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What a pleasure working on a 63 split window that has never been hit and all of its original pieces. People who talk about 63’s that things don’t lineup very well never worked on a no-hit car. Even the rear valance fit like a glove. Almost ready for paint.
I posted pics of my no hit 63 when people where talking about how poor GM door gaps where-my door gaps are real nice and a few members of the forum said the doors and or body had body work done.
Nice to hear nice words.
Keep the pics coming!
Many see the results of years of wear, tear and poor repairs and think Corvettes came that way straight off the showroom floor. Makes a good alibi why their car(s) had bad body fits.
It is true the factory was pretty stingy with paint and body prep below the belt line.
I don't recall seeing any poorly fit up '63 Corvettes in '63. Don't remember the magazines complaining about it either.
I wonder when it did happen? I remember a buddy bringing home his new ‘78 that he ordered and the body and paint quality was so bad he brought the car back. It really was bad, and the magazines were talking about it then.
Many see the results of years of wear, tear and poor repairs and think Corvettes came that way straight off the showroom floor. Makes a good alibi why their car....
You mean like the story that C1 cars all leaked like sieves new from the factory?
I wonder when it did happen? I remember a buddy bringing home his new ‘78 that he ordered and the body and paint quality was so bad he brought the car back. It really was bad, and the magazines were talking about it then.
When did this become a thing?
I can tell you that the molds for the C3 doors didn't match the fender profiles all that well, especially to the rear fenders, at least up through 1972.
You hear of more 63's that have not been hit. Maybe because 63 is more popular.
Unless you see one paint stripped down to the bare fiberglass there are very few no hit Midyear‘s at all. I have owned and collected at least 40 cars since I was 16 and I have only had three that were never hit. Some with just a slight damage and some that needed major repair. Doesn’t make them a bad car, it is usually just a bad repair. Back in the day it wasn’t worth the effort to do a repair correctly.
Not only is this 64 a no-hit car but it still has its original born with Paint that is in great condition for a car that is 55 years old! The only thing the woman changed on this car was one wiper blade two heater hoses, four tires and a battery since the day it was new.
When r we gonna here about the 2x4 on the doors? (just sayin)
If you are referring to putting a 2 x 4 in the door and pushing it in at the top actually I am told is a true statement but not just 63 they had fit issues up to 67, and from what I hear from C3 owners the door fit issues go into the C3’s also. Just not as pronounced as the Midyear Cp.
I wonder when it did happen? I remember a buddy bringing home his new ‘78 that he ordered and the body and paint quality was so bad he brought the car back. It really was bad, and the magazines were talking about it then.
When did this become a thing?
I would venture a guess that the deterioration in quality control coincided with the manufacturing of the Vega, circa early '70s and got worse during the decade. Incremental steps, mind you, as nothing goes to hell over night, but, to me, everything post-'72 through the decade was poorly made. I had a friend who bought a '75 Corvette and the rear tail exhaust bezels appeared to have been literally shoved in their receptacles. He took it back as the car was plagued with a myriad of issues. If you look at Consumer Reports during that era, the Corvette was one of the top five cars as having the worst consumer rating, ranking right up there (down there) with the British imports. If you want to test you intellect, identify five collectibles from '73-'79. Not too many in the Pantheon that we look to today....
Don't make the mistake of confusing Quality Control with poor engineering because of cost cutting.
Big difference between the two and big difference in where to look within the Company to look for the cause. The assembly plant likely, was not the first place to look.
What a pleasure working on a 63 split window that has never been hit and all of its original pieces. People who talk about 63’s that things don’t lineup very well never worked on a no-hit car. Even the rear valance fit like a glove. Almost ready for paint.
Hey Don,
Fortunately for me, our '63 (convertible), retains all of it's original panels and doors. Even same numbers on the doors, that is marked on the firewall, and the rear bulkhead.
But I did work the doors a bit, and really worked the headlights. Wasn't too bad, but I definitely didn't want to leave them like they were, especially the lower rear corners of the doors. They really seemed to dip into the car and wasn't flush with the rear of the body.
But I did work the doors a bit, Wasn't too bad, but I definitely didn't want to leave them like they were, especially the lower rear corners of the doors. They really seemed to dip into the car and wasn't flush with the rear of the body.
Pat
A lot of midyears have that styling feature at least through '65. Don't know whether it was designed that way on purpose or the assembly tooling didn't have a clamp block in that area. Pretty common feature. It was below the belt line so likely not an issue back then.
Fortunately for me, our '63 (convertible), retains all of it's original panels and doors. Even same numbers on the doors, that is marked on the firewall, and the rear bulkhead.
But I did work the doors a bit, and really worked the headlights. Wasn't too bad, but I definitely didn't want to leave them like they were, especially the lower rear corners of the doors. They really seemed to dip into the car and wasn't flush with the rear of the body.
No hit split
