£10k Ideal vehicle build dream thread - what would YOU build?

[320touring]

It's a Friday morning and I'm idly staring at the laptop screen.

This idea pops into my head.

What would YOU build as your ideal vehicle if you had a £10k budget to spend on the vehicle and any modification/upgrades?

It could be a car/van/bus/truck/motorcycle/boat/other- the choice is entirely yours!

It doesn't need to be an "only vehicle" - it can be one of your fleet.

Rules:

1. The £10k INCLUDES the cost of purchasing the vehicle .

2. For the purposes of easy comparison - Labour is NOT to be included.

3. You can add/remove whatever you like.

4. There is no right answer, it's the vehicle YOU'd like to build for YOUR needs and wants.

5. If you can, evidence your costs with links or pictures - you never know, someone may actually fancy doing it!

 

I'll post a couple of mine up later, but in the meantime let's see what you have thought of!

[Fabergé Greggs]

When I win the lottery I’ll do a Honda K20 swap into my X1/9 with adjustable bilsteins and Willwood brakes.  It’s been done quite a bit in the states and you can buy everything as a kit to do it from here:

https://www.midwest-bayless.com/p-1029-k20-kit-stage1-acura-honda-k20-k24-engine-swap-kit-for-fiat-bertone-x19.aspx

Either that or I’ll just put some Crossclimates on my Focus. 

 

[Cheezey]

I think I would be fairly safe and possibly boring with this. 
MGB GT. Chrome bumper or rubber bumper and convert. 
Upgrade suspension and brakes. Nice steering wheel, nicely trimmed interior, DAB radio with hands free. 
 Nice wheels. Maybe some modern lighting. 
The big thing would be drive train. Some sort of modern multivalve four cylinder engine, 5 speed gearbox and an LSD. 

Excluding labour, if you can get a half decent base car for £5-6k it should be achievable. 

[Cheezey]

For a number of years I also fancied building a mk2F Polo Coupe. Painted pinky raspberry, colour coded bumpers but black rubbing area. Ronal turbo wheels. Lowered. Red tinted rear lights. White front indicators. Nothing too wild engine wise, 1.6 or something. 
Interior would be some nice Recaro recliners from the Demon Tweeks catalogue. 

[Rust Collector]

Whilst I was sat in my favourite trap in the work bogs yesterday I was idly thinking about a V8 swap I read about someone performing on an R170 SLK. I've always quite fancied it and I do have a fucked R170 SLK and a spare V8 Mercedes engine.

However, my mind then decided that wasn't ambitious/unachievable enough and thought why stop at V8 when you could buy a 6 litre V12 S Class as a donor and have that sat around as a rusting hulk too.

So I reckon with my £10k I'd probably buy a V6 R170 SLK in doom blue and a poorly V12 S Class. I'd then stare at them decomposing on the driveway for the next 10 years or so to avoid broaching the fact there there just probably isn't the space to mount the 6 litre lump in the engine bay of the car.

[barefoot]

How about a mid engined 1303 on a 914 floorpan?

Apparently once you've removed the rear seat it's just four bolts.

[barefoot]

Or a Wankel engined CX with a CVT box?

I understand the difficulty there is just a question of having enough tissues to mop up all the green fluid.

[tooSavvy]

I'd buy an IMP with the 'BMW Bike engine' mod...

And, likely, 4 cans of Stella with the change...

🚙💨

[rml2345]

Pre facelift Rover P6, ideally an Estoura but a saloon would be fine. Converted to run a 3.9 litre EFi Rover V8 with a ZF 4HP22 or 4HP24. Probably uprated brakes just to be on the safe side but the rest left as stock as is practicable.

If there's anything left over it can be spent on fuel.

[juular]

I really want a Volvo P1800 with a T5 engine.

Am I allowed to buy a rotten base car? I reckon £10k would cover a poor condition P1800 shell and a working b5254t.

Edit:

[Supernaut]

My E36, but just generally tidied up with basically an identical drivetrain to jaypee's "316i" shoved in it.

[reb]

A Volvo 245 with a 2.5 TDI stuffed in it, with the pump wound up.

I can't decide if it should be hearing aid beige or metallic midnight purple.

[cms206]

£10k would buy about the very best flat face Volvo 740GLE auto estate out there.

So that'd be it. Nothing needs modified or upgraded because it was perfect the day it rolled out the factory in Ghent, and anyone who says any different is a FILTHY FILTHY LIAR.

 

Or as above with an LS1 V8 swap, but not for performance, only for the improvement in fuel economy.

[juular]

  On 19/01/2024 at 11:47, reb said:

A Volvo 245 with a 2.5 TDI stuffed in it, with the pump wound up.

I can't decide if it should be hearing aid beige or metallic midnight purple.

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I feel a 240 is begging for an OM605 putting out 300bhp run on straight veg.

[LightBulbFun]

  On 19/01/2024 at 10:59, 320touring said:

1. The £10k INCLUDES the cost of purchasing the vehicle .

2. For the purposes of easy comparison - Labour is NOT to be included.

3. You can add/remove whatever you like.

4. There is no right answer, it's the vehicle YOU'd like to build for YOUR needs and wants.

5. If you can, evidence your costs with links or pictures - you never know, someone may actually fancy doing it!

Expand  

well i'd probably take the £10K and really spruce up/sort out REV, and get my Harper Mk6 sorted out/at least road worthy as well, and anything left over from that can get pushed into getting @Mrs6C's Model 70 road worthy 

 

but if thats not allowed, then I would get Model 70 rolling shell, get it well sorted and put this engine in it LOL (along with having the seat re-trimmed in Routemaster seat fabric/moquette)

[reb]

  On 19/01/2024 at 11:53, juular said:

I feel a 240 is begging for an OM605 putting out 300bhp run on straight veg.

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Probably a simpler swap too.

But I don't already have one so it'd take more of the budget!

[83C]

I’d spend it on my L322. 

Base vehicle: £2500

Gearbox overhauled/uprated: £2000

Bodywork: £3000

Suspension/air system renewed: £1500

Engine given a bit more go: £1000

Not the most exciting project but it’d see the car good for another 10-15 years.

[sierraman]

Fairly base looking standard Sierra Mk1 but with a 2.0 Zetec fitted, using as many Ford parts as possible. 

[tooSavvy]

  On 19/01/2024 at 12:13, sierraman said:

Fairly base looking standard Sierra Mk1 but with a 2.0 Zetec fitted, using as many Ford parts as possible. 

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PartsBin Special..... from the parts bin 👍

😉

[Tickman]

Volvo Amazon estate then make it just 100% reliable and as economical as possible with a few comfort focused pieces added.

Then just use it as a car.

[320touring]

Ideal car the first:

Mk 1 Skoda Octavia Estate TDI (preferably with the ALH engine)

New OEM spec shocks

MK4 Golf GTI Seats (much more comfortable than the originals)

Uprated injector nozzles for MOAR powah

Brand new 15" steelies

Posh tyres ( @sierraman approved)

Then it'd be a case of going through the car mechanically

Turbo

Clutch

Timing belt

All mounts

All bushes

 

Lastly, I'd get the mapping software out and get it up to circa 140bhp.

I'd also make the required adaptations to run in WVO because that would likely pay back all the costs in about 1year of use.

I'd also build a reasonable WVO production plant like @Talbot

Basically, I'd be building a sorted version of my old Rank Taxi

 

 

 

[w00dy]

I'd turn my 645 into a sort of CSL

£3k for the car

£1k wheels/tyres

£500 brake upgrade (4 piston calipers from an F30)

£2k Interior upgrades (Cobra Nogaros (re-trimmed, throw away rear seats and some i-drive crap etc) 

£1k LSD and new hardware to suit

£1500 suspension Eibach springs/Bilstein shocks/Meyle HD arms etc.

£1k various engine refresh bits (maybe a remap if any funds left)

[rob88h]

That 1.3L high miler Montego estate was pretty special. I’d make several of those. 

@Tommyboy12

[dome]

Easy one this 

Opel Manta, coupe of course

400 kit because I'm a certified rally bobble hat 

Modern running gear from say an mx5 for a bit more poke and reliability, maybe with a capacity increase, 2.5 sounds good.

Modernised inside to make it useable and comfortable for long distances with Bluetooth/DAB. 

Handily just such a beast exists just now👌

[dome]

  On 19/01/2024 at 11:34, rml2345 said:

Pre facelift Rover P6, ideally an Estoura but a saloon would be fine. Converted to run a 3.9 litre EFi Rover V8 with a ZF 4HP22 or 4HP24. Probably uprated brakes just to be on the safe side but the rest left as stock as is practicable.

If there's anything left over it can be spent on fuel.

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Lovely idea but I'd go LS400 engine and box for a bit more modernity. 

[cort16]

I'd have an SD1 with an LS1 v8.

Find a rotten Monaro and get the engine, 6 speed box and engine management system out of that.

Find an  unloved 2600  SD1 with a blown up engine.

Find a v8 Diff

Mash them together with a vitesse front bumper.

I also always quite liked the idea of an SD1 with a tuned t-series turbo in it. I was infact offered all the bits to do this conversion including the gearbox when  had my SD1 but I didn't take it as I knew I'd never do it.

[Tommyboy12]

  On 19/01/2024 at 12:56, rob88h said:

That 1.3L high miler Montego estate was pretty special. I’d make several of those. 

@Tommyboy12

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Man that car was so much fun as a project. One of those rare projects that I never actively avoided working on. It was only about £1300 of investment in the end so you've got plenty of budget left to build a few duplicates.

For me, I have my dream car, although I've probably sank a little bit more than 10k into it over 14 years of ownership. The turbo engine build alone was around £4000 because I opted for forged components and straight cut gears. I paid £650 this Mini back in 2010 and it's come a long way since then. Now it's a 200hp rocket ship and it puts a smile on my face every single time I drove it. It's bouncy, it's loud, it's smelly, but it's mine.

[Stinkwheel]

Well now, theres a question, first thing that springs to mind is get an olds delta 88 Royale (just like my old one)

Drop in a LS1 with a TH350 and a pro charger

Maybe band the wheels but keep same hubcaps. QA1 suspension/shocks all round with disc upgrade

Should be do-able for 10k fairly easily.

Mainly because i loved that car, you hardly ever see them in the UK and it would be fun

[grogee]

I think Mini too, I'm sure this is way out of budget but:

Heritage Clubman shell if such a thing exists

Maybe a cage if it wasn't too intrusive, something to increase chance of survival in big shunt

Really pimped A-series eg 1310cc, big valves, LCB and Weber. But n/a not turbo

5-speed box

13" wheels and whatever brakes I can fit under them

Hydrolastic suspension with some sort of adjustability (valves?) and Hi/Lo foot joints

Air con. It was a factory fit for Japan so it's doable if bits are available

Some sort of nice seats that fit 

Custom audio and dash/instruments

Twin tanks

Probably BRG with a white roof please. 

(I've overspent, haven't I?) 

[Dyslexic Viking]

I would build my dream Mercedes fintail. If you're lucky, you can buy a 4 cylinder petrol cheap here for around 5 to 6k, that leaves 4 to 5k for modifications, which would be a newer 4 cylinder Mercedes diesel engine and better diff gearing.

I would of course keep the manual gearbox with column gear shift and the engine would not get major performance upgrades, I just want a reliable and a nice fintail with adequate engine power.