Struggling with car decision involving family...

ultraclyde said:

Yeah, this is a no brainer in my opinion. There's no way I'd let that car go anywhere else than to me.  Even if you own it for several years until he's finished his laps here, it will make you both happy. You can always place it in the right collection down the road if you decide to. 

Obviously you come from a family that loves a fast quarter mile. Have you ever driven this rocket, or one of his others?  

 

That's me driving in the video. I've driven it a few times and was there with Gramps the day he bought it. 

Pull the powerglide and swap in a turbo400 with a gear vendor overdrive.

Best of both worlds. However I would keep it a race car.

There are some hard questions you need to ask yourself.

Do you have the space to dedicate for it and store it indoors to protect it? (for eternity)

Will you drive it or will it become an albatross?

Race cars are no fun to drive very far on the street.

If your not going to race it, it does not seem practical.

A car that gets driven once a year is a pain (garage rot)(ritual carb cleaning)

Dusterbd13-michael (Forum Supporter) said:

Pro-street aint dead.

berkeleying DO IT.

You probably won't regret it. Even if you do, you won't. 

I think that's really what I would do with it. Put a second seat in it, put DOT legal tires on it, bigger fuel cell and lower compression so it runs on at least E85, and regular front brakes. Then I could drive it around to Cars and Coffee and take the kids for a spin. 

bentwrench said:

Pull the powerglide and swap in a turbo400 with a gear vendor overdrive.

Best of both worlds. However I would keep it a race car.

 

There are some hard questions you need to ask yourself.

Do you have the space to dedicate for it and store it indoors to protect it? (for eternity)

Will you drive it or will it become an albatross?

Race cars are no fun to drive very far on the street.

If your not going to race it, it does not seem practical.

A car that gets driven once a year is a pain (garage rot)(ritual carb cleaning)

Yes, I have the space at my house to store it indefinitely indoors. It will live in the garage spot occupied by the Z06.

I will make it streetable and drive it. I don't want to just have it as a bauble for nostalgia, I want to run it how it's supposed to be used.

docwyte said:

In reply to John Welsh :

Gonna be more than that to ship it.  I'm getting quoted $1400 for an open trailer transport from Boston to Denver

 

Looks like your trip is 2,000 miles and $1,400 is 70 cents per mile.  Your trip route also has a lot of toll roads and if tolls are avoided then the route goes through NYC and truckers hate NYC avoiding it if they can.  

But, I said 50 cents and you said 70 cents...similar. 
.50 for 3,300 miles = $1650
.70 for 3,300 miles = $2,310
1.00 for 3,300 miles = $3,300

So, be prepared for $3,000 and anything under is savings.  

At 15mpg your looking at $600 in $2.70 gas to make the drive.  Factor in mechanical work of getting a larger fuel cell and gear changes. Also add in 5 days of hotels (slow and fatigued travel) for another $500, and an airplane ticket, etc.  It is real hard to make the trip yourself for under $2,000.  Not to mention the days off work.  

In reply to John Welsh :

It looks like Grampy's "good" engine needs to be reassembled (427 stroker AMC) and Dad (also in FL) builds AMC engines. I'm thinking have Dad get the engine prepped and I'll fly out and help him assemble it, break it in, and put it in the car maybe? After that I haven't gotten clear yet, but the cost of getting it out here is a big number, but can be dealt with.

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

If you buy a 15-20 gallon cell, have it sent to FL and simply bolt to the trunk floor (provided there is a floor) then make a proper mounting when you get it home that might work..................it'd be a not nice drive though.

In reply to Tom1200 :

The car needs way too much to drive cross country.

Javelin (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Tom1200 :

The car needs way too much to drive cross country.

I read this as, "This car needs way too much drive cross country".

Don't wake up a year from now kicking your ass.

Pay to ship it.   (it will waste away in storage)     Maybe make it a great street rod.   Enjoy!

Trust me.  If you let it go, you will regret.  And... Gramps will be smiling, which may be the most important reason.

Besides the nostalgia and helping your family out I'll add this:

Rare old things in good shape rarely lose value, usually they gain a bunch. If you need another reason, parking the money and it making "interest" isn't a bad thing.

The gear vendors unit is an interesting piece. But last time I looked,their prices, (for a new one) are high enough that you could almost ship it twice!

And, although the pro street thing was never a huge intrest of mine, that car with some mods to drive it on the street, would be a very fun toy, and sounds like that's exactly what ya have in mind.

A year or three of inside storage with family is not going to cause enough deterioration to matter... and sound like your dad's a great resource to help y'all have fun together with it!

Gumby's build partner did me good on a GRM relay for some parts, and does transport some cars in a nice enclosed trailer... he's a cool car guy. Reach out to Gumby, and see if you can time it right with him for a good deal.

Javelin (Forum Supporter) said:

OHSCrifle said:

Nostalgia aside.. How much could he get for that car IF there was a market for it? If the point is helping him out financially, do you let "your" drag car stay at his place?

He is also trying to move and actively wants me to have his car. None of his other cars have stayed in the family; his 68 he bought new and the pace car are in museums, the Super Stock is in Finland, and the funny car is in Ohio. All the other cars are lost to the sands of time.

Hey Javelin, you pretty much answered your own question. Taking ownership of this special car will make both of you happy. Now it just comes down to working out the details.   

Danny Shields (Forum Supporter) said:

Javelin (Forum Supporter) said:

OHSCrifle said:

Nostalgia aside.. How much could he get for that car IF there was a market for it? If the point is helping him out financially, do you let "your" drag car stay at his place?

He is also trying to move and actively wants me to have his car. None of his other cars have stayed in the family; his 68 he bought new and the pace car are in museums, the Super Stock is in Finland, and the funny car is in Ohio. All the other cars are lost to the sands of time.

Hey Javelin, you pretty much answered your own question. Taking ownership of this special car will make both of you happy. Now it just comes down to working out the details.   

 

Yeah, I think you're right. This is about so much more than just a car.

So I talked to Dad this morning. Grampy's engine can never be a street motor and needs a ton of work (filled and sleeved block, runs on alcohol, extremely rare Herman Lewis heads, two Dominators, etc) and the powerglide is not street friendly either. 

However, Dad has a 401 with Edelbrock heads and a 727 Torque Flite that can be built up to be equal parts street able and awesomely fast. Having a drivetrain built my dad in my grandpa's car is even cooler. 

I think you should turn this into the build thread

Dusterbd13-michael (Forum Supporter) said:

I think you should turn this into the build thread

I have fantasies about driving it back across the country roadkill-style with my best bud. Maybe more than a handful of people would watch that on my YouTube. 

I tend not to watch YouTube stuff, honestly. 

Other than binky. 

But id watch the hell outta that!

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

The road trip would had to the fun...............even if it were painful.

In reply to Javelin (Forum Supporter) :

So when can we expect those episodes?

Do it!  This thing needs to stay in the family by any means necessary.  Such a cool beasty.

Javelin (Forum Supporter) said:

 Having a drivetrain built my dad in my grandpa's car is even cooler. 

THIS!!! This answers the entire question... when does the build thread start?

I, also, do not do a lot of U tube... but will watch that when (notice I didn't say if?) that happens! I've seen a couple of yours, and you do a great job.

03Panther said:

Javelin (Forum Supporter) said:

 Having a drivetrain built my dad in my grandpa's car is even cooler. 

THIS!!! This answers the entire question... when does the build thread start?

I, also, do not do a lot of U tube... but will watch that when (notice I didn't say if?) that happens! I've seen a couple of yours, and you do a great job.

+1

I'm going to take the opposite side, than most people here. 
 

We all have interests and hobbies and when we no longer participate in those it's time to sell and move on, use that money for the next hobby or obligation. But we get emotionally attached to our E36 M3 and try to hold on to it for nostalgia. But then the stuff just ends up collecting dust or needing a bunch of annoying maintenance until someone ends up selling it, usually for pennies on the dollar.

if *you* really want the car, do it. It sounds like an ass of work to me for very little in return. 

AaronT said:

I'm going to take the opposite side, than most people here. 
 

We all have interests and hobbies and when we no longer participate in those it's time to sell and move on, use that money for the next hobby or obligation. But we get emotionally attached to our E36 M3 and try to hold on to it for nostalgia. But then the stuff just ends up collecting dust or needing a bunch of annoying maintenance until someone ends up selling it, usually for pennies on the dollar.

if *you* really want the car, do it. It sounds like an ass of work to me for very little in return. 

I agree with this except for the very last part of the post. It sounds like he and his grandpa get a lot in return. And it doesn't have to be permanent. 

I'd ask myself what the opportunity cost is here. If you don't do this, and Gramps sells it to someone else, what are you doing instead? That is what you need to make your decision off of. Otherwise you've already made it - go sign the title.