Motivation dwindling on would be project!!!

[94F350Fred]

For the past two years, when it came to trucks, all I thought about was rebuilding an F350 from ground up and into a very bad ass truck. I did manage to get a hold of a great truck (94 F350 4x4 manual crew cab xlt with an IDI turbo) that I see a ton of inspiration in and know that it can be turned into one hell of a head turner.

However, after some research it looks like a worthy rebuild can cost a fortune. So much so that buying a 2008 F350 King Ranch with all the trimming might make sense giving the time, effort, and headache. On eBay, the 2008 F350’s are in the mid $30’s.

With all that blabbering I turn to you ‘all for motivation. Do you all think a WORTHY ground up restore of my truck is a project worth doing? And how much would I expect this to cost? Assuming I would be doing very basic work myself and farming out most of the project to professionals.

I’m sure there are many on here that have taken a similar project like this on and I would love to hear what your thoughts are.

By a worthy ground up restore, I mean taking all the truck apart and as an example replace all wear and tear parts (including a transmission and engine rebuild), new wire harnesses, paint chassis, and then reassembling the truck. In the end it should be as good as new if not better.

I personally would like to add several improvements and mods that include an 05 and up front steering design and axle, gear vendors gear upgrade, ATS turbo upgrade, upgraded cooling system, upgraded exhaust, insulate interior, install up to date interior electronics, tire pressure monitoring system, suspension upgrade and lift.

Would love to hear your thoughts!

 

[towcat]

if you can put $30k into a IDI, you would have one helluva truck.

 

[1994IDI]

if you can put $30k into a IDI, you would have one helluva truck.

Agreed, but I don't think you can do all of the above for 30k without doing the major work on your own. I hope you decide to do the old truck. So much more character, but I can't tell you what it would cost. Either way, good luck and keep us posted.

 

[gonecrazyi]

Im on re process of starting to put together a crew cab dually 4x4 and plan to start from the ground up. You will have the peace of mind that you know how your truck operates and how to fix it. Plus upgrades on the newer trucks are far more expensive and they cost more to fix.

 

[BlueBreadTruck]

many have 30K new trucks, anyone can walk in and buy one. This would be YOUR truck, the way you want it, and IMO would be much cooler

 

[coletrain777]

You mentioned paint the chassis, but are you also planning on painting the body as well? The reason that I ask is that a top notch paint job on a CC LB truck can easily cost in the neighborhood of $10,000 plus (especially if you are changing colors). This is if the tuck is in pretty good shape to begin with. A good "driver" level paint job will easily cost between $3K to $5K. This is something that has to be factored in because it will cost at least as much and the mechanical restoration if not more (lots more time and material cost involved).

As someone who does paint and body work on the side and does restorations from time to time, I think you may be on the right track with looking at an "already done" truck. An even better option would be to find someone who has done the type of restoration to their truck that you are wanting to do and buy it for pennies on the dollar. You will NEVER get your money back on a project like this if you decide down the road that you would rather have something else. Don't get me wrong, when it comes to restoring your truck I say GO FOR IT! With that said, it would not be the best financial decision (but vehicles seldom are). Just something to think about...

 

[MidnightBlade]

read BigDave's resto thread, he did it on a prety good budget

 

[FordGuy100]

If you do it right, you could probably put $15K into a IDI and have an awesome truck.

 

[jwalterus]

if you want to do it, screw the total cost and do it all yourself, that's how I've always tackled a restoration, makes it that much more worth it, just make sure it's something you truly want

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

>>> I CAN BUILD A BETTER TRUCK THAN ANYONE CAN SELL ME <<<

I have said it before and I will say it again :


Figure what monthly payments will be on this shiny new problem; then, be disciplined and spend that exact amount EVERY MONTH on a decent pre-computer diesel truck; and, in less than two years, you will have a better truck than the shiny one that tempts you.

Do everything you possibly can by yourself.

Read, read, research, and experiment, and DO IT YOURSELF.

It is a big mistake to bring a bunch of "buddies" in on such an endeavor; mistakes will be made that you won't know about until pieces start falling off.

So far as painting, learn as you go; there is nothing wrong with plain old enamel and it is way better than any clear-coat queen.


I suggested my --- spend the payment amount on the old truck --- plan to a local guy who actually took my advice; he is now driving the sharpest, most dependable, mid-70s Dodge W-300 on the road and a far better, longer lasting, more dependable truck than the new one he first intended to buy.

 

[itsacrazyasian]

Just because you have a 2008 truck doesn't mean you're gonna be without issues. My buddy has a fleet of 2008 and 2009 F350+ tow trucks. I have replaced the radiators and thermostats in EVERY SINGLE ONE!

If you're gonna do something like that you really need to learn to do the work yourself. Tearing down the motor, sending it out for machine work but doing the assembly yourself is key. Body work and paint isn't bad. I painted my Crown Victoria in my garage and it shocked the owner of the body shop next door to my shop when i commented on needing to respray the bumpers, it got squished between a town car and a caravan. you have the truck that i was wanting and looked for, for a very long time. I finally settled on a gas crew cab long bed 2wd to swap in my ideal drivetrain.

Turbo is going on tommorow. Replace the synchros in the ZF5 myself. Just put bearings, rings and gaskets (sent heads out get rebuilt) in the 7.3 after i blew the block heater out of the 6.9. heads were a day turnaround and about 3 days working after work going through the motor. It was really in nice shape, just did it for preventive measures. Went though the Dana 60 before i installed it. built my own RSK and shackles for my front lift.

This summer i'm gonna sand her down and paint her the same color as my old F150. Dark Shadow Grey.

 

[88beast]

one word computer
the computer stuff a pita
the parts cost more
budget in 3 parts trucks at 700 each and youre set on the stupid things you cant find for a good long time

 

[Worstenemy453]

You mentioned paint the chassis, but are you also planning on painting the body as well? The reason that I ask is that a top notch paint job on a CC LB truck can easily cost in the neighborhood of $10,000 plus (especially if you are changing colors). This is if the tuck is in pretty good shape to begin with. A good "driver" level paint job will easily cost between $3K to $5K. This is something that has to be factored in because it will cost at least as much and the mechanical restoration if not more (lots more time and material cost involved).

As someone who does paint and body work on the side and does restorations from time to time, I think you may be on the right track with looking at an "already done" truck. An even better option would be to find someone who has done the type of restoration to their truck that you are wanting to do and buy it for pennies on the dollar. You will NEVER get your money back on a project like this if you decide down the road that you would rather have something else. Don't get me wrong, when it comes to restoring your truck I say GO FOR IT! With that said, it would not be the best financial decision (but vehicles seldom are). Just something to think about...

Sounds like someone is good at robbery. Wow. Never heard of one costing that much unless you are paying for the shop name.

 

[Worstenemy453]

Anyway, if you are going to farm out the build to professionals then there isnt a point in it over just buying a new one. Its not worth the time and money unless you can do it yourself. Just my opinion.

 

[yARIC008]

For the past two years, when it came to trucks, all I thought about was rebuilding an F350 from ground up and into a very bad ass truck. I did manage to get a hold of a great truck (94 F350 4x4 manual crew cab xlt with an IDI turbo) that I see a ton of inspiration in and know that it can be turned into one hell of a head turner.

However, after some research it looks like a worthy rebuild can cost a fortune. So much so that buying a 2008 F350 King Ranch with all the trimming might make sense giving the time, effort, and headache. On eBay, the 2008 F350’s are in the mid $30’s.

With all that blabbering I turn to you ‘all for motivation. Do you all think a WORTHY ground up restore of my truck is a project worth doing? And how much would I expect this to cost? Assuming I would be doing very basic work myself and farming out most of the project to professionals.

I’m sure there are many on here that have taken a similar project like this on and I would love to hear what your thoughts are.

By a worthy ground up restore, I mean taking all the truck apart and as an example replace all wear and tear parts (including a transmission and engine rebuild), new wire harnesses, paint chassis, and then reassembling the truck. In the end it should be as good as new if not better.

I personally would like to add several improvements and mods that include an 05 and up front steering design and axle, gear vendors gear upgrade, ATS turbo upgrade, upgraded cooling system, upgraded exhaust, insulate interior, install up to date interior electronics, tire pressure monitoring system, suspension upgrade and lift.

Would love to hear your thoughts!

I have this same feelings about my truck. I know exactly what I want to do to the van and know every square inch of the van inside and out and would love to do a full restore to factory except better. However, when you start to think about how much time it will take... a $50,000 truck looks cheap. If you say your time is worth $20/hour a full restore is like... $200,000 or more.

So basically... how patient are you, how lazy can you be, and when do you want to drive the truck? For me, i'm very patient, but can also be very lazy...

I think what's ruined me is I have a brand new Ford car to drive now with work and man, it's nice sometimes to have something new...