I'm new to Corvettes and am semi-seriously looking for my first. Today I was driving around town running some errands, and ran into an early C3 for sale. The sticker in the window says that it's a '69, but it's got the front clip of a '73(fiberglass front bumper and no "gills" like on the '68-'69s, just the "vents" like on the later model C3s). The body appears to be in decent shape, with only a few bubbles in the paint. The interior looks trashed, though. Looking through the window revealed seat covers on both seats and a steering wheel cover, so I would assume that the leather on the seats is torn up pretty badly. I opened the door to closer inspect the inside and found that the drivers seat(if not the passenger seat as well) was loose. Looking up at the T-tops, they were completely bare(I'm not sure if these cars had anything underneath the solid T-tops). Looking behind the seats revealed that there was no cover over the battery and a cheap(and cheaply installed as well) pair of 8" subwoofers. I walked into the office to talk to the salesman. When he finally came out, he cringed when I mentioned that particular car, and said that they were asking $10,000 for it. I (and the salesman as well, I might add) felt that the price was way to high for a car in that condition(he wasn't even sure that it was definitely a '69). Opinions (other than "run, don't walk, away" )? Thanks for any input.

 

So I can't say Run dont walk away so I wont. But can I say keep looking for a decent Corvette?

 

Leave it and buy the best vette you can afford. If you can clearly see that the interior is trashed, what else is wrong that you can't see.

You wanted opinions: Looks elsewhere. Good luck.

 

if the legs rotted off the seats,it may be leaking,run puppy,run.

 

Paid $9500 Cdn for mine & drove it home, Interior was mint no damage...clean driver. They are out there.

 

That is too much for that car. Look for something a little nicer.

 

Big difference between a 79 and a 69...

to the original question...
The car was likely wrecked in the mid/late 70s and "updated" during repair. I agree with the others...keep looking. Value of the car in question is irrelevant in this instance.

 

Not when the 69 has a 73 front end & perhaps other strange abnormalities! Bottom line keep looking.

 

you can find a 70's survivor wich is running good for that .

 

Assuming the rest of the car is in similar condition it's probably worth half that. A new interior will very quickly cost $5,000. Paint is upwards of $5,000. If you can do an engine change for less than 2 grand you won't like it. Plan on $2,000 for suspension/brakes and minimum $1,000 for tires and wheels. At that point you have over $20,000 in the rebuild including purchase price. You should go back and examine that car and find it's expensive faults then compare them to a car in better condition. You can buy a very nice car for less than 20 grand.

I am doing my second restoration now. My 78 got almost $10,000 in parts and my 82 is passing $13,000 real soon. That's just parts. I have done all the work except paint.

Bill

 

As the others say, for 10K you can a fairly good driver.

 

Thanks for the great responses. I guess my instincts were right on this one. I too, felt that the car was worth no more than $5,000. The salesman that I talked to told me that even if he had to take it to an appraiser himself to get his manager to see the reality of that car, he would. Thanks again.

 

Check the taillight lenses for the year or at least ask for proof of the year car the guy is selling. Like the title or whatever the paperwork in your state is.
This car could very well be worth the cost since all the above is assuming it in terrible shape. You haven't done anything other than notice seat covers and what could be cosmetics.
A front clip is what about a grand? plus bumper...ect. That could add up.
The very minor detail of the storage compartment is nothing.
If the interior isn't shot then it don't cost $$$, same for the engine and the running gear and all that. What IF this car already has had this work done?

Compare 69s to the same high in demand and high performance models (read high doller).
Not a model 6 years or more newer, or the even the non chromers. they are completely different animals.
If this 10 grand figure is about your price range either notice what texaswilkins said about the less than 20k or look at newer Vettes.
Of course hes asking 10 grand and might get rid of it for less.

 

I'm really not looking for 100% correct, nor anything near a perfect car. I'm mostly looking for a decent driver, that's not to bad. On one such as a '69, I'm willing to go for a few interior issues. I do want to do some work to the car(IMO, it makes it a bit more fun and owning the car that much more worthwhile). I'm not expecting a "clean" '69 for much less than $10k, but I would expect it to be somewhat decent. I'll try to get some pics of it and post a link to them this weekend. Thanks again for the replies.

 

OK, I stopped back by and took a second, more detailed look at what I could as the dealership was closed. What I found was this:

1. There were no handles or cranks on the doors except for the pass. side door handle. No window cranks, door locks, or drivers side door handle(the piece inside the door was broke and the handle itself was in the storage area in the back)
2. It's only the drivers seat that's loose and only looks like it's a missing bolt, as I saw the bracket and the hole where the bolt's supposed to go through.
3. The seats are trashed. I was unable to get the seat cover up enough to completely check out the seat, but I could tell that it was black leather and could feel that there's a major rip in at least the driver's side seat cushion.
4. The door over the battery is there, but not bolted in place(it's just sitting next to the battery compartment.
5. The tach was sitting on 5k without the engine running.
6. It's missing the crossed flags on the gas cap.
7. The front bumper is chipped almost all the way through on the tip.
8. There's a hairline crack in the right front fender.
9. The right side grille is broken.
10. There's a white chip in the center of the outside right taillight.
11. The dashboard is decent, but still may need to be replaced.
12. The steering wheel is well worn.
13. The carpet needs to be replaced.
14. The T-top release handles appear to be intact.
15. The car is a navy blue with black leather interior, but the underside of the T-top is white with some rust colored markings.
16. There are a few bubbles in the paint.
17. The first 2 digits of the vin are "19"(for anyone that might could decode that)(that's also all I can remember off hand)
18. Aftermarket Pioneer head unit(removable face).
19. The door panels are badly cracked.
20. Pass. window wasn't flush with the T-top.

I know that's a fairly long list and I appologize for that. I would say that as long as the car runs and drives, I would be willing to go for it as long as I can get the price WAAAYY down. I'm thinking of trading my '73 Dodge Dart for it(which by the way, is in much better shape, needing only minor mechanical and electrical work)(also has an NADA avg. retail value of $5,100)(To get an idea of the condition of the Dart, click here ). I may be crazy, but I'm also wanting to try to get them to ship the Dart up here(the Dart's in Texas, the Corvette and I are here in Alaska). I know it's a long shot, but from talking to the salesman, they're ready to be rid of the Vette. The work that looks like it needs to be done to the car looks like stuff that I would be willing to work on myself. Like I have said in previous posts, I'm not looking for a car in "good" shape. I'm just looking for a driveable project car. I can also handle having a '69 with a '73 front end, as long as there is no damage done to the car that I can't see(i.e. bent frame due to collision). Thanks again for the replies.

P.S. If you can't tell already, Corvettes like that are not something that you see every day here in Fairbanks.

 

The car sounds like a $15,000 car after you spend $20,000 on it.

 

I'd say run like hell. You never even mentioned looking at the frame, and it would be my guess that they salt the roads up there. If its a rough as you are saying and they haven't been able to get rid of it I bet there is a good chance of a rust issue too.

 

Rust shouldn't be to bad of an issue up here. They don't use salt on the roads, they use gravel. With that in mind, I would think that the only road caused damage would be due to rock chips. I also wouldn't think that anyone in there right mind would want to drive a Vette up here during the winter as the roads can get pretty slick, even in a 4WD or FWD vehicle. I couldn't imagine driving a Vette in it. Running was the first thing that came to my mind, but I wanted to find out more about the car first. Ending value isn't very important to me, as I've wanted a Vette all of my life(well, all that I can remember anyway) and I don't forsee selling whatever Vette I may get. I also just remembered "duh, this car has power windows even though there looks like a space for manual cranks on the doors." I want to be able to drive a Vette and gradually get it fixed up right, little by little. Does my previous statement as to what I would offer to them sound like a fair deal? Would it be worth(in it's current state) me trading a nice '73 Dart for it? In regards to the Vette not being sold yet, it may be their current asking price of $10k. The salesman I talked to(even though it may be a lie) said that even if he had to pay for it himself, he would get the car appraised to give his manager a reality check. I know I should probably drop it, and let the Vette go, but if it runs and drives well and the frame checks out OK after further inspection, and I if I can get him to go for my trade, I don't think it would be to bad. Don't get me wrong, I still value and appreciate all opinions that I recieve here , and I'm all . I'm just trying to get info as to what I may have missed checking out(including model specific issues), posting my findings as I find them, and getting a better idea of what the car is worth in it's present state. I plan on going back tomorrow(well, today now) to see if I can get them to let me crank it up and drive it, as well as take a look under the car and under the hood. I'm also going to ask a bit more about what they have for the car that may not be on it at the present time. Thanks again everyone for your replies.

 

Well, I said I would get some pics of it up soon. Here they are. I went back to the dealership this morning to hear it run, maybe drive it, and hopefully strike a deal. It rained last night, so I was able to look for leaks. It's definitely got some(as you can see in the picture of the driver's seat, which has a huge puddle sitting in it). I also found that the hood had to latches at all, I was able to just lift the hood. The car also had a dead battery. After bringing the car's faults up to the salesman, he refused to go less than $9k cash or $11,500 finance on the car. Let's just say that I won't be back there anytime soon, unless they can come WWWAAAAAAYYYY down on price. I will keep looking in hopes of finding the perfect Vette for my needs(NOTE: perfect for my needs, not perfect condition). Thanks again for all of your replies.

 

Dude-
I'd say hang onto the swinger. But, then I'm a mopar fan, too. The motor looks clean on your suspect car which does mean a lot. Have the dealer put the car on the lift so you can see the underside. Check the whole chassis and suspension. I'd say if the undercarriage and motor are in good mechanical condition and you're looking for a driver, then there are lots worse ways to spend a few grand.
My 'driver' is a numbers matching LT-1 convert, but nothing that the 'show' boys can stand to park near. But, it starts every time and makes me smile! So, I say, do what makes you feel good and let the rest go!
Give em hell!