Need some advice... Family, cars, trimming the herd, etc,,,

I've been a HAMBer 10 years now, and a bunch has changed since I was a dumbass college kid piddling with a 50 Pontiac 4 door. Wife, kids, mortgage, 11 month old son, pay freeze at school, pretty full plate. I have the 65 Impala and 41 Plymouth, and figure one has to go. Haven't driven the Impala since I got the Ply in '08, haven't even driven the Ply much since it needs brake work. Don't need 2 cars I don't drive. Bear with me, little guy has finally gone to sleep, and if I put him down, he'll be pissed.

I thought about selling the 41, charged it up yesterday only to find the brakes are absolutely gone. Gonna be hard to sell a car that doesn't stop. I wanted $4000 out of it because I though I might get that easily (I'd be taking a helluva hit), but it looks like I'll be fixing it up for the next guy.

I originally wanted to keep the Impala since it was my first car. Drawbacks to it include a rough body, failing paint and bodywork, etc. The 41 is way more solid. I hoped I could get $3500-4000 out of it if I was lucky.

Option 3 came out last night when the holy master cylinder said hello. I may have somebody interested in the Impala to put a BBC in. If I could sell the body and keep the 283 that only has 5000 or so miles on it and my trans, a 283 4 speed 41 might be kinda cool, especially if they don't want my astros. Like I said, it'd be more solid, and with a brake upgrade, the 41 would be kind of a ripper with some early 60s cool. Sell the Impala body for $1500-2000, flip the '50 or so flat 6 that is in it and buy beverages, you know?

Truth be known, ditching them both would be more responsible yet, but I gotta have something old. Whattayouse guys think?

 

Sell them both, save up a little more money and look for a "keeper" in good condition that won't be a huge restoration money pit.

 

You got to do what is right for you and your family. If neither one of those cars are your dream cars, maybe let them both go and look for something else down the road.

 

Man, tough call. I have no idea what my dream car would be, and I am afraid if I sell out both of them, I might not be back. Responsibility has a way of occupying all spare time. Like I said, I've driven neither for a long time, but could see me driving the Impala more because it's a bit more comfortable and easy to pile the kids in and go. If I had to guess, the Impala's closer to my dream car, always favored 63s though. I don't mind redoing it, either. Already have a better fender and hood, doors are OK, quarters would be good with better patches.

If I had neither, I'd mess with on old Harley, I think. My childhood hero checked out back in October, and I pretty much grew up at his Harley shop. Do you think I could get $4000 out of a running 41 Plymouth coupe with no brakes? Paint is dull, but the color is nice, tires are nice, interior is good except for the seats. Overall, danged solid. Much more there than the Impala.

 

If you want a badass hot rod you gotta make time....My opinion is sell them both. Your heart isn't in to it.

 

True. It also "costs to be cool," as the dude Imentioned above used to say. I could see the wife being pissed if whatever I kept starting eating money. Shoot, I haven't even been to a car show in years. No damned time. As a teacher, I get summers off, but while the little guy is little, that's not much help.

 

I am glad I am not in your shoes right now . Getting rid of your first car is tough to do sometimes due to the great memories you had with it .
On the other hand it sounds like you want someone to tell you to sell off the other two and keep the 41 and drop the 283 and 4 spped into that and have some fun with . You already told us it's in better shape than the rest and sounds like the Poncho is just not ever going to happen . So you already have your answer to the question you are asking for us to give opinions on .
Really do what you want and you will be happy with in the end . That's really the best answer I can give you !
So sell off the Chev & Pontiac and build the 41 to enjoy !

Retro Jim

 

I feel your position, im trying to save for a house because I want my car to have a garage. However, I need to sell the car to have enough. I keep hoping to just have enough saved, but something always comes up. I too fear thta once the car is replaced with a mortgage.... there will never be another car. My mind says sell the car, my heart says "no way, after all that work!?" its hard trying to figure it all out.

 

I say put the family to work makin some more shifter knobs! Just kidding Josh, I know where your coming from my model A has made very little progress the last few years since the kiddos came along, there just is'nt any extra cash for that sort of thing right now and I refuse to use credit, so there it sits. Sorry i dont have any earth shattering advice for ya, maybe keep the one that you like the most or the one that would require the least amount of work for you and your family to start enjoying it. Anywho congrats on the little guy, bet he grows up to be one heck of a sculpter.
Chad

 

I really don't have my mind made up at all, all options would make me somewhat happy. I think a car would be good for the kids someday, but so would 6-8000 dollars right now! Gutting the Impala would mean I'd be lucky to get $2000, I'm afraid, which doesn't strike me as enough to basically kill her, you know? I would like to roll around in a somewhat badass 41 coupe with uncapped headers, too.

I feel a lot older than 31, that's for sure.

 

Ive sold every car I have ever had because of family issues lots of cars out there. Not as much of a car guy as I was 30 years ago but I have great kids.

 

The Impala was your first car? I don't know if I could part with my first car. If that's really the case, keep the Chev and sell the Plymouth.

The worst choice is to pull the engine from the Chev and try to put it in the Plymouth. You already have shitloads of stuff going on, how are you going to have time to perform a major drivetrain swap?

If it were me, I'd fix the brakes on the Plymouth and sell that. Get the Chevy roadworthy again and just drive it around beat if the body is poor. You can work on it piece by piece when you have spare time (which sounds like it'll be rare).

 

If you want advice, it sounds to me like you would rather keep the Impala. I would suggest you get or borrow a buffer and clean the old Plymouth up and see if you can get any serious offers on her. I don't know that you will get 4k for it, but you can try...Are the brakes something that you can fix easily, with a small investment...It would make the selling easier, and add some extra value to it. Your kids should come first, but this board is littered with posts about 3 and 4 yo youngun's helping Dad in the garage. You could make the impala a pretty good ride by they time he is driving. I don't think picking it apart and letting the vultures have it is a great plan.

 

When I got into the hobby, I had just bought a new house, which took all my money. However, I worked as much overtime as I could, 3-4 shifts a week. That money went into a car account. My wife made get money, but I refused to touch the family account. After 4 years of saving, I was able to build my dream car, plus enough left over to build a second car.

All in all, Family comes first!

 

I'm the same age as you and am in a similar situation. I've gotten out of the car thing once before, it took me six years to get back in it. I know that i really should just clean house and get another project later but I'm trying to avoid it. My 2 cents is to pick the one you really want and unload the rest and see where you're at, at least you wont kick yourself for selling the one you really want first only to realize you can keep a car you dont care about.

 

I've been down the same road you're on now. Took me a long time to build a car when my family was growing up, always had something that came before the car. That was in the 70s and 80s. I sold my 40 Chevy PU in 1996 because I just didn't have the time to devote to the hobby. I got back into it 4 years ago and built my Roadster, it took me two years, only because I had the time to get out in the garage. My two boys used to go to car shows and swap meets with me in the 70s and 80s, now they are 35 and 40 years old and are in the middle of raising thier familys, with no time for the car shows and swap meets, so I go alone or with a friend. I think it's the Cats in the cradle syndrome. What I'm saying is to enjoy your family now. Sell both cars if it interferes with that. There will always be another car down the road, and plenty of time to enjoy that when the time is right.

 

What do you think I'm doing? Grow up? Responsibility??? Been in this role 5 years, pal. I busted my ass since I was 12 to get enough scholarships to go to school because my brother's school wiped my folks out, I hold out 5 years, subbing and making less than people in fast food before I found a fulltime position, I pay my bills, nothing's late, credit's good, and you are going to tell me to grow up? I'm the only dad the twins have, I do OK feeding them even though their deadbeat real dad owes them $30,000 in child support. Had the baby in this shitty economy because any more years and the risk of retardation and the like rises. Man, dang me for whining. And there's nothing else at all going on here at the house besides the financial stuff either, I just like to whine. Yup. You got it. Bet you never said a peep when you were in a rough spot.

The economy sucks and I ask for opinions on which to get rid of first proactively, I'll add. I have two close car guy friends that I ran the same scenarios past, and I have the HAMB. Once was a time when messing with the old junk I could afford was literally the only damn thing that made me want to wake up, and back then, this place meant a hell of a lot.

 

IS selling the car or cars gonna be a fix all for ever???

I would keep the high school car... sentimental values will be long after the money is spent... I wish I had my highschool car

 

Is keeping any of the cars costing you anything?

i don't think i would sell unless i could get alot---like 10K for either.

If you could get say 4 or so---but this is not certain, it would be gone pretty quick anyways.

Can i ask how much you are bringing in?

 

Eh, the little kid excuse is just that.

Kids can travel and go to car shows, too, you know. Car seats, strollers, and baby bags are made for a reason. At that age, he'll just sleep through most of it anyway.

My parents and my siblings all attended car shows when they had babies/toddlers. If I remember right, my niece went to a GoodGuys show the week after she was born.

 

I'd keep the Plymouth. Once you spend the money, it's gone. I had a rule, what little I had invested in the hobby stayed in the hobby.

 

Don't screw with the teacher, they have it hard enough. My opinion, sell both, find a good deal on a solid old wagon so the wife won't kill you. Find some Craigslist wheels and tires,
Do a cheapo lower job. You'll be happy as a clam and you can mess with it more as your boy grows up.


Your converse are not shop shoes. Buy boots.

 

Sell `em both,the reality of having a family trumps anything automotive. The time will come when you will be an old fart that has some cash. I had a `64 Riviera when I was 27 , man I loved that car. When I started using the credit card to buy tires,I knew it was time to sell. Did I regret it? Yes. But at 50 I bought another `64 Riv . Guess what? I have a great couple of kids,my original wife, a granddaughter and time to work on my Riv.

 

Hey Josh, havnt seen ya around too much lately, now I know why...

Maybe sell both and look for a cool wagon?

Ive seen decent driver 60s wagons for 4-6k, then you'd have something cool to drive daily, haul the family, and room for supplies for the house when wifey says...ya know, we should......

And as far as taking kids along, its true.
My son was 5 days old when we took him to a 3-day weekend show. My daughter was 2 months old for hers.

Shes now 19, and he just turned 16.

And they both love hotrods. Only thing theyve ever known.

take care brother!

 

I wouldn't start another project; keep the 65 sell everything else as long as you don't have to pay storage. As time goes on you'll have occasions to use it and your kids want to spend time with you regardless of what your doing... at least until they're teenagers.

 

In 1995 at 28 years old, I sold off my triumph and bsa, a 1950 chev AD pickup, a 62 VW to get married and start a family. I made the agreement with my wonderful wife that I would get a "toy" back when I turned 40. I saved, waited and watched, told all my friends that I was looking and fell into some great deals... now I'm 3 deep in projects and as a bonus our son is in high school and gets to help (time well spent).

Sell both for cash in hand deals, take care of "need" list and in the future start working on the "want" column.

 

Originally I was going to tell you to sell them both. Upon reflection I have changed my mind.

Keep your first car. I sold mine in 92 because I thought I was going to marry a girl. Ended up with an 84 Ford Tempo.

Broke it off with that girl in 93, that girl is long gone, wish I still had my 56.

Married my current wife in 94. Saved and scraped, went to college, worked hard and got everything in order.

Built a hot rod, (well still building it although it is a runner, just lacks a few things to be considered done)

I love my hot rod but still miss that 56 and am always looking for it.

Also, about the time your kids are 12 or so is a much better time to start a project that they will remember and help keep them out of trouble.

 

i am in a similar spot but i am also one with very little talent, too much stubborness, and not enough cash to just pay someone to do things. the truth is i like working on the cars / bikes more than actually driving them but i am simply just not that great at doing the work.

before my second child was born last oct i had time. i could take my then 3 year old girl to car shows etc and she loved it. now with 2 kids everything is more of a challenge - but worth every second of it. i had 3 bike projects that i sold and flipped to get into a sweet stock 79 shovel and a 02 roadking. of course now safety concerns come up cos of the kids and id rather be in a car. i have the 63 c10 and just got a 48 fleetmaster. got the truck before the wife got her pilot so i dont really need it. got the 48 to put the kids in but the wife not too happy about an infant in the back with no car seat (just kidding i havent done that - thing isnt driveable yet anyway). point is - there are always projects but will never be enough time. if you can, sort which one you like the best and sell the rest. take some of that and get a pro to get the car to where its safe and reliable and you can focus on the doo dads for now - an more importantly sharing it with the family.

i am learning that a day spent getting frustrated in the garage is not nearly as valuable as a day spent enjoying time with the fam - esp if its in an old car. so yeah it costs more to let someone else do it but you'll get to use it that much sooner.

once the kids are older you can go back to wrenching. this thread just helped me with some decisions too!

 

Family first, there always another old car with your name on it.

 

this is why i am trying to get some cool toys and tools (and have them paied off) before i have the little ones, this way i have it and hopefully dont need to sell it. i would say try to keep them...but if your gona only keep one. keep the one you are most attached to. good luck.