Looking at buying this, not sure what to offer.

1979 L48 53,000 original miles.

New Paint
Rebuilt Trannie


bad:
headlights don't pop-up
drivers t-top is cracked
heat works but doesn't blow (blower motor)

 

found the car on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Chevr...92952074QQrdZ1

did you buy it, or is that person selling it already??

 

53000 or 153000 sometimes it's hard to tell from a photo if it is a repaint you have to find out how they did it & what did they hide(or not) don't know enough about the car but you would be safe at offering them around $6500 to start. you can allways bump up the price if it looks good & you want it bad...I would have a serious look at the right frond headlamp door though is it out of adjustment or is the nose section pulling away from it's support? I have a 79 & it's only worth money to the people who own them....Lots of them out there you can drive a nice nice nice clean untouched 79 for about $13000

 

sold for 5200 on ebay though.....

 

The high bidder backed out on that auction. I've looked at the car in person and it looks nice. The guys brother (certified) repainted it because the original yellow paint was faded.

 

Okay, back with more time to respond now.

(I have a 1979 L-48 Auto that I bought for right around 5200 3 years ago):

1979 not rare, cheapest Vette you can find
L-48 not rare
Automatic not rare
No special options that set it apart, ex Pace Car spoilers etc.
53000 miles? Maybe 153000, no way you'd ever know.

The headlight door might be something small (broken horseshoe mount thing, still a pain in the butt to fix though) or might be the headlight mount bar rusted out (MAJOR pain to fix, expensive and you have to take a load of stuff apart).
here's a pic after a couple days work http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6.../barclamps.jpg If that is rusted, you can expect to find rust in the floors, radiator support, frame, and birdcage.

Driving it and looking at it in person won't tell you much, you can't inspect one of these things like a 5-year-old Honda. There are very specific things that go wrong, and the expensive ones are the hardest to see if you don't know what you're looking for. Maybe see if a senior Forum member will take a look at the car for you or with you.

I'm COMPLETELY speaking from experience here. My car seemed like a bargain, but now I've got a pile of money into it, and have a lot more time and money to spend before it's even worth 12-14 grand. That car might be just fine, but if not you may end up spending enough money that you'd have been better off buying something MORE expensive. Without exagerating at all, I could have bought a mint condition Big Block convertible for what I'm gonna eventually have in my 79. I could have even found a much better condition 79 for a few grand more, with a stick and L-82, if I had been a bit more patient and knowledgable.

 

What are some of these areas I should look for.

Does $5000 seem like a good price?

 

Where do you live? Perhaps there's a forum member in the area that can help you check out the car.

$5000 is a very good price IF it checks out OK.

 

$5000 will get you a 79 ready for restoration, how much depends on the car. I purchased my 79 4 speed for $4500 & then put $6000 into restoring it. Would not have purchased w/out the 4 speed. I would sell it for $14000 or trade for a BB vert in the 65 to 69 years.

I don't know if this helps but buy the year you like best. .02

 

I agree with the $5k - $5.2k. I've got a 79 & am happy with it. Some people's opinion is spend more & have a 'better' car. I say spend little & build the car YOU want. I work out a lot of frustrations in my shop.

 

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Visit the car with a floor jack, jack stands, a vaccuum pump, and a set of screwdrivers.

Check for rust in the following places: In front of hood ("header bar") this is where the headlights attach. Bottom of radiator support. Metal pieces that hold the bumpers and front/rear body work to the frame. Windsheild frame. Unscrew the taillamps and look behind.

Jack the car up and poke the frame from front to back both sides with a screwdriver looking for rust-through.

Pull up the carpets in front of and in back of the seats to check for rusty floors.

Take off the front kick-panels (inside of car, where the pull-***** for air circulation are). If there is rust in there you are in big trouble.

See if the brake calipers leak. See if the parking brake works (most of our's don't, but if you have to be inspected it might have to work, not easy or cheap to fix).

See if the vaccuum system holds a vaccuum. See if the power brakes hold a vaccuum.

That car has A/C, does it work? Are all the pieces still there?

Do the interior lights and the alarm work?

Drop the spare tire carrier to see the condition of the frame etc in the back.

Check for any play up/down or in/out of the rear wheels (while jacked up). Lots of play might mean expensive rear-end work (diff and/or suspension) is needed.

Take a bucket of water and dump it over the roof and the front window, see if any of the water leaks into the car. Lost of water into the car past the windsheild usually means rust issues.
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that will give you a place to start, if I had known to check all that I wouldn't have bought my car......