Questions for 71 Cuda restoration project, advice needed

[Matt L.]

Hello there, I'm getting ready to restore a 71 Cuda with a numbers matching 340 - 4 speed in it. Someone restored it in the early 90's and I bought it over 10 years ago. I'm trying to restore this and wanted to know what you guys think in order to make it more valuable.

When it was "restored" they put rear go wing on it, which isn't on the tag. In addition, it was originally dark metallic green and he had it painted red.

I have to pull the motor and have it redone in addion to taking care of the underside, which wasn't touched during the restoration.

I've gotten some parts for the restoration, such as new 15" wheels (era corrcect, but not the 14" on the spec sheet), thermoquad, jack, space saver tire, and recently purchased an air cleaner and valve covers (thanks to the guys that are sending them).

Some things I am considering and would like advice on.

I'd like to have A/C in the car, so would this degrade the value of the car if restored to original and possibly finding an OEM factory A/C from another car?
Should I repaint it to the factory original paint or leave it red?
What should I do to the underside of the car as far as paint or other treatment?
Should I remove the rear spoiler and have it as per the spec sheet?
I'd also like to make it power steering and possibly disc breaks, thoughts?

Negatives: there was a leak into the trunk and also into the rear drivers side floor pan which caused the bubbling of paint. The trunk has been fixed and repainted red, but there's still the issue I assume with the bubbling of paint in the rear driver's side floor panel. In addition, some mice got into it and tore up the headliner in a couple of spots, so I assume they are also in the duct system.

My goal is to get the best bang for my buck if I sell it, while at the same time being able to enjoy it if I decide to go for a cruise. I live in Texas, so A/C is a must.

Any thoughts on the value of the car as it sits, and what it would be worth fully restored?

Your advice is greatly appreciated.

Matt

 

[Mr Cuda]

Welcome.
Naturally, you should add rubber bumpers, shaker, and i guess you already have billboards.
Kidding. Although, you can add those if you "want" to.

If you are going to do a full correct redo, it needs to go back to dark green. As far as the bottom, was it undercoated originally?
If painted, just don't make it gloss green or whatever color you choose. It's just wrong. Fogged color on the edges over primer please.
Mine are all factory undercoat cars so the choice was made for me.
Your pictures really threw me with all the trees. Didn't know Texas was so green!

 

[Challenger RTA]

Personal preface rules. 2nd I would preserve the way it is. Fix what is broke and or fix what makes it drive-able. A/C Brakes Steering paint. What ever changes you make keep original part. The only way I would restore it to original unless it had an emotional attachment and gobs of money. The value will not change that much. Bottom line you might get out of it what you put in it.

 

[moparleo]

"Upgrading" means different things to different people.
Paint color makes the most difference in value.
Two trains of thought here.
One how many buyers looking for a green car ? Would you have bought it if it was the original green color ?
Red sells. A nut and bolt restoration back to original everything ? You would not be able to sell it for even half of what it would cost you.
Current value, average around 50K.
As far as adding value ? A Quality paint job, any color. 20K. Add that to what you paid for the car. Could you get your money back ? The paint wouldn't add its cost back to the value of the car.
This is a hobby, not an profitable investment, unless you score a good price on a 6 pack or Hemi car that hasn't been hacked.
Have good quality work done on it. Fix it the way you want it. Save the old parts for the next owner if he wants it back to original.
Your car will always be sellable, just probably not worth a great deal more than you put into it.
Keep things as close to factory parts as you can or at least able to be put back to stock without having to do body modifications.
Bolt on stuff is best.
Think of it as paying rent, not buying it. The value is driving it for pleasure or transportation. Both of those things have value.
Pleasure and transportation are not free. Have fun whatever you do.

 

[Matt L.]

Welcome.
Naturally, you should add rubber bumpers, shaker, and i guess you already have billboards.
Kidding. Although, you can add those if you "want" to.

If you are going to do a full correct redo, it needs to go back to dark green. As far as the bottom, was it undercoated originally?
If painted, just don't make it gloss green or whatever color you choose. It's just wrong. Fogged color on the edges over primer please.
Mine are all factory undercoat cars so the choice was made for me.
Your pictures really threw me with all the trees. Didn't know Texas was so green!

I don't know how it came from the factory. It does have an undercoating now, but the underside needs attention.

 

[Mr Cuda]

I didn't touch on your wanting to add a/c.
Adding that will be a major amount of work to add a factory system.
I probably wouldn't have a problem putting extra holes thru the firewall on my car if I wanted to add an aftermarket system. But I don't know enough about aftermarket systems to know what all has to be changed.
If you are going gut the car,( blast?), scrape the bottom clean and redo every nut and bolt, then the factory color would probably be the choice at sale time.
A wrong color repaint will always haunt the car. 71 340 Cudas are pretty popular.
But if you say, I want red!, or orange, etc, it's your car.

 

[Xcudame]

Keep in mind, you're just using the car until the next owner, whether you sell, pass it on to a child or relative. Like these fine individuals have alluded to, you can never make a profit off it unless you got it for next to nothing. So fix what needs to be fixed to make it pleasurable to drive and enjoy it! I vote for an aftermarket AC system as the factory setup requires a different firewall, dash and ducting. Those big factory v2 compressors sure cooled things down, but there's a reason Mopar cop cars had a cut off switch when in pursuit, because they suck horsepower. Buy the way, I think it looks pretty good just the way it is now.

 

[Mopar Nut]

 

[Matt L.]

"Upgrading" means different things to different people.
Paint color makes the most difference in value.
Two trains of thought here.
One how many buyers looking for a green car ? Would you have bought it if it was the original green color ?
Red sells. A nut and bolt restoration back to original everything ? You would not be able to sell it for even half of what it would cost you.
Current value, average around 50K.
As far as adding value ? A Quality paint job, any color. 20K. Add that to what you paid for the car. Could you get your money back ? The paint wouldn't add its cost back to the value of the car.
This is a hobby, not an profitable investment, unless you score a good price on a 6 pack or Hemi car that hasn't been hacked.
Have good quality work done on it. Fix it the way you want it. Save the old parts for the next owner if he wants it back to original.
Your car will always be sellable, just probably not worth a great deal more than you put into it.
Keep things as close to factory parts as you can or at least able to be put back to stock without having to do body modifications.
Bolt on stuff is best.
Think of it as paying rent, not buying it. The value is driving it for pleasure or transportation. Both of those things have value.
Pleasure and transportation are not free. Have fun whatever you do.

Thanks for your response. I enjoy the heck out of driving it, but the older I get the more I appreciate my 2019 Challenger with the modern comforts.

Welcome.
Naturally, you should add rubber bumpers, shaker, and i guess you already have billboards.
Kidding. Although, you can add those if you "want" to.

If you are going to do a full correct redo, it needs to go back to dark green. As far as the bottom, was it undercoated originally?
If painted, just don't make it gloss green or whatever color you choose. It's just wrong. Fogged color on the edges over primer please.
Mine are all factory undercoat cars so the choice was made for me.
Your pictures really threw me with all the trees. Didn't know Texas was so green!

It's in Washington right now. Had to run from the law....of course. Wife was working with a dirty cop to murder me, so I had to split for Texas...no kidding. My buddy is shippng it down to me so I'm prepping to get ready to receive it and start the work.

 

[Matt L.]

Keep in mind, you're just using the car until the next owner, whether you sell, pass it on to a child or relative. Like these fine individuals have alluded to, you can never make a profit off it unless you got it for next to nothing. So fix what needs to be fixed to make it pleasurable to drive and enjoy it! I vote for an aftermarket AC system as the factory setup requires a different firewall, dash and ducting. Those big factory v2 compressors sure cooled things down, but there's a reason Mopar cop cars had a cut off switch when in pursuit, because they suck horsepower. Buy the way, I think it looks pretty good just the way it is now.

Thanks for weighing in. There's so much to consider and I appreciate as much information as I can get. I like to drive it, but power steering and A/C would be nice.

 

[Matt L.]

"Upgrading" means different things to different people.
Paint color makes the most difference in value.
Two trains of thought here.
One how many buyers looking for a green car ? Would you have bought it if it was the original green color ?
Red sells. A nut and bolt restoration back to original everything ? You would not be able to sell it for even half of what it would cost you.
Current value, average around 50K.
As far as adding value ? A Quality paint job, any color. 20K. Add that to what you paid for the car. Could you get your money back ? The paint wouldn't add its cost back to the value of the car.
This is a hobby, not an profitable investment, unless you score a good price on a 6 pack or Hemi car that hasn't been hacked.
Have good quality work done on it. Fix it the way you want it. Save the old parts for the next owner if he wants it back to original.
Your car will always be sellable, just probably not worth a great deal more than you put into it.
Keep things as close to factory parts as you can or at least able to be put back to stock without having to do body modifications.
Bolt on stuff is best.
Think of it as paying rent, not buying it. The value is driving it for pleasure or transportation. Both of those things have value.
Pleasure and transportation are not free. Have fun whatever you do.

I like your advice about looking at it as rent. I guess new car payments are encroaching on $1000 per month, so I can always look at things from that perspective.

Thanksfor the input, it's what I was looking for.

Matt

 

[Mr Cuda]

Correction. I hope.
Ex wife

 

[Matt L.]

Correction. I hope.
Ex wife

Good point, yes, ex-wife.