Customs Lost and Found: '52 Chevy 4 Door, what would you do, what would you pay?

10 years ago life was full of changes and there seemed no good reason to drag a car like this to Idaho. Now I'm back home and as Providence would have it; I finally found my old project and for the right price, of course, it could be available.

Having focused on survival for the last 10 years I haven't paid attention to prices. The question is: what is a high and low "West Coast" (US) price for a custom project anymore?

I of course have a figure in my mind but have to sell my pickup and get it to be a daily again quickly in order to make it work. It needs: tons of misc bolts/ motor (if not just cam & lifters)/ brakes/ clutch/ "upholstery" to put it back the way it was when I let it go.

I drove it daily for years when it was rust brown, the black is how it sits now.

 

I couldn’t even give you a ballpark estimate, but curious is it as you sold it, or has more work been done to it?

 

Fair enough. If anything it needs more work and parts hunting than it did when I let it go.

 

Sounds like you love the car and want it back. Sometimes if your heart is attached to a project it can make you think you do things now when really you cant do it Just yet.

Im not sure on your financial situation but If it was me, I couldn't afford to pay a shop to build it, so id be the one swinging the the spanners and doing the work, so before I took on a project like that id wanna a have a sorted garage and tools and few grand of disposable income at the ready. and if I was going to be putting big hours in the shop on a car that isn't necessarily practical transportation. Id need my wife to be supportive of me prioritising my time on a project.

Maybe you have all that sorted out already, and if so soumds a like a fun chance to finish what you started.

Or, maybe you'd be better to trade a pickup for a classic running driving daily that doesnt involve a fairly major project. .you can give the current owner you number and tell him to call you if he ever decides to put a price on it and sell.

 

Well.. You know what ya sold it for..
An assuming he's the guy ya sold it to..
It doesn't really look like it's any better, And actually possibly worse..
I'm going to say $2500- 3500
It's not 2005 an "rat rods" are the rage anymore...

 

That last picture shows alot of patchwork metal work. I'm not saying its not buildable but thats going to be a turnoff for someone who isnt emotionally involved with the car like you are. My point is the guy who has the car now is not holding all the cards here. Your probably the one guy whos gonna offer him any decent money. Id low ball that thing. Good luck I hope it works out for you

 

I agree with the others. Lowball. If the car had not been yours previously, you would not offer much. Detach yourself from it emotionally and look at it as if it were any old project. Then offer accordingly. How much would you give for this one? And you can get behind the wheel and go down the road.

 

i cant say it looks like the value has gone up . probably the other way . ! they are worth what you get on the day you sell them . not a penny more . but it works the other way too .......................... well maybe not !...........!think twice . invest once !

 

Some would say you should never go back. In this case it might be correct. If what you're saying is the car has gone backwards and you need a lot of parts and motor to get it back to where you originally sold it, then I would think it's not worth it. Take the time you would have needed to bring the old car back, on another car. You'd be better off for it. No doubt your buyer bit off more than he can chew and the car has stalled. You're doing him a favor by taking it back and probably will be giving yourself a much bigger job than you want.

 

From the state of the windshields it looks to me like exposure to fire, I’d be looking real close before making an offer.

 

If you want it back, buy it.
Since when is practical a word in the HAMBers vocabulary?
Overthinking can be a mistake.

 

That thing has had a ton of work done to it, the reality is none of the modifications were well thought out or executed. The only justifiable reason to be re-united with your first custom is to correct your past mistakes, but if you don't have the time, talent or tools to make that happen please find something else to work on.

 

It looks like an abandoned project. Since you built it in the first place, you have a good idea as to all it needs to continue. Give a low offer, maybe he would like to see it finished as well and see it off to a good home.

 

I dated a girl I was fond of right after HS. A few years later we dated again. After a couple of dates the second time around...
I suddenly remembered why we stopped dating the first time.

 

Even allowing for inflation, I wouldn't offer a cent more than what he paid for it, more likely less....

 

You can't go home again.

 

Is the current owner the person you sold the car to?

Or have some unknown number of owners had a wack at it since you sold it? The more owners you sold it the lower the price, sort of like too many cooks in the kitchen.

 

This is a good observation. Might those wrinkles be in the film between the panes of glass? Probably from the heat if a fire?

 

The interior shot shows that as a surface film on the inside (tinting?), I had the same thought as you until I looked harder...

 

I see about 1000 hours of bodywork there.

 

Lots of filler primer and a longboard.... LOLOL....

 

The pictures I'm seeing must be different than the ones some of you are seeing.
I see an unfinished custom that looks to have a good profile.
I don't know if the OP did the chop and other work, or originally bought it that way.
If it's his work, possibly he plans to redo some of his earlier work.
He may have learned a thing or two about cutting up cars in the last few years.
Personally, since he knows the car better than any of us, I'm thinking he'd have been better off without every Tom, Dick, and Harry's opinion and guesswork based only on a few pics.
I hope he buys it back, and finishes it like he wants it.

 

NADA shows "low retail" in my zip code to be around $3300.

Come on, we've all seen enough of those TV shows. Start low but not insulting and work up. I'd offer $1800 and see what counter offer he has. Everybody changes their tune when you show them cash.

$2500 seems fair but I'm no expert on 52 Chevy's.

 

"I of course have a figure in my mind but have to sell my pickup and get it to be a daily again quickly in order to make it work. It needs: tons of misc bolts/ motor (if not just cam & lifters)/ brakes/ clutch/ "upholstery" to put it back the way it was when I let it go".

^^^^ You hunted down the car so we know that you're looking to get it back, but I see the above as the bigger issue. If I'm interpreting this correctly, you have to sell your daily (truck) in order to have $$$ to buy the 52, but then in turn need to make the 52 into a roadworthy daily driver (poste haste, unless someone is loaning you a car for a couple months). It needs engine work (or an engine), brakes, clutch, interior, and whatever else comes up. That's a tall order. If the aforementioned burned windshield is from a dash or engine fire, you'll add wiring to the list.
Looks like someone "added" a Tucker treatment to the rear fenders that needs a ton of work.
Is your goal to drive it in primer (like you did for 10 years) or build the car to a finished stage? If so, that's very tough to do on a daily driver (unless you plan to eventually get a driver and park the 52 for teardown).

Be mindful that if if the owner(s) after you did not non-op the registration, the vehicle may be subject to back registration fees when you buy/register it. This can run into the hundreds really quick in CA and should be factored into the purchase price.

 

Do you have any more photos of the car as it is now?

 

Not your Daddy, but if you have to sell your daily driver and have to make this your daily driver MY free advice is pass. Cars are like everything else, there's always another one down the road. BUT sometimes the heart wants what it wants and the passion factor weighs in with the car hobby, then any rhyme or reason does not apply.

 

I'd start with a different car.

Figure a way to keep a reliable driver if you want to tackle the car in the first post, that needs a LOT of hours.
I'd still consider starting with a different car than the one in the first post.

 

if that is going to be your daily . good luck . nuff said ...................

 

I understand about letting something go and then later wanting it desperately back, (been there, done that) but if it's gonna have to be your daily driver, then budget enough for a bicycle in the equation. It doesn't look like the present owner has done it any favors. Having said that I'd offer low enough that you might be able to keep your truck....

 

Thank you all,

Thanks for helping me clear my head and get a fresh, reasoned perspective. I’m going to let it sit, keep track of it as I can and see if things change in the future.

Offering anything close to what they paid for it when it was running, “clean” and all the interior pieces existed would be an exercise in foolishness at this point.



garth slater: you’re right. I let it and the tools I had for working on it go for a reason and those reasons hold true today.

Hollywood-East: It’s not any better, in fact it’s worse and the pieces I had to put it back together are strewn between ex’s if those in progress pieces still exist.

Adam401: Yep, like the kid that was working with what he had at the time was learning and making mistakes. And that is the turn-off for me, do I really want to, do I really have the time to, do my neighbors really want to hear me cut weld, hammer, and grind into the wee hours of the morning?

Rusty Heaps: I get what you’re saying

Buick bill: They certainly are.

52HardTop: Agreed.

Wanderlust, Looks like it was a tint because if it had been fire, those acrylic windscreens would have melted.

goldmountain: I would give it a low offer but after separating emotion from reality I think it’s going to either sit or someone else will play with it.

F-ONE: Metaphor taken and understood.

ken bogren: The current owner is the ex-wife of the guy I sold it to so technically the car’s had 3 owners.

williebill: I am the one that “did” everything with varying stages of ability and various tools, learned a lot of what to do, not to do again… That’s why I want another crack at it.

wicarnut: I figured there is safety in a multitude of counselors and got exactly the confirmation I needed.