356 "Field" Find, Is it a good deal?? Options

[grasshopper]

Hey guys! My dad just went to pick up a 914 today, and when he was there he spotted a 356 out in the field. It was a 1958 cabriolet with a hardtop (I thought that was a really rare option). It was complete with the original engine (not in car, but complete). The car needs floor pans and rockers, but is otherwise solid. The guy only wanted $1800 for it...which I thought was cheap, but wanted to ask you guys first. Let me know. Thanks! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[type47]

with your sportomatic project i'd say skip it or you'll be stretched too thin. ever wonder about the price of the restoration of a 356? enough to get your mom a boxster-tip instead of a 914-sporto.

[grasshopper]

I'm not going to send it to someone to do the resto! I'm going to do it myself... Repair panles dont cost too much on RD.... Anyway, you could make a profit restoring one of these things. Put $20,000 into it (yeah, like thats going to happen) and you could easily resell it for $40,000-$50,000.

[swl]

I have a real soft spot for the 356. It it is for real and solid somebody should get it the heck out of that field! For me that is a car really worth restoring.

[Pat Garvey]

Hey guys! My dad just went to pick up a 914 today, and when he was there he spotted a 356 out in the field. It was a 1958 cabriolet with a hardtop (I thought that was a really rare option). It was complete with the original engine (not in car, but complete). The car needs floor pans and rockers, but is otherwise solid. The guy only wanted $1800 for it...which I thought was cheap, but wanted to ask you guys first. Let me know. Thanks! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Wow, before you even ponder it get a 356 expert to look it over! Horror tales abound about 356's that were initial bargains but turned out to have the wrong nose or tail, etc. Plus, no matter how cheap you go on a restoration, you'll be in a lot deeper than on a 914 (stock).

How come no one else has found this car? I'd pass if you're doing another car right now. In fact, I'd save money & buy one that someone else has had to spend the bucks on. Unless it's rare (& this one isn't so rare) it's a loosing proposition. Now, if you want to hang on to it for 20 years or so,,,,,,,,,

[grasshopper]

It's a loosing proposition at $1800?? Parts cars are going for $5000 on ebay...

[grasshopper]

BTW, the car will have to wait a few years to start anyway, so I'm not going to try and fund two projects at the same time.... So it will be in a storage garage until we thin out the projects a little.

[anthony]

I'd go down and give them the $1800 cash asap and sort out the details later. Worst case scenario, you part it out.

[grasshopper]

Thats what I thought...I REALLY dont want to part it out, because I am absolutly in love with 356's but never could afford one..and this is probably the only chance we will get.

[Joe Bob]

Never restore one of those things unless you own a shop....buy it and flip it....

[grasshopper]

Why not restore it??

[r_towle]

Buy it, sell it to me for 3k, one day deal.
Ill ship it.
I will need about ten pics.
Rich

[grasshopper]

LOL... I'll think about it Rich. I really want a 356 though.... Just obsessed with 914's....

[Cap'n Krusty]

356 people want cars that have been done right. You're NOT gonna do it right, and you'll be in the crowd of 95% of the guys trying to make a buck on a floor pan job. We're getting ready to start on the mechanicals of a 59 coupe that's been away at the restorer just getting the body work done. A year and $15K later, the car is ready to have the finishing body work and paint done. There are probably less than a half dozen guys on the Pacific Coast that are capable of doing it right, and maybe twice that in the whole country, and they've all been doing this for years. What looked to the casual observer to be a "simple" floor pan job ended up being nearly everything 12-15" up from the actual floor. Had to be done on a fixture much like the Celette bench they put Andy's car on. There are hidden panels and bulkheads inside and behind everything you can see. Things big bux 356 purchasers know about, and will want verification of repairs and/or condition. It'll cost you $4-6K to do the motor right, and $2K + to do the tranny. The rubber isn't bad, but everything else is pricey, and any buyer even slightly in the know will look at it ALL. Buy it, pass it on for a profit, and walk away from it. BTW, the hard tops aren't all that rare. I have a '59 cab here at the shop that has NEVER had any rust and NEVER been in an accident. Once we do thje engine and brakes, the car might be worth $28-30K, but we'll have to find the right buyer at the right time, and the buyer will have to paint it. The Cap'n

[r_towle]

pm coming.

Rich

[grasshopper]

You're NOT gonna do it right, and you'll be in the crowd of 95% of the guys trying to make a buck on a floor pan job.

Thanks (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) Why wont I do it right? I am going to be working at a long time Porsche Restoration Shop next summer, and the guys has been doing this stuff for 30+ years. How hard is redoing the floors? Drill the Spotwelds, remove the old, clean up any rough spots, spot weld the new floors on like the factory, same with the rockers. Unless this is a lot more complicated.

[URY914]

This was on Pelican as selling for on eBay $8600 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/chairfall.gif)

[URY914]

Unless this is a lot more complicated.

Fixing the car pictured above is a LITTLE more complicated.

[Flat VW]

Does it come with the 'trailer' too?

John

[brant]

You're NOT gonna do it right, and you'll be in the crowd of 95% of the guys trying to make a buck on a floor pan job.

Thanks (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) Why wont I do it right? I am going to be working at a long time Porsche Restoration Shop next summer, and the guys has been doing this stuff for 30+ years. How hard is redoing the floors? Drill the Spotwelds, remove the old, clean up any rough spots, spot weld the new floors on like the factory, same with the rockers. Unless this is a lot more complicated.

I've got to add..
if you compaired the way a typical 914 guy (myself included) does rust repair and welding....

compaired to the way a professional restoration shop would do a car like a 356..
there is a huge, HUGE, HUGE difference.

grasshopper, ever wonder why those guys that have been doing it for 30 years are called craftsman... thats right... they have 30 years of learning behind them to make it look factory. Sure, go to work at the shop. in 10 years you might be good enough to do it and have the equiptment (got a real spot welder, or just plan on using a mig?)

hey, I'll admit.. I'm just an average teener guy.
but thats what the captain is talking about.
its learned skill.
makes a difference
and makes a HUGE difference when it comes to the difference between an amateur driver car versus a pro restoration.

I'm all for amateur drivers, but don't throw around numbers that are typical of what pro restorations are selling for.
figure you cut about 2/3rds off of those numbers and you'll be close.

Heck... do it and keep it.
drive it and enjoy.
but don't do it planning to make 20K when you sell it
because you will have a rude awakening when you go to see how serious the 356 guys are about this stuff.

my 2 cents:
-yes its a good deal
no your not going to have a 40K car when your done...
(unless you invest 40K into it.... then you have a 40K car. ha...)

its similar to a teener.
"buy the best one you can afford if you want to ultimately spend less money"
"don't try and fix one up if your trying to save a buck"

brant