Three Lessons You'll Learn Building Your Dream Car

By: Kase van Rees

When I first started on Stella the 72 Merc, being in the workshop was simply a means to an end. I can't say that I loved laying into metal and road grime for hours in the North Georgia heat, but that was then and this is now. Over time I learned a few lessons that can be valuable to any and all car guys.

Lesson number one, enjoy your ride despite its flaws. The question I have to laugh at more than any other I get asked is "when will your car be done?" Pretty much never, go fish. Unless you have some form of six figures to give to a SEMA builder, chances are you'll always be making improvements. Nobody's car is really perfect despite what you see on tv, and just cause a car is expensive doesn't mean it's more fun to drive.

Lesson number two, don't do too much. Seems like a lot of people these days are feeling the need for speed. Depending on what you're trying to do you could save a lot of money and have just as much fun by ignoring the performance parts you don't really need. Once you cross a certain threshold of horsepower your car can actually become less fun to drive. Serious gearheads will tell you that fast and fun aren't the same thing. The same is true with body mods as well. I'd say most cars look 90% there with the right stance and fitment.

Finally, lesson three is to work on your own car. It seems daunting and every project takes about three times as long as you expect, but you'll be happy you did it. There are some jobs that should be done professionally, but you're capable of more than you might think. Plus, few things are as satisfying as confirming that you did the work at home, and you'll gain a much deeper appreciation of your ride in the process. Besides that you also save tons of money and you can do very high quality work by taking your time. Pretty quickly your skills will sharpen and you might even start to enjoy the work itself.