Would you build a 4 door muscle era car?

[groucho]

Never. Paint/interior/chrome.....all costs the same whether spent on a 2 dr or 4 dr. Why not spend a little more on a 2 door before spending all that money? The end product will be worth more than the difference in price at purchase. In fact I'd go as far as to say the 4 dr will probly lose in value from the total invested. There may be few exceptions, but not enough to change my mind

[Hemi Joel]

Find me a '67 GTX for sale anywhere for $1,000, That doesn't need $40k worth of work.

Spaceman, with all due repsect, that is my point. The OP asks if I would "build" a 4 door. When you build a car, you end up dumping a bunch of money into it, usually a lot more that you paid for the car to begin with. Plus time and effort. Especially if it comes from a junkyard. If you need to do an engine, trans, brakes, wheels and tire, paint, interior, it's pretty easy to put a year or 2 of your labor and $10,000 - $50,000 cash into a car. So why not start with something that will have the most value when it is done? If the OP is on a rescue mission to make sure that nothing cool gets crushed, then good for him. This is an opportunity to do just that. But if he wants to take on a project that makes sense from an investment vs. reward perspective, he'd be better off paying $500 - $1500 more up front and get a 2 door hardtop or a convert, beause it will be worth lots of $1000's more when it is done.

I'm as nostalgic as anyone about loving every cast off cool old car and part that I see. I'm a packrat who has been hording junk for 36 years. I have dragged home so much junk because it was a good deal or to save it, that I couldn't even walk thru my shop. But then I've had to go thru clean up phases where I sell a bunch of stuff just to make room. And the stuff I end up selling is the stuff I got cheap and I have to sell it cheap, sometimes at a loss, and afterwards I realize how much effort I wasted. Thus I have learned over the years that there is a limit to what I can accomplish. And the limits center around time, space, money, and energy. So now I am choosy about how I spend those resources. I have also learned that if a car is easy to buy, it is hard to sell. If it is hard to buy, it is easy to sell. And the red GTX that I did is not avery good example because it is a race car. And racecars are money pits. Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth.

[tedly]

So why not start with something that will have the most value when it is done?

But if he wants to take on a project that makes sense from an investment vs. reward perspective, he'd be better off paying $500 - $1500 more up front and get a 2 door hardtop or a convert, beause it will be worth lots of $1000's more when it is done.

For a toy, it's not about the resale. It's about what I like and will enjoy. I like four doors and station wagons as well as 2 doors. As for the investment vs reward, the reward is in owning and driving a cool car that I've worked on and put together myself. Maybe I just haven't bought and sold enough cars or dumped way too much cash into enough of them. I still think the point of having a toy is to enjoy it.

[Blazerteam]

Well..if you build a 4 door,you are 90% sure you arent gettin your money back..but the reason we do this,isnt always to earn money.Its also about being creative,and doing something cool to a not so often seen car.

Its easy to build a red 2 door..and im not sayin that is uncool..just very often seen.

[oldsman71]

Hell yeah!

I'd love to have one to DD. A 71 Torino more door came up in my price range but "its impractical for winter"....

I had a 4 door 71 torino i loved it

[Big Bad Blue]

Nope could never get into the four door scene for some reason.

[skullbucket]

Not for a rebuild, its a waste of money.
I love on car selling sites people always fail to mention in the title that its a 4 door just to get you to look at the ad, and then in the ad say "just as valuable as a 2 door!
I have my eye on a 72 Cutlass 4 door thats in great shape.
I am waiting for it to come up for sale and im going to buy it and rip it apart then find a 2 door that needs a rust free front end, drivetrane ETC, then sell the trunk lid to someone who needs a perfect convertible one and make alot of my money back off that, then scrap the rest for $$$ back.

[Thumpin455]

Wow thread resurrection from almost 8 months ago!

If VT is still around, I wouldnt mind getting the 70 Cougar from him at some point. Always wanted one of those, and an XR7 would just make it sweeter.

[Dan Barlow]

Im on page 2 !

[skullbucket]

Seems to me the only people who defend 4 doors are people who own one.
I do not include station wagons in the 4 door category, not that I want one but wouldn't deliberately part one out like I would a 4 door car.
A 66 Chevelle 4 door is not worth as much or more than a 2 door even in worse shape.
I just hate running into one of these people who have to assure you their 4 door jewel is at the top of the food chain, because I just can't keep my mouth shut and it usually doesn't turn out nice at the end.

[Brian Lohnes]

Hell yeah....doing one now (although mine is not "muscle car era"). Supremely easier to the load the car seats into and when completed should be able to humble lots of "cooler" stuff out there.

I would definitely do a more door "correct era" car. I likes 'em.

[Russell]

My father in law is Hot Rodding a 4 door 35 chevy, it is going to be cool. It really depends on the car, I would not do a full restro on a 4-door but when I see a 4 door classic that is a clean driver I can sometimes see my self owning them.

[Grumpy]

I'd do a four door Nova Wagon in a heartbeat, got a drive train sitting here waiting for it.

[CTX-SLPR]

This particular one is calling me!

http://cosprings.craigslist.org/cto/3052795955.html

I'd probably keep it darn near stock with some upgraded passenger safety devices and probably disc brakes and suspension improvements. Probably put some 16 or 17in steel ralleys and leave the Buick caps. However I'm spending (active tense) my money on a new front and rear suspension setup for the Riviera.

[JOES66FURY]

The Aussies have no problem rodding 4 doors, and many are pretty bad ass....I wonder what the turn off is, what has conditioned us to dislike the 4 door....if they were hoppesd up in the 50s and 60s I would bet money they would be popular today