Cheap 1974 Challenger, how much for restoration?

Take a look at this

kijiji.ca/v-classic-cars/new-glasgow-ns/challenger-new-pics/1280869197?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

How much will it cost to restore it coming from someone with beginner mechanic skills?

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m.summitracing.com/search/part-type/engine-rebuild-kits/make/chrysler/engine-size/7-2l-440
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I can tell you off the bat that I would not pay 6k for it. It all comes down to the amount of rust on the car.
A restoration should never cost over 10k just fyi

Depends entirely on how rusted out it is, which suspiciously enough he doesn't show.

The hardest work is patching up the rust, especially where is it bad enough that you need to fabricate a new patch and weld it in place. I presume you don't have the skills to do that. You can learn but we are talking years here.

My guess is the floor panels are rusted beyond hope. That's why he didn't take a picture of them.

>Needs floor and trunk work.

Actually he says it in the description.

>No motor
>Rusted to shit
>But it's a classic Challenger
I'd offer tree fiddy because making that heap roadworthy is going to be a arduous and expensive task.

Shieeet okay we are talking about some major $$$. Based of what he says and pictures, is offering him 3k lowballer? How much for repairs? Am I just better swaping a brand new engine and trans?

Just go find a runner 318 or 360 so you can at least drive it while you work on it. That's probably all it needs to make it a roadkill-level shitbox.

You can try offering 3k, but he will say no.

There's nothing wrong with a 440, but as of right now there's no telling if it even works.
So I'm looking at this car as a rusty '74 Challenger shell.
I'm seeing a shitload of money needed to make it a decent car, especially if you don't have every single piece of equipment you'd need to get the body in good shape (you probably don't) and the amount of money you need to get replacement parts, which also won't exactly be cheap.
If you really want to fix up an old car I'd start with one that you know runs.

I'd pay 4K for it.

try to keep the stock trans and engine, they are what make the car. 3k would still be a little high for me and it is a 74.
Repairs would all depend on the rust, how handy you are with a welder and where you live.

My rust free 78 trans am i'm restoring only will cost me 6k and that includes a professional paint job.
Moral of the story look for a southern car if you want an easy cheap project.

>How much for repairs?

Probably $4000 or more in fabrication work to replace the floor panels and seal all the rust holes everywhere else.

Someone has already turned that car into a part's car because it's too far gone. That's why the original engine and transmission is missing along with a substantial amount of the interior.

Just rebuilding that 440 back to factory specs will run you about $5,000. I can't imagine making that into a good driver for less than 20k.

>rebuilding a 440
>$5000
hahahahaha
You fucking idiot.
m.summitracing.com/search/part-type/engine-rebuild-kits/make/chrysler/engine-size/7-2l-440

>How much will it cost to restore it coming from someone with beginner mechanic skills?

It will require professional work and quite a bit of cash, honestly these are more like projects that shops take on to make show cars or restomod. I would consider something else, despite the allure of the 440 in it.

When I rebuilt my 455ci Olds it was right around $5000 CAD doing a lot of the work myself.

For that 440 you'd have $700 in machine work (clean, bore, deck, Recondition rods, Install pistons, etc.), $850 in the valve train (Cam, lifters, springs, retainers, pushrods, rocker arms and shafts, and timming chain set.), $2,000 in the top end (heads, intake manifold, head bolts, gaskets, cheap carb, etc.) and $1,000 misc (windage tray, oil pump, oil pan and pickup, headers, spark plugs, coil, wires, etc).

Plus you'd probably need to swap out the rear end because most of those 74s were just set up for 318s.

Parts in Canada are pretty fucking expensive once you account for international shipping, customs fees and the bad exchange rate. I bought a set of rebuilt C heads for my 455 for $800 US and they ended up being $1500 CAD by the time I got them to my door.

You might want to try a forum for first generation challengers, do you expect anyone on here to know anything of value? The car doesn't look bad at all and anons will tell you that it's too far gone to be restored. I've never done anything with a first gen challenger, but I've helped on 3 different Chevy vehicles that were way worse than that and they got fully restored in less than 4 months for less than $10k a piece. Stop asking people who hate pony cars about pony cars.

Bump

How exactly do cars rust? I live in SoCal and I can't remember the last time I saw a car with rust. Is it more do to the salting of roads in some states?

Rust is iron's natural state. Iron molecules will bond with oxygen molecules when H2O is introduced, creating Iron Oxide - Rust. Salt can also speed up this process. Usually in the Midwest and the Northeast, lots of salt on the roads during winter + snow/sleet can literally turn vehicle frames and underbodies to dust.

>tfw my beloved F-150s frame is slowly degrading to nothing because shitty chicago salted roads

>a restoration should never cost over 10k
lol please fuck off, talking things you have no knowledge on

do you have any idea how much a reputable restoration place charges for a complete job? hint: it's usually 10x your paltry $10k

>classic challenger
>'74
lets not get crazy

wait til the bubble market it crashes before you buy an old muscle car, the boomers can't keep pushing the values up infinitely

>A restoration should never cost over 10k just fyi
What exactly have you been restoring, a honda civic? My grandfather just recently restored his 1969 Mustang. The car was in decent condition, but by the time he finished he had sunk in well over 15k into it. The paint job alone was 6k.

>Restoration shop
That's your problem you base your idea of restoration off the history channel.
Those guys are con men that use expensive meme parts and charge 110k for their name and a paint job.
Doing everything yourself and knowing what you are doing will cut the cost drastically.
I hope you go and do some research on classic restoration and try it yourself it is a lot of work and time but you will be proud of your final product.

>$10k restoration
>doing everything yourself
The problem with doing a bare-bones "restoration" in the garage is that after 100's of man-hours and $10k, you have a car with crappy body work, shit paint, tired mechnicals, and mismatched tires.

i hope that was a damn good paint job then holy shit

Nah mate we bring cars back to pure stock glory.
Can't post much pics because of image size limits (phone posting ftw)

The paint was absolutely abysmal. It was by far the worst part about the car. My grandfather opted in for a top tier paint job because he wants it to last for my lifetime. When he passes on he says he wants me to inherit it.

Well that sucks

this. a full authentic resto from a reputable place costs tens of thousands. some podunk shop refitting a couple of bolt on parts and giving it a shitty paint job isn't comparable

6k isn't shit for a good paint job really

I think he means the paint was terrible before the paintjob.

Here is my only photo of one of the 70 gtos that have been restored to pure stock, I'll post some more nice restoration jobs tgat have been done if the thread hasn't 404 by the time I get home.
I would check out psmcdr if you guys have the chance.

Fuck that. Challengers had every available engine Dodge had on the options list. You don't restore a slant six. You put a V8 in it.

Year specific Factory engines are fine, but always keep the numbers matching engine.