Need some suggestions...

Hi all,

I have been a member for some time... must of been when I was restoring my previous GTX. Anyway, I have a dilemma that I am trying to rationalize my next step.

So, I own a low mileage 1968 GTX that just happens to be a J code car. Yes it has a hemi, and it's a 4spd car too. The question is that I am struggling with the notion of going forward with a full tear down and proper restoration. I know what I paid for the car when I bought it, and I am concerned that I will invest more than it's worth after completion.

I believe I know what it's worth in various stages of condition from full resto to as-is. My question is IF you owned this car what would you do?

You are free to make other recommendations, but here is what I am thinking are some options (BTW, the status of the car is that it is a low mileage car with all original drivetrain, but it has been sitting in a garage for the last 20+ years under a car cover. It needs TLC, and the engine will likely need to be torn down and freshened up at a minimum, and the paint does not look as good as the pics... but ZERO rust).

1. Full tear down, complete nut and bolt restoration
2. Full tear down, restore with cost in mind, keep within reasonable budget
3. Rebuild engine, Paint, minor items trying to maintain originality
4. Get it running, do the best with paint, and enjoy it.

Thanks in advance!

As much as I would attempt to keep the project in check, I would end up doing a full blown tear down and as accurate of a restoration as possible.

That’s just the way it always goes for me with this stuff.

vintage chromoly said:

As much as I would attempt to keep the project in check, I would end up doing a full blown tear down and as accurate of a restoration as possible.

That’s just the way it always goes for me with this stuff.

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I completely understand. A point of clarification should be made... I am not trying to restore the car to flip and make money, just trying hard to keep myself in check.

Now for some questions to your questions. An original car with that drivetrain and original tooth and nail is worth a serious a month of cash but the only way one would ever realize its value is to sell it. I realize that's probably not your plan. My second thought is, How much of the work are you able to do? How much can you afford without have the need to recoup expenses? Is fender tag Nd build sheet part of this equasion? Before a total nut and bolt you need to have these two features to justify its total value. What's the original color? The color I see doesn't look like a Mopar thing. My thought is, if you have the time, finances, and ability to do a lot of the work then shoot for the moon. I've seen many, thinking they had what it takes to accomplish a project of this magnitude realize they bit off more than they could chew, or a death in the family or an unwanted hospital stay only to have created a pile of disassembled car parts, very valuable car parts. A pile of car parts is cheaper than a pile of parts running down the road.. You have a nice worthy project.

Well if you plan on keeping it, and you have the funding to do so without going over the brink, I would do the resto but not go nuts if you plan on driving it. I know for myself, if I did a resto such as moparnation's GTX in the sticky section of the resto page, that I would never drive it for fear of screwing something up. That's just me. I want to do one of those before I die, but just because I do the work myself and it intrigues me. I drive the wheels off my stuff so the resto would be really nice but not to the point where you are afraid to drive it. Those cars are cool for sure, I just can't own one myself at the moment.

Small Block said:

Now for some questions to your questions. An original car with that drivetrain and original tooth and nail is worth a serious a month of cash but the only way one would ever realize its value is to sell it. I realize that's probably not your plan. My second thought is, How much of the work are you able to do? How much can you afford without have the need to recoup expenses? Is fender tag Nd build sheet part of this equasion? Before a total nut and bolt you need to have these two features to justify its total value. What's the original color? The color I see doesn't look like a Mopar thing. My thought is, if you have the time, finances, and ability to do a lot of the work then shoot for the moon. I've seen many, thinking they had what it takes to accomplish a project of this magnitude realize they bit off more than they could chew, or a death in the family or an unwanted hospital stay only to have created a pile of disassembled car parts, very valuable car parts. A pile of car parts is cheaper than a pile of parts running down the road.. You have a nice worthy project.

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Thanks for the words. So I have a large heated barn that I use to restore cars. I am in the process of finishing a '66 Chevelle for my uncle. I have done plenty of other cars including my previous GTX (which I learned A LOT doing). I have complete documentation of this car including original bill of sale, fender tag, build sheet, you name it, I got it. The car is originally RR1 Maroon, the paint on the car is NOT this bright, but the camera picked up more light than it looks in person. That said, it is an original RR1 car, with Maroon interior (NOT many made like this to my knowledge). I also have a paint booth to paint so that is not a concern either.

I hear ya. If you were a flipper, a quick scuff and shoot would suffice. We all know the routine with flippers.

I took it as you planned on keeping the car.

How you plan on enjoying the car when done is a part of how you “restore” the car. A trophy that doesn’t get driven and is only shown would be the best candidate for an over the top restoration (no money spared and NOS parts)
A car that would be driven and enjoyed could be “restored” to that level with less emphasis on date code this and that and assembly line oil filters and such.

wldgtx said:

I completely understand. A point of clarification should be made... I am not trying to restore the car to flip and make money, just trying hard to keep myself in check.

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vintage chromoly said:

I hear ya. If you were a flipper, a quick scuff and shoot would suffice. We all know the routine with flippers.

I took it as you planned on keeping the car.

How you plan on enjoying the car when done is a part of how you “restore” the car. A trophy that doesn’t get driven and is only shown would be the best candidate for an over the top restoration (no money spared and NOS parts)
A car that would be driven and enjoyed could be “restored” to that level with less emphasis on date code this and that and assembly line oil filters and such.

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THAT is the dilemma!!!! I plan on driving this car, I plan on enjoying this car. My opinion is that they are supposed to be driven and enjoyed, taken to shows, etc. I want to find the right balance of restoration with the ability to enjoy the car, I just don't know what that is yet.

I'd say that color would be a rare feature. Knowing what you tell us, I'd say give it all ya got and after you're done drive it. If your in an area that has other dedicated Mopar freaks then there may be individuals that would assist you in your efforts at no cost on some weekends. I'm one of those freaks but probably not in your area. Get you some available books on correctness and go for the gusto.

wldgtx said:

4. Get it running, do the best with paint, and enjoy it.

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Option #4 is the only sane choice to start with and only then can you decide if it is worth doing more work. This is the basic start point.

As they say on Road Kill, just get it running. Don’t worry if it’s right, just get it running. Then drive it around and do your thinking then after you worked all the bugs out.

The starting point is change all the fluids, rubber hoses & battery. Fresh gas and then the key.

First warm sunny day, wash, compound, wax, drive!

I would clean it up as you described in option 4. Drive it and make it a work in progress. The only way you are going to find out the true condition of the drive train is get it running and drive it enough to know if it needs rebuilt. The major things that are blatant to me is those red heater hoses and yellow plug wires. I saw a similar 68 GTX on here advertised for 89,900 that from the pictures looks literally perfect. From what you have said it looks like you won't have to pay for to much other than parts, so looking at your pictures the car could be a presentable driver as is or taken to any stage you want. Make it what YOU want.

Jerry Hall said:

I would clean it up as you described in option 4. Drive it and make it a work in progress. The only way you are going to find out the true condition of the drive train is get it running and drive it enough to know if it needs rebuilt. The major things that are blatant to me is those red heater hoses and yellow plug wires. I saw a similar 68 GTX on here advertised for 89,900 that from the pictures looks literally perfect. From what you have said it looks like you won't have to pay for to much other than parts, so looking at your pictures the car could be a presentable driver as is or taken to any stage you want. Make it what YOU want.

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Yes, it has several things that stand out as needing attention as you mentioned, and a few others not visible in these pics. It has been sitting for a long time and in my garage for a while waiting for me to make a decision. The drivetrain is 100% original and I am 99% confident that it needs to be torn down, but like you said gotta get at it to know for sure.

The first rule in owning a classic muscle mopar: We do it because we enjoy it! This is our Golfing or boating or camping or traveling...whatever hobbie someone has. Do you think anyone gets their money back on those hobbies?! This is our passion. Therefore I say do whatever you want and don't worry so much about: will I put more in it than it's worth? How many of us have done that?... probably every one of us.

And besides, you have a Hemi 4 speed with a very rare color combination. You don't have too much to worry about. There's likely some collector out there that would be willing to pay more than it's worth just to add to his collection and show it off to his rich friends while they're holding fancy drinks with umbrellas in their glass. (Yeah, I hate collectors).

Do what you want to do, but please drive it. And for Heaven's sakes, get rid of those wheels and put some 15" Magnums on!

Godd luck and congrats on having such a car!

You decide, are you "resto guy" or not. Resto goes down the path of "cash alley". I f that's where you want to go great, if not pick the things you want to work on. As I recall most Hemi issues were with the ignition & carb tuning. Before jumping into the motor a more modern electronic ignition. The later electronic stuff seemed to work pretty good. My opinion from a guy that knew a few Hemi's from the day. Do what you want, your car.

I would suggest sitting down with a piece of paper and calculator and try to put a cost to each one of the scenarios. Be realistic with your pricing and time frame. That will give you a base line to which you can use to hopefully guide you to the right decision for yourself. Under each scenario, also attempt to put a valuation on these updates to the value of the car. This might help to steer you to a decision that you can live with.

With that said, survivor cars with documentation will bring more money than a reconditioned car. For a survivor car to bring premium dollars, it must be really nice and basically be non touched through all of these years. The strong point for this car is that it is very solid and retains many of the original parts.

I hate the word restoration as I personally feel that the word gets diluted and the focus changed, but the car should be built to what your most happy with. Quite personally, no matter which direction that you should go in, try to refurbish or restore as many of the original parts as possible. If a part is needing to be replaced, seek out the best used part as possible and restore that part. Some parts are impossible to find and you will have to go the route of using a reproduction part.

Also take into consideration the cost of items like the finish panel and tail lamp bezels, the grill, the Inland shifter if it is a early car are all expensive parts to restore. As for as restoring the car over the top and not being able to drive it, then it depends on your view of using the car. If your looking to take the car out for trips that might involve rain showers, then that should factor into your decision. But most of these cars now seldom only see bright and sunny days.

No matter what route you take, it is going to involve getting the drive train in order. Get those items in order and that will possibly help you with the decision that you will take. Good luck with the car and look forward to hearing more about the car. I have a October 17th build Hemi Road Runner, so I am always looking for cars like yours that retains their originality.

Recently, I spent a lot of time, but cleaning out the oil pan and spinning the oil pump with a drill and turning the crank until I got the witch's brew of Marvel and Sea Foam oil mixture to the rockers was worth it. The motor fired and runs great after setting since 1992.
My question is originality. I didn't see where you say whether or not the paint was original. As they say: It can be original only once.
Going into the future when you or an heir will decide to sell, I believe true survivors will sell the easiest.
I have a 8,000 mile vehicle with the original air in the tires. People talk about the different options that were and were not available, and this truck sometimes proves or disproves their assertions.

Low mileage car don't want to put miles on it. Restored car to nice to drive. The choice is yours.

Thanks all. A few points on the last comments...

Coronut - The car is a time capsule from the 80's hence the wheels. I love Magnum 500's but I would likely lean towards the originals... and like I said this is NOT about what it's worth or what I can sell it for. It is about the passion, but I know how it goes and the last thing I want to do is create garage furniture that I end up resenting (been there plenty of times).

66Satellite - Totally agreed!

69Bfan - My plan would be to reuse everything and refurbish all the parts that are on the car since it is in such great shape.

In all honesty the car does not need as much as I many have indicated. It just needs a really good freshening up. For example the interior is completely perfect, just needs to be cleaned up and detailed. Many areas of the car fall into this category, except the paint... The paint is not so good. I am hopeful all of the other projects will be done and I can open this car up this summer and start.

wldgtx said:

I want to find the right balance of restoration with the ability to enjoy the car, I just don't know what that is yet.

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your problem is
once you rip open the can 20 worms will fly out in different directions
and you won't know how many worms there are or how big the worms are until you start ripping into it.
and if you are a perfectionist , you will soon be overwhelmed
if investment is your main object , clean it up and kick it to the curb
you will see pennies on the dollar return for every dollar you throw at it once you start restoring it.
you might do better then most being its a top of the chain car and break even if you do all the work.
paint is the most expensive part and time consuming to do
when you throw a restoration at a investment
you usually end up losing, the days of making good money left long ago.
you need to forget the investment part and just do it
if that's what you want to do.

IMHO, #4 all the way. Get it running&drive it. You may not want to do anymore than clean it up. Rebuild later(?)