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To restore a simple car like a Mk 1 or Mk 2 Escort could easily take 400 man hours, sometimes a lot more depending on how bad it is. The types of skills required vary considerably from basic, unskilled work like stripping and cleaning of parts, to semi skilled work of re-assembling the finished components, to the highly skilled work of fabrication and repair of the body shell, and the repair and rebuilding of the many mechanical components.
Restoration requires the use of a huge variety of specialist tools and equipment, far more than the average mechanic’s tool kit will contain. Apart from the obvious hand tools, sockets, spanners, pliers and hammers that all mechanics must have, the restorer needs heavy lifting equipment, not only to remove heavy items like the engine, but also to move the bare body shell around once the wheels and suspension have been removed. Also welding equipment, metalwork and fabrication equipment, body work and spraying equipment, electrical equipment, plus all the skills and facilities required to use the above tools to a professional standard.
Rust is of course the biggest problem in restoration, not only in body work, or the lack of it, but also in the number of seized nuts, bolts and other components. There is no easy solution to many of these problems except perseverance and determination, especially if you are also trying to save the part from total annihilation. It is sometimes difficult to justify to a customer three hours labour to save one small part of their car, even though the part may be virtually impossible to replace.
It is also sometimes the case where it is easier and cheaper to replace certain items where they are available, but where do you draw the line. For example, should a perfectly good track control arm be cleaned and refurbished for £25 (1 hours labour) or should a new one be purchased for £25. In this case the two alternatives cost the same, so the choice is originality against common sense, but where do you stop. Items of safety, like brakes, should always be replaced, as should anything showing signs of were, but there are many times when a decision has to be made which may be contentious.
In the final analysis it all comes down to money, so when the parts bill is in excess of the labour bill, is that better than the labour being more than the parts? Parts and materials are expensive, and usually cutting corners is not a viable option. Paint and related materials is extremely expensive these days, partly due to the advances is new types of paint and partly due to extra regulations imposed by government to make the world safer.
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