There is no denying that classic cars have been a passion of many an enthusiast for decades. Anyone that owns or repairs such vehicles will tell you that it’s a hobby that requires a lot of time and money.
That said, the sad truth is that some classic cars are just too far gone and are only fit for the scrap heap. If you own a classic car, is yours a money pit? And if that is the case, is it something that you are willing to admit?
These telltale signs will probably tell you that it’s time to call it a day and move onto a new project:
The body has more rust and Bondo than metal
A car’s biggest enemy is iron oxide – or to put it by another name, rust. As you can imagine, a vehicle that is several years or decades old will inevitably have some rust on the body.
Some people tend to cut the rust out and then fill any holes with something like Bondo or fiberglass filler. If someone were to go around your car with a magnet, would it attach to any bodywork?
If the answer is “probably not,” then you might want to consider offloading your car. You might not realize it, but you can sell a junk car even if you think it’s not worth anything!
Getting replacement parts is almost impossible
Is your restoration project taking forever due to limited parts supplies? Do you have to wait a few weeks for any parts you buy because they come from the other side of the world?
As a car ages, there will be fewer parts available for it to buy. Sure, you have got the World Wide Web, and it’s an excellent resource for procuring parts. But, there will come a time where even classic car parts specialists will stop supplying things for your car.
Some resourceful enthusiasts have even gone so far as to fabricate replacement parts. They do so by either welding and shaping them, or “printing” them using a 3D printer!
Your wheels use a discontinued tire size
You might not think it, but sometimes even tires are almost impossible to source! Many older vehicles use narrow sized tires and are seldom in production these days.
There may be a temptation to buy older, used tires. The thing is, tires only have a useful life of around eight years from new. After that, they are more likely to blow due to rubber wear from environmental conditions.
Yes, you could cheat and buy different profile sized tires. But, you would need to make sure they fit well on your wheels. And let’s not forget that you’ll no longer have the “stock” look if you’re running different size tires.
Insurance for your classic car rises each year
Many people would assume insurance for a classic car would be cheap due to the low mileage on the road each year. The ugly truth is that insurance companies are increasing premiums for them each year.
Even if your classic car is perfect in every way, it could be a money pit simply because of the insurance costs!