Torque and Chrome

Is it worth it to restore a 1964 Tempest Custom (2 door)?

There's this old blue '64 Tempest Custom that sits in the lot behind a muffler shop, and I'm eager to ask if they'd be willing to sell it. From what I can see, the body looks good, no rust... the front seats have seen better days, and there's a crack in the windshield. Besides all that, the chrome is all there, and the lights and grill look good. I haven't seen under the hood yet, but from the outside, I can't see that it will be all that bad. I'm looking for a good project car, and this seems a good candidate. What do you guys think?

Public Comments

1. gotta love those......real question is how much u got to spend......and with something like that u gonna need to keep spending and working on it.......also consider gas to move all that steel
2. Yes and no, the question is, is it worth it to you. If your talking a complete resto job, your going to spend more than what its worth, but thats part of it. It depends on how much you want to do, and how much your pocket book allows. Thats where you've got to love the car your working on. It's a passion for the car that counts, and it sounds like the cars already talking to you....LOL
3. Questions like this one are tough. See it all depends on how much you are willing to put in to the car. Time and money wise. To make it drivable, that is not going to cost a lot. Assuming that the motor is good. But to restore it, now there are some factors that can make the cost go sky high. It's all the little things. Trim pieces, interior, rims, good rubber. It's nothing for a person to spend 40,000 grand or more to restore a car. Now if that car has some sentimental value to you, you may be willing to spend that type of cash. Watch some of the auto auctions on speed channel. Some cars go for huge cash, others not so much. This year tempest could be turned into a GTO clone. Now if you did that, and had the car really done up nice, it could be worth some ching. But just to get it to drive, I think that you could be alright. Still the cost to drive this beast will set you back. Best advice, if you can do it and not go into debt to do it, then go for it. If not, you will be just putting yourself behind the 8 ball.