MadaboutKitcars

Would like some advice about donor cars. I have been looking all over the web at spitfires/heralds/vitesses and have come to the conclusion that to have a solid base for a build it might work out better for me to buy the cheapest sh*test car I can. I want the car to be reliable, safe and long lasting, I want to drive the car not spend all of my time under it. If I buy a car for £400 and spend £1600 on the chassis which would allow me to:
rebuild and fast road tune engine
all new brake callipers/pads/disks/pipework cylinders etc
all new properly rated lowered shocks and springs
new exhaust system
new fuel tank/pump/lines ect
new rad/water pump/hoses ect
basically a new rolling chassis
I would have spent £2000 and have the best base for my car I could possible have. If I spent £2000 on a really good donor form searching all the usual places I would not get a perfect car and would not have the secure knowledge that the car is going to last and not have any problems because I haven't done the work myself. Sorry if this is long winded and complete crap but its something I have been thinking about for ages. Any advice or thoughts please.

ufo17 - Have you seen the restored rolling chassis DerbyDreamer is selling?

http://www.madabout-kitcars.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4783

You could use the "change" to rebuild the engine & get a bulkhead (depending on which kit you have in mind).

A point to remember with the £2,000 donor car is how much you will get back from selling the parts you don't need.

I bought an unfinished project with invoices to prove £000s had been spent on it & it came with lots of new/unused parts.

I've still got a few bits to sell, but to date the net cost of my engine & rolling chassis is just a few hundred quid.

The other thing to consider is the time a nut & bolt restoration will take.

One thing is for sure, there is no "right" way to build one of these kits.

Good luck, Paul,

I bought a Vitesse that turned out to be a complete dog, I have now spent a fortune on all the parts, for chassis, brakes, suspension etc..... . I felt this was the best way. I have a Herald chassis (apparently restored, but I don't know to what standard yet, as I bought it unseen) and a Vitesse Chassis, plus parts. that I will putting up for sale soon (after the 18th March), if you interested PM me. Also a 2-litre and 1300 engine plus other bits if your interested. These are located in Teesside.

How very true

Hi UFO, my advice would be to buy the best, mot'd donor you can afford and start from there. Just make sure you do a proper inspection of the chassis and front bulkhead/footwells.

I paid £845 (ebay) for a donor that was described as practically mot ready, just needing a driver's side kick plate and 'a bit of welding in the footwells'.



It turned out to have a rotten chassis that someone had disguised by wrapping tin plate round the rust and coating it with underseal, while the front footwells were worthy of Fred Flintstone's daily driver.











That last pic is what had been tacked over the rust in the chassis main rail where the o/s front outrigger connects

Luckily for me the body panels were in much better condition and I actually made a profit of about £30 by selling them all off on ebay for around £870.

Restoring and preparing the chassis and front bulkhead took me half my build time - a year just to get to the stage where it was a suitable base to bond the body on - so I could have finished the car a year earlier if I'd started with a decent donor in the first place.



The end result was worth every bit of the time and effort for me, but I'd definitely go for a £2000 car as a base if I did another and thoroughly inspect the chassis and bulkhead prior to purchase.



Good luck!

Thank you Paul L/mas123mas and Mr towed for your reply's. I do understand what you are all saying but my main concern is that all of the donor cars I have seen for £2000 are still going to need for the standard of finish I want at least :
engine strip and refresh ( some need unleaded head work!!!?.)
overhaul of breaking system
superflex bushes all round
rewire
overhaul of cooling system
new shocks and springs
plus the time and effort in gently stripping a clean donor to be able to sell the parts on. With a wreck I can gut the car and chop the lot in for scrap ( apart from any salvageable bits obviously). Maybe I'm worrying to much but I am on a strict budget and have £2000 for the moon buggy stage not including wheels and tyres. Is it even possible to do the moon buggy stage for 2 grand?.
Just how much ( ball park ) could I get from selling all of the bits of a good donor and how quickly would they sell?. As always looking forward to hearing your input. Thanks guys and or gals.

Have look at my thread
mas123mas_Thread

I have a list the parts that I have bought and I am still buying different bits, my list of wants seem never ending.

The prices for the sale of the parts various so much, I have seen bonnets sell for £70 and other sell £15 (I even give mine away just to get rid of it). Look on eBay and try and price a few items.

I decide to go with standard bushes, as the where less that a 1/4 of the price, as I didn't' feel the need for Poly all-round (but its your car your choice).

I have not meet one car builder that is whole heartedly happy (I may be wrong there may be someone on here), there is all mod's and thing's that you want to change (improve), as time progresses.

I have Land Rovers, I love them for there quirks, there heavy steering, the noise, the smile factor etc.... . But every time I go out in one of them I find something I want to change alter, fix or improve.

My Vitesse bonnet fetched £311...

As for whether you can get to the moon rover stage for £2k - I believe the green car pictured in the middle of these three cost its builder roughly £2,700 all in.