Ideas for classic car restore and sons first car?

[00bolt]

I remember my dad telling me the story of his first car. My grandfather took him to a junk yard for his 14th birthday and told him he could get any car on the lot and had 2 years to fix it up. It was a good life leason because after working on it for 2 years, he learned to appreciate and take care of his car, and also learned alot about how to work on cars for the rest of his life.

Anyway, this has always kinda stuck in the back of my mind and my son just turned 12 this month and he is just starting to get into cars. However, he likes lambos, vipers, etc.

I was thinking this might be a cool thing for the 2 of us to do. Maybe get an old junker and fix it up for some father/son time, and also be his first car.

So heres the question... iv never really worked on cars before, the mustangs and lightning i had, i pretty much had others do most the upgrades and work. So Id like something thats fairly easy and cheap to work on. I was thinking a late 60s, early 70s car. Of course I like camaros, cudas, challengers, etc But Im not really sure which are reasonably priced and can be worked on easiest (find parts, etc).

So if you were in my situation, didnt want to spend $30k to fix up a car, not much experience and possibly be your kids first car... what would you go after? I need it to still be "cool" to a young kid as well or he will lose interest.

[00bolt]

in a perfect world, Id be able to find a decent car in the $5k range, then maybe spend another $5-10k to fix it up over the next few years. I dont want to find a shell of a car with no wiring, anything at all.. Id like it to at least be a car to begin with.. maybe it needs engine, interior, paint, etc kinda work, but since im far from an expert, i dont want to have to COMPLETELY build a car from the ground up.

[Baron Von Crowder]

Id suggest finding someone who is selling a project that all the really hard and or expensive things are done, and that way the two of you can spend time doing the final details that make it a nice driver when he turns 16.

Something like my 69.

[Tannerm]

this is a super cool idea. My first was a 200ci 4 spd 65 coupe. Started my love for stangs. If dad is a stang nut, I suggest starting him on a Mustang. My dad isnt a car guy at all so it was pure coincedence that I got stuck with a Mustang. Thank god for it!

[Tannerm]

If I had to go the cheap, easy, classic route; my suggestion would be a 67-72 Chevy or GMC pickup C10. Love those trucks, will have/take a 350 u can get for dirt cheap (prolly at the same junk yard) and slap a 350 or 400 tranny in it. Thats my next classic I want... Short or long wheel base. IDC

[00bolt]

well my dad is the one who did this originally and he ended up with a Studebaker Hawk, Iv seen pictures it was awesome.

Since my mom and dad divorced and he lives in St. Louis where i was born and we moved to Texas before I was 16, we never this this idea with me

and now my son has turned 12 and am thinking of starting it with him. I (the dad) do very much like Mustangs and they certainly seem to fall into the category of the cheaper side and easily found parts. At this point, that is probably our #1 choice at the moment. I kinda dig the 69 fastbacks or the Mach 1s, however Im sure the Mach 1s are more expensive

[Kyle]

well my dad is the one who did this originally and he ended up with a Studebaker Hawk, Iv seen pictures it was awesome.

Since my mom and dad divorced and he lives in St. Louis where i was born and we moved to Texas before I was 16, we never this this idea with me

and now my son has turned 12 and am thinking of starting it with him. I (the dad) do very much like Mustangs and they certainly seem to fall into the category of the cheaper side and easily found parts. At this point, that is probably our #1 choice at the moment. I kinda dig the 69 fastbacks or the Mach 1s, however Im sure the Mach 1s are more expensive

70s model Corvette. Then he can say he drives a vette. Parts should be plentiful as well. Carb'd motors and automatics are pretty easy to come by!

Even a vette out of the 80s are pretty cheap!

[00bolt]

just out of curiosity, how much is insurance on an older car like a vette for a 16 year old boy? I know a newer version would be through the rough, would an older be the same?

[TexasT]

Mid eighties Gbody, fox mustang/fairmont, some kind of river, all cheap and parts shouldn't be a prob.

[Reefer Rae]

Buick regal running and pre 85 , no emissions, no fi and it would be fun to make a grand national clone

[347Mike]

I paid $4000 +/- for my '66 Mustang when I was 15-16. My dad and I pulled the engine, some suspension stuff and gave it a make over. Cleaned/sanded/repainted engine bay and motor. The car was in good shape paint and interior wise but still needed some grooming.

[Ratt]

I know where an original v8 66 coupe is sitting and someone who wants to sell it. It's been sitting for probably a couple decades but it still fires up. Needs new tires, new paint, some body work, probably all hoses replaced and wiring gone through (but wiring probably doesn't need to be replaced). It's just been sitting there under a car port, waiting to go to an awesome home.

[naynay]

Fox body +$10k in mods

[mystic96]

My grandfather did the same thing for my dad. Bought him a 1952 Ford coupe for $75 and said if he could get it running, he could have it. My dad drove that car from the time he got it running until he graduated college in '63

I'd always heard my dad tell this story when I was growing up so when I was 14 we found a 1952 Ford coupe for me. Started out great but once we started to butt heads on how each other wanted to car to look, he pretty much quit helping me out with it. And of course a 14 y/o doesn't have much of a way to pay to restore a car on his own, so the car sat for the next 15 years basically until I finally had to sell it.

Moral of the story, don't be close minded to your kid's ideas and lose interest....lol

[black2002ls]

I second the 68-72 C-10 route. Short beds seem to be bringing stupid money, but you can still find good deals on long beds. Some of the older models are decently priced as well. Its not a car or a hot rod, but it can still be a fun bonding experience. It also gives you an inexpensive option to swap an LS based motor in. Fuel Injection would be a nice option with fuel prices like they are. You can pick up 5.3L with a harness for under 1K, if you look hard enough you can find them in the $500 range.

What I would do is to present the idea to him, along with a budget for a 2 or 3 year restoration, and have him make a list of cars he would like to build with that in mind.