‘I Resisted Buying It For Three-And-A-Half Years'
Practical Classics|April 2017

Sam discovers a forgotten Fiat and fails to not buy it.

Sam Glover
‘I Resisted Buying It For Three-And-A-Half Years'

Not buying doomed project car is one of my most time-consuming pastimes. I’m getting quite good at it. There was a time when I’d be powerless to refuse any grotty sub-£500 automotive waif that vaguely tickled my fancy. ‘I’m rescuing it,’ I’d tell myself as I haemorrhaged time and money transferring a basket-case from the corner of someone else’s barn to the corner of my own barn. I’d suffer delusions of restoration until my initial enthusiasm dried up. Then, after a long period of gathering dust and contempt, it’d be sold at a sigificant loss.

I now subject myself to a vicious probing when considering a needy project. Will I ever work on it? Does its rarity and value justify the floorspace it’d occupy? Could I buy a really good one for less than the cost of the restoration?

This story is from the April 2017 edition of Practical Classics.

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This story is from the April 2017 edition of Practical Classics.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.