Making a Living w/ the 911??????

[fastbacker]

This question is coming from a Porsche novice so I apologize if I come off sounding dumb.

Anyways, I'm at a crossroads in my life where I'm looking for a new career. I'm tired of working just to make money and am looking to do something I love.

I was thinking about maybe buying 911's, restoring them and then reselling them. The thing is, I don't have experience here (aside from rebuilding several 2.0L 914-4 engines in my youth). I was also thinking about hiring a Porsche mechanic to help out. I'm sure this wouldn't make much money at first (if any) but it would be fun and who knows where it might lead - maybe a full service shop that sells used 911's.

So, I guess the question is - Is it a realistic goal to make a decent living buying, restoring and reselling 911's?

Thanks-
Craig

[Ditomaso]

probably not unless you run a shop. but i have a friend in collage who used to rebuild porsches for a living. he didnt make a good living though just enough to get by in collage. he could only afford to drink 3 glasses of milk a day. maybe if you were retired and wanted to make some extra money doing something you love it would be a good idea but your not going to make enough to support a family out of your garage. if i were you i would do it on my own time for fun and extra money (its all just my opinion though)

[fastbacker]

I was actually thinking maybe starting with a small shop (warehouse) with a body guy and a mechanic/restorer. The goal would be to grow it into a full service shop. Don't know if it's realistic or not.

[stefang]

I think the basic problem is that it costs more to restore a 911 than it's worth in the end. It's worse if you want to make a profit. Just check in the classifieds for built up cars and the amount that people say they have in them.

I guess the business model that works is to build cars for customers (TRE).

But hey, if you have the capital, why not try it. Go and restore one and see if you can sell it at a profit. If not, at least you have a nice 911.

Stef

[Blanco]

Realistically - Yes. Tons of work - Yes.

My old man has his own shop and when he started it, there were things like location, insurance, tools and personnel that he had to worry about.

He owns a trucking outfit and he only services heavy duty diesel trucks.

Start small, incorporate and then expand as business grows.

[chgrec]

Having owned & restored over 60 cars so far, I can tell you it is tough to make a living at it. Unless you use a business model like a repair shop. That is, restore other people's cars, not your own. The problem you run into is deciding on the level of restoration. If you get a basically decent car and take it 80 to 90% of the way, you can come out on the good side. Trying to get a car to "showroom" condition will drive you to the poor house.

When most people see a used car (or most anything), they immediately decide whether they like it or not based on first impression. If a car looks really nice both inside & out, the mechanicals are less important. That isn't as much the case with Porsches or some other high performance type cars, but it does still apply. I have found that if you find cars that just need a heavy "sprucing up" and not a full restoration, you can make a few bucks. Ultimately though, if you own the cars yourself, you are less likely to make a go of it. While you do get to have a cool car around to work on, the labor of love that it takes to make them right is rarely profitable.

I agree with Stef, I think the business model like a TRE or others use is the way to go. While you may not get rich, go for it IF it is your passion. Do what you love and you will always have enough money.....

Just my 2 cents....

Chris

[porschenut]

You could restore other people's cars for a price, and make some (not much) money. But 99% of the time, buying the car and restoring it will cost more than you could sell the end product for.

[Trust Me]

I think a good Porsche mechanic would be a better way. Maybe restoration on the side at first. A good reputation goes a long way.

[dfink]

What about buying wrecks from insurance companies and parting them out. Seems like flys on a dead pig whenever someone parts one out here.

[Trust Me]

You know, I parted out a rusted out 914 and made a ton of money. Much more than the car was worth.

[chgrec]

Parting out is a decent way to make money but you must have the space to store the parts so they don't deteriorate. You also need to be able to sit on some parts for what could be a long time....It can take some time to turn over your inventory.

One of the best business models I ever saw was for a "junk yard".
Properly done, keeping in mind the numerous environmental laws, auto salvage can bring in a ton.....
The upside is that with proper planning, you can start small and ramp up....

To me they are like a candy shop...you never know what goodie you might find next...

Chris

[DaveE]

The downside of "parting out" is I never want to sell anything! My wife will do well maybe after I'm gone.

[Zeke]

All very good advice here. The thing is that the cars and the parts have all gotten too well known and too expensive. Just 3 years ago, after finishing a year long off-frame restoration of another kind of car and coming back to auto work after a hiatus of a few years, I landed here at Pelican. Then, I could pick up parts weekly off things like the Recycler.com and use them or resell them for a modest profit. This doesn't exist now.

I think the prime time has passed for making any money speculating. I bought my non running, rusty S for 5K 2 years ago. That won't happen again. And, there's barely any room for profit on that after I've saved it. When I get finished with a rebuilt motor for it, I'll be upside down for the 1st time. If I was smart, I'd get out now.

[chgrec]

That's the problem with the addiction to Porsche (or any old cars), none of us are smart enough to get out when the gettin' is good.....


Chris

[gatotom]

It's not that we are dumb because it takes alot of smarts to just deal with this car, let alone drive it properly.

The real problem I see is that we are hopeless addicts knowing there isn't a finer production car on the planet other than a Porsche.

Until you have the love, it's just another car.

[Eric Schaeffer]

In addition to death and taxes, when you own a small shop, insurance, payroll, equipment costs and rent are "certain."
All of this while the resale value of a restored 911 is uncertain, it depends on the market. The market is uncertain, it depends on the economy. The economy is uncertain, it...you get the idea.
Going from a steady and certain paycheck to running your own business might be a shock and turn into a source of stress that bites into some of your love and passion for these cars.
I would think the economics of starting your own shop would be very tough but not insurmountable. You'll need time to built reputation and goodwill and capital to buy that time.
Good luck, we'll all be green with envy when it works out!

[Brother]

Pelican ruined everything. Before them there was no good way to get information. On the flipside, there would be many more unhappy or broke porsche owners without Pelican.


You could be a mechanic or detailer though. I think there might be a growing demand for really good bodywork. Try to find guys who don't ever use bondo.

I plan on sweeping the floors of whatever shop will take me when I retire in 15 years. Hopefully there will still be porsches around by that time.

[fastbacker]

Originally posted by stefang
I guess the business model that works is to build cars for customers (TRE).

What is TRE?

Thanks all for the advice. My thinking is, and was, that mildly restoring 911's woulld be a way to start out and learn the cars. From there, maybe I could move in the direction of a repair and/or body shop.

Thanks-
Craig,

[K. Roman]

Ever get this up and running?

[randywebb]

I can't imagine that you could support yourself in SFO doing this - even several years ago, office space was $10/ft2. Wharehouse space is probably that much by now.

You'd better start costing out some things before getting in too deep. Don't get killed financially - esp. now, since only big businesses get any decent bankruptcy protection after the recent changes to the law.