new guy considering buying a 65 valiant

Well Scott, first let me welcome you to the wonderful land of FABO. You came to the right place for answers, and I'll try to help if I can....

First, you need to make sure you aren't overpaying for what sounds like a pretty big project. Frame repair is not something to take lightly, and most of the time it's not what you see, but what you don't. If the car needs floors, frame repair and body work, your money would be better spent on finding a much better example. The work to replace the floor and any frame rust will be much more than that of locating a nicer example. You can easily be into just the parts at close to $1000, and double that if you need to pay to have it done. So, lets do the math...$2000.00 for parts and labor just to do the floors and frame stuff, and no telling how much for body work, on top of a purchase price of lets just say $1000.00 and you're in the $3000.00 range just to get started. I've seen some pretty nice examples running and driving of early A cars sell here for $2500-3000!!!

So if you buy the car and are heading into repair land, you should be looking for any 1964 or 65 Valiant, Cuda or for some parts like the floors even Darts. There are also some crossover parts from 1966 examples of each model listed, but for the correct body lines for rear qtrs and such, a 64 or 65 car would be preferred.

Theres always someone on here parting out an early A, so if you get the car, make yourself a thread here and ask for specific areas in need. Not a "what cha got" type thread, but specific stuff, so your audience can check those exact areas to be sure you're getting exactly what you need!!

So, any of this gonna help?? Only you can review the car and make a determination on what your skill level is compared to what skill level the car is gonna demand. Hopefully, you got it in the bag and can catch yourself a deal on the little Valiant. They're great cars to drive and hop up, and lets face it...chicks dig 'em!!! Geof