Sell "as is" or fix rust issues and then sell?

[boatbuilder]

Hi, Please can you give me some advice because I really don't know what to do......what is my best option to get the most money back when I sell my bus? Do i sell it "as is", with some rust repairs to do, or fix the rust and then sell it?

I bought a '68 bay a few months ago, with the intention of fully restoring it. My circumstances have changed which means that I need something a bit more useable everyday to drive to and from work. With rising petrol prices, the amount of money I'm spending on fuel is crazy and it doesn't make sense for just one person to drive around in such a big vehicle.

Anyhow, I've been considering a ghia instead since it will be a little bit (not a lot) more economical and suitable for everyday driving with no camping involved!.

Here is my problem:

I bought my bay tintop for £6500, too much in hindsight. I'm now faced with trying to sell the bus to finance a ghia and I'm slowly realising that I might not get back what I paid for it.
The main reason is the same old story.....rust. This is my first bus, and despite spending lots of time searching for rust before I bought it, I failed to find most of it until several months after I bought it. On closer examination, the bus needs the following rust repairs....

-replace right rear wheel arch and part of the tub
-replace battery tray and light work on bottom of rear panel
-replace section under front window
-replace section under right hand rear window (under the channel)
-replace seat belt mounting points on wheel arches.
-replace sliding door (bottom of old one is crusty)

She has a new 1600 sp engine with new stock carb and she runs very nicely, no oil leaks, no smoke. Since I bought it, I fitted an entire JK stainless echaust / 4 in one manifold as well. New cab door seals, steering damper, engine bay seals, new carb and lots of other bits and pieces.

So...should I do the rust repairs listed above, or would it be more cost efficient to just sell her "as is"?

 

[boatbuilder]

I should add that the rust is not at all visible from the outside. Probably fillered over and coated with a shiny 2k paint. Rear side window and wheel arch rust was only evident when I took off the interior trim.
Wheel arch rust can also be seen when ya look in the engine bay on the same side (all related to a leaking quarterlight window)

 

[baybus70]

I had the same problem a few months ago. i paid 4k for my van and had spent 1500 on it.It still needed a load of work inc most of the stuff that you say, corners, front arches, engine lid, work on front panel etc.
I put it on ebay and was offered 5k to end the auction.
You gotta remember you paid 6500 for it so why wont someone else.Its easy to lose sight of the value of your vehicle to someone else!
Yours sounds like its got lots goin for it.Its a 68, new engine etc.
In the end i couldnt bear to sell it so i kept it, much to the disgust of my bank account!

 

[Guest]

i would seriously hold on to this, buy a cheap daily runner and start work on it when you can. 6.5K pounds or euro? and this will only appreciate with time anyway.

Id love to come down and see this bus when it gets brighter in the evenings.

 

[boatbuilder]

6.5k pounds! Looks like I'll be buying some panels and doing some welding! Will I have to repsray the entire bus, or just the new bits?
The 2k paint is still pretty fresh, so if I got the same colour code, hopefully it would all buff up the same?

 

[Guest]

should be ok as long as the new is mixed by the same guy i reckon you could get away with it.

 

[gninnam]

Do the work then respray the repaired bits and as Johnny says, if it's the
same guy that mixed the previous paint, you should get a good match