Quote Originally Posted by HK1837 View Post
Having matching numbers only really matters on premium collectable stuff. This car would almost always be worth more with a non-original 308 than it is now. The car doesn't suddenly cease to be original if its driveline is removed and kept aside for it. In my eyes lowering it and changing wheels is butchering it more than changing the engine.
In the end i'm a big advocate of keeping cars original that are worthy of it ie a true survivor. This car is far from that, but as far as a relatively minor mod like a V8 upgrade goes i'd rather do it to a car like this one than start with a $5000 roughy. At say $10k i'd pay that in a flash to fix a bit rather than half that for a dog.
Great healthy debating here

After 40yrs of age, I dont believe that theory just refers to the collectable stuff. Any van that stays in one piece after 40yrs(especially through the van craze of the 70s & 80s)..has got to have some collectable value. Any stock standard cars of that age are getting thin on the ground.....even with the 400,000+ HQs sold!!!

Changing the heart of the vehicle is surely more butchering than wheels and some springs and shocks....i'm confused by your logic here. I'm not talking slammed into the weeds, rolling on 22s... just a few inches, keeping the 14s as is with some clean looking whitewalls.

If i was inclined or in a position to buy it, id just make the engine bay pretty, clean stock interior and then let her age gracefully