Farm-find freak Glenn Torrens looks at the real deal of resurrecting cars
It seems that farm- and shed-find cars are the coolest things since cold beer right now. Every few hours, it seems, someone is telling the world of a raggedy car that has been dragged from under a gum tree or carport.
In the past, cars such as these would probably have been scrapped but that’s changed. Factors such as the ever-increasing ‘investment-grade’ prices of many traditional cool cars, and easy and free access to internet advertising mean that just about every old shit-box, no matter how shabby, has some value these days.
Often, these online ads hint that rego/road will be easy after little more than a splash of petrol and a few hours’ work.
But is it ever that cheap ‘n easy? After resurrecting several cars in the past few years, I can confidently say…
No!
Don’t get me wrong; I’m not criticising shed-finds… in fact, I love ’em. But I know that if a car has been sitting for years, after being used for decades, it will need work.
| Watch next: Glenn’s farm-find VB Commodore alive and running
I’ll use my farm-find green VB V8 Holden Commodore sedan as an example. Most readers of Unique Cars will recall what that’s about: I dragged it from a mate’s back paddock where it had been sitting for nearly 20 years. I put it back on the road kind-of, sort-of, ‘as-is’. And as I showed last issue, I’m doing similar to another shabby old Commodore right now, too.
While in the paddock, the VB V8 Commodore’s carburettor, radiator and rear axle were removed to fix other cars. I bought a replacement carby – $50 from a mate. I already owned a rear axle, but that’s worth around $500 before I machined the discs, replaced the bearings and filled it with fresh lube. I owned a radiator too, but generally a good second-hand one is $150 so let’s add those prices to the bill.
| Watch next: Glenn’s Project Bombodore – tackling the rust
Once I got the car home, I discovered the fuel tank was stuffed… I paid $120 for another tank and had the fuel gauge sender reconditioned for $150. Headlights and tail lights; let’s say $300 for second-hand front and $200 out back. My green VB needed wheels, too ($200 for the set) and $300 for new budget-spec tyres.
Usually an older car will require a bit of interior trim repair. Let’s add $150 (what I’ve paid for a simple seat edge fix by a motor trimmer) and $250 (carpet) for an interior tidy-up. My Commodore’s interior needed far more than that… but hopefully you get the idea.
Of course, not every shed find has the rust my VB Commodore had, so you won’t need to invest the $1000 or so – plus the labour and consumables – to buy and install a sill and floors. But replacing other rusty panels – for instance, a door, front guard or a boot-lid of a typical 70s, 80s or 90s car – and you’re right back in the spend.
I have high standards for my cars so I went ‘above and beyond’ many by fitting brand new brake and fuel lines, seat belts and plenty of other items such as wheel bearings, dampers and axle seals. Your new shed-find may not require all that, but for safety and reliability I was happy to invest an extra $1200 or so for those parts.
In the engine bay; fuel, brake vacuum and heater hoses ($100) and a fresh battery ($200) is a typical spend, as are fresh fluids (let’s say $150 for oil and filter, coolant and a brake bleed). Most engines that have been sitting for years will need a water pump ($70) and drive belts ($50) too. I think a typical air cleaner is $30, spark plugs $100 and the leads a bit more…
Already, our parts total is zooming toward $5000. Five grand!
Driving these tatty time-warpers can be awesome fun so if you’re on a budget, by all means have a go at the patina end of the cool car scene by resurrecting a shed or farm find like I have.
But be realistic about the recommissioning costs!
From Unique Cars #468, Jul/Aug 2022