I am sure most of us out here are not to willing to jump in with a figure on a car that we have not seen. I would suggest that you use some alternate sources to determine the going rate for similar cars. The three that come to mind are eBay, Craig's list and Hemmings Motor News. Being in Calif myself, I can tell you that a car coming from Calif is no guarantee of low rust and few or no accidents. I use a small weak magnet to go over the body to determine the presence of any bondo or body putty. I have to admit that on the car I am presently working on I was most surprised to find a lot more minor body putty than I had detected with the magnet or the naked eye.
Another thing that I will tell you is that when you are looking at the cars and see some with recent restorations, you can then compare what those cost with what you are going to have to put into a car plus what you are going to pay for the car to begin with. There are some good deals out there on the recent restorations or often even better on the almost finished restorations. But if you are looking for a project and want to do the restoration yourself then don't pay attention to the last remarks.
As to the word restoration be VERY cautious as to what he other person calls restoration. Check into detail what was done, by whom and with what quality materials. Best if you can see it for yourself and inspect the car and any pictures of the restoration in progress.
Good luck in finding the car just for you.
Charley Fitch
Maintenance Issues
