6 tips for finding your next project

For some parts of the country, it’s time to pickle our fun automotive toys and switch to either dreaming about or preparing for the driving season that is oh-so-far away. There is also a third option: buying a project and seeing how close you can get it to ready to drive before the snow clears and rain rinses the salt off the roads. Trapped inside the confines of the house or garage—if you’re lucky enough to not be frozen in there—the mind starts to wander and think that maybe one more project wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

The key to picking a project is being really honest with yourself and setting a goal. Buying a pile of iron oxide and stripped bolts can be a little retail therapy but it will be short-lived if you jump in and buy the first not-shiny thing you see. You have the desire, the funds, and the approval from your better half; so here are six tips for helping find your perfect project.

Let it find you

Passive searching can be incredibly powerful at finding things, it’s also the easiest. Simply tell anyone you know or talk to that you are looking for a project. You might be impressed at the amount of stuff that quickly comes out of the woodwork once there is a ready buyer. Also, you never know which of your gearhead friends has a network or connection you don’t. The number of times I’ve heard, “if you know someone looking for a. . . ”

Work on what you have

If you are anything like me, the true reason you are looking for a project is that some project you already own needs something you don’t want to do and you’re simply attempting to distract yourself by just starting on something else and hoping your current problem fixes itself. No? Just me? I don’t believe you.

Set a realistic budget and stick to it

Project cars are nearly always some form of a money pit. We all accept this at some level. That means you know you are going to sink way too much into whatever you buy, so therefore it’s at least a little prudent to not blow your entire budget just buying the thing. I’ll always advocate for buying the best version of whatever you like that you can afford, but if you set a budget be sure to stick to it. Otherwise, you are setting yourself up for frustration if you have a project and no funds to actually do any work on it.

Go exploring (look in weird places)

Drive one or two cities over for a day trip to drive by the local mechanic just to see what’s parked around the shop. Just driving around to places you don’t normally go can turn up some interesting finds. Tom Cotter—Hagerty’s Barn Find Hunter—has written fantastic books about the luck of discovering cars that weren’t hiding but merely just off the beaten path.

Know what you want and are willing to do

Not all project cars are the same. It might be more accurate to say no two are alike. Each and every vehicle will have different needs and wants over time, it’s just how an assembly of thousands of parts works. So set yourself up for success and do a little soul-searching before starting to sift through the classifieds. Decide what kind of tasks you are interested in doing and what you are not equipped for or generally just don’t want to deal with. If you don’t have a welder or grinder, buying a project car that needs a lot of rust repair would be foolish. Same with buying something with hacked-up wiring if you don’t have the patience to sit with a multimeter for hours. Think past the joy of purchasing and deep into how you will be spending your time: working on it.

Call up the club

Not sure if the project you want is actually what you think it is? Or maybe just feel like you have a blind spot about what you are considering getting into? Reach out to a car club dedicated to that niche. From Facebook to forums and in-person gatherings, it is often the members of a club who love specific models and brands who are best suited to find, inspect, and conclude if a project is worth saving. The joke for a lot of enthusiasts of niche vehicles is that once someone hears you have one, the cars start multiplying on their own. Most club members have leads on cars they wish they could buy and want to see go to a good home. Club members often know where good project cars are resting and are happy to share since it keeps one of their favorites on the road.

Now go forth and find those winter projects. When rains come and wash the roads we shall all emerge from the garage caves with pride for hopefully we will have taken something bad and made it…less bad. Good luck out there.

***

Check out the Hagerty Media homepage so you don’t miss a single story, or better yet, bookmark it. To get our best stories delivered right to your inbox, subscribe to our newsletters.