Hey guys, I love the HAMB and your wealth of knowledge and I'm sure most of you have been in a position of needing to sell your cars and projects. My situation right now is that I have my 61 Cadillac mechanically perfect, the body is pretty rusty though.. very rusty in fact and the windshield is cracked. But I have a 59 Apache big back window that is only missing the hood.. I was thinking about pulling the 390 out of the Caddy and putting it in the Apache then parting out the Caddy or something.. The reason is I'm trying to save some money for a down payment on a house. My daughter is one year old now and I want to find a house for my little family to live in, paying rent is for the birds. I know that these trucks bring decent money and I'll have a hard time selling this old rotten 4 door cadillac. Any advise? Opinions? Should I just sell the Apache shell I have? I wanna sell both vehicles but I think a 59 Chevy with a Caddy motor would bring more money than a shell of a truck and a rusty Caddy.. or am I wrong? Thanks in advance guys.
My suggestion is to put them both up for sale and secure enough money for that down payment on a roof that belongs to you,,I have always believed family comes first. Just my 2 cents worth. HRP
If it were me, I would do what HRP said. Get your family set up first. You'll have time later to build a cool ride.
I don't care about the cars. I'm just trying to maximize profit. I think the caddy motor and a paint job on the truck would bring more money that the rusty caddy and the shell of a truck.
any project will open up a can of worms, and cost over runs. Weigh out the costs involved in the swap, and you may find, that when all is said and done, the profit on the truck, after you put money into it, would be the same or less than what you'll get if you just sell what you have as is
^^^ what he said. I agree with the others to put both up for sale as they are. By the time you work to drop the caddy engine into the truck and get it running, gather a hood, get some paint on it, I doubt you are going to be very far ahead after those costs than if you just sold it as it sits....never mind the hassle of parting out the caddy. Getting your money out of a parts car can take a looooonnnngggg time and in the mean time you have to cart around the pile.
Projects NEVER come out at or below cost estimates. Plus the time you spend working on the truck you could be doing something else to earn some more cash. Sell them both and go find a house. Cars come in second to a good safe place to raise your kids.
I knew you guys would give good advice, thanks! I'll take the pressure washer to the tuck and hit it with the DA sander and shoot a coat of primer on it, make it look a little more appealing.
Waste of time and effort...Cadillac engines are not as popular in other makes as you seem to think. Yep, it is...and no gain. The best bet is to quit playing with projects and sell them both for the down payment on the house...Your daughter will need a back yard to play in...not some truck project. They bring "decent money" when they are done-finished/driveable...yours is still a project...a money pit...and the Cadillac, while rusty, may not garner you top dollar, but it will bring in some money you can set aside... That's my opinion, and it appears, others as well. Sell 'em both, there'll be plenty of other projects later... R-
I have no desire to keep either one. I got the truck for a steal and knew I could add to savings by buying it. The Cadillac is just something I happened into.. I'm not in a major rush or anything the house I rent now is nice and I have been here for four years. I just wanted to ask some folks with more experience some advice, and you guys did not disappoint and I thank you. I'm hoping to start the buying process this year.
If you work on them, there is always the possibility that you won't want to sell them. I once put my truck on Craigslist and while the add was up, I cured a wheel hop problem. Right after that, a guy called interested in it. Had to pray hard that he wouldn't buy it.
sell 'em both. Don't end up like me, 44, 10 cars and no family because I was too selfish. Love your family, when it's time, bring your daughter into the cool car world and build a ride together, just the two of you, and when it's her time to drive, give her the car you two built together.
I personally would be more interested in the truck as is than if it were covered with primer, I like the (dreaded to some) patina of it but even if I didnt I would like seeing what metal I was getting better than seeing primer. If I were gonna try to buy a home, I would just try to sell them both as is and concentrate on buying the house instead worrying about fixing the cars. How much more are you actually gonna get after wasting more time and going through all the hassle? enough for a couple house payments? you could waste a couple months (or likely more) fooling around with em while paying rent,so how much would you really be ahead? I know its hard for gear heads to do but get your mind on the house and off the cars even if you decide to keep them and put them on the back burner for now. (Dont let them become the road block)
I sold all my projects, all my car stuff, everything to help get the dough to buy our first house. Funny thing is there were more projects out there when I was ready to start playing with cars again. =)
Old cars that are "mechanically perfect" are in short supply. Even if it is rusty, if it's really roadworthy, it'll sell. I'm a body guy and a terrible mechanic, and I have a hard time finding anything that's driveable but needs metal work. And now is the time to sell that stuff, tax returns are coming back. A weekend spent prettying up that truck I think would be time well spent. I disagree with the above poster saying not to primer it up, in my experience, looking pretty in a picture sells old cars, even if it's just half assed job of spray cans, masking tape and swapping tires around, that kind of stuff. Don't turn it into a project, but pull it out onto the driveway with no snow or trash around, clean it up the best you can and take good pictures. Houses are super fucking expensive, but only because they're worth it.
Yeah, I will be doing some metal work on the Caddy though.. It will only take a few afternoons to weld in some decent patch panels and get it in primer. As far as putting primer on the truck, most people don't like patina or surface rust.. it scares them. So it will be easier for me to just shoot it with some primer and get it moved outta here. It sucks now being young with very little credit. The guy at the bank told me that 5 or 6 years ago I could have gotten a first time buyer loan but too many idiots bought big McMansions and SUVs they couldn't pay for and now banks are picky.. funny thing is the banks are just as guilty as anyone else, but we suffer. Ugh... Thanks again guys Maybe I'll post the truck on the HAMB once I get some better pics.
I'm in the same boat, I'm a moderate mechanic.. I will take a rusty hulk of a car any day if it's already running and driving. I already have a couple gallons of primer and my cousin will come over and help me for a 12 pack (he's 23) I don't drink but he's more than happy to hang out in the shop with a roll of tape and a sanding block if he has a few cold ones.
"My suggestion is to put them both up for sale and secure enough money for that down payment on a roof that belongs to you,,I have always believed family comes first." "A weekend spent prettying up that truck I think would be time well spent. I disagree with the above poster saying not to primer it up, in my experience, looking pretty in a picture sells old cars, even if it's just half assed job of spray cans, masking tape and swapping tires around, that kind of stuff. Don't turn it into a project, but pull it out onto the driveway with no snow or trash around, clean it up the best you can and take good pictures." Good advice, sorry if the advice doesn't fit your expectations. but your family is more important. All the best, Dale Cleveland OH
id pay more for it unprimered than i would primered, freshly primered someone might think your hiding bodywork/bondo under there some where.
Add me to the list of don't primer it guys. I go out of my way to find UN-primed, or un-prepped cars to start with. Even if it needs primer, I want my prep and primer on it. I see a freshly primed anything for sale, and I figure in that it needs to be stripped.
I'm going to be honest because you asked for advice. The truck has nothing going for it. The only buyer you'll find for it will be someone looking for parts or some kid who does not know better. Its hovering just above scrap price, its a parts vehicle. No Caddy engine or weekend spray and pray is going to change that. The Caddy if complete and running well may bring some cash, unless it's a Flintstones road salt car. Sell them both as is, your best money will come from the car.
Hi Chad, Like HRP sez, Sell both, buy the House. Don't let the chevy grille get away (looks familiar).......... Some $$ on way, middle of month......been a hard winter!!! Best to you and yours. smoke
I'm between cars myself, due to the house and family being a higher priority some years back. I have parts to start another project and the time to get one going is getting closer. Bob
Good for you.You will reach that goal and owning your own place is really worth it. There are always more cars.
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