One thought on the money piece: based on some of the responses, it seems like I may have to consider the 'lost money' as an investment in my relationship with my son!

And a great investment that will be! Go for it!

Great Forum. You folks are a wealth of information. I spent the last several days reviewing Z-car sites and decided to join here. I am going to inspect a 1974 240Z tonight. It is a complete car, but it has been completely disassembled. The body has had all the rust cut out / removed and new panels welded in place. It appears to be in good shape. So after I've followed the advice you have given to others about where / how to check for rust, what else should I check for? Note: At this point, the vehicle is only $750 all in. Thanks.

So how did the car look?

The car was essentially a completely stripped body on a rotisserie. There doesn't appear to be any rust on the shell at all. A piece of patch metal was put on the passenger rear quarter and it has only been welded in place. No sanding yet. The front fenders are shot, the hood, rear hatch and doors all need work and seem to come from various cars. All the other mechanical parts are sitting in his yard. The interior is gone except the dash, which is in bad shape. I decided to look at the 2k-3k cars to see what they look like, but I haven't ruled out picking up the shell and another car... Don't think this is something to rush though. Like all people at the start of a project, I have big ideas and having a good solid shell seem vital.

If you've never done one before there is definitely something to be said for buying a car that is complete and assembled so you can drive it a bit or at least see where everything goes as you take it apart so you it will be easier to put it back together. Take a million digital pictures and organize them on your computer by topic!

Now that sounds like a good idea. thanks...