Restoring old cars is a popular hobby amongst car enthusiasts. But if you have an old car, how can you tell if it is worth restoring?
Thankfully, there are some things you can look out for, of which will help you work out if you should consider restoring a car.
In fact, if you keep reading, you’ll discover what it takes to identify old cars that are worth restoring, even if you don’t know much about cars.
Let’s begin!
Learn More About the Value of the Car
Learning about the car in question can help you decide whether you should restore it or not.
More specifically, you’ll want to learn more about the value of the car, if it is to be restored. You’ll then want to work backward and assess whether you will make money if you go through the effort to restore this car.
You can do this by visiting websites that sell cars. If you’re dealing with a particularly rare model of car, you might not be able to see a ‘live’ listing of your vehicle. If this is the case, try to find some ‘historic’ listings.
Such listings will allow you to identify previous listings on the website, that tried to sell your type of car. You’ll be able to see what the final purchase price was.
When you are doing this, make sure you find cars that were produced in the same year as your car. If you are happy with the final prices you see, and you think you can restore the car without losing money, it’s a good sign.
But, if this is just a passion project, you might not be concerned with the resale value of the car. Even still, it can be a good idea to do the math behind this project. That’s because you might want to move onto another car in the future. The amount of money you can sell this car for will often determine the kind of car your next project will involve.
What Skills Are Required?
Restoring a car takes a lot of work and each restoration project is different. You need to take a look at the project in front of you and consider if you have the skills needed to get the job done.
If you only need to do some aesthetic work to the car, then it should not be too much of an issue. But if you’re essentially dealing with a ‘shell’ of a car, you’ll need to do a lot more. You might need to work on the engine and the transmission.
If you’re not a skilled mechanic, you might find it difficult to repair the car. You may even put yourself in harm’s way by attempting to do such work.
In a situation like this, you should think about whether it is worth going through the effort required to fix up the car. If you are adamant about restoring the car, you can always hire someone to help you with the challenging tasks. A skilled mechanic will help you get this done.
Alternatively, you could hire someone who has a lot of experience with restoring old cars. They’ll know how to go about restoring your car, in the most efficient way possible. Of course, an individual like this can cost a bit more money, than an average mechanic. But by working with them you are more likely to end up with a high-quality product.
Think About Storing Your Car in a Safe Place
If you are treating this car as an investment, you need to put some thought into storing it in a safe place. If you do not take these steps then all the money you spend on the car could soon be lost.
When talking about a safe place, we’re not just talking about a place that’ll prevent the theft of your car. We’re also talking about a location that is going to protect your car from harmful environmental issues.
You want to make sure that your car is not going to be affected by excess damp. Otherwise, you might have to deal with mold in the car.
In some cases, it can be a good idea to install something like a dehumidifier, so that the car is not going to be affected by moisture in the air. There’s also the option of placing some open tubs of baking soda within the car. This’ll also help absorb some moisture that might otherwise prove problematic.
You may also want to think about covering the car so that nothing damages the paintwork. There are special covers you can buy, designed to protect cars. These covers are designed so they don’t scratch the car when they’re put on.
If you’d like to take things even further, think about seeking out a company that specializes in storing restored cars. They’ll take the steps mentioned above, and more. Such a service can be expensive. But it can provide peace of mind as you’ll know your car has an improved chance of maintaining its restored state.
Is It Time You Consider Restoring a Car?
Restoring a car can be a lot of fun. But if you’ve never restored a car before, how can you tell the difference between a car that’s worth restoring and one that needs to go to the scrap yard?
In this post, we’ve taken a look at some of the things you should consider when it comes to restoring cars. You need to assess the sale price of similar cars, that have been restored. You also want to be careful about working on the car. You don’t want to do anything that is going to put you in danger.
If you do restore a car, it’s important you think about storing it somewhere safe. You don’t want your car to be damaged, after spending all your time and money making it look awesome.
Interested in learning more about working on cars? Check out our auto repair and maintenance section to see some of our latest content.