What do you get for your money?

[Guest]

I expect that every new member and prospective owner comes on here and asks rafts of questions in order to gain a working knowledge of Stags before committing to buy - and I am no different

However I do like to search about on a forum a bit to try and find things myself rather than ask what must be boringly repetitive questions, so have searched the site and found a few bits and pieces and references to various buyers guides (I am even watching on ebay the Practical Classics and Car restorer Triumph Stag Restoration book - is it any good?).

Having been scouring Pistonheads, E&M, AT and ebay I have a feel for the sort of money is being currently asked for a Stag and know that, same as anything, you end up getting what you pay for. It looks to me that basket cases are in the up to £2k range where at least you know you need to replace just about everything! £2k-4k seems to be for cars that are clearly needing work. £4k-6k gets what looks to be pretty decent cars requiring "tidying" (but who knows what horrors lurk when judging on photo's only!). Then it seems that £6k-10k get cars not needing anything done but not concourse, and then over that it's the concourse stuff.

My budget is pretty much what I can get for my Tiger Cat and maybe a few hundred on top, so that equates to a purchase price of £4.5k - £5k for a car I want to use as a 2nd car on nice days and maybe improve over time. So after that ramble, here's my question ;

I am not into doing lots of restoration work myself as I don't have the skill (!) but, for the money I have, what are my chances of getting hold of a decent car?

[Stagdad]

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piscean57 wrote:

I am not into doing lots of restoration work myself as I don't have the skill (!) but, for the money I have, what are my chances of getting hold of a decent car?

Give extra attentionto inner cills,outriggers especially the front ones, front wing closing panels ,A posts ,Boot corners ,Boot lid,Door bottoms.Feel the top hose when the car is started for a few minutesto see if it gets hot quick if so the stat has been taken outwhich could be a bodge to hide other problems.Take someone that knows Stags with you.Remember the body is the hardest/most expensivebit to sort outbut a blown engine could cost £3K if you let someone else do it so don't discount that .

I would say the large money items are

• Bodywork
• Engine
• Chrome bumpers (£900)
• Hood
• Diff (£500 and that's no guarantee of a good one)

Most of the other items are normal sort of prices


BTW the National weekend is coming up ,that would be the place to go to meet lots of helpfull owners see hundreds of Stags and there will proberbly be quite a few for sale all in the same place.


Cheers Steve

[mad cyclist]

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Hi

There is a lot of cr*p out there for that money and a whole lot more for twice as much! but there are some good ones too!

Don't believe photos .......they lie.

my advice would be join the club, get along to a few meetings and shows where you will see all sorts of stag in all sorts of states, with all sorts of values.

You may find that help will be at hand within your area, we all like to go along and poke about a car, you may find a helpful club member in your area, where are you?

rgds Nick

[grahamb]

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Hi Ian,

there is no shortage of help on here but you may want to narrow down your location a little bit.

[Guest]

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Hello Nick,

Thanks, I think I will join officially and I would like to get along to a few meets. Really good to know that there are people who love to come and poke around

Thanks Graham.

My location is on Surrey / Hants borders....at home I am in the GU35 postcode and for work it is GU27.