Looking at buying a williams!

[TooSkive]

I completely disagree, a Williams 1 is worth more than the others for the simple fact it comes with a plaque. To Joe Average maybe they don't know, care or realise, but as these cars are knocking on for 20 years old they will mainly be bought by enthusiasts and enthusiasts who know the cars will desire a 1 over a 2 or 3.

[Daz.]

The that is worth the most these days is the one in the best condition simple as that.

Years ago the 1,2,3 divide was a factor but there are so few actual decent efforts out there I think it's irrelevant now.

Most are shitters or rotboxes!

If a perfect Williams 1 and a perfect Williams 3 were sat outside my house and I had to buy one of them then it would be the Williams 1 simply because I want one without a sunroof and prefer 449.

Anyone who gives up on a good example these days because it's not the right 'number' is an idiot!

[Chras]

I'd happily take either, ideally a 1 or 2 though just because I don't like sunroofs.

As far rotbox goes, I'm giving myself a £3,000 budget for a williams. So I would buy £1,000 williams and spend £2,000 getting it back to it's glory.

Only thing I'd really want is a solid engine.

[TooSkive]

I'd look for a solid body over an engine tbh, it's cheaper to replace the engine than repair the shell. Looking upwards of £2k for just paint alone from a reputable car restoration place, that's not including replacing all the rotten metal.

[Daz.]

You WILL NOT get a rot box back to health with 2k.

Not a chance.

To be honest if I was buying another in the future I'd be budgeting 5k for the car and another 2-3k to get it perfect.

[TooSkive]

As Daz has said, no chance for £2k unfortunately. More like £4k+ and that's cutting corners.

[andyleep]

I may be selling my willy 2........

Has an accessory sunroof fitted but the money you have could sort that easily. Under 80k on the clock, very good arches......

[2 live]

As Daz has said, no chance for £2k unfortunately. More like £4k+ and that's cutting corners.

gotta agree here. 2k rebuild will need redoing in about 12 months. 4k in 2-3 years. ask all those that have had arches done. within 6-12 months, most have had the rust come back, and thats with pricy repairs done. if i had to restore one, itd be getting stripped to bare shell, acid dipping and starting from there. anything other than this is a half arsed attempt imho. and hardly worth doing if its done to keep.

[TooSkive]

Entirely depends on how you look after the car as to how long repair work will last, it's idiotic to assume a £4k+ restoration will only last 2-3 years. You wont get a shed of a Williams 'mint' for that money, but it will be better than most of the cars on here and it will easily last the cars lifetime if it's not used daily and left out to the elements. There's no limit to what money you can throw at these cars really, all depends on how far you are willing to go. A lot of the parts can still be bought from Renault, things like window and door rubbers etc, but they cost an absolute fortune.

[fabulicious]

I see it as being either preservation, restoration or leave as is.

Restoration
If your looking at sheds most likely its restoration. Most of the above comments have highlighted the potential costs to someone out of the trade who needs to rely on restoration guru's to get it done correctly and that is big money on any vintage/classic. Not sure if any have been down that path with a Williams?

Preservation.
This is all about finding the cleanest example you can find and renewing worn out parts, cleaning unsightly rust spots etc. Still costly but shopping around and finding quality used spares can cut costs dramatically.
Keep close to a "knowledged" and "informed" community and you should be able to get it right without too much headache and cost. This can be tricky though as fitting "new parts" can look daft to a partly worn looking car and being supplied parts that do not fit or are the wrong colour and it starts to go pear shapped.

Leave as is.
Get it mechanically sound/fit and drive the nuts off it!

Which ever route you decide to take if you spread the project over a number of years the cost's do not seem as daunting. If it took seven years at 1K per annum well that's justifiable enough for most I imagine. But do not exspect to get your money back on anything you put into them today or maybe even tomorrow because the market is still flooded with them and tbh in my opinion I cannot ever see in my lifetime the Williams being ever worth more than 10K.