Customising and restoring can make old cars cool cars
Imagine a Volkswagen Beetle with disc brakes, air-conditioning, a hand-stitched leather interior and a modern engine
According to the statistics, a new car’s life expectancy is four years. But many canny people give their old cars a new life, especially when their rides are classics that can net them impressive returns. “A classic vehicle is a great way of investing in an asset and it is an asset that is easily moveable,” says Louw du Toit, co-owner of Fuelcustoms, a Johannesburg-based car restoration company. Potential buyers — or “purists”, as Du Toit calls them — will demand a car in good shape. Most owners try to keep their cars in a good shape, but the older a vehicle gets and the more mileage it accumulates, the more it becomes a candidate for restoration. But restoration work has to be done in a way that’s acceptable to purists, says Du Toit. This can only be achieved by the materials used and the quality of the engineers’ expertise. While a classic car might maintain its shiny exterior, an owner might want to upgrade its performance. Such a car will benefit from getting a makeover with “mo...
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