I hate to say this, but sometimes - in this hobby - it makes sense to spend more. Now, mind you, I don't say this from the perspective of whole cars, as I'm not in the position to just write a blank check. My approach is routinely driven by finding special vehicles in the sort of condition that allows them to be purchased as projects with a reasonable maintenance budget.
Sure, I'd love to buy a pristine 964 chassis 911 Turbo. Maybe someday? Who knows. I need to stop staring at the Ryan Friedman website of all their current inventory. It just makes me sad.
However, as a hobbyist like many of you, I try to navigate these channels the best way I can. Case in point: I wanted to buy some new wheels for my 1990 911 Carrera 4, to go along with the hardtop I purchased at the end of 2024. This car is likely to be the most valuable in my fleet now and into the future, so it made sense to invest in it further, which is why I held my breath and bought the hardtop. While a cabriolet will never be as desirable as a hardtop model, the gulf between the two is so significant that selling the cabrio for a coupe doesn't close the gap enough to be sensible. The hardtop, however, helps the math make more sense, especially as it relates to increasing its desirability should it ever go up for sale.
Now, I was pondering a set of "sewer cover" wheels from the 928, as these were the "winter fitment" option when the 964 was new. However, I had also been eyeing the 5-spoke wheels that Speedline manufactured on behalf of in-house Porsche tuner RUF back in the day. Ultimately, a set of these RUF wheels needing basic cosmetic refurbishment came up for sale from my preferred Porsche dismantler, Autobahn Dismantling, and I paid roughly $300 over a set of 928 rollers needing to be sandblasted and painted due to most of them being polished from the factory.
Did I want to blow the money right now? Not at all. Does the 964 need new wheels and tires? Nope, the D90s currently on it are in great shape and the tires near-new. However, there will be a day when you cannot buy a set of RUF Speedlines for the price I paid, just like the company in France that makes the hardtop will someday cease to exist. This is basic math at this point that for cars worthy of the investment, it just makes sense to pay more while you can afford it (which is why I was so enraged when the body shop I'd been patronizing seemingly lost valuable parts of my 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth's body kit).
As a friend of mine who is building a garage would say, "The cheapest day to start building is today - the price will never go any lower." That is the universe we live in, and while I always recommend being financially prudent, in some cases, the prudent approach is to buy the rarest and cleanest parts you can until a time when you can buy the whole car.