let me ask you where to start on my restoration

yes hello my name is al i was just given my dads 1971 maverick grabber it has been my dream to own this car since i was 14 i am now 18 he let it go alittle bit and i know the cowlings leak it needs to have all the fluids drained and has to have new put in it needs a new carb bc the old one wasnt the one we were running 4 years ago and it needs new tires all round..... so let me start off by saying thanks to any one who helps me with this restoration and i will post pics and be on here alot.... now down to the real business where should i start on this car.
:bananaman

 

Do you plan to tear it down and Restore it...Or restore/repair as you drive/use it???

 

I would start with posting up some pictures. That will give us a direction to point you toward.

 

what i plan to do is make it driveable then i will start to dump cash into it to make it look show car ready i really love this car and it means alot to me and it tears me up inside to see how my father has let it go so bad and i will post pictures as soon as i can i am at work right now and it is late at night where i am at...try to get them on by 2marrow (hint the cars not pretty at all)

 

Many of us has started with some real ugly ones. One has to start somwhere!!

 

this is so true and i cant wait to start on her and get her back to her prime. i really hope alot of people on the form will help me get her back to her tip top shape

 

Start with safety items (brakes, suspension, lighting etc...Then move on to reliability issues (mechanicle/electrical) Once you have a platform that is safe and reliable, you can play to your hearts content but first...Figure out what you can and cant do on your own and how much you want to spend and what you expect/want from the car when done...Good luck!!!

 

well the breaks were fine before she sat outside in my yard for 4 years lighting i checked that the other day i turned her on to acc and all the dash board and headlights tail lights all that good stuff came right on they prob all will need new bulbs soon any way and i kinda just want her up and running make her a daily driver and as it get the money together start to make the cosmetic repairs

 

I do it bass ackwards but I like to get the car all back together in one piece and redo all of the mechanicals, then once all of the parts have been rounded up and the kinks worked out, pull it back down somewhat for paint and interior.

 

Well said. Safety first--Brakes, lights, tires, reliable--running good, shifting right.

I started out without a engine, I rebuilt brakes and front end parts that were worn out. Then got engine/tranny in, got running/driving safe. I did interior next, new carpet, bucket seats. Then body and paint. Some do body and paint first, then interior, but I wanted to drive mine and work out any bugs before I took it down for paint.
Pics will tell us the story on how much bodywork it'll need.

 

Break everything down in little projects and get it driving again before starting the next project. By keeping it drivable you won't lose interest. I realize sometimes it's two steps forward and one step back...but you will be driving it the next day, week or next month...not 2, 5 or 8 years down the road.

 

Great advice! I agree 100+%. That's what Im doing and mine is not driven regularly.

 

pics to verns car http://mmb.maverick.to/showthread.php?t=49160

 

Welcome to the board. Looks like a nice car to start with. Like the others have said it would be best to get all the safety parts up to snuff before making it a daily driver. With saying that, and me being a NJ native also, you're going to be real unhappy with your daily driver if the cowls leak very bad and you drive it in the rain. That is a nasty job to fix. You can do a search here of what it takes to fix it. Good luck.