Planning to build a Custom Car or Truck? This step is very important.Take a look at our outline to help with the planning and organizing of your next Custom build
Decide what you want to build: Build a Custom Car (Import Tuner, Lowrider, Classic Car, New Car, Hot Rod, Just-For-Show, etc.) Build a Custom Truck (Import, Domestic- Lowrider, Classic, New, Just-For Show, etc.) Build a Off-Roader Vehicle(Trails, Mudding, Rock Crawling, For Show, etc)
Plan for your Budget: Gather your income vs. expenses and determine how much you can afford to spend to buil a custom car, custom truck, lowrider, or off road vehicle. Are you going to buy the vehicle that you are going to customize or are you going to modify a vehicle that you already own? Be sure to allow for the cost of hiring someone to do some of the work for you, possibly things that you do not know how to do, or because you do not have the proper tools (perhaps a welder). The cost of insuring your Custom ride, especially tall off road vehicles, should also be considered. Another important part of your budget to be considered is the purchasing of Custom Car Parts and accessories. You can really save yourself some time and money if you try to plan what you need and where you will purchase it at reasonable prices. YourCustomCar.com can help with that!
Plan Your Time: When would you like to be finished with your project to build a custom car, custom truck, lowrider, or off road vehicle (years, months, weeks)? How much time can you devote per week in order build a custom car without making the wife mad, or taking away from other things that you have to do? Try to think of things that you can continue to work on during the time that you are waiting for parts or accessories to be delivered.
Ready Your Build Site: Do you have the basic tools that you will need to build a custom car (Jacks, jack stands, wrenches, sockets and ratchets, electrical tools, diagnostic equipment, manuals about your vehicle)? Do you have a place to work on your ride (Indoors-I hope! Driveway, Friends House)? Will you have heat for colder temperatures or A/C for those scolding hot summer days?
Start with your build:The following list is put together in the order that we would recommend that you build a custom car, custom truck, lowrider, or off roader.
Chassis/Frame: This is when you thoroughly inspect the chassis for any damage or signs that the vehicle has been damaged or needs repair. Do you want to lower this vehicle, lift it for off road or big rims, or stay at stock height? Consider what modifications will need to be done to the chassis in order to achieve this. What parts or tools will you need? We have always found it best to go ahead and get the suspension modifications done before moving on to the next phase to build a custom car, custom truck, lowrider, or off road vehicle.
Engine: Now for a deeper look into the power plant. It is important to make sure that the engine will be reliable and not leave you stranded on the side of some forgotten highway! How well does she run? Any tics or chatter? Is the oil clean? Be sure to inspect your belts, battery terminals, alternator output, transmission fluid, coolant and brake fluid levels. A new air filter, fuel filter, and spark plugs are good ideas too.
Body: Other than the initial look over that you did upon selecting the car or truck that you want to customize, you should now look more closely at the body. Do you see any rust areas (i.e. around window trim, door jams, trunk area, and interior floor pan)? These are all places where that sneaky rust can eat away at your vehicles metalwork. All rust areas need to be addressed BEFORE doing any kind of custom paint. If the rust is not removed, it will come back to haunt you down the road. As far as the paint goes, make sure that whoever does your custom paint job knows their stuff and has experience in doing what you are looking for on your custom street car or custom truck. Please note that a custom paint job, especially those that will require bodywork, will take a while for the painter to complete. From experience, I have learned that it is not a good idea to hassle your painter.
Interior: How does the upholstery look (door panels, seats, headliner, carpet, and console)? These are easy repair or replace, so you should look deeper to finds things that are broken beyond repair and need to be replaced. What can you modify to make your interior custom and unique? Plenty of products can be purchased or made to make the part of the car that you see most, your interior, fully customized. For some ideas, you could install a set of custom gauges, some electronics (MP3 player, CD player, DVD player, monitors, etc.), billet accessories, L.E.D. lighting accents, and more. A street car isnt a custom street car without a modified interior!
Rims-Wheels: Custom wheel sets are an easy, and one of the most popular upgrades to help build a custom car, custom truck, lowrider, or off roader. Custom wheels can also really add to the overall look of your ride. As wheels can be one of the most expensive upgrades, a lot of thought should be put into which wheels you want to purchase. Another important factor in choosing the best wheel set is the finish that is on the wheels. The finish of a chrome wheel will probably be the longest lasting, being that they are the easiest to clean. However, chrome does rust so attention to detail in cleaning this type of wheel is required. Polished aluminum is another way to go. Polished aluminum wheels have there own unique clean look. Polished aluminum does tarnish if the finish is not maintained. Cleaning these wheels can easily be done with a little aluminum polish and elbow grease. Yet another way to go is to use wheels with a powder-coated finish. This type of finish is one of the toughest ever created. Powder coating is more-or-less- a coating of chemical and dirt resistant plastic. Powder coated wheels make for great off road wheels because they can resist rust and tarnish far better than chrome or polished aluminum. Not matter if the wheels are for rocks, racing or show, choose your wheel set carefully as they can really compliment your customs overall look.
Test and Drive your build: A poorly assembled custom car, especially those with chassis modifications (Lowriders, off roader), can be dangerous to drive. For your safety and others safety, please do your best to assure that your vehicle is safe to drive and reliable. Your first step after any kind of chassis or suspension modification should be to go to your local alignment shop. Poor alignment can lead to loss of steering and will cause excessive tire where on your custom wheels!
Maintain and clean: So you have worked this hard to build a custom car or custom truck. Do not let all of your hard work and money goes to waste by not maintaining your ride. Be sure to change the oil regularly, use some occasional fuel system cleaner, and always monitor your fluids. Do not forget to clean your custom street car, custom truck, lowrider, or off road vehicle! It is much easier to keep a car clean than it is to clean a dirty one!
Congratulations on deciding to build a Custom Car, Custom Truck, Lowrider, or Off Roader! Many of the products that were mentioned in this outline are available for you to purchase here at YourCustomCar.com Please be sure to check out our other web pages for more custom street car, custom truck, lowrider, or off roader parts!
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