At some point, I’m sure just about all of us have ambitiously started a project that we were wildly unprepared for. My worst offense was buying a shell that could never be registered for street use when I didn’t own a truck or trailer–or any tools.
Back in 2013, I attended my first professional drift event and quickly became obsessed. I immediately went looking for a cheap drift car, and after a few months, I purchased a 1992 Nissan 240SX rolling shell, complete with a certificate of destruction.
[How to tackle the most radical project of your dreams?]
The car was previously owned by one of the techs at Enjuku Racing, so it came with a lot of their aftermarket suspension parts and a completely redone chassis harness.
At the time, I was a broke college student. I had the car in my parents’ detached garage, and I didn’t own any tools other than a basic socket set–the perfect scenario to assemble a car from the ground up.
Over the next few months, I was able to purchase an engine, transmission, and most of the driveline. I quickly learned that it’s hard to install an engine when you don’t own an engine hoist.
I also still had that title issue to face. I eventually found another 240SX shell, this time with a clean title, so I convinced a friend to haul the shell home for me in exchange for lunch.
About two weeks after buying the second shell, the restaurant I worked at closed unexpectedly. Literally the following day, my daily driver broke down, and I no longer had a way to get around.
The plan switched from “slowly build a drift car” to “quickly throw parts together and hope I can daily drive a ratty 240SX until I fix my other car.”
This plan fell apart immediately when I cracked open the KA24 engine and found coolant in the oil. I lost all motivation for the project.
[What we’ve learned after a lifetime of project cars]
Less than a year after purchasing the first shell, I had gotten rid of all of the parts I acquired, sold the shell that had a title, and scrapped the other one.
I actually made a profit at the end of it all, but I wasted a lot of time and effort to walk away with just a couple hundred dollars.
If you’re keeping up with my current BMW 325i project, I’m sure you’ve seen how much personal growth I’ve had in the last decade. This spring I attended my first $2000 Challenge–technically the Grassroots Motorsports $2000 Challenge presented by Tire Rack and powered by AutoBidMaster–and then impulsively bought a car that didn’t run and had a questionable title situation.
Good thing I’m not repeating any of my old mistakes….
Comments
If I had a garage at my current house, I would have easily been in a similar situation. 
Every time I start one.
Sounds like a similar situation to when I bought my Beetle in a million pieces when I didn’t have a truck and trailer or a garage to store the project in.
In reply to Colin Wood :
Honestly, not having a garage is a good way to not spend money on dumb projects lol
In reply to DirtyBird222 :
This. Even the simplest repairs I find myself in over my head. Unscrew that screw? Nope, stripped.
In reply to Chris Tropea :
At least you had a good group of friends to help with it. I had basically no help with the 240, which certainly had something to do with how it ended.
In reply to Austin Cannon :
Yeah, without the help my Beetle would have had a similar fate to your 240 I feel.
Austin Cannon said:
In reply to Colin Wood :
Honestly, not having a garage is a good way to not spend money on dumb projects lol
Can’t buy a terrible project car if I don’t have a garage to keep it in.
(And before anyone says it, no, I can’t street park it or keep it in the yard–because fence.)
In reply to Colin Wood :
But you can “terrible” your daily!
Over my head,or over it?
I tackled flaring/widening my fenders on my 64 Comet looks sort of ok but needs more metal work before filler,I like to think my skills are improving but I’m a bit over my head I guess.
Im pushing myself to drive it before Christmas but it won’t be done.
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