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My sons and I don't exactly "restore" them, we build them with a lot more hp and parts than the factory put on. So far, two 23 Fords, 27 Ford, 29 Ford, 31 Ford, 84 Capri, 92 Fox Mustang, and two 04 Mustangs. (We kinda like Fords )
I'm finishing up a nut and bolt on an 04 Mustang for my daily driver right now...roll cage, more HP, suspension, etc.
As for setting a budget, I don't want to know how much I have in them.
What I loved about Neons was the groups or clubs that would slap on some sort of bolt-on aftermarket forced-induction, drag race them a night or two, remove the forced-induction system and return it to the rental fleet all spanked-out.
Considering how easy it was to add forced induction to my Tacoma, I have to believe there are kits that easy or easier for the Neon....the dealer installed mine (!) in a couple hours, but that's TRD, their in-house racing people, and they warranty their own work. Which I appreciated, and thanfully never needed.
Ah: I was incorrect, apparently it's Nitrous they bolted onto Neons for drag races. LOL. KaTHWAP! ...goes the No. 1 piston....Also, apparently a great car if you want to practise for Rally X or unleash your inner Vin Diesel on Avis's dime.
As for the 240Z, a kid dating a friend of a friend's daughter showed me his project car this summer. He'd sunk a lot of time into it. It looked a-fright because he's too broke to have it painted candy apple lizard green, which is what I'd do, with flames. So, it just looks like some lil' JPN car with big hood scoop...to accommodate the Ford Coyote 302 or whatever he shoehorned in. His girlfriend wouldn't ride in it, being a frankenstein piece of ghetto claptrap (at least from the outside); can you blame her?
Felt like slapping and shaking him, saying "What are you DOIN', SON! Get thee onto a cool project, not nerd central!" Kid would have been laid a lot more had he chosen to properly restore say a '68 convertible or coupe Mustang with the 289, of which there are tons, and painted it Sky Blue with whitewalls. Nothing beats that for a slow summer cruise.
PS: my "cool" project would be a 1986 GSX-R750 or 1100, cool only to me because they were the revolutionary bikes of the decade in my view, closely followed by the FZR1000 of 1987-9. No one else would get it, though restoration wouldn't be terribly expensive either (< $7500, I suspect).
I didn't realize that people liked racing those Neons until years later after I got rid of mine. I never did anything to mine. I drove it until the head gaskets cracked, and after I got it fixed, I got rid of it. In retrospect, probably the dumbest thing I ever did, because from what I understood, once Dodge fixed the issue, you never really had the issue again as long as you took care of the car. It was such a better looking car than the Sentra I had traded the Neon in for. However, I am 100% sure that I probably would have needed a new paint job on that thing after a few years. Seems like I remember the clear coat starting to come off, although I might be getting that mixed up with the Sentra. (Both were black cars.)
If I did a Neon project, I would HAVE to paint the car black. No budging on that one. Mine was black and I felt mine looked really sporty in black. I would probably also find little, black, sport wheels for it. Seems like the wheels on these were like 15's. I would probably have find an updated engine for one. Maybe one out of a newer Neon (like an '05) if I could get it to fit. I wouldn't go ridiculous on the engine, but I probably would do some very minor, safe mods to give it a boast in horsepower. Of course, those little guys were kind of small and light, so I wouldn't want to pop a wheelie every time I took off from a traffic light.
My sons and I don't exactly "restore" them, we build them with a lot more hp and parts than the factory put on. So far, two 23 Fords, 27 Ford, 29 Ford, 31 Ford, 84 Capri, 92 Fox Mustang, and two 04 Mustangs. (We kinda like Fords )
I'm finishing up a nut and bolt on an 04 Mustang for my daily driver right now...roll cage, more HP, suspension, etc.
As for setting a budget, I don't want to know how much I have in them.
Yeah, I would definitely love to do a Mustang project since I'm a huge fan of Mustangs. If I ever got a New Edge 'stang, I would want to add a little more HP and torque to one, but still have it "cheap" enough as a daily driver.
1961 MGA in 1975 and a 1954 MGTF in 1985. Nothing since.
Great choices! Hail Britannia! Gotta love British cars, brilliant ideas - poorly executed. (Not bashing them, I an a British car buff - not a fan of Lucas though).
I didn't realize that people liked racing those Neons until years later after I got rid of mine. I never did anything to mine. I drove it until the head gaskets cracked, and after I got it fixed, I got rid of it. In retrospect, probably the dumbest thing I ever did, because from what I understood, once Dodge fixed the issue, you never really had the issue again as long as you took care of the car. It was such a better looking car than the Sentra I had traded the Neon in for. However, I am 100% sure that I probably would have needed a new paint job on that thing after a few years. Seems like I remember the clear coat starting to come off, although I might be getting that mixed up with the Sentra. (Both were black cars.)
If I did a Neon project, I would HAVE to paint the car black. No budging on that one. Mine was black and I felt mine looked really sporty in black. I would probably also find little, black, sport wheels for it. Seems like the wheels on these were like 15's. I would probably have find an updated engine for one. Maybe one out of a newer Neon (like an '05) if I could get it to fit. I wouldn't go ridiculous on the engine, but I probably would do some very minor, safe mods to give it a boast in horsepower. Of course, those little guys were kind of small and light, so I wouldn't want to pop a wheelie every time I took off from a traffic light.
Suggestion - if you do the rental thing - don't paint it black. Maybe you can just wrap it instead.
1961 Bigeye Sprite (1275 cc transplant) in 1971-2
1967 Austin Healey 3000 in 1973-4
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Love the name.
Mom's first sports car was the Mark III with overdrive, even had air conditioning for Miami! Learned to drive with that one.
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