larryg3

That reminds me of an old saying
"if you have an enemy don't kill him give him a used car!!! "
In this case give him a messed up Vette. I am sorry to say but I agree with the rest Get rid of this car and find a better car. You could always use this as a parts car.

skeptic

Not to beat a dead horse, but if you're not going to just use it for parts passing it up might be the smarter move. Better off parting it out and starting a C3 fund - then put money in there that you'd otherwise be spending on that car.

540 vette

Can you please tell me what is so hard about working on a C3. The front suspension is the same as any other car, nothing magical there. The dash is hard to pull out, ever do one on a jeep grand cherokee. The rear suspension, if the rear bearing goes you replace the whole arm with a rebuilt one. Now if you had said it is more expensive to work on then I would agree with you.

If you have experience working on cars you will have no problem working on this,

F22

I'll agree on the front suspension and no, I haven't done one on a Jeep Cherokee. The dash is not only hard to pull out, it's even harder to put back in. Lining up everything is a bastard, the center console, especially with the four speed shifter plate, sucks, as you have to totally muscle the center console, up against the center dash, while all of it is loose, just to get it to almost align and my shifter, still hits the front of the shifter plate. The neutral safety switch is nearly impossible to access, much less plug in the connector and ditto for the brake switch. The Tach Cable is one tough ****, but I finally figured out the 1/8" space between the bottom of the dash and the edge of the metal reinforcement. Ditto for the speedo cable, though I've got the trick now. The rear parking brakes are a real doozy to adjust too, especially if the holes aren't lined up to begin with. The manual transmission linkage leaves you hardly any room, to even put a wrench in there, to tighten up the bolts on the shifting rods, if you can even get a wrench up there. Adjusting the shifter, is no laughing matter either. Removing the headlight assemblies without damaging anything is a challenge and they are even harder to put back in and adjust correctly. Rebuilding them is not a breeze. The '67 RS Camaro, we recently did, was far easier in this respect. The climate control is a fun little wonder to rebuild and it's a good thing I took pics, because there was nothing intuitive about it. Especially the spring for the detent, but I figured it out. The electrical in the dash area can be the source of some of the most troubling things I've ever done on any car, especially even putting in the sockets into the tach and speedo. The brand new, Lectric harness, I put in a few months ago, left pitifully little room to even plug them in. Some C3 guys, actually lengthen the wires, so they can do it. And now it's got a parasitic draw. The four speed transmission is a tough pull on a car like this, especially with a welded in cross member. That was a total wrestling match! We pulled a Muncie on a Chevelle recently and it was far, far easier. Plugging in the lights in the rear turn signals and brake lights is an exercise in patience, very little room for my hands to even get in there and tighten or loosen the bulbs and getting them to lock in, while laying under the car, is another frustrating exercise, because they only twist one way and with the tiny amount of room and my folded hands, it's tough. At our shop, we've worked on Studebakers, C2's, Chevelles, Impalas, 1st Gen Camaros, short and wide Chevy pickups and none of them, are as frustrating or as tough as working on a C3. So if you tire of me warning others, about what they're getting into, sorry. They're not like the other Chevy's, that's for sure.

skeptic

Lack of space and access to things. Forget working on it for a minute, just changing a fuse in my '81 requires an amateur contortionist act. Want to change a bulb in the center gauge cluster? Start by removing the seats. Change the rear diff fluid? Start by removing the spare tire...

There is "hard to work on" meaning very difficult or technical, then there is C3 "hard to work on" which in my experience means a long tedious task. Using my light bulb example, it's not difficult to remove the seats, then remove the side panels, then the lower console, then the gauge console, then change the bulb. It's not a difficult or highly technical task, but the amount of work required is tedious so I'd categorize changing a gauge cluster bulb as hard.

Before someone jumps in, I'm sure there is some easier way to change a bulb by coming in from the back through one side or the other and feeling your way to the bulb. Just making a point on what it takes to get full access to the back of the cluster.

qwank

I wouldn't use the stock rear end parts with the big block. if it's an automatic it has all those tiny weak u joints and of course has the aluminum rear diff either way. he'd be better off swapping to an iron diff or at least have the aluminum one built which is going to cost him around $2,000 to have it done right.

540 vette

I worked at Chevy and Ford as a mechanic for about 12 years, a car is a car. You figure out the best way to work on it.

F22

Sorry, have to disagree. You're perspective is coming from being a professional auto mechanic, with a $6K rollaway, full of Snap On, Proto and Matco tools and the experience to back it up. I'm a trained mechanic as well, USMC Motor Transport 3521, worked at junkyards for years, pulling parts (was there last night!) and on many neighborhood projects and now, our shop.

I'll agree that you have to figure out the best way to work on it, but that can be a tough experience with the C3, compared to your average 60's Camaro, Chevelle, Nova or Impala. We've worked on a variety of cars and the C3 is the toughest, especially the interior and the other things I mentioned, like pulling the trans, headlights, parking brakes, electrical and so on. We've worked on C4's as well and the brake booster is pretty frigging hard work on those and most of the guys who've done it, will admit that.

For those posting about the C3, if they're a beginner type mechanic or don't have a lot of the advanced skills, necessary to be 'smarter than the part' (my brother is the Service Manager and former Master Mechanic at a Ford Dealership), then they're likely going to be frustrated with the access and other built-in difficulties a C3 presents.

And that's why I'll continue to advise those getting a C3 for the first time, that it's not going to be as easy working on these, as your average muscle car. It's easy to say a "car is a car", but that just generalizes everything. If I was on the Ford Retractable forum, or the Lincoln Continental forum, I sure wouldn't go on and tell those guys, the retractable roof is a breeze to fix and adjust, or the convertible top on the early 60's Continentals is easy, because, after all, a car, is a car, right? I have a lifelong friend who expertly restores English cars, including Austin Mini Coopers, and I'm sure he'd have a lot to say, about a car, just being a car, because they're all unique and have their unique set of skills, tricks and outcomes associated with them.

kgkern01

So if I am looking for a good used frame, are there year specific frames or will any auto C3 frame work?

Brandons72vette

Technically any 1963-1982 frame would and could work with some modifications. However, the automatic frames are the ones with the removable cross member. You should look for a later C3 frame than an older C3 frame. The front ends are different. So finding a frame close to your year model would be ideal. I have found frames as cheap as $300 bucks on craigslist. Post lots of pictures of the build.

chstitans42

but save yourself a bunch of time and find an 1980-1982 Frame and it will be a direct swap. honestly what I would do is pull the drive train, part out the rest, and throw it into a rust free C3. If you never have done that, It could be a daunting task, BUT it gets easier everytime you do!

80Baby

As someone who has almost completed this journey, I must agree with the majority opinion on this thread. Unless you have an intense attachment to this particular car, use it as a parts car and find another '80 with a decent frame from the start. But if you're determined to go ahead with restoring it, expect to spend more than 100% what the car will be worth once it's finished.

Haggisbash

A free car excellent, good motor and trans?? Why not look for one with a good body and needing an engine then do a swap keep any other parts you need from the donor and part out the rest.

76CSRvette

good luck sounds like a lot of fun. just do baby steps tackle one thing at a time not all at once it can become frustrating real quick I've been working on my car since 2006 looks worse now than it did when I got (outside) but I got the motor tranny brakes and related items all rebuilt or brand new, scraped paint of but decided to tackle the suspension instead as it has started to rattle more now but just take 1 step at a time and keep us posted on progress and remember whatever problem your going through someone here has probably gone through it so the search button is your friend if not theres a bunch of guys with a lot of knowledge here to help or give opinion

2TONE82

FWIW - I'd do a restomod if you're considering that much work with a frame replacement...A C3 riding on a C6 undercarriage with LS Power?

Check out Street Shops Frames

Postal123

We've jumped to a lot of conclusions because of your comment regarding the frame rust. The main (unsubstantiated) concerns here are:

--Possible frame replacement/major repair - not a huge deal, but one in great shape can be pricey, plus not cheap/easy to ship
--Possible birdcage issue with rust - stamped steel structure that basically surrounds the cockpit (windshield frame, door mount/latch, rocker channels, and connects behind the seats) and requires cutting away body sections to access. It's also 4 of 8 body mount points.
--Issues with the floor panels and the required rear floor section - from the pics not sure how battery is mounted or if this too needs to be addressed
--Modified with 454, but are other components compatible or up to the task? How well was the transplant performed? Condition/strength of trans, rear, half-shafts? Brakes and Cooling? Has the steering been altered? Are spring changes required due to the added weight?
--The rest of the car - if it too needs attention, time and money where are you at with regards to your total return on investment?

I think what the forum members are saying is that for the cost to address any one of these items you could buy a decent driver of the same vintage. I'm not trying to discourage you because I don't know your plans for the car...? But, I'd certainly do a thorough look-see and also a little research on planned repair costs vs looking to see what's available in the classifieds...

Hope this helps, and feel free to ask questions...

Rob

kgkern01

Even if I buy a decent condition driver car, I would eventually do a frame off restoration on it anyway since this is a car we plan on keeping forever, so I figure might as well start with this one, even if it does end up being a parts car. I hope to determine more about it's true condition this weekend.

F22

Take some more detailed pics of the frame rust this weekend and let the experts here help out. Remove the kick panels under the dash and take a look there as well, pics of that too, would be helpful. That's another spot that has rust problems. Would like to see the floorpans too.

If you decide to go the full-on resto route, it's going to be years before you drive this car and a whole lot of dough. Just food for thought, because you may end up, easily putting double what it's worth, plus the time, that you could've been driving another Corvette instead.

On the other hand, you'll get quite the education, doing this, that's for sure!

kgkern01

So yeah, finally got around to checking it out this weekend. The passenger side of the frame actually looked pretty good, the driver's side, eh, not so much. It was so bad on the drivers side that when I tried to jack the car up by what I thought was a decent spot in the frame, it just started crushing a little before lifting up. It is rusted all from the back of the door to about 6" inches past where it curves at the front wheel wells. I also noticed that the drivers side engine mount and control arm mount looked to be re-welded on, whereas the passenger side looked factory. I think the car may have been hit on that side at some point. The bird cage looked great I think, at the most there is some slight surface rust in a few spots along the sides of the windshield, the rest looks great, except for the body mounts inside the car, I think it's the #2 and 5 mounts? They have quite a bit of rust, but new body mounts seem abundant online. The rear compartment area, I found "replacements" all over eBay for $2-300, but given I would need floor pans too, at $275 each, so I would be looking at ~900 in parts alone (not counting repair materials or labor) just to get the body back to normal. The 454 engine just needs the carb tuned, otherwise it is good, trans is supposed to be good, and the brakes have all new calipers and lines. So my thoughts are to find a good body/frame C3 with a bad/blown engine, and use this as a parts car for that car, then sell whatever I have left. They seem to go sub $5k around here on Craigslist around here (Louisville area). What do you guys think?

Ibanez540r

Don't let the exterior of the windshield frame fool you. Honestly, I would have called mine nearly perfect. Even with the dash out of the car the interior portion of the lower corners looked perfect and still painted. It all came to life when my windshield was removed... Complete rotted holes in the upper corners and the lower cor ears were worse.

It's all hidden. That #2 mount is a tell tale for your windshield frame a lot of the times. The water comes in behind the windshield, rots it away, and drips down into the #2 pocket rotting it out. The #2 is the only quick and easy area to visual inspect without heavy disassembly.