jcnst1

So many of these cars are sold across the country and found via the Internet. Before buying your classic beauty, did you inspect yourself, hire a pro or leverage knowledgeable forum members in the area? It seems you e got to be prepared to move fast when you find what you're looking for, but difficult when it's not in your area.

Any advice welcome.

vettebuyer6369

I do all my own inspections; Ive been buying these cars since the 70s. I also have a close friend who is a Corvette restorer who doubles my knowledge base.

When I went looking for my '69, I was very specific in that I wanted a real code 900 (triple black) convertible. I found cars in 3 different states that either had hidden frame issues or were not as described. One car in CAL had a repaired frame. Another car in Ohio that was described as an original black car had a green trim tag, just like a few other cars I saw.

I finally found a good car that needed a resto that worked for me, in Connecticut.

If you do not have the experience or knowledge base, find someone who does or you could easily make a terrible mistake.

Easy Mike

I have purchased three; all were local. I personally inspected each prior to purchase. My advice is never to purchase a Corvette you have not personally inspected.

Good luck with the hunt.

Faster Rat

There is no easy answer. The more effort you put in to the acquisition, the more likely you are to be satisfied with the result. I never considered buying sight unseen and travelled from Miami to Winston, OR. Drove the car, paid full asking price and left with the documentation. You need to know what you are looking for...and what you are looking at. You cannot be desperate and willing to walk away. It is unlikely that you will find a great car at a bargain price...just make sure you get what you pay for.

Alan 71

Hi jcnst1,
People with good 69/70 cars know what they are worth and do not need to sell for what appears to be a low price because they want to get out from under them.
This statement, while often repeated, can be taken seriously…. "Good cars are not cheap and CHEAP cars are not good."
If you feel you're not knowledgable enough to actually know what you're looking at and how to assess a particular car, paying someone one with specific 69/70 knowledge and experience will be money well spent.
You're not looking for an appraisal…..you looking for advice as to whether you should spend your money on this car.
Good Luck!
Regards,
Alan

jcnst1

Thanks for your responses. I plan to go Che k this one out this week - no underside pictures which is a concern, but any other immediate thoughts looking at the pics?

Few things I notice:
- carb lid looks odd
- wrong radio
- back mufflers don't appear to fit closely to the rear body

1969 Corvette 427
http://charlotte.craigslist.org/cto/5782306210.html

Easy Mike

It's an aftermarket air cleaner. Ditto for the valve covers. FWIW: AIR is missing if that is important to you and HEI has been added.

keithinspace

I will politely offer that your mechanical abilities should play a significant role in what you're willing to pay.

I paid $7k for my 1970 with some KNOWN issues. KNOWN rust at the kickups. SUSPECTED rust at the top of the birdcage. KNOWN "running but not quite perfectly" engine. KNOWN early-80's front hit repair. But it was together, straight, drove down the road just fine, and has been a lot of fun.

That's what I bought my car for...to work on it. If I had bought a $20k+ car, I'd STILL be tinkering with it. It's what I do. So getting into an early car cheaply worked great for ME, but may not work great for YOU.

I'm not saying that the car you provided a link to is junk, but I will very politely offer that there is A LOT more under the hood that is not original than the one thing you point out. I'm not saying that it's bad...I'm not saying that it's not wonderfully drive-able...I'm not saying that the rest of the car is/isn't in great shape.

But if your aspirations are for an "original" car...well...I could rattle off more things you'd be changing to get the car back to original than you'd be keeping, just by the one engine bay picture.

I will offer that it appears to be a very straight car that sits on the ground well. There's probably a good many things you'll be "tinkering" with if the engine bay is any indication.

My first gut reaction is that the asking price is a little high. I'll let others weigh in.

vettebuyer6369

The item affecting the value is that it's got the wrong motor. So, it's a coupe for $26k with a replacement motor. I agree with Keith that it's priced too high

jcnst1

Thanks for all the feedback - saved me a trip!

Faster Rat

Correct casting numbers is the seller's way of telling you the car does not have the original motor. It does not tell you exactly what it does have. The car has been repainted, hopefully with the correct color to match the trim tag. No underbody pictures means it has not had all the expensive stuff rebuilt, other than the stated brakes. The engine bay restoration that has been done appears to be of the rattle-can variety. This COULD be a fun driver for that price if all the necessary mechanicals are in good working order. This is not the car to dump a whole lot more restoration money into, because the upside potential of a NOM car is limited...unless you don't care about that.

keithinspace

I'll go out on a limb and make the general statement: Looks like a good car.

It looks like it could be a lot of fun to drive and work on.

However, it DOES NOT look like a $26k car. The guy would probably be insulted at what the proper offer would be on this particular vehicle.

Agreeing 100% with every point Mr. Faster Rat is saying, I'd reinforce that you'll probably be touching nearly every component from the rear lug nuts to the radiator in the next 5 years.

The rub I have with the car is the engine bay. Someone went from problem to problem and went to Pep Boys to solve all of them. Yes, I've gone from problem to problem, but all were fixed with premium components purchased from a single speed shop who KNOWS what to put in the car. A theme. Mine's awesome (I think). This engine bay is not. And I'd venture to say that anything else in the car that has been replaced has been done to the same dubious standard.

I would think this car could bring somewhere in the mid-teens. Maybe upper teens if it is no-hit only because the interior looks really nice and ONLY IF there isn't a lot of rust...even surface rust. Tough to give it $20k or over with the clear/obvious shade-tree mechanic work.

slickfx3

the most you can lose is money,time and your sanity; the more money, the more you should be involved, and conversely the less money involved the larger the gamble you could take.

like any other "classic" car it's no different, even if you have a fixation on a 1971 ford pinto or a chevy vega. they all have their caveats

your fixation is on a c3, so what....it's only money, what can you afford to lose, when you flip it?

cause more than likely it will not be worth zero when you sell unless you are really stupid and unlucky.

so clidk the buy it now and tell me how it went.

Alan 71

Hi jcnst1,
Perhaps if you could describe the kind of car you're interested in, that information may help folks give you some guidance as to what to look for in the ads that you're seeing.
That kind of information will also help you become familiar with the things to be concerned about when you get to the point of actually looking at and driving particular cars.
For example are you looking for a coupe or convertible, big block or small block, options, original, restored, modified, one that's ready to drive, one that will require some work…..etc.
Regards,
Alan

Wee

I'm not sure I agree that the NOM hurts the price almost 10,000.....That said a rusted frame would drop the price way more than that in my book.

It really depends on what the OP wants...?

If you got the time go look anyway....Take lots of pics for future reference and to post here....You will be amazed at what folks around here can tell by good quality pics.

Brian

keithinspace

I would probably agree with this statement.

If the car was PERFECT and it was NOM vs. Original Engine, the price would probably hold up...OK price for a NOM car and a very nice price for an Original Engine car.

What hurts the price $10,000 is all the other stuff and the plethora of unknowns the 'sketchy' care introduces.

Wee

Yep....If an original looking car is what the OP is looking for. Just changing that radio would cost him 10 grand if he wanted me to do the work....What a PITA that was.

Brian

crawfish333

You know, the owner is ASKING 26K, but he may in fact take less. I bought mine for $5K less than the asking price. I figured, why not ask. I still may have paid too much but I like the car. I wanted as much to be original on my car as possible, but many on here do not care about that at all. Make a list of your priorities and find a car that matches them and make an offer. One thing though, even if you don't care about the motor being original, make sure the frame and birdcage are in good shape. Rust is a deal breaker on a lot of these cars.

Don't be afraid to offer less than the asking price if you want the car.

keithinspace

Listen...I'm not trying to be a dork. I promise.

My experience: I bought my car from Captain Pep Boys. He didn't drive the car much at all and thought it was a BRILLIANT idea to start the car and run it for 5 minutes once every week or two. All that did was force a HUUUUGE amount of water to collect in the exhaust system...Hooker sidepipes. The entire system was absolute swiss cheese by the time I got to it.

Radiator crapped from neglect.

Ignition system pooped.

Carb was in horrible shape.

Fuel lines were original.

Sure, there was a splatter of paint here and there, but the car only LOOKED good. MANY examples on my car of what "folks that don't know any better" do to their cars.

MY POINT:

That engine bay is what "folks that don't know any better" do to their cars.

That radio is what "folks that don't know any better" do to their cars.

Knowing first hand the other issues that potentially lurk within cars owned by "folks that don't know any better"...well...that's where my discount is rooted.

The car is still worth a great deal of money. Heck...if the underside looks even remotely decent, it may very well be a $20k car. I know it's not a mid/high $20k car. And I HOPE it's not a mid/low teens car. But I'd have to see the underside to offer an opinion on that.

jcnst1

Thanks for the thoughtful reply. My ideal would be:

1. 1969 or 1970
2. Coupe
3. L46 engine, although L36 would be nice too
4. Tilt / Telescope wheel
5. Power steering
6. Original or restored, one that's ready to drive but not afraid to do maintenance work as this is part of the learning I'm looking forward to