My current car is a basket case; poorly repaired dents, badly welded repairs, almost no floor left at all, the battery apron is riveted over what was left of the old one, metal fatigue cracks behind both rear qtr. windows the paint is horrible and not the original color, rust here there and everywhere, the front suspension is shot, gas tank has a hole in it, frame rails are dented from bottoming out or being used to lift the car, the dash has been cut to fit an aftermarket radio, the hood is bent but...the doors are good and so is the glass, the engine and transmission. It's a run-of-the-mill 6 banger of a Soup Bone with fewer creature comforts than most jail cells.
So what's the point of bringing it back? It's a MUSTANG!!! This poor mangy thing followed me home and as ugly as it is I'm going to give it a bath, feed it, get it it's shots and when done, will look like it just came from the dealers showroom.
I think everyone has a different point at which they say it's too much. For me, if I have at least one good door hinge and a couple of fuses that haven't blown, it's on. There's something totally inexplicable about restoring something to it's former glory. We enjoy the get-togethers, the impromptu rally at the local Sonic, the honking cars giving you the thumbs up and best of all, pulling up next to another classic car. For just a spell, you get to feel what it must have been like 50 years ago. If that means building a car around a single bolt...so be it.