WHAT IS AVERAGE SHOP RATE THAT YOU CHARGE OR PAY TO HAVE YOUR HOT ROD, CUSTOM, OR CL***IC CAR BUILT. NOT ALOT OF FAB INVOLVED JUST ALOT OF ****TERED PIECES OF A 1964 IMPALA SS. IT IS COMPLETE INTERIOR TO EXTERIOR MATCHING NUMBERS 327 w/ POWERGLIDE. THE BODY HAS IS ON A ROTISSERY WITH ALL NEW SHEET METAL, QUARTERS, DOOR SKINS, FENDERS, ETC... MOST BODY WORK HAS BEEN DONE, AND IS IN PRIMER. THE PREVIOUS OWNER WAS GONNA BUILD IT A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THEN GOT BURNED OUT. WE or I BOUGHT THE CAR WITH ALL THE PIECES. ROLLING POWDERED COATED CH***IS w/ AIR RIDE, CHROME THIS CHROME THAT. IT SHOULD PROBABLY BE TAKEN ALL APART AGAIN FOR SOME DOUBLE CHECKIN AND LOCK***EN. JUST TRYIN TO GET A BALL PARK FIGURE WHAT SHOP RATE ON A PROJECT LIKE THAT IS GOIN FOR. ITS JUST A BIG MODEL CAR. MAY BE DOIN THE PAINT AND BODY WORK TOO, TELL ME WHAT YA THINK IS REALISTIC?
Lots. BTW, caps lock is shouting.... I doubt any shop is going to give you an exact figure, but should have an hourly rate and a rough ballpark for ***embly. The body/paint will be different. Also expect the figure to go up, since there will be unexpected issues...
Gosple right there. Whatever the estimate you get add at least a 1/3 to cover the unexpected and you still might be light when the dust clears. 50 years of doing this sort of thing has a way of making you skeptical of even the highest of estimates. Frank
there's a web page called caseconverter.com or something.... What is average shop rate that you charge or pay to have your hot rod, custom, or cl***ic car built. Not alot of fab involved just alot of ****tered pieces of a 1964 impala ss. It is complete interior to exterior matching numbers 327 w/ powerglide. The body has is on a rotissery with all new sheet metal, quarters, door skins, fenders, etc... most body work has been done, and is in primer. The previous owner was gonna build it a couple of years ago, then got burned out. We or i bought the car with all the pieces. rolling powdered coated ch***is w/ air ride, chrome this chrome that. It should probably be taken all apart again for some double checkin and lock***en. Just tryin to get a ball park figure what shop rate on a project like that is goin for. Its just a big model car. May be doin the paint and body work too, tell me what ya think is realistic?
Any answer you get has to be taken in context and will also vary by location. As an insurance appraiser of cl***ic, vintage and special interest cars, I have paid between $42 up to $95 an hour. The $95 per hour was on a Lamborghini Diablo (remember, context). The $42 per hour (normal body shop rate) I've paid on late model cars such as an '09 Dodge Challenger SRT8, a '98 Porsche Boxster, etc. Typical muscle car stuff I've been able to get away with $50 per hour and $30 materials based on agreed refinish hours. Now understand that this is usually a repair on a collision damaged car and I'm working an agreed price with the shop based on flat rate. I also have a good idea what certain operations take in time and I don't expect a shop to do work for free. I just wrote an estimate on a '65 Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider with a softball size dent in the nose. My estimate to put it back to as new condition was $5800. This included detriming the entire front end, metal finishing the damaged nose, two coats to refinish the nose, a single coat over the rest of the front end to blend the color as necessary, two coats of clear coat and to reinstall all the trim. When you start adding up the hours it takes to put a jig saw puzzle back together, the time can be enormous (and expensive) even if it doesn't look like much. If the car needs to be refinished, the materials are based off of the labor time. If the labor rate is $50 and the material rate is $30, 10 hours of paint time will cost $500 in labor and $300 in material. This typically will include the cost of paint, tape, plastic filler, sanding discs, etc. Not trying to scare you, but shops are not cheap.
Too many question to be answered to give a real estimate, especially without seeing it, BUT I will say that having what sounds like similar cars come though my shop you will be looking at a minimum of $30k, plus paint to put that BIG MODEL back together correctly.
I've allways done it myself. That translates into: 1) ****** knuckles 2) time with friends 3) pizza 4) beer 5) BEER priceless. Not much "fabbin: is pretty much "boltin" eh?
So basically all it needs done is everything needs to be removed and reinstalled? From the frame up? Nobody will work as cheap as you do, so if money is any sort of a concern I'd say do it yourself. If you have a money tree in your backyard, then plant another one, because lord only knows how much this will end up costing you if you pay someone. You'd be way, way, did I say way? better off $$$ wise and even more importantly time wise to buy one that's finished and have it bagged if you must. A project like that could easily take years, and no guarantee you'll get what you paid for.
Possibly a little bit of homework prior to purchase would have been in order. Most folk would take on that sort of a project only if they had the ability to do some or all of the work themselves. The more you can do, the cheaper it will be, but still sounds like a few dollars to me.
save yourself a lotta money,, most stuff is kinda basic how to,,ask here for help,,thats what the sight is for.. if you want someone to restore/build the car for you ,,,min $40,000..and that by someone doing it right,, some monkeys maybe $20,000
Because nothings ever as easy as it looks... While Zman works on the idea of "it takes what it takes", I like to be more prepared than that. I at least want to be in the ball park. The biggest variable to me is the blocking and sanding getting the car ready for paint. The rest can be defined, though a restoration shop won't want to admit it.
I retired in 2002,but here in miami , in my shop it was $45 phr with 1hr min. plus parts . If I gave estament I always gave higher then I know I could do it for,so when at the end I gave the man a bill for less,he was happyer. Still get calls for work,but can't do much now,just engine balancing and some odd stuff.
lol, I do the best estimate I can, but more often than not, and especially with paint and body there are things that you can't see when you inspect the car. I also disagree with your "the rest can be defined" quip. I tell try and tell the customer what I think it'll take but there could be things that'll take longer or that we couldn't tell were there. But more often than not the increase is due to the customer changing things or adding things on.
oooh-oooh! lemme have a shot at that! <hand waving in the air> Most EVERY job I get in the shop-- insurance OR old car--ends up being MORE work ....whether it's collision(hidden damage) or restoration/customizing(owner changes direction or adds things) RARELY do I get to do a job for the initial estimate......yet I get tagged with the stigma of "he charged more than he quoted " Go figure.....
In the insurance end, it's referred to as a supplement. Supplements happen. Some damage is hidden, or as mentioned, the customer can't decide which way he wants to go with his project. As for 'other' labor, books can define the labor time on anything from an engine overhaul to replacing a quarter panel. While I don't hold shops to those exact times, they are a basis for pricing the repair. I have a price I'll pay on my Studebaker and in many cases, I've been within my budget. But it still isn't a cheep job.
Amen to that. Am I the only one who wonders what somebody who has ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA what's involved in putting a car together is doing buying a car like this? Buy a totally dis***embled car, and then pay a shop to put it back together, find all the missing bits, figure out what goes where, and make a car out of it? WTF, where are these guys when I want to sell something, anyway? Maybe I'm just getting old, cynical and grumpy, but this poor guy is in for a very, very rude awakening.
So the car's got air ride, chrome this n that, powdered ch***is. All of that, and everybody reading this knows, is a far cry from anything stock or anything that can be remotely 'defined'. Liberty is taken in many areas of such a build and there's always things that just won't work together without some measure of re-thinking/fabricating. Were all the chrome parts done right or are they so laiden with copper that nothing fits? Were the threads protected? How about the powdere stuff? All the holes taped out? Were they good before they were powdered. Would you pay for a 2 day estimate to sort through everything and get a 'feel' for the job? That's 2 guys 2 days so 32hrs just to get a game plan in order and check the entire car for missing or mis-matched components. 2 days of hitting the job hard to get the things sorted and get a feel for the body and paint. Were the panels put in right or are they overlapped import **** frosted with a 1/4 inch of filler? Seems to be "the way" anymore so I'd expect no less from this car and be pleasantly shocked to find otherwise. And we haven't even talked about the motor/trans condition and the expected levels of quality and performance. At our rate of $60/hr for full builds it's going to add up quick. What you should be able to expect is a 1st rate restoration that will last and be something to be proud of. You should also consider the 'long haul' of the investment. It'll be easy to get upside down in a car like this so the longer you own/show/tour/use this thing the more it pays you back provided it's treated like a thoroughbred instead of a junkyard dog. If that's what you were looking for that's about as honest and open as it gets. No sense trying to soften the blow. It's expensive and takes a special discipline on behalf of the craftsman and a mutual commitment between the owner and the shop.
a simple example of why it ends up more: The trim on each side of the car is held on by clips and nuts. The clips slide into the trim, and have to be aligned to the holes. Then you have to reach in and tighten each nut. If the trim is off, you have to fit it and make adjustments before you can install it. How much fitting time? Don't know until it's done. Does the customer also want a sealer to keep out the water? What kind, and how long does it add to the install? Will the trim be fitted before paint to ensure everything aligns? Add more time. Is all the trim perfect and protected, and all parts accounted for? That is one small detail of this giant model...
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