When it comes to having an old car or truck restored by a professional shop, always expect the unexpected. This isn’t a criticism aimed at restoration shops; it’s virtually impossible for the restorer to know ahead of time the condition of every single part on the vehicle. You can’t expect a shop to give you a set price on restoration work. A generous price quote range is one thing, but a firm, set price is just not practical.

Keep in mind that restorers don’t possess X-ray vision like superman had that will allow them to see the condition of the sheet-metal beneath all those layers of paint. They can’t see any previous expert body repairs unless that paint is removed. They can’t see the rust on the floor pan unless the carpeting is lifted up. They can’t see the condition of the crankshaft bearings unless the engine is disassembled. They can’t see how much rust is on the underside of the roof unless the headliner is taken down.

There are hundreds of unforeseen existing circumstances that lie waiting to be uncovered, which is why you can’t expect a shop owner to give you a set estimate on work that he doesn’t know he may have to do. After all, if your employer told you that working overtime was mandatory but you wouldn’t get paid, would you want to work all those extra hours? Of course not; so neither should a restorer be expected to labor on a car an extra 40 hours without getting paid just because he didn’t know that the inner rocker panels were completely rusted through. No one can judge the amount of rust and body repair that might be required without disassembling the entire vehicle and inspecting every square inch of it. This is why those restorers who do operate with pre-set estimates will still include a clause in their contracts that states an additional charge will be incurred if extra work is required.

To better understand how the restoration process works, just forget for a moment that you are dealing with old cars, and compare it instead to those businesses that also rely solely on a skilled workforce to manufacture a finely finished product, such as a furniture maker, custom dress manufacture or restorer of century-old Victorian homes.