Realistic Cost to Build a Restomod

[Michael_]

Unless i win a big lottery jackpot or get rich otherwise i would not touch restomod/pro touring cars. It's just too expensive.
Yes if you can do all the work yourself it might be doable but most people (including me) can't.

Instead i would get a decent original 60s/70s car and something like a 90 ZR-1 Corvette or a C5 Z06 for the "modern" performance part.
Way cheaper and needs less "specialised shops" with less "specialised prices" for maintenance too.

This Chevelle i just saw on BAT proves my point...

Supercharged LT4–Powered 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Sport Coupe 6-Speed by Ironworks Speed & Kustom

Bid for the chance to own a Supercharged LT4–Powered 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Sport Coupe 6-Speed by Ironworks Speed & Kustom at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #227,356.

bringatrailer.com

This 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu sport coupe was modified and customized over the course of three years by Ironworks Speed & Kustom of Bakersfield, California, with records showing approximately $600k in work was completed.

I could buy a Condition 1-2 1990 ZR-1 for literally 1/10th of the price someone spent to build that chevelle.
Dont get me wrong this is a beautiful pro touring car but 600k is wild. That being said it has kinda the right components for a pro touring car. Looks like pretty much no expense spared.

 

[mmissile]

Blurry line between resto-mod, and pro-touring. Resto-mod can be hp, A/C/ brakes and wheels. Or it can be a ton of additions, without changing the chassis. Pro-touring starts at all the suspension being modernized/changed to a different setup.

 

[autoxcuda]

Buddy fabricates SEMA winning cars.

$300K to $800K plus is typical for their cars. Paint jobs they get are $100K.

A few past ones have sold. Half of less. Customer’s are paying for debuting their cars. Magazine’s and social media. Can only do that once.

 

[WileE]

I drive my old, classic cars for what they are. I drive my new modern Mopars for what they are. I don't spend a gazillion dollars to make my old Mopars like my new Mopars 'cause I already have... new Mopars.

 

[Budnicks]

There is a local guy around here

He had a full blown / no expense spared car built. 1957 Chevrolet 2 dr sedan

I was told by word of mouth he had over $500k in the car
Ive seen it in person a couple times. The car was Very VERY nice Yet different

I think it actually sold last year - just over $200 k for it
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air For Sale At Auction - Mecum Auctions

That was a top-notch quality build, I do like 57's,
I'm more of a HT guy, then a sedan the cab is too big on the sedans
looks out of proportion

anyway

But;
crazy to put $500k into something, but if you pay someone to do all of it
it's a checkbook build, you probably won't come out on top,
doing it for the love of the car (or for whatever reason he had)

not with shop rates of $150 per/hr + parts with a
1,000+ (to 3,000+) hrs into it + parts, plus profit on all of it
it's double the cost

still the resto-mods are doing better in value then even blue chip restoration
for the most part

 

[Budnicks]

When I was 8, I started working on a farm for .50 a day plus dinner and supper. I rode my bike 2 or 3 miles to get there. Times have changed, $70 -90 an hour to do the sheet metal on my Dart.

That's cheap labor, $70-$90 an hr.

you won't find that price 'out here'
not at any real professionally ran shop, that turns out quality work
it's $150 per++ here,
depending on where it's & if you get the bro deal or not,
a friend cuts you the bro deal, & they are rare

disclosure;
not to anyone specific here

I've had my current 68 RR for 21 years, still doing stuff to it
I have $25k in it total, changing my mind a couple times midstream
on how I wanted to build it, including buying it for $6k in 2005
(& getting screwed out of $2,500-$3,500 deal on parts for a car I was doing for a "friend",
buying 2 of each, to doing the builds simultaneously... His wife put the brakes on his project
& I now have all them still sitting in my garage, on the shelves, not sure if I will put them
on this car or not, probably not)
I do 99% of all the work on my cars
except machine work, mounting tires & custom interior stuff
all my interior is almost stock or the seats/ProCar Elites, got rid of the bench
sold it to a member here, I bought new stuff, no custom shop
it's not a show car, not in my mind by any stretch either, just cool parts
just a nice driver, built my way, with a lot of good parts, some aftermarket
a resto-mod with nice stuff, or maybe a street beast, might be a better discription
much of it can actually be bolt on stuff
I do it a lil' at a time, not break the bank...
&
It doesn't have to have all the Pro-Touring (spend out the *** $$) stuff
modern drivetrain OD trans A/C power everything huge brakes huge rims/tires
get all caught up in keeping up with the Jones's, their tastes or styles, mix/matched parts
(some not very well thought out too) to be a Resto-Mod, it can get crazy if you let it...

Resto-Mod Is a modified restoration of sorts,
a far lesser level, most built to someone's personal tastes
then the Pro-touring stuff, Resto-mods considerably cheaper too,
depends on you definition of it
another deal all together
if you're building & paying someone to build you a showcar/Pro-Touring
there's no cheap way to do it

 

[68BabyBlue]

My Ford friend, who has deep pockets, for our rural county, and an exceptional skill set, loses at least 50 percent of his parts costs every time he sells a build. His labor is free. He reminds me so much of my starving artist dad (photography) who excelled at his craft, but scratched to make a living.

 

[michigander]

I’m doing a 69 Roadrunner restoration / restomod of sorts. Good Sport Satellite donor doing a complete paint rotisserie, stock interior except Digital Dash & B&M overdrive shifter, drivetrain is 392 Crate EFI Hemi, overdrive trans, Dana 60 rear 4 wheel disc, borgeson steering upgrade to stock K-member, most parts by Holley for conversion with terminator x for control of everything including transmission. I bought most everything needed already, after paint trim, interior and soft parts I’m going to have 55-60k (includes car) doing much the labor myself farming out around 15k of my budget on paint work.

Thinking a very nice restoration equal or better than new with modern drivetrain should be worth more than my out of pocket investment considering my time as free, simply because I’m building for myself and not resale.

 

[autoxcuda]

It’s all about the level of resto mod.

This Charger at Grand National show shows how you can get $750K plus

This body has been moved all over the place. Fenders opening moved, firewall setback, front cowl moved back (notice no vents), footwell moved back, new trans tunnel, roof was split in two, rockers straightened out, widened quarters…

New full frame

 

[andyf]

Restomod built by a professional shop is going to cost a ton. Local guy has a RoadRunner with Hemi, 5 speed manual, Dana, disc brakes, new paint and interior. It cost $150,000 to build and is probably worth $75K at auction. Nice car but it is easy to be underwater fast on those builds.
I have about $50K of cash and several thousand hours into my '65 Coronet. I had it up for sale last summer for $39,000 with no takers. It would cost over $100K to have a shop build a car like this. It has 13 inch rotors with Porsche calipers, 17 inch custom three piece Fikse rims, a stroked 426W engine with EFI that makes 600/600, and a Doug Nash 5 speed.

 

[Larrry B.]

Restomod built by a professional shop is going to cost a ton. Local guy has a RoadRunner with Hemi, 5 speed manual, Dana, disc brakes, new paint and interior. It cost $150,000 to build and is probably worth $75K at auction. Nice car but it is easy to be underwater fast on those builds.
I have about $50K of cash and several thousand hours into my '65 Coronet. I had it up for sale last summer for $39,000 with no takers. It would cost over $100K to have a shop build a car like this. It has 13 inch rotors with Porsche calipers, 17 inch custom three piece Fikse rims, a stroked 426W engine with EFI that makes 600/600, and a Doug Nash 5 speed.

View attachment 1990321

View attachment 1990324

Nice car.

I'll never get back the money I've poured into my can over the years and lose money every time I do. If at some point I can get a certain $ amount that I'm comfortable with I'd sell but I don't see that happening, not for a long time. So I just keep going. I tell people you either love and want it, or don't do it.

 

[Budnicks]

Blurry line between resto-mod, and pro-touring. Resto-mod can be hp, A/C/ brakes and wheels. Or it can be a ton of additions, without changing the chassis. Pro-touring starts at all the suspension being modernized/changed to a different setup.

Yep Pro-Touring is
add A/C, w/power everything/windows & many custom flush mt. trim-less etc.
usually all full leather (& usually red interiors) shaved bumpers
huge waste of $$ on a bunch of stereo & boxes/bass crap
$70k drivetrain

Huge/bigger hoops, like 19-20 inch min., $10k+ 1 off rims,
wider 'rubber band' tires tires,

13"+ brakes, 6 piston or carbon fiber everything,
custom chassis or full tubular or 4 link suspension/coil overs
slammed or air-ride

or 1 off stuff, full custom, professionally built, & it shows
(like the Ring Bros. or ICON)
chrome or billet machined parts or carbine fiber custom 1 off stuff
(some even full carbine bodies)
$70k - $100k paint ++ & another 1,000-2,000++ hrs at $150-$200 an hr shop rate
a year or 2 or more usually to build

not for the faint of heart, no lil' bank accounts

almost all are modern muscle/drivetrains newer Gen III Hemis or LS or LT4 mainly now,
very few oldschool muscle, most all are blown or turbo'd, some both
5-6 speed OD manuals or OD 8/10 speeds, or other auto GM 6L80 or bigger,
$4k lock up converters, converted to whose ever motor

 

[Black_Sheep]

Buddy fabricates SEMA winning cars.

$300K to $800K plus is typical for their cars. Paint jobs they get are $100K.

A few past ones have sold. Half of less. Customer’s are paying for debuting their cars. Magazine’s and social media. Can only do that once.

For some people, that’s chump change. There’s guys who pay millions for exotic cars and they probably have more than one such car.

I’ll never be that guy…

 

[mmissile]

I have over a hundred into this car, and the `cuda was free.

6.2K views · 11K reactions | 1970 Plymouth Cuda Convertible Classic Car Drive By Engine Sound Easy Rodders Car Show 2024 | Casey Faitel

 

[gkent]

I have well over $175k in my '69 RR. Sheet metal "labor", bodywork and paint and engine machine work are the only things I didn't do. Disassembly, parts resto and reassembly all done by me. Full interior is original so no cost involved. And about 50% of the parts are second hand.

Whatever you budget, add 10% for getting screwed.