My $.02, and worth exactly what you're paying for it...
The answer is what j par said in post #2. Figure out what you want the car to do, then stick with your plan. When you have the goal firmly in mind, work backwards from there for which parts you want. Some choices will affect other choices, much like photography. You can't change one part of taking a photo without changing the rest of the parts. For me, I wanted a certain look stance-wise, so I started with wheel/tire sizes and reverse-engineered it from there.
I've been accumulating parts for about a year and a half for my build, and I'm just about ready to turn wrenches to make it happen. I can't tell you how many times I saw something appealing/interesting (SQUIRREL!) to tear off in another direction. Luckily, I've not actually gone down any side roads. But it's hard to resist the urge. This is a slant build, beefed up to be a fun driver but it won't scare any V8 in the neighborhood. I wanted spunky performance, good mileage (via an 833 OD tranny), running well on pump gas, and having the right "look" for wheels and tires. I have all these in hand, and by all accounts will wind up with exactly what I wanted.
So why do I still slobber over the BB 69 Darts I see?? :eek::eek::eek: It's a disease, but right now I can't afford more than one project.