To Restore Or Not To Restore, To Sell Or Not To Sell!!!...

[Toby&Prune]

Hi Guys...

...I'm looking for some advice from the wise old heads on here! In short, last August / September time i was lucky enough to take posession of a 1968 RHD Westy . I had the chance to buy her and broke the bank to do so! The downside was she'd been standing for four whole years and as such required major work :shock: . In my mind though it was an 'invesment' and being an early bay lover reluctant to go the LHD route ....I had to have her!

...Now the problem, i took posession of her, and that's as far as it's got! I always believed if i could just buy the bus i'd have the money come what winter to buy the parts and have her made over in time for RTTS 2009 (End of May) Turns out that was rather naive of me! What with this recession and general doom and gloom at the min the money just hasn't materialised !

So do i...

1) Stick with this bus (which i read on here is only one of six in the UK ) and patch her up to get her on the road asap (by end of the season possibly)

2) Sit out this summer AND next and give her the works (which i feel she deserves) I could possibly buy a cheap bug and a decent tent i suppose! :lol:

or...

3) Sell her to someone who can give her what she deserves ...And get me a late Bay or even a erm.. T25 :roll: to have the fun in i've been chasing for four years! (This is my 6th bus ...Been messing about with bargain basement Ebay projects ...getting skint and selling on!! :roll: )

...It's a tough call, but with Dubfreeze this weekend i get the sense another summer is almost here and my poor bus is sat dormant on the drive under her JK cover, with neither of us seemingly going anywhere this summer! ...All advice will be most welcome! It's a dilemma that's driving me mad :x !!!

Peace,
Toby :wink: .

 

[mjknight71]

...same colour as mine :shock:

looks less floral on the inside tho :wink:

what does it need?

 

[Loxy]

how much work is needed?
Although I would say stick with it anyway, rhd early westies arent going to get any cheaper :wink:

 

[Justin & Muttley]

I'd keep her - she looks like a beauty!! 8)

Get it on the road ASAP, see if you like driving it, then decide whether or not to sell (if it's got an MOT you'll be quids in anyway!).

 

[sparkywig]

Stick with it, probably be best to treat it as a rolling resto.

 

[currylager]

Looks OK to me, what needs doing, i would definatly keep the bus, i have been doing a rolling resto on my bus for the last 3 years she's got us to devon and cornwall several times and this year she's getting her final coat of paint 8) 8) . After spending so much time restoring her i know her inside out and there is no way i'll sell her, too many happy memories :wink:

Deffo rolling resto. Might be worth putting it in for an mot to give you an idea of what will need doing to get it back on the road.

 

[Ands1]

Whatever it takes stick with her for deffo 8)

 

[Graham L]

What the other guys said, not being funny but is it running very small wheels on the rear as they look a bit strange :?:

As the others have said what exactly needs doing to get it on the road?, is it rotten underneath or OK?

 

[Toby&Prune]

Cheers guys! ...My thoughts exactly :lol:

...I think just with Dubfreeze this weekend and the summer drawing nearer i've just felt abit frustrated! ...And yes, the thought of selling her had entered my head :roll: ...Would kill me to sell her though, i did a deal to buy her last July ... A day later the bloody daily drive Punto blew its head on the M6 en route to a work function ...massive repair bill! Top bloke selling the bus though, he gave me an extra month for come up with the cash for the bus ....after much sweet talking i did :mrgreen: !!!

 

[Toby&Prune]

What the other guys said, not being funny but is it running very small wheels on the rear as they look a bit strange :?:

As the others have said what exactly needs doing to get it on the road?, is it rotten underneath or OK?

They were improvised wheels for the journey home ...She'd been stood for four years and and at least one rear tyre had a puncture .... I sweated the whole 60miles home watching her rattle about on an A-frame in the rear view mirror with them tyres :shock: !

...As for getting her on the road ...All outriggers and jacking points naturally, would need a few patches underneath, i suppose i could get away with only one front and one back arch, inner and outer sills are shot both sides ... front panel could be patched and tidied with the dreaded filler ...Thing is i just don't like the whole 'patch up' quick fix' idea ...i despise body filler! ..Mechanically, i've had her running, the engine only did 6 months work before the PO parked her up. and the interior is all there bar the top half of the warddrobe unit (PO cut down to fit a 'family friendly' gas cooker :roll: )

 

[mjknight71]

3 belly pans.......self tappered into place...plate the outer edge of the outriggers (with filler and underseal) and bobs your uncle... :wink:

KEEP IT.....drive it......love it.......but change the colour or GET some flowers :!: :!: :!: 8)

:mrgreen:

 

[Toby&Prune]

3 belly pans.......self tappered into place...plate the outer edge of the outriggers (with filler and underseal) and bobs your uncle... :wink:

KEEP IT.....drive it......love it.......but change the colour or GET some flowers :!: :!: :!: 8)

:mrgreen:

Thats tempting dude, very tempting :mrgreen:

 

[mjknight71]

bodging is ok if your the one driving it (plus I know a reputable restorer who has replace all 8 outriggers :wink: or rather plated the inner an outer face of the front 4 :roll: )...I once tied the rear axle to a car with steel wire(after the mounts rotted)...the drive shaft caught the underside of the car on acceleration as the whole thing rotated :shock: but it was cool.........

:mrgreen:

 

[Toby&Prune]

bodging is ok if your the one driving it (plus I know a reputable restorer who has replace all 8 outriggers :wink: or rather plated the inner an outer face of the front 4 :roll: )...I once tied the rear axle to a car with steel wire(after the mounts rotted)...the drive shaft caught the underside of the car on acceleration as the whole thing rotated :shock: but it was cool.........

:mrgreen:

:mrgreen: ...Funny as that is i cant help feeling my bus is rare enough to deserve a proper resto treatment, proper as in down to the last nut and bolt! ...I'm so reluctant just to patch /bodge her for the sake of using her ...That's my whole dilemma, hence this thread!

 

[ib-bus]

I agree with sparkywig, rolling resto is the best way to truly fix all the bugs. Keep her.

 

[strongy]

3 belly pans.......self tappered into place...plate the outer edge of the outriggers (with filler and underseal) and bobs your uncle... :wink:

KEEP IT.....drive it......love it.......but change the colour or GET some flowers :!: :!: :!: 8)

:mrgreen:

if you ever want too sell your van on hear, :lol: your buggerd now :lol:

 

[mjknight71]

3 belly pans.......self tappered into place...plate the outer edge of the outriggers (with filler and underseal) and bobs your uncle... :wink:

KEEP IT.....drive it......love it.......but change the colour or GET some flowers :!: :!: :!: 8)

:mrgreen:

if you ever want too sell your van on hear, :lol: your buggerd now :lol:

I had to pay £1500 when I took the belly pads off.....fingers crossed it is solid under there :?

...........you in the market for a purple crossover :wink: Could do you a nice deal :shock:

 

[Toby&Prune]

3 belly pans.......self tappered into place...plate the outer edge of the outriggers (with filler and underseal) and bobs your uncle... :wink:

KEEP IT.....drive it......love it.......but change the colour or GET some flowers :!: :!: :!: 8)

:mrgreen:

if you ever want too sell your van on hear, :lol: your buggerd now :lol:

I had to pay £1500 when I took the belly pads off.....fingers crossed it is solid under there :?

...........you in the market for a purple crossover :wink: Could do you a nice deal :shock:

...I'm always in the market for a deal ...Deals make the world go round :wink: