How to buy a collector car

When the snow starts to melt and you've finished your income tax accounting, the smell of spring is just around the corner. This is when you find yourself thinking about your dream car and count the days left before it comes out of storage. Spring is also the time when many seek and purchase a hobby car. Unfortunately, some get so excited and eager they forget to remain objective and buy something they regret.
Sometimes the problem is a lack of knowledge about cars. You know what you like, but understanding where and what to look takes experience, time and knowledge. If the car in question is fairly desirable, you won't have enough time to carry out a thorough investigation on your own.
That's when you'd be wise to consider having a pre purchase inspection performed for you. Some who is objective, qualified and working in your best interest is going to give you a valuable edge when it comes to negotiations. I've done pre purchase inspections and pre restoration consulting for clients and in every case it saved them time, money and aggravation. I've inspected collector cars for clients on their behalf and acted as their eyes and ears, delivering complete, recorded evidence on the car's condition. The buyer gains a good idea what they're getting into if they purchase the car in question.
The orange 1973 cuda on horse stands looks pretty sad doesn't it? Those quarters are rough. Clearly it needs lots of TLC to get back on the road. The good news is its a factory 340 cuda with four speed and rally dash. It was originally metallic blue. If the original drive train was present it'd be worth restoring. The 1957 Chevrolet convertible by contrast, almost looks ready to paint and put a drive train in. The punch line here is, it's a complete rebody. It started out as a four door sedan! This project was conducted by CARS group in Michigan to demonstrate their complete line of restoration sheet metal and convertible pieces. You literally can make a convertible from a sedan and no one would be the wiser unless you know where to look. Partial rebodies happen all the time on muscle cars. When the money is large, make sure you get what you pay for.
My ground rules are simple. The seller is told up front that I am working on behalf of a client. An owner with a honestly represented car will have no trouble with that. I do not report my findings to the seller, only my client gets the information. With pre restoration consulting, the car's examined for major problems that will impede its restoration by adding time, cost and potential loss of value. The findings are reviewed with the owner's intended goals and planned budget, time frame of completion and a recommendation is given. I also have access to noted experts in the field for answering technical or historical issues. Again, this saves you money and time knowing what's ahead before diving in.
Remember, inspections save you more money than they cost in time, expense and effort to repair a bungled effort.