Which Type of Car is the Most Fun to Own (fun lighthearted discussion)?

[usnavystgc]

I've been thinking lately about what type of car is the most fun to own/buy?  A basket case like this

Or, a completely restored car like this?

 

I'll start.  

I should clarify that I've never bought a completely restored car but, I believe the basket case is the most fun to own because you can make the biggest impact on it.  If you buy a car that is completely restored, there's none of your sweat equity in it.  When you buy a basket case, you have many "wins" along the way and those wins never get old.  You also develop a bond to the car that I'm guessing escapes the purchaser of a fully restored car.  

 

What are your thoughts?  

 

PS:  There is no right or wrong answer but, I would love to hear from those who have purchased both.  Also, this is for fun so hopefully no heated arguments will emerge.

[Bhigdog]

My thoughts are: I agree the most fun is in doing the actual restoration yourself. I doubt one will ever bond as much to a car bought rather than restored by oneself with all the work, time, and even a little blood that's expended.

My 1955 Buick 66C..........Bob

Edited July 21, 2022 by Bhigdog (see edit history)

[usnavystgc]

19 minutes ago, Bhigdog said:

My 1955 Buick 66C....

That is one crazy transformation.  Awesome job.

[Matt Harwood]

For me, personally, the most fun is a car that's been well restored at some point but now has some needs or a fresh restoration that hasn't yet been sorted. The heavy lifting of a restoration can be intimidating and expensive and it will be years before you're on the road. I like buying decent cars and turning them into great cars, which I find very rewarding. Everything you fix, the car gets better. Eventually you'll be able to drive it anywhere and enjoy it without worries. I have found that freshly restored cars often have a long list of needs and feel unfinished and there are older restorations that have started to unwind that have deferred maintenance (or things that have never been done). You can break it into Saturday afternoon projects and continually improve the car without taking it off the road. A car too far gone will require a lot more time and money and perfection simply doesn't exist, so it's quite satisfying to take a car and make it right yourself, which also adds value.

[dalef62]

My 1946 Crosley (Cow Car) has been a hoot to drive and show!  It is in primer and I am not worried about scratching the paint, I drive it like I stole it and it is the hit of most shows I take it to!   Sometimes I load the Cow cookie jar with Cow tails and tell spectators to open the cow and take one, of course the cow "Moos".

[Bhigdog]

15 minutes ago, usnavystgc said:

That is one crazy transformation.  Awesome job.

If your interested I did a lengthy post on the restoration. You can use the search function and look for....        Bob Beck 's (bhigdog) 55 Century project ......................Bob

[old car fan]

I will look it up.amazing.Bob,how long.

[CChinn]

I don’t have the skills like many in the hobby and on this forum to restore a car, so I bought mine already restored, but like Matt I did enjoy the process of sorting and the aftermath of that effort. In the end, we all enjoy our cars no matter if we did or didn’t do the restoration 

[Bhigdog]

10 minutes ago, old car fan said:

I will look it up.amazing.Bob,how long.

Two years. About 2000 hours. I never kept track of hours or cost. It took what ever it took.............Bob

[8E45E]

Not a car, but a vintage truck, as in 2-ton & up.  An old chain-drive Mack AC turns many heads.

 

Craig

[1937hd45]

How old are you, how much money do you have to spend today? If you can buy the restored car today DO IT! This allows you to drive it in your lifetime for less money than the cost or restoring junk. Not that I ever had a burning desire to drive my projects. 

 

Bob 

[edinmass]

What car is the most fun……easy……..whatever someone pays me to fix and test drive. A well sorted car of any era is a blast to drive. 

[Porsche 68]

I like ‘‘em barn fresh do whatever it takes to get them running and safe to drive I like driving ‘‘em that way Restored is nice but then you have to worry about it if you’re parked somewhere 

[Ed Luddy]

Good question.  A car to me is a means of transportation ,  yeah right. I have wasted/spent/ enjoyed/ despised   the majority of my life being involved with cars. A family curse/blessing. Now that I'm past legal retirement age and have limited funds for my addiction, the closer to roadworthy the better. If only my ex-woman would have let me keep my shop........... life would be different.

[Paul Dobbin]

After the question about if it's your car, soon it's followed by,  Did you restore it?   I like it personally when I can say, "Yes I did, with the help of lots of friends".    By the time they get to asking what it's worth?, I've lost my interest in them.   The experience if restoring a car adds to the understanding  of how all these beautiful automobiles got to be that way.   Kind of unstated brotherhood of crafsmen.

[Dan Cluley]

For me, driving is the goal.  I don't mind working on projects, but I see working on a car as the price of the hobby, not the hobby itself.  Fully restored would be fine, but I don't have the budget for that, so the goal is mechanically reliable, and then at least reasonably presentable looks.

[1935Packard]

Whatever is easy to start, reliable to drive, and in my garage.

[Rusty_OToole]

Probably the most fun is a good running car that is not perfect. One that you can hop in and drive to an event on Saturday and not worry about every little scratch or spot of mud.

 

Reminds me of a story I read about this guy who set out to build his dream hot rod. Blown big block engine, repro 32 Ford body and chassis, $20,000 paint job etc. He said, that car wore me slick with expenses and when it was done I was scared to drive it in case something happened. So I sold it and bought a 51 Chevy coupe for $2000, gave it a black primer and flame paint job, Mexican blanket seat covers, rebuilt the engine with twin carbs and dual exhaust, now I have a car I can drive anywhere and have more fun than anybody.

[Akstraw]

Depends what turns you on.  Some like to drive and tour.  Others like to repair, restore, and improve.  Some are in between.  None are right or wrong, as you said, and all have a place in our hobby.  Figure out which one you are.  Just be realistic about the many hours of cleaning, refurbishing, block sanding, buffing, etc, are involved with the latter course.  Whatever you think the project is going to take, multiply by 2 or 3, then ask yourself whether you can stay with it that long and still find it rewarding.    I used to enjoy the challenge of a full restoration.  As I get older, with some limitations setting in, I am with Matt Harwood; I like refreshing the older restorations into good cruise-in, tour, or “second junior” cars.

[Larry Schramm]

6 minutes ago, Akstraw said:

Whatever you think the project is going to take, multiply by 2 or 3, then ask yourself whether you can stay with it that long and still find it rewarding. 

 

Truer words have never been said.  Also for the amount of money required, depending on the size of the project, multiply the estimate by at least 2-10 more than you think.

[Bhigdog]

Interesting. It seems about half the respondents find satisfaction in the nuts and bolts of the restoration and the other half the driving of old iron.

Neither is "correct".

I found my greatest satisfaction in the actual restorations, the hunt for parts, the problem solving, the very very  many feelings of success when even a small motor or part is brought back from the dead, or the feeling of accomplishment  when the P.O.S. hulk you started with earns a Senior award. But like anything else repetition breeds boredom. After six body off complete restorations the bloom is off the rose. I knew as I worked on the last one it would be my last. I was settling for less than perfect. That's when I knew.

I still have five of the six. I never did really enjoy driving them, with the exception of the 1969 427 Corvette, and that's just because of the crazy power and the view over the long hood and creased fenders. Thrilling. I use it on cool summer mornings to go for early morning drives on country roads with the top down. The rest of my cars I excersize regularly but it's more a chore than a pleasure, although I do like all the thumbs up and honks I get.

So, whatever floats your boat enjoy it. Whether it's nursing some ancient piece of iron up one more hill or down shifting your Corvette through an early morning mist get it while you can.

It's all good............Bob

Edited July 22, 2022 by Bhigdog (see edit history)

[Billy Kingsley]

After having several of my family daily drivers devolve into basket cases while trying desperately (and failing) to fix them and keep them going, I would say unquestionably it's one I could get in and go somewhere without having to worry about walking home (again)!

[pkhammer]

9 hours ago, Rusty_OToole said:

Probably the most fun is a good running car that is not perfect. One that you can hop in and drive to an event on Saturday and not worry about every little scratch or spot of mud.

 

Reminds me of a story I read about this guy who set out to build his dream hot rod. Blown big block engine, repro 32 Ford body and chassis, $20,000 paint job etc. He said, that car wore me slick with expenses and when it was done I was scared to drive it in case something happened. So I sold it and bought a 51 Chevy coupe for $2000, gave it a black primer and flame paint job, Mexican blanket seat covers, rebuilt the engine with twin carbs and dual exhaust, now I have a car I can drive anywhere and have more fun than anybody.

Couldn't have said it better myself. I really don't want a restored car. I'm not into showing and would be happiest with a clean, reliable driver. An open car I can hop in anytime that can decently keep up with traffic that I don't need to worry about a stone chip or the bugs on the grille. I used to love the time I spent in the garage grinding, welding and wrenching but as I age I want less of that and more time on the road.

[EmTee]

Well, isn't it great to participate in a hobby that allows someone such a variety of experiences?  Something for everybody! 

[Ed Luddy]

My preference is always a well kept original paint, unrestored, mechanically fit 50 to 65  yr old car. If it has working A/C that means I will actually drive it more than a few times in the summer!

[Mark Shaw]

My 1915 Bumble Buick and my 1924 Buick Pickup.  The judging crowd can't criticize them for not being correct.

They are both crowd pleasers due to their modifications.

 

[1912Staver]

I find restorations to be endlessly frustrating / hugely rewarding. But it sure would be nice to also have the money and space for a decent condition , drivable car as well. Hope springs eternal. 

[31 LaSalle]

36 minutes ago, 1912Staver said:

I find restorations to be endlessly frustrating / hugely rewarding. But it sure would be nice to also have the money and space for a decent condition , drivable car as well. Hope springs eternal. 

make that two of us

[poci1957]

13 hours ago, Bhigdog said:

Interesting. It seems about half the respondents find satisfaction in the nuts and bolts of the restoration and the other half the driving of old iron.

Neither is correct.

It's all good............Bob

Bob is right about this and I think if you can have one of each that is the best balance.  I think Jay Leno once said that the ideal is one in the shop and one ready for the road and that has worked for me.   

 

BUT if I had to pick one or the other I would say my unrestored original that has always been ready for the road has been more enjoyment than my marathon full restoration in the shop, Todd C

 

PS--I think Matt Harwood's comments about driving the aging full restoration may be best of all

[usnavystgc]

20 hours ago, Bhigdog said:

If your interested I did a lengthy post on the restoration.

I'm definitely gonna look this up.

[Robert G. Smits]

Put me down for both.  I spent close to 30 years restoring and showing cars all over the USA.  I have only shown at one Concours since 2000 and do not miss it.  My most fun now is touring with a unrestored 41 Cad 63 or my 380SL, also unrestored.  It is also fun to jump into a C1 or C2 for a run to Starbucks early in the morning.

[Guest]

[1935Packard]

The ideal path of ownership: Buy it as a #1, drive it until it's a #3-.     

 

Sure, you'll lose money when you sell it.  But on the ideal path, you don't care.

Edited July 25, 2022 by 1935Packard (see edit history)

[wayne sheldon]

I am greedy. I like too many things, and for too many different reasons.

Overall, I prefer older restorations that look nice enough from a few feet away that I can park them next to the nicest car on ANY tour I would attend. And I would not be ashamed of how my car looked next to that nicest car!

Beyond that, I need at least five different cars. I MUST have at least ONE model T Ford! Although three or four would be better. One MUST be a speedster, era correctly done and able to handle highway speeds for great distances! There are many tours that I would attend with such a car (I have had a few like that over the years!) that I would miss out on without such a car. A well sorted T speedster capable of all day driving at 65-plus mph can take one so many places one simply cannot do so easily with any other such vintage automobile. I also sort-of need a mostly factory correct model T Ford, also for uses and meets that no other car will do.

HCCA is my main interest in club touring. The early cars are what really floats my boat. To that end, I really want a pre1916 non-Ford, capable of handling their "big car" tours (which is most of them?). However, I really love the earlier HCCA cars as well. I really want a good one or two cylinder 1912 or earlier.

Realistically, I would be okay with a pre1916 late brass factory body model T Ford. Now if I could just resolve some family issues and finish my 1915 model T runabout? For so many things, that one car would fit the bill fine. Alongside the speedster I no longer have.

However again, I so love nickel era midsize closed cars (also love nickel era open cars!). 

So, a non-Ford pre1916, a non-Ford one or two cylinder, a non-Ford nickel era sedan, a fast model T speedster, and my 1915 runabout. 

ALL running and ready to go!

But not so nice as to worry about a new scratch because someone (maybe me?) sets a picnic basket on a front fender.

I like to drive and enjoy my cars!

[alsancle]

Either an non-running cool project strategically positioned in the barn as garage art (that you never actually work on) or a full sorted car that you jump in at any point and drive 200 miles.

 

Everything in between those two stinks,  and everything after fully sorted - show/concours car also stinks.

[MarkV]

Rescuing them is all the fun!