Cheap Thrills: '63 Chevy II Convertible

Cheap, of course, is a relative term. A middle-aged rich guy's clunker is a country kid's wet dream. For cheap thrills, we've tried to keep things under $4,000. Above five, things, at lease in the universe we live in, have to be planned for. But sometimes a car comes up that is such a fantastic deal that we're willing to broaden our horizons. Take this '63 Chevy II Convertible. At $6,900, this is the type of cheap-fix six-cylinder cruiser that makes car guys wonder why they've been scrimping and scrounging for their high-dollar dream cars. Wouldn't this Nova be just as fun, really, (and much less of a pain in the ass) as a tangerine 1969 Porsche 911T with S options?
Of course I'm bias towards cars I owned during the formative years. My $200 appliance-white '63 was a wagon. In 1990, it was already old as hell. This one's cracked red steering wheel brings back memories --lights off at midnight, 90-miles-an-hour, a bag of weed tucked behind the taillight plastic, the prior-owner, my high school buddy, at the wheel, heading toward a campground at the tip of Michigan's thumb. If that's not thrilling, I don't know what is.
With humidity covering the mid-Atlantic like a muck, this car is going to make someone very happy. Avoid the the urge to swap the 194 for an eight (this is no race car). Make sure the floors are solid (car doesn't have a full frame). Fix the rust spots poking out of the original paint if you must.