At a crossroads with the van

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vanwyk4257
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 11:23 am
Location: Grand Rapids, MI

At a crossroads with the van

Post by vanwyk4257 »

Well, I've been doing some work on the van, removing bondo on the passenger side where there was some body damage. The good thing is there is no rust, all the underlying metal is really solid. the bad news is I think I would need to replace both of the side load doors, and repair or replace the sheet metal around the front wheel opening. The doors could be used, but I'm a bit of a perfectionist and I would rather just replace them and not have any bondo on it since I would be doing a full repaint of the van anyway.
I don't think the body of the van is tweaked at all, all of the underlying structure is solid with no rust and doesn't exhibit any signs of moving.
My question is this (and yes I know pictures would be helpful, I'll take some later), is the front wheel opening panel available anywhere? I'm debating at this point whether I want to continue with this project or abandon it and sell it to someone with the time/talent to do it right. I don't have the funds right now to send it out to a shop to have all the work done to repair the body right, and I don't have the time to do it myself, and won't for the forseeable future. I'm realizing that between my son's basketball schedule and having a 10-month old at home my free time is going to be pretty restricted for a while.
The van is truly rust free, all of the floors and even the rear battery tray are solid. The engine is a '62-'64 92-102hp car and turns freely, I believe the van still has the original 4-speed manual, not a transplant from the car the engine came from. The bench seat, sun visors, and most of the interior are all intact along with the front floor mat. The van does need some parts for the engine to try to get it running however, and the body needs to be stripped to bare metal and done right.
Also, the windshield is cracked and will need to be replaced, which appears like it will be a significant expense.
Am I better off selling it (or trying to) for about what I have into it ~$800 or just keep it? I'm looking for honest input from you guys. If I do end up selling it I would like to see it go to someone here, even if I need to take a little bit of a financial hit on it.
Thanks in advance for the honest input guys.
1961 Corvair 95 van - rust free CA truck, pro touring style resto mod in progress.
2009 Mazdaspeed3, turbocharged D-stock autocross terror/daily driver
User avatar
Vanman
Posts: 605
Joined: Wed Jan 13, 2010 6:38 pm

Re: At a crossroads with the van

Post by Vanman »

It sounds to me like you already know what you want to do, but maybe looking for a different point of view. I am at the same point in life with $ and time, the way I see it you can do one of two things. Either sit on it till you have the time and or $, or sell it if its not what you realy want to do. In my recent experience, its tough to sell a project. You might be better off trading it for something you can use. I had a project up for sale/trade for a year and a half and never once got a cash offer, not even a low ball, I did however get plenty of trade offers, some dreamers, some valid offers. Food for thought.
Kevin, Plainfield IL

'63 Corvan

'63 Custom Bug.
vanwyk4257
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 11:23 am
Location: Grand Rapids, MI

Re: At a crossroads with the van

Post by vanwyk4257 »

Kevin, all good points. That was the other thought I had in the back of my mind is that I could just park it in my father's pole barn until I can get to it down the road. I just figure if I'm not going to make significant/meaningful progress on it for a while there is no sense having it sit in the garage taking up my parking space. I do agree that selling stuff is difficult at best right now given the economic climate. Fortunately since I'm only into it for around $800 I can't lose too much.
1961 Corvair 95 van - rust free CA truck, pro touring style resto mod in progress.
2009 Mazdaspeed3, turbocharged D-stock autocross terror/daily driver
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