Information About Classic Car Restoration

By Aikin Harris

For the beginning investor or perhaps someone who just loves old cars, one of the bigger problems occurs after you purchased the vehicle of your dreams and are faced with the daunting challenge of classic car restoration. To get your vehicle ready for the classic cars sale, assuming you are not handing the job over to someone well versed in restoring classic cars, it’s time to roll up the sleeves and go to work. Whether it’s muscle car restoration or antique car restoration, the solutions are basically the same.

Research: It’s important to read up on every aspect of you purchase, from the parts you may need to the paint color itself. The more you know the more informed decisions you can make when deciding just how to approach restoring your classic car. Also, you may want to look up reputable classic car restorers in your area. They might be able to secure sources for parts and information about your vehicle that you overlooked. And there expertise in restoring classic cars can be invaluable.

Inspection: From bumper to bumper, you will need to know everything that should be replaced,restored, or even left alone if they are in as good a condition as need be. Pay particular attention to parts that may be rusted,look under the hood and check out everything from the engine block to the fan belt.Check all electrical connections, and anything that looks out of the ordinary. From this inspection you should make a detailed list of what needs to be replaced or repaired. This can be valuable in your research when looking up places to buy parts.

Going Shopping: Now that you know what you need, make an old fashioned shopping list and go get them. Besides checking with established classic car dealers, you also should call up junkyards or look online at car auction sites. They can have the right part for a very low price, saving you a lot of money. And staying local is fine for finding parts that have no negative bearing on the value of the vehicle like belts, oil filters, and the like.

Take it Apart and Go to Work: You’ve made your list, checked it twice, and have purchased everything you needed. Now it’s time to go to work beginning with the engine. You will more than likely have to remove the engine from the car to clean and repair it. You will also probably have to replace the seats or at least the seat covers, so pull them out as well. Free of all that weight, you car will probably be quite light, so take the opportunity to remove the tires, prop up the car body and give it a good going over.

The Paint Job: The key to successful classic car restorations is matching the original paint job of the car as it looked when it was brand new. You don’t have to find the original brands (which may have long gone out of business), just the original colors will do. Enjoy! You have just completed the difficult, but rewarding job of classic car restoration, take it out for a drive (assuming you remembered to get the tag and insurance of course) and let everyone know what it means to own a beautifully restored classic car.