Winter is coming and just trying to figure out if I should keep fixing the car up or just drive it? I’m at the big ticket items ( top, engine upgrade, body and paint etc...) I would do this over time but I’m thinking it’s more than the car would be worth.
I believe my car was built in the late 80’s?
Is it worth restoring?
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I'll pm you...
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
Drive it.
send it to Alan for the winter, drive it next season :-)
JB356SR posted:Winter is coming and just trying to figure out if I should keep fixing the car up or just drive it? I’m at the big ticket items ( top, engine upgrade, body and paint etc...) I would do this over time but I’m thinking it’s more than the car would be worth.
I believe my car was built in the late 80’s?
Is it worth restoring?
I'd love to hear Alan's pitch. Just once....just once. I'm sure he's a smooth talker etc. Sounds like a young buck with an erection when he says " I'll PM you " as in get the phuck out of my way, stand down, let me get alone into this one seriously. 
And the results would be worth it.
Ha Ha HA !!! funny
Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
I am a bit CURIOUS
, if I may, and ask why a new vehicle would require"restoration" AND, take TWO YEARS to do it?
Banzai Pipeline posted:Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
I am a bit CURIOUS
Because upgrades never end even on a BRAND NEW hobby car ..... and he's LAZY/SLOW as hell 
PS
I FEEL like I NEED to use GRATUITOUS CAPS when I REPLY to you 
WNGD posted:Banzai Pipeline posted:Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
I am a bit CURIOUS
Because upgrades never end even on a BRAND NEW hobby car ..... and he's LAZY/SLOW as hell
PS
I FEEL like I NEED to use GRATUITOUS CAPS when I REPLY to you
my apologies on the CAPS......I am missing my DOMINANT index finger and my physical therapist suggested that I often use CAPS to help my hand/eye/finger coordination back in 2005.....it is a subtle attempt to keep my brain/finger/thought process somewhat heightened after the loss of my finger....
again, sorry about the CAPS
There is NO GUARANTEE that any of us will see tomorrow. Each day is a gift! Drive it! 
Banzai Pipeline posted:...I am a bit CURIOUS
I was more than a bit curious about that myself.
Banzai Pipeline posted:Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
I am a bit CURIOUS
Mitch's "brand new" car came with the optional "nothing works correctly" package that is often included for the full price of the car. The wrong transmission was installed, carbs weren't synched, brakes weren't working properly, the engine was poorly built and needed to be replaced, and so on and so forth. And because he's on one side of California and the builder was on the other side of California which can be a 10-12 hour drive depending on traffic he spent time doing it himself. And Mitch is a humorous fellow so his writings reflect that as well.
MusbJim posted:There is NO GUARANTEE that any of us will see tomorrow. Each day is a gift! Drive it!
AMEN 🙏🏼 to that @MusbJim
AMEN X2,,im enjoying my life to the fullest w/o going broke...have some real estate doings,kids will get plenty,,thank goodness for VA healthcare 100%,,if i didnt have it id be driving a 92 honda civic beater.:}
Robert, thanks for explaining some history that's a bit painful to recall.
Things probably would have gone better had I been within convenient driving distance or had better wrenching skills. The things Mitch did "himself" were actually done by skilled, local artisans. If it weren't for Anthony's talents and support, I probably would have given up on the car long ago.
As it worked out, I probably ended up paying Beck money for a VS.
But water under the bridge. Once these cars are made reliable, they are a joy, 1950's technology, warts, and all.
And thankfully, these appear to be happier times in Hawaiian Gardens.
This might be a little off topic but I thought I’d ask,I bought my VS about 5yrs ago used it had 2800 or so miles on it how could I find out when it was made?
Not trying to dismiss any issues those with VS have had in the past. Those that have ill feelings towards VS are warranted, god knows I would have a true distaste for them if I paid in excess of $25,000 for a "new" car that required a lot of money invested after the initial purchase to get right. (I, for one, would never buy another new Chevrolet after my experience w/ my brand new 2010 Equinox).
That said, I know a number of us have had nothing but pleasurable experiences with our VS Speedsters. I only have 12,000 miles on my 2013 VS (9,000 of which I personally put on), but those 12k have been trouble free (to date). I have no hesitations in hopping in my 2013 and logging a 400-1000mi trip.
VS (back in the Kirk days) cranked out a lot of "entry-level" speedsters. And from what I gather, a small percentage of them were done to less-than-ideal standards. Does the entry-level pricing of these cars justify the issues some found?....probably not.
As it has been stated above, Greg (the "new" owner of VS) is devoted to turning around the somewhat stained image from VS in the past.
With respect to the original post? My advice is to have fun with the car. There's really no end as to what we want to do to our cars, it seems to be innate with the hobby; always looking for ways to improve. These cars are barrels of fun with the top down. Even new tops leak; so hopefully that scratches that one off the list. New engine? Seems we all have a bit of the Tim Allen syndrome of "more power". I'm guessing even w/ a 1500cc engine, I'd still have a big smile while driving. Body and paint? I would just chalk up all the imperfections as years of driving enjoyment. As much as I enjoy having my speedster looking all shiny and nice, I look at the rock chips as badges of honor; reflecting the thousands of miles of pleasurable driving experiences. IMHO, nothing is worse than a trailer queen. I see that as a let-down to the car, not enjoying it for what is was built to do: drive.
Yeah Kevin, I thought I'd make a quick bon mot without hijacking this thread, but that seems to have happened anyway, so I apologize for that.
My tribulations and those of others are well documented in the archives, so there's not much point in dredging them up again - especially today when there's an entirely different operation in Kirk's old digs.
It may be a little unfair to Greg to say that he's the new owner of VS. He had his own independent operation, with it's own quality standards, long before moving to the new location, and he continues to maintain those standards in the new shop. I haven't met him, but judging from what I've seen and heard of his products, and from all reports from customers, he's always done things right.
And yes, many customers of the old VS have nothing but good things to say about their cars and their experience, so I can only conclude that I was one of the unlucky ones.
If there's any relevance to the post at the top of this thread, it's that YES, these cars can be well worth tons of work to make right, and that no matter how wrong things are going, there are enough parts, resources, and help available to fix almost anything.
You can roll up your sleeves and get busy, or just send the heap off to the good doctor's workshop for the winter. Come spring, you'll be cruising in style.
Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
Bought mine from VS in Arizona 2018 and it took 9 months to get the "bugs" out. Brakes, engine, oil leaks,transaxle, carbs, cluster gauges, etc. Phew😣
Newbie Danny posted:Sacto Mitch posted:
I bought my VS brand new in 2013 and spent the next two years restoring it.
Bought mine from VS in Arizona 2018 and it took 9 months to get the "bugs" out. Brakes, engine, oil leaks,transaxle, carbs, cluster gauges, etc. Phew😣
I hope you're at the time now where it's all smiles from here on out.
I purchases my VS at the bottom of the recession in 2010. Kirk had a number of cancelled orders to choose from and I chose poorly. I inadvertently picked the one with the broken transmission and ****ed up engine. Thanks Mitch for letting me know that was actually part of an option package. My timing for purchase of a fully optioned car was perfect as I did not pay for a “new” car. Kirk made good on the tyranny and some other issues. A top engine rebuild was needed at 7k. I did a lot of other upgrades over time but the car never ran well. Enter Anthony in the scene 2014, and a few other trials and tribulations and my car now runs and drives perfectly, even at 7k ft. I am afraid to add up all the receipts as most of us are.
Yeah, I've spent thousands upon thousands over the last 14 years on both Spyders.....
@DAVID STROUD IM ROASTER Wrote: …... I'd love to hear Alan's pitch. Just once.
Well there is no actual pitch, just casual discussions and a story or two, I could never add up the hours of phone call and emails, that would be like adding up a build receipts. Should someone elect to have me do work for them, I do my utmost to be reasonable both with costs and timeline. That's been my method to this madness. Perhaps sooner than later I'll hang this up quoting Forrest Gump and just say " I'm tired "
I think Forrest sounded more like "A'hm Tarred"
Drive it ! We bought our VS (?) in 2007 and I believe it was built in the mid 90's. It was "tarred " but drive able. We upgraded where needed as we went along and still were able to use it in the good weather. It took a while, but it's reliable enough to make me sell the car trailer and drive when I want to. I think I want to right now. Bye
Kevin - Bay Area posted:Not trying to dismiss any issues those with VS have had in the past. Those that have ill feelings towards VS are warranted, god knows I would have a true distaste for them if I paid in excess of $25,000 for a "new" car that required a lot of money invested after the initial purchase to get right. (I, for one, would never buy another new Chevrolet after my experience w/ my brand new 2010 Equinox).
That said, I know a number of us have had nothing but pleasurable experiences with our VS Speedsters. I only have 12,000 miles on my 2013 VS (9,000 of which I personally put on), but those 12k have been trouble free (to date). I have no hesitations in hopping in my 2013 and logging a 400-1000mi trip.
VS (back in the Kirk days) cranked out a lot of "entry-level" speedsters. And from what I gather, a small percentage of them were done to less-than-ideal standards. Does the entry-level pricing of these cars justify the issues some found?....probably not.
As it has been stated above, Greg (the "new" owner of VS) is devoted to turning around the somewhat stained image from VS in the past.
With respect to the original post? My advice is to have fun with the car. There's really no end as to what we want to do to our cars, it seems to be innate with the hobby; always looking for ways to improve. These cars are barrels of fun with the top down. Even new tops leak; so hopefully that scratches that one off the list. New engine? Seems we all have a bit of the Tim Allen syndrome of "more power". I'm guessing even w/ a 1500cc engine, I'd still have a big smile while driving. Body and paint? I would just chalk up all the imperfections as years of driving enjoyment. As much as I enjoy having my speedster looking all shiny and nice, I look at the rock chips as badges of honor; reflecting the thousands of miles of pleasurable driving experiences. IMHO, nothing is worse than a trailer queen. I see that as a let-down to the car, not enjoying it for what is was built to do: drive.
It has been brought to my attention, by an SOC member, a mistake in my earlier post (which I’ve made bold and underlined above).
To clarify, from my limited knowledge, Greg is not the “new” owner of VS. It is my understanding, the VS nameplate went to Scottsdale, Arizona sometime in 2017. Greg has had an existing business (Vintage Spyders) building reputable replicas. From what I have read on here, a number of Kirk’s talented crafts-people joined Greg’s business to continue building Spyders, Speedsters and 356 Coupes. This shop is now known as Vintage Motors of California, located in Hawaiian Gardens.
@Troy Sloan, (or others) please jump in if I left anything out or misrepresented anything.
It was not my intent to provide false information in my previous post. What I can say from first hand knowledge, is that Greg is a stand up guy and has constructed some very nice replicas out of his shop in Hawaiian Gardens.
Minor correction. Greg's company name is Vintage Motorcars of California Inc.
