My dad bought a junker 1958 Chevy (sedan, but I don't remember the model name) for $5 sometime around 1973. The body was in great shape, interior okay, but the engine was practically nonexistent.

He fixed it up and drove it for 12 years. He probably would still be driving it but he totaled it in 1985. It wasn't truly a restoration project, since he never did any body or interior work, he just kept it running.