How much $$$ on a Restoration?

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Truck in good shape initially: 10K
Parts: 8K
Labor: Free if you do it yourself, figure about 15K in outsourcing for bodywork and other fabrication
Tools you didn't have before, but need now to finish the project: 5K


Totally restored 1966 FJ45 LV wagon: $38K


But you need to figure in the accessorial charges:

It'll likely cost you around 15K in lawyer fees. Getting a divorce now-a-days isn't as cheap as it used to be.
Plus on top of that all of the move-out cost...guess around 5K for relocation.
Figure up around 2K for credit rebuilding fees.
Tacking on around 5K for loss of wages during the move-out.

Total accessorial charges on top of the restoration: $22,000.00 USD

Total costs for the diseas: $60,000.00

Driving in a restored piece of Toyota History that your now ex-wife thought all along was a COMPLETE waste of time...
to the divorce hearing: PRICELESS!
 
Last edited:
The cost of a restoration is a tricky thing to answer, given the numerous variables.

I have been avoiding adding up the bills on my truck's rebuild, which is not aiming to be 100% stock, and I'm quite sure the total, including original purchase of the truck, is well over $30,000 at this point. That represents primarily the cost of parts, materials, shipping. And I'm not rebuilding the engine and tranny, not yet anyhow. If I needed to, there's another $7500 easy that could be added to the bill. The labor costs are all zero, as I'm doing the work myself. I have had to pay for the odd bit of machine work here and there, and I've been fortunate to have a friend with a garage who has lent me his welder for an extended period.

One time I had to go to hospital and get some metal pulled out of my eyes from a grinder incident as a result of working on my truck, and fortunately the medical attention was free. Those in countries without socialized medicine may have added costs though.

Another factor that's a bit hard to estimate is the price of parts as they enter the final phase of production. A piece of weatherstrip might retail for $100 - if it goes out of production, then the price for the remaining stock zooms up.

Then there are those parts that you never would have imagined how expensive they might be - like a new Toyota p/s box for instance.

I am shocked how much good paint and body materials cost - easily $1500-2000 just for materials.

If you buy oem parts directly out of Japan they are generally quite a bit cheaper than many other places - that's been my experience. I recently priced some pintle hitch chain loops, for example, about $10 out of Japan and $34 at my local Toyota dealership. Hey, I'm all for supporting the local guy, providing they are competent and can be reasonably close in price (so far my local Toyota dealership has been woeful in both areas, so they don't get much of my business).

And finally, it's hard not to waste a little money during the cost of an extended restoration by purchasing various parts that later are of no use due so some unforeseen change that came up.
 
Restoration.....Ask what is costs to resto a Cuda or Shelby...thats your answer....

most do not know what a "Restoration" entails Its just not paint and wheels with recovered seats.....

Let me say I will never do another again.................I have not had a life in 5 years.

After I finish this pre sold 81 and my 79 I am done, I will probably sell mine to afford a nice vacation and spend some hard cash on the house and in the house...


Who wants a new 1979???

Shane
 
AATLAS1X said:
Restoration.....Ask what is costs to resto a Cuda or Shelby...thats your answer....

most do not know what a "Restoration" entails Its just not paint and wheels with recovered seats.....

Let me say I will never do another again.................I have not had a life in 5 years.

After I finish this pre sold 81 and my 79 I am done, I will probably sell mine to afford a nice vacation and spend some hard cash on the house and in the house...


Who wants a new 1979???

Shane
Click to expand...

I remember those nights working on my LV. My g/f would get soooo pissed.
On a side note, by buddy at the time had a brother who had restored a Shelby GT500...and I mean perfect job, better than new. Sold it to some dude in Australia for $120,000. That's a good return.

I had close to $20K in my LV, didn't cross the T's or dot the I's either. That thing still had a LOOOOONG way to go.

In fact, I wouldn't call it a restoration at all. I gave it a make-over at best.

Unless I had SERIOUS funds, ALL the tools or ability to acquire (my one benefit working on the LV..had ALL the tools) I wouldn't jump into a restoration. Oh, and time. It's a full time job.


My $.02
 
I paid out around 25K for my resto (66 FJ45 lwb), done by someone else. This was full frame off, and I opted to include many things I could have omitted such as Hy steer, lockers, spring over, on board air, etc.

But I will note that once I committed to myself to spend the money and get it done, I have no regrets. Rather than having a partially done project cluttering up the garage for years, I have a fully restored truck far superior to anything I could have done (but then again, I suck at fabrication). Plus I did not have the time.

For me, I simply realized there are some things I do very well, and other things I don't do very well. For the things I do not do very well, I farm it out to someone who does. I'm good with that.

oh, the initial estimate was only frame and drive train at 7.5K... but one thing leads to another. Mine is not 100% done, but I opted to stop at that $ amount.

Actually, that should be 30K as I also bought my wife diamonds to help ease the resto cost discussions.
Size does matter.
 
TRT2 said:
Actually, that should be 30K as I also bought my wife diamonds to help ease the resto cost discussions.
Size does matter.
Click to expand...


10K for diamonds.....much cheaper than a divorce :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom