More on the path of least resistance......

The path of least resistance is not always the cheapest way. Sometimes something 5 or ten times more expensive might be the better deal. An acquaintance was looking for a '70's Firebird for a project car. He found three on Craigslist-one was a 1971 Formula 400 for sale for $500. It had a good body-but that was it. I mean this was an engineless, transmissionless, radiatorless, gas tankless, interiorless hulk. The second one we looked at was a '77 Skybird. It was priced at 2 grand, and it was mostly there, it just needed paint and some minor inteiror work-recovering the seats-etc. And it ran good-it just had a 350 Chevy under the hood. The third one we looked at was a 1974 Formula 400. It was priced at $3,500. The red paint was oxydized, but the body was straight and rust-free, and except for the front seats needing to be recovered the inteiror was in great shape. And it had 400 Pontiac under the hood backed by a TH400. And it ran good. I told him to buy this one, that it was the best deal. "How?" he asked-it's way more than the other two?" "Forget the first one." I said. "It will cost a lot more than $3,500 to get that basket-case even drivable." "Do you realize all the crap your going to have to chase down?" "Your better off  just spending more money and getting a better car to start with." "The second one's ok-but you basically have a Camaro." "It will cost a ton of money and grief to change that one to "Real" Pontiac Power-which is what you want." "The red one has a 400 / TH400 powertrain already in it." "It only needs minor cosmetic work, and you can spend the rest of your money on a killer motor or wheels and tires or suspension, or whatevetr." Trust me the red one's the best deal." He thought about it, did some math, and said-"Your right." "Even though the red one is 7 times o more than the '71 and almost double the price of the '77, it is the best deal for what I want to do which is have a badass Firebird with a Real Pontiac engine, not a Chevy." I'm glad he saw the light. The first one would have been a total nightmare. Besides no engine or tranny it was missing umpteen thousands of dollars of trim pieces, brackets, light sockets, etc. It would have cost him ten grand to make that thing as drivable as the $3,500 one. The second one would have been a pain in the ass because besides finding a Pontiac engine and a BOP bolt-pattern tranny, he'd have to chase down all the accesories-starter,alternator, fuel pump,water pump, p/s pump all the brackets, etc. Valve covers, oil pan, timing cover, etc. Like I convinced him-he'd be better off hot-rodding the Chevy engine that was in it, or just looking for another Pontiac-engined one. Even though he initially invested more money-he's going to be much happier in the long run, and save a ton of money and grief. That's the path of least resistance. Mastermind