Restoring a car...first undertaking - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

bobafett · 17th February 2002, 22:47

Hi. So recently I've been hit with the restoration bug. We've got two XKEs that desperately need some work, my favorite being the '66(?) Inline 6 burgundy over black. I bought a new top for it about a year ago, but otherwise the car's been sitting under a cover at my uncle's place.

Having never done a restoration on a car, I'm VERY psyched, but was wondering if anyone would like to pass on some words of wisdom. My plan is to attack the mechanics first, and then work ont he body later.

I also have some questions about the body itself. Can I do a repaint myself? How much work do I need and what sort of tools are necessary? Am I better off just sending the car to a paint shop to have it done?

Another consideration, albeit blasphemous (but really, my point isn't to make it a concourse car, just a wicked fun weekend car) is carbone fibre panels. A friend of mine can make some SPECTACULAR stuff (he recently made a 944 turbo hood...damn thing is 8lbs and is made of some very high-quality stuff). Would CF panels on an XKE (painted, of course) be something worth considering?

I look forward to what you guys have got to say.

--Dan

greg · 17th February 2002, 23:06

If those cars are still all original, numbers-matching - then make no mods - especially carbon fiber panels. It will destroy the value! The ONLY way to properly restore such a car is frame-off. Take it all the way down, and rebuild it. There is no way you can paint it properly yourself. It takes equipement (spray booth, large vol. compressor, spray guns, sanders, etc.) and skill.

If you just want them to run and they don't have any intrinsic collector value - do anything you want. would be a shame to mess the up, though.

1st thing to do is take a subscription to Hemmings - it is the car collector/restorer bible for access to parts and services.

rennen · 17th February 2002, 23:08

Unless you have a spraybooth don't even consider painting that car yourself. Leave it to a pro. As for the carbon fiber; if you ever want to sell the car don't do it. All that crap makes it worthless.

TCM · 18th February 2002, 00:35

Dan:

As the others said, do not do any mods to the car. It is a definite no-no and will make the car almost worthless. As rennen stated, get it painted by a professional. You most likely do not have the facilities or experince required to correctly paint the car. And a word of advice is to be patient. Once you start a restoration you are going to find many things that need to be replaced and/or worked on. The problem with this is that the parts are usually not available. You have to search for awhile and they usually end up costing quite a bit. If you are patient and plug along, you will have a very nice Jag to add to your stable. Good luck.

greg · 18th February 2002, 00:48

A '66 XKE is such a great project - I would hate to think of making the "first time" mistakes on it. I've been thinking about doing a restoration too - perhaps a Porsche 356 or BMW 2002 - but the Jag is at least as special if not more, and certainly more complex than either.

I might start with a quicker, easier project to learn the ropes. I passed it up out of sheer will power but last week I saw an ad for an all-original '60 VW Bug (said "runs ok, needs some minor body work) - for $1800!!!! If that car is truly all original it is probably worth $5k in its present condition. I was SO tempted - because I already know my way around that particular vehicle. I did recheck though - it was gone within 2 days.

Bart Carter · 18th February 2002, 07:54

OK, and I speak from experience here, DON'T DO IT!

You have no idea how much work you are in for and what it takes.

If you decide to go ahead, the first thing you should do is completely check out the body.

The only panels you could do would be the bonnet. The rest of the body is semi-monocoque.

I would first purchase "E-Type Jaguar Restoration" and "Jaguar E-Type Six-Cylinder Restoration and Originality Guide." These and other books on Jaguars can be found at Classic Motorbooks.

Again, DON'T DO IT.

greg · 18th February 2002, 08:09

Bart - I agree with your conclusion but not sure I know all of the reasons going into it from your perspective. Unknown cost, skills required - is it specific to Jaguar as well? Starting vs. ending value?

Bart Carter · 18th February 2002, 08:28

Greg,

Restoration itself is tough enough. A 66 XKE is an almost 40 year old car. And you really need to be familiar with your car.

From your posts, you are like me. It has to be right. This makes it tougher.

Its going to cost way more than you ever expected.
Its going to take way longer than you ever expected.
To do it right, you will spend more than its worth. (even if you count your labor at a buck an hour)
You do need mechanical skills.
You need a place and the tools to do it right.
You need the knowledge.

To do a restoration, you must really be into the restoration itself.

All that said, I have two E-Types. They have been "improved" by me, performance wise. When you are here in May, I'll show you what I mean.

rennen · 18th February 2002, 08:31

I've done a few British cars, and they're not easy to restore. Parts are not always the easiest to come by. And you will break things. No matter how carefull you are, you will break stuff, and you'll lose stuff. If you think it'll take a year, figure two years. And you are talking years to do a restoration properly. If you've never done it before, seriously consider a pro. E types are complex cars, not for novice restorers.

Andy G · 18th February 2002, 11:11

I don't know about over there, but here in the UK the prices for E type Jags of various descriptions vary so wildly, that they are just not worth as much now as they used to. Have a neighbour who has spent in excess of £40k (about $50k!) over the last 8 years in getting his useable E type 3.8 convertible into an excellent condition, you can now buy them, having been restored say 4 years ago, for about £25k. But he's had his since it was 10years old, and will never sell.
So if you're going to keep it forever', then take your time, research it piece by piece, get loads of books on the subject and find out all the nooks and crannies on restoring the E type, great car but it can costs loads, they reckon on average budget for at least 1.5 times the estimate for unseen bits.

have a look at these:
http://www.xke-lovers.com/

on one site there's a comment that states:

"To the Body Shop
So this is where the "cheap" part of restoring a car is left behind and the blood-curdling, second-mortgage part starts"

gives an incling of what could be round the corner if you are unprepared!!

AG