I have a terrible dilemma!! I need opinions!!!

Just because the Dodge doesn't need much work doesn't mean you can't make it your own. Drive it and make upgrades and personalize it as you go along. There's a big difference in putting money into a car because you want to as opposed to needing to.

 

It all makes perfect sense! Maybe you can pass a car down to your daugher and teach her to wrench while you're at it! Good luck with your decision.

 

Ever since I was a little kid I was always trying to save every animal I could(I still do that... Got in trouble for it then.. get in trouble for it now).. I've moved up to cars.. Except I can't very well drag home every sick car I find and nurse it back to health.. But I managed to get one to call my own.. and I've never felt a bit of regret for a single penny that I've put into it.

The personalization that I've put into my car hasn't cost me much. It's been much more creative than costly. I'm not just about the what but the how. There's not a single thing I've done to my car that I would want to do to that Dodge, cause it would ruin it.. But on my car it just makes it more unique, more mine, and more beautiful. I made my own seat cover, I tore out my rotted headliner and sprayed the metal under it white with a black border and roses in each corner, I painted the whole outside of the car with Krylon semi-gloss black and Cherry Red, I pinstriped my fenders and my trunk lid, I painted my dash black and red and metal flaked a stripe across the center, had to unscrew the latch to get my trunk open, so to lock it back up I screwed on a latch and put a mid eval padlock on it.. I didn't do anything the "right" way, I found my own way to do it (ask my mom, I've always had to do EVERYTHING my own way, even if it's more difficult than just doing it the right way), but I get it done to my liking.. And in the end, that's all I care about, is that I like it..
Point is, I like that I can make my car mine in my own way. Not just go out and buy a bunch of new things and screw them on.

I'm still a little torn.. We'll see how tomorrow goes.

 

not to say that buying new things for it is bad, just pointing out that I like the fact that I can do so much more than that.

 

got some pics of it!??

 

Sounds to me like your Dad knows YOU better than you know YOU.

HE (Dad) WANTS YOU TO BE SAFE,bottom line !

Also sounds to me thats theirs more to the story than you want to say !

 

It's been a very emotional day for me.. There's a lot more to it than there should be.
But I think I've figure out what the last thing is..
Pride.
I'm so proud of my car. I've never been so proud of anything in my life. It's the first significant thing that is completely mine. I bought it with my money, I worked for it, and have put my blood (and a chunk of my knee) and sweat into it. There's only a handful of girls that would want to drive a car like mine let alone learn how to fix it, and I'm so proud to be one of those girls. That's what it comes down to, I wouldn't be proud of having a nice car handed to me like everything else.. It would be cool, but it wouldn't mean a thing..
I dunno.. I know I should just get it and have a safe and more reliable car.. But I'll feel like I gave up on my car.. admitted defeat.. And I wanted to look at my car one day and compare it to the pictures before I got it and say "look what I did". I guess I just wish that what makes me proud of myself would make my dad proud of me too, but instead it's just kind of a burden..

 

remember that thing called regret.
i still to this day absolutely regret getting rid of that '71 ALFA, although, if i still had that car i wouldn't have realized how much more fun riding a motorcycle everyday can be. i've taken some good with some bad on the issue, but the regret is still there regardless.

 

Bam, there it is.
I've done that twice before. Get rid of a car that was say 'a handful', i was just to restless to comit. To have that feeling you'll get when you do compare later on will be awsome. And who knows what will come to light on the buick, you wont know if you get rid of it.

 

I'll tell you like I told my daughter,

You decide and make adult decisions and go your way with things...

And I'll make adult decisions and go with my way of thinking...

YOU guess how things worked out !

Good Luck and be proud of whatever you decide !

 

This is when he dragged it home..




This is after he cleaned it up..

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a249/NoTaThornlessRoSe/l_19bba585dc4e499db7dea6131116993b.jpg

this is when he put flames on it



this is after I painted it



this was the dash after I had taken some cleaner to it as best I could


this is after I painted it, but before I metal flaked it.. I don't have a pic of that.


this was the front when Marty got it. He stripped out the door panels and put a different seat in it and sweeped out the debris.



this is it now

 

2 pics didn't make it in there. here they are.

 

From crusty dusty, wiring and transmission nightmare. To Just as reliable as most anything on teh road. Time, patience & 3 flathead screwdrives later. (Dont ask)

 

Here's my take. If the car is running on a hope and a prayer, you need to remember that they will eventually run out. While the Olds is on its way, I don't know that I would turn down a cherry Dodge for it.

I faced a similar situation about a year ago. I, (in my infinite stupidity) wrecked my 50 Plymouth which was subsequently totalled by the insurance company. They gave me 8 grand, for the car, I bought back the scrap, and I got her back on the road a month or two ago. I looked at some other cars (and gave some serious thought to an old Belair), but ended up deciding to stay with mine. I had the money, parts, and enough knowledge (barely) to get the car back into one piece and running right.

This was the first car that I have ever worked on, and it has been a huge uphill battle for the last year. Looking back on it and knowing all of the work that went into it, I don't know that I would do it again. Sure, I've learned quite a few invaluable skills while doing this, but I also remember my christmas vacation last year (it consisted of a pneumatic circular sander, 4 coats of blue paint, and me looking like a smurf for a month). I didn't enjoy it then, and I sure as hell wouldn't want to do it again.

I've benefited a great deal from the advice here on the HAMB, but I also realize that the skills that quite a few of these guys possess are light years beyond me (and probably they are closer to being in league with yours as opposed to these guys). However, you have a family member that knows mopars, and you could probably benefit a great deal under his tutelage (especially if he know the car that he's working on) That isn't to say that rebuilding the olds can't be done, or that you won't accomplish that goal. However, it does mean that the finished product is a great many years out due to budget constraints and your having to overcome the learning curve. The dodge is closer to being finished.

Also, any car of this age is going to have need of repair and maintenance. The difference between an "Immaculate" car and your olds, is that you will probably only have one project to tackle at a time, as opposed to the laundry list that awaits you on the Olds. Keeping the olds means that alot of the time that could be spent on the customization will be spent on front ends, carb rebuilds, electrical gremlins, etc. You probably won't face as many (especially in such quick succession) with the dodge.

Of course, if you are devious (like me), I'd sell it to my friend, not tell the pops about the arrangement, and buy it back when your skills and budget are sufficient to truly give it the time and effort that it deserves. You'd also have the Dodge there to drive to help you get your fix for old detroit steel, while you do it.

John

 

simple. tell your father to not meddle in your life and you will do what you feel best.
and remember.
buick.... = Big ugly indestructible car killer
keep the buick.

 

Two cars that I owned and want back again are my first car, a 57 Cad, and a 50 Buick , hence the handle. The 57 WAS my first car, I bought it with my own money and I learned alot on it. I loved that car. I still think about that car but I don't regret selling it. I do want another Caddy but not that one. It needed too much and those are expensive cars to get parts for. I am holding off to 'get the nicest car I can afford' as one of the other guys said. I have an old truck now that runs and needs work but is cheap.
When I am ready i am going to get the Caddy, better but not completly done so I can still make some of the decisions, but when I have the money and the space. Right now I am making due but staying in the hobby.
Due with that what you will. Look at the Dodge, take it for a spin, you might like it. It looks nice and if you stich up another set of your seat covers for it, she just might look a little more like you. Needs a drop too, but thats later.

 

I think one thing you aren't considering is that someone may want that Buick and would give it a better home? I'm not saying you don't love it, but someone out there might want a 4 door family hauler and has the money time and experience to bring it to life? I'd try to sell her to a loving home, get my money out of it, then put it into the Dodge. If you look at it that way, you aren't giving up on her, you're just getting her the care she needs to live a long and happy life.

 

1951 dodge coronet...I think shes damn fine, if i do say so meself!

 

Stash the Buick, keep your mouth shut about it, get the Dodge. Then sneakingly work on the Buick.... You can have two loves....

 

The problem with a 50,000 mile original '51 Dodge is it may be so nice that it would be a shame to change it. They're only original once. Frankly the Buick is a better car all-in-all, Dodge was maybe a notch above the basic Chevy-Ford-Plymouth-Studebaker at the time, Buick was a couple more notches up, just below your Caddy/Lincoln/Packard. If it makes you happy it will be that much more rewarding when all the work is done. And you can change it to suite your tastes when it comes to paint color or custom touches or whatever without really hurting anything.

 

Oh, I do have a bone to pick...

(rant)

All the comments about what essentially becomes "lie to your dad" really bother me. Since when is that ok? Especially if he is willing to fork over a significant amount of money to get his daughter a reliable, cool car?

Sure, lie to your dad, break his trust in you and be selfish. That works... (/rant)

 

Follow your heart, if not it will haunt you in the long run...how bout Dad pitching in to get the Buick finished with you and for you....

 

in my opinion i'd say keep the buick i had a situation like this once as well i had to seel one to pay for another i always regretted selling my 66 chevy truck and i have wished a thousand times over that i hadn't sold it but i did and i have felt bad ever since for it as of right now i haven't got an old car to speak of but my idea is sit down with dad and explain how much this car means to you and try to make him understand that you arent interested in getting rid of that car and it may take you years to fix it up to perfect to say it is finnished but it isnt eating a thing setting their but i would keep the buick !!!

 

My first old car was a lot like yours, a 57 Chevy Bel Air, 4 door sedan, 283/turboglide. It was all original, and the upgrades I made were out of necessity. It needed exhaust, so I had headers and duals put on it. The generator was upgraded to an alternator. The "earl scheib" paint on it was flaking, so I spray painted it flat black. The trans went and we upgraded to a TH350. But it was in tough shape with an old tired motor, haggard interior, rot issues... and finally I got rear-ended real bad. I was at a crossroads. Do I fix it? Do I strip it of the parts I put on it, sell it, and pocket the insurance money? I chose the latter. I felt that throwing all that money at a beat up 4 door was just too much, and it was time to step up. I found a beautiful 57 Ford Custom 300 2 door sedan, with good interior, shiny paint and fresh chrome, and I made the switch. Sure I miss my Chevy, lots of great times spent with that car. But in the long run, the Ford is a MUCH nicer car. Was it "mine" when I got it? not really. But fast forward a few years, I have truly put my stamp on it and nobody can question who's car it really is.

The idea that you can't do anything to the Dodge is ludicrous. It's a car, and not a particularly desirable one at that. It's a PERFECT car to customize. Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but what have you done to the Buick besides Krylon it (and create a nightmare for yourself should you ever want to put real automotive paint on it) and put some seat covers in? It's all stock, still has all the door handles and trim. Sure, everybody needs to learn somewhere, but I'd much rather drive a car that looks and runs good than some beater any day. As your skills progress, you could add kustom tail lights, frenched headlights, grill.. to the Dodge, and not just spray paint some flames on an old Buick. You can also take solace in the fact that you likely made the Buick nice enough to use for a subsequent owner as opposed to a pile of scrap that it used to be, destined for the crusher. You saved it. Now upgrade.

 

Sell the Buick get the Dodge, make the Dodge your way with the cash. Better time Cruzen than wrenching. Goood luck

 

Diavolo

Well said ,

I two agree 100 %

that the lies are a bunch of shit that shouldn't be laid out...

At least keep the trust between you and your Dad..........

 

keep the buick for sure! i HAD a 50 buick, and a '53 and i've been kickin myself in the nutz ever since i sold them. buicks rule.

 

I'm thinking of selling it to my friend flat out with the agreement that someday he'll sell it back to me when I have the means and my own place to store it.
In the mean time I'd be paying back my dad for the Dodge. We haven't talked about it real specifically, but that's what I plan on doing regardless if I were to get the Dodge.
If I can manage to sell the Buick to someone I trust and that is willing to keep it safe until I can buy it back, that would be awesome.

 

Brittany- As someone who has owned a '51 Buick that needed quite a bit of work I know the feelings you are going through. Here is the big question I asked myself, what is my absolute dream car? For me it is a 55 chevy belair. With that in mind and knowing how much work the Buick needed I traded the buick for a much better running and driving car. I enjoyed that for a while even though it wasn't my dream ride. Now I am in a financial position that I can finally buy my dream ride and have money to do work on it. I am super happy now and glad that I sold the buick even though I had plenty of pride, blood, sweat and tears into it.

Take that for what you will and make a smart decision with your brain not your heart.

 

I would like to help you, but I think you have a dilemma either way. Both of these cars are slow and go. Buick has the Dynaslow trans, and Dodge probably has the Gyromatic semi-automatic. No speeding tickets here. That Buick looks like it needs alot more work. Dodge is probably the same.

Toss a coin!