DFD

When I was 18, I bought my first car: $800 in crumpled up ones bought me a 1970 Fiat Spyder. I loved that car more than any object I've owned before or since. It was a piece of shit, and I was James Fucking Bond. I have spent a lifetime, and larger and larger sums of money trying to rekindle that level of love. What I've noticed is that, along the way, I've come into a few beaters that I nursed back to life for little or no money, and enjoyed them more than fancy sports cars that I took out irresponsible loans for. One of the best beaters was a total accident.

I was driving along and saw a roll-back screeching a BMW 2002 onto the flatbed out of somebody's back yard. A couple of wheels were not turning, grass was stuck in the doors. There was rust under the front bumper and on the rear quarters. I hopped out and asked what was going on. The owner said that he had planned to fix it at some point but gave up and was selling it to a junk yard for $275. I offered the tow truck driver $300 for him to drop the car off at my place, which he did. No start. Flat, cracked tires. Exhaust broken in half. Rust.

For fewer than $600 more, I had that thing running like a champ, and looking like a winner (sort of). Here's what I did.

-Bought sheet metal and welded it into the cut out rust holes
-New fuel lines
-Body filler and glaze
-New exhaust, made from a discarded R50 MINI Cooper, cut and reversed, so the front resonator was the 'muffler'. A piece of 3" Pep Boys tubing as the exhaust tip.
-New battery
-4 tires
-1 Quart PPG Gulf blue paint
-2 rattle cans orange paint
-Hella light kit
-Fluids

The result. A neat little rat rod that served me well for several years.




Any other beater love stories in the DVDniverse?

This is awesome.

Always loved 2002's.

My first car was a 1970 Beetle that I bought in 1984. I dropped the engine and rebuilt it with a ton of high-perf parts and installed a new suspension and did a bunch of other shit, but even though I've been looking for my pics that I took during the build I haven't yet been able to find them, so I guess it didn't happen.

If I ever do find them I'll scan them and make a thread here.

Ive never owned a true beater. Then again ive only owned 3 cars in my 24 years on this earth. I really need to get a true project car instead of destroying my daily.

Great story. The Gulf livery is far and away my all time favorite

Great thread. Will post up mine later......well done !

I've had beaters. They are fun because you can beat on them. Gives them a personality.

Not going to lie, that 2002 had me immediately open up a tab for a Craigslist search. That thing is sweet.