My newest project:
Good stuff:
Slotted & cross drilled brakes w/ stainless steel brake lines
Racing Beat cat-back exhaust
Hardtop
Aftermarket parts that I can sell on eBay, including springs & shocks, mufflers, and a second set of stock wheels w/ racin' rubber on them.
Bad stuff:
Cat-back had no muffler installed and mufflers I was given would need flanges and hangers welded on them to install.
Tires on car are dry-rotting
Radio has no faceplate
Radiator had more leaks than W's first Administration
Needs a good washing
Rear brakes needed calipers
Cracked windshield
But none of that matters because I got it for $1000. Big deal, you say? Consider this: that hardtop alone sells for a grand, so even if this car's a total turd where I have to take it out back and shoot it, I'll still get something out of it just by popping the top and putting it up on eBay.
But she runs good so it's staying. A good set of shocks and springs are on the way so it doesn't look like a 4x4, I just put a muffler on so it sounds nice and mellow (but it doesn't add 6 hp), and I'm deciding on what wheels to go with:
A.
or B.
(they make them in red too)
As for the Ugly Betty project, it's been officially terminated. Two weeks after I left for D.C., my sister called and told me the basement got flooded from a broken pipe and soaked all of my parts. Most of it was salvageable, but new job and no garage down here to do my wrenching, I just don't have the time to do what I wanted to with that car, so I sold everything off and now I'm using the money on this heap.
So I'll fix her up, enjoy the top down weather, dodge a few cones, cruise a few roads, and just have fun. She gets a nice gift for next summer:
Stay tuned, folks.