and bolt, I spent just over 10 grand.


----------



## 67/04gto (Jan 15, 2005)

it all depends on what level of a resto u are after


----------



## jeffbgto (Feb 15, 2009)

I would agree with the guys above. I have spent as little as 10 to 15K on a driver and 30 to 45K on a show body off restoration. Either way get your check book out and ready.


----------



## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

jeffbgto said:


> I would agree with the guys above. I have spent as little as 10 to 15K on a driver and 30 to 45K on a show body off restoration. Either way get your check book out and ready.


Checkbook.......:rofl:

Plastic, man.....


----------



## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

Some of us old schooler's pay for the plastic with the checkbook.


----------



## VettenGoat (Jun 19, 2007)

and then some of us REALLY old schoolers stash our accumulated black funds in a cigar box so there's no papertrail for the wife to follow. Alas, theres' no papertrail for me to follow either, but I'm certain between the motor, trans rebuild, rear rebuild, gas tank, radiator etc etc etc, I have an easy $25k on top of the ridiculous amount I paid the New Yorker that flipped me this car.

I've never been courageous enough to begin adding up all the reciepts.........


----------



## freethinker (Nov 14, 2009)

gizmo201111 said:


> hey guys i wanted to buy a project car . what i want to know is how much you guys have spent in restoing your gto's . im planning on buying a car that only has good interior . so i would need everything from fixing rust to painting , new engine , everything but the interior . what price can i be looking at .
> 
> thanks


nobody can give you a number. not enough info. do you want just a sharp driver for $20k range or do you want a full restoration=big bucks. watch barret jackson sometime. you will see all kinds of cars come through with 60k in restoration costs bringing 30-40k.


----------



## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

I think gizmo201111 was a troll. He had this one and only post and hasn't been on since.

Can be good info for those who are contemplating getting into the hobby tho. Short answer to the OP, whatever you're willing to spend......


----------



## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

I hate trolls, there evil little bastards, and have warts. I thought they were just urban myths, but now they're on the forum, WTF!! Are the dwarfs coming on here next? Then the elfs I suppose.:willy::willy::willy:


----------



## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Check my post about zombies....you'll wish trolls were real! A resto costs twice what the car will sell for when done, and twice what you figure on paper before you start! Guess how I know?? Seriously, a body off, great job gotta be 30-40K......or you could spend the money on a Toyota Camry, or most of a new pick up truck.....


----------



## crustysack (Oct 5, 2008)

I would guess I have spent 15-20k on this build and that DOES NOT include the cost of the car ($7500) and the LS1 drive line(5k) and all the other parts my brother bought before he passed away. Nor does that include my hundreds of hours of labor or any cost on all the carbon parts I made. I would easily put a price of 15k for all the carbon parts if someone wanted me to build them maybe even more. I can easily see now how people(that have the money) can spend 50-100k on a build. There is no way someone could go to a shop with what my brother started with and spend less than 75k- 100k to get to where I am now.


----------



## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

labor Rate in Ney Yawk....$69-$99 per/hr shop time!!!!!!!


----------



## geeteeohguy (Feb 2, 2008)

Eric, you're on the low side over on the left coast. Out here it's darn near double that, or so it seems. The parts keep going up, the labor keeps going up, the chrome and paint keep getting banned by the EPA and the value of the cars keeps going down. Got to be a labor of love and personal expression!!!
Jeff


----------



## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Jeff, It is very difficult to get good chrome here, or anything else for that matter. I, fortunately, have found several great resources for my GTO addiction! The trial and error cost suk't however......:seeya: E


----------



## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

I guess I'm close enough to Bama to get a discount. My body shops labor rate is $40 an hour, and they don't monitor the amount of hours they spend on it! They do good work, but aren't doing concourse work by a long shot.


----------



## MichaelG (Sep 19, 2010)

I am hoping to get mine on the road for <1000. Most of the hard work has already been done. I just need to do lots of cleaning. Eventually new paint and other "back to original" stuff you know like the engine, transmission and rear end. But, hey at least I got one. But the worst part of restoration is a post I just put up over in general discussion.:lol:


----------

