Maintaining Those Classic Corvettes Isn’t Cheap, Huh?
Oh, how we love our vintage Corvettes.
That is until we realize how much money it costs to maintain those classic beauties, as highlighted in a Corvette Forum thread started by Rescue Rogers entitled, “How Much Is Your Prom Queen Costing You?”
“I just bought my ’68 about 3 weeks ago and she’s in really good shape. I just ‘want’ to fix some small things this fall before I store her. I’m looking at fixing the wiper door/ wiper motor, the dash lights/ switch, and bought most of everything I need. I just been putting it on the card, a little here and there. I just looked at my statement. Palm to forehead, I’m into $800.00 bucks and haven’t even opened the boxes yet,” wrote Rescue Rogers. “My sweety is going to be high maintenance, glad I love her. As long she doesn’t want a grand a month, I just need to pay attention. I’m starting an account for her. I’m putting 50.00 a week away and next spring I won’t have to charge it, just stand next to her with a roll of ones and tuck them into her wipers as she rolls on by.”
Yup, it seems that our friend has some pretty expensive days ahead of him, if the responses from some other CF members are any indication of the costs tied to owning a classic ‘Vette.
“…I have inadvertently put approximately $300 per month into my car. I’ve owned the car for a little less than 48 months. That’s in ‘injections’, mind you… It was ‘death by 1,000 paper cuts’ for the first 9 months. Then the engine came out. Then it was $1k at a time until the end when it all came together. It was $2k to get my engine out of hock. All told, the engine build took 14 months from taking it out of the car to putting it back in. Didn’t spend much for 12 months, then blew $2,500 in a few weeks to rebuild the rear end,” wrote Senior CF member KeithinSpace.
Wee wrote in the thread that he’s only had a few issues with a ’72 model he bought in May of this year (pictured above). But he’s still been averaging a monthly care bill for his classic ‘Vette.
“So far I’m at 200 a month… Still have to fix the A/C and the issue with down shifting,” said Wee.
“I estimate I’ll have spent 35K on my 79 by the time I’m done,” said Priya.
Frankenvette, however, has a different take on the cost associated with keeping his prom queen in good condition.
“I’m blissfully ignorant to how much I’ve spent and want to keep it that way. I consider my ‘Vette my therapy. Probably cheaper than going to a shrink,” he wrote.
So I guess the lesson here, Rogers, is that the $50 a month you plan to start saving might not be enough to take care of your baby.