# Considering purchasing this (somewhat) rusty 67 GTO... Talk me in or out of it.



## Schmat (Sep 18, 2017)

Hey guys - new to the forum here, as I'm considering buying my first GTO - a 1967, numbers matching true GTO. Motor rebuilt about 3 years ago and not driven, interior is in nice original condition with no tears, and from a few feet away with all the doors and trunk closed, it presents fairly well. However, it definitely needs floorboards, the doors are rusted at the bottom, and have started working on the sills, the trunk isn't bad, but probably has a decent amount of rust down by the wheel wells, and then some general stuff around the car as pictured in the photos I'm uploading.

So, is this Goat just valueless, or is it worth tackling, and if so, thoughts on what price you'd have to get into it for?

My VISION is that I've got a GTO with a good interior and motor, that perhaps I can put 10 grand into it and get it on the road as a nice driver. As the title says - talk me in or out of it, as I'm supposed to go over there in the next or say with a towtruck and bring her on home.

Oh, and a $30k-$50k plus GTO is just out of the price range at this time, so buying one already done isn't really an option, nor do I want to end up with that much into this one.

Thanks for your help!


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## Schmat (Sep 18, 2017)

A few more photos


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## bigD (Jul 21, 2016)

"...perhaps I can put 10 grand into it and get it on the road as a nice driver..."


IF the engine is usable AS IS, you MIGHT make a decent driver out of it for $10g above purchase price. So, if you can buy it for $5k, that would give you a $15k GTO driver. But, if you can't buy it for less than $10k, it might not be a real good investment. 

GTO advertised prices are REAL high. But, I don't know that very many of those are actually being sold. Most everybody I know must get a dirt cheap price, so that they can sell it for a profit, or they won't buy. Only deep pocket guys pay those high prices.


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## Schmat (Sep 18, 2017)

bigD said:


> But, if you can't buy it for less than $10k, it might not be a real good investment.


I can pick it up for under $7k. Most just concerned about the cost of the rust repair, as its one of those things I'll have little cost control over, as I neither have the skill set nor the tools to make proper repairs.


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## DNODennis (Jul 17, 2017)

How skilled are you with metal fabrication? While $10K is more than enough to get it on the road again, I don't see how this can be a "nice" driver without addressing the rust, both seen and unseen. Being a Michigan resident myself, I am all too familiar with what you will likely find when you tear into this one. Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge 67 fan - and the prospect of seeing an original AC car being brought back to life is very appealing. But to do this GTO any justice, you are likely to need more than $10K. Unless the current owner is practically giving the car away, and you are very committed with both skills and time, you might want to carefully reconsider your expectations.


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## Schmat (Sep 18, 2017)

DNODennis said:


> How skilled are you with metal fabrication? While $10K is more than enough to get it on the road again, I don't see how this can be a "nice" driver without addressing the rust, both seen and unseen. Being a Michigan resident myself, I am all too familiar with what you will likely find when you tear into this one. Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge 67 fan - and the prospect of seeing an original AC car being brought back to life is very appealing. But to do this GTO any justice, you are likely to need more than $10K. Unless the current owner is practically giving the car away, and you are very committed with both skills and time, you might want to carefully reconsider your expectations.


The metal fab is where I stop - all the mechanical / interior, stripping, detailing, etc. I can do. So I'm looking for basically 10 grand to take care of the rust, and if I could get the paint included with that number, fantastic. I'm sure I'll go over that in suspension, tires, and all the other miscellaneous stuff that comes up. Its that big up front, all at once outlay that I'm looking to avoid. I can trickle parts in over the next year or so without my wife noticing...


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## Pinion head (Jan 3, 2015)

Welcome to the forum Schmat. The '67 you've put up pictures of, several of us that have been around the restoration of 66's & '67's for decades, would see as endless money pit. Others on here, I don't know what they're seeing, i can only hazard they have little hands on experience with quality metal & body work or what it cost. Over the the years on quite a few occasions, I've shipped multiple pallets of carefully crated rust free original sheet metal to the guy that bought the rusty bottom of the food chain value (when completed) '67 GTO. Am not talking the well connected guy restoring a good color combo 400 HO 4spd or factory RA car. Its not a good situation to be in having to replace panel after panel on what amounts to when completed, an entry level automatic GTO. In every case, the customer could have driven 600 to 1500 miles with a truck & trailer & bought a much better project to begin with. 

Have owned a ton of '67 GTO project & partscars. The most desirable left here with a good title, as fairly desirable GTO project cars with nice trim attached, even replaced trunk floors in 3 of them. Two, the body's came off the frame with suspension rebuilt & frame & under body properly prepped & painted. A rusty low option YS engine auto AC '67 hardtop or Coupe, there is absolutely no way I would not have cut it up for parts. Knowing '67's projects as I do, the pics that have been put, don't just give a hint of the rot, they show glimpses of the need for major panel replacement.

just a few things from the above conversation & pics:
-floor pans need replacing
-both doors need replacing, pair of decently clean original doors will set you back $1200, that's if you come & get them, many of us are no longer shipping doors through Greyhound.
-tailpanel is showing rust stains...rusted out, most likely on the die stamped edges where the tail light segments appear, DA the panel down it will have pinholes... very common. 
-trunk floor has "some rust"...not sure what that means. typically, the '66 & 67's rust out in the rear window channel/catwalk area, the water then attacks the seam area between the outer wheel house & the trunk floor, & rusts out the mating edges of both. If the car had a trunk mat in it, then the moisture ran under trunk mat... underneath the car the winter salt bath is doing its damage as well.
-looking at other pics there is serious bubbling on the hip of the right 1/4 below the vinyl top trim. If you are able to closely inspect the quarters , even with limited pictures you've put up, I'd bet both rear 1/4's need to be replaced with full 1/4's. would also get the outer rockers are rotted.
-rear catwalk panel...have yet to run across as rough a '66 or '67 that didn't need the catwalk panel replaced as well as the metal repair to the rear window channel. here in the southern plains, very common to see the catwalk need replacing even on '66 & 67's that have been garaged nearly all of their 50 years. 
-rear bumper rusted heavily on the back (?), frame rotted out (?) both are very common on Midwest, Northern, Coastal, even cars from supposed dry areas of the country where the car sat on the ground. 

Hope this helps provide a clearer picture, a true "vision" of what those few pics show, there is no way Id wish that "project" on anyone.


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## Schmat (Sep 18, 2017)

Pinion head said:


> Hope this helps provide a clearer picture, a true "vision" of what those few pics show, there is no way Id wish that "project" on anyone.


It certainly helps, and is exactly what I was looking for. So, all that being said, and I think you're correct on the majority of your points (however, frame looks great, and at least the chrome on the bumpers is in very nice shape as well), what would those repairs cost to have done? And on the flip side, what do you think you could get parting it out? If there's just no way it makes sense, I'm happy to walk away, but it also means I probably won't own a GTO for a long time, possibly ever (though I'm sure I'll happen across a tempest or lemans here before too long that's already been over-restored).

Thanks alot for your insight and candor.


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## Pinion head (Jan 3, 2015)

Lot of metal replacement on this one. Just looking at the 8 pics, am fully betting full 1/4's are needed, inner & outer rear wheel houses, trunkdrops, trunk floor, tail panel, catwalk, floorpans, front & rear window channels rebuilt. Until the rocker trim comes off, hard to be 100% sure how bad the fenders & outer rockers are. No idea on inside of the decklid, but having sold out of nice solid '67 decklids, I would bet its rusty as well. Once the vinyl top is off, car may need an entire roof. Have no clue to condition of the core support, T bar, lower outer cowl, or hood. A friendly price just for decent metal work, in my area (which is ton less expensive than the Coasts) am betting close to 20-25K expense in Taiwan sheet metal & replacement labor. Not talking bodywork to get everything blocked & reàdy for paint. Parting it out...there has to be a lot of nice high value parts, or the car has to be bought cheap, real cheap. Just don't see this with this car ESP with anywhere near even 1/2 the asking price you mentioned.


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## GTOJUNIOR (Aug 7, 2011)

As stated you would be hard pressed to bring that to "Good Driver" status at that price point.
Owning a GTO is cool but not that cool.
Wipe your eyes and look real hard, you would be far better off letting it go.

Just keep looking one will find you and you'll know when it's right.
Cheers


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