Hello all! Let me start by saying I'm new here and in the past few days that I've been waiting for my account to be activated I've trolled around and this seems like a great community. My wife took me to the NCM for my birthday and I've definately got the vette bug!!

So since my visit to the museum I'm in the market for a C3. This will be my first vette. I'm not sure what year though. I fell in love with the Vette in 2nd grade when I saw a neighbors 78 pacer. A friend of mines father had a 72 LT-1 and since then I've been hooked on the chrome bumpers. They seem to be in the same ballpark pricewise with the 78 being a little cheaper, but I definately like the chrome bumpers better.

Originally I was open to a project car but I'm in the Navy and stationed in New Orleans and the hobby shop on base took some damage from Katrina and it doesn't look like it will ever reopen. So now I'm leaning towards a car that is up and running as I live in an apt. and have no garage or place I could work on a car.

I've been reading up on the 68 to 72's and from what I can tell the fit and finish on the 68 and 69 were subpar. I also really like the eggcrate over the gills. So I'm thinking about a 70, 71, or 72. Now from what I've gathered the 70 runs on leaded gas while the 71 and 72 run on unleaded. Does this mean for anything 70 or earlier that you have to add an additive to every tank? Is there a way around this?

I've also noticed drastically different hp numbers between the three years. I read that unleaded gas brought a drop in compression from 70 to 71. But then numbers drop agian from 71 to 72. Is this solely due to the SAE measurements vs whatever they were using before?

In my shopping around I saw a couple of 73's that were a few grand cheaper than a chrome bumper car. Is it possible to replace a soft nose with chrome? Also would it be cost effective? Anyone tried this?

I've been looking all over the net and there are a ton of different places you could find a vette. Can you guys maybe recommend some trusted dealers or share your experiences? And for that matter people I should stay away from would be helpful too.

Well thanks for listening to me ramble and thanks in advance for the help.
-Collin

 

First of all welcome! You will find some of the nicest most knowledgeable corvette people in the world here.(stay out of OT though, they're just mean ) Anyway, to address your question on the 73 conversion. The 73 is still a chrome bumper car, actually the LAST chrome bumper car. Fed mandate a 5 mph bumper made GM use a rubber front bumper. The car can not easily be converted to chrome front though. Look around a while before you buy and when you find one, try to find a CF brother to look at it with you. I bought all 3 of my C3's right here and have been VERY happy with them all. WELCOME

 

as a recient purchaser i'm partial to the 68-70s. the 71 was ok(lower compression due to fed regulations unleaded fuel) always liked early ones. because of the high comp ratios. i have a 69 base conv burn 93 octaine fuel have no problems. be your own judge. get the best one you can afford and enjoy. just to be sure to check the frame and bird cage(area around passenger compartment)

 

Go ahead and get the chrome bumpered one - front and back. You'll be glad you did. The others are nice, but . . . .

 

I forget which exact year it was, but somewhere around 1970 they changed the horsepower ratings, I believe it was to net at the flywheel though I won't swear to what the change was. While they were definitley starting to lower the output they were also flat out lying about some of the motors to keep the insurance companies from freaking out.

Get yourself a copy of the Corvette Little Black Book. It gives you a listing of the motors and all the other options.

 

The big HP losses were from dropping the old "gross" rating (engine on stand running no accessories and with an open exhaust) to the "net" rating - engine running minimal accessories with something resembling a factory exhaust.

 

there are lots of vettes out there take your time and save your money.....no need to rush on this decision

 

you live in a apt. in N.O. i would make sure you have a nice safe place to park it or you might not own it for long. o and welcome to the forum.

 

Hello and welcome.
Those are all good questions you have.

The HP rating dropped primarily because of the change from Gross to SAE net ratings. Then came the emission control, catalytic converters, change from true duals to 2-1-2 exhaust, etc.

I dont think that the plastic front nose can be changed to a chrome bumper. It may, but then the cost to do that would exceed the value of the car, and lessen the resale value later on.

Take your time to find the one that is right for you. Two things I learned.
1. Go see some vettes that you have no interest in buying. That way you will have something to judge or base a good vette on. I wont say walk away from the first one you see, because it could be a great one. But purchasing emotions can get the best of you, and you may be tempted to buy the first one you see. That is why I said go some real beat up cars, and go see some out of your price league cars. Then you will know which vette is right for you when you find it. I looked at 7 vettes until I found the one that I did. And boy am I glad. If I bought the first one I saw, which killed me to walk away from it....I would be miserable now. It was junk compared to what I bought, and what I bought was only $2000 more than the first one.

2. The second lesson is.....the cheapest Vette you find, may actually be the most expensive to own. That is a quote from a book. The reason is that the cheaper they are, the more parts to replace. Go online to a supporting vendor such as ECKLERS, and get a free catalog. When you go out to look at Vettes, take the catalog with you and price out what needs to be replaced.
Door panels...$400 per set.
Carpet.........$250
Door Pillar Trim..$40 each
etc.

By the time you finish replacing everything, that Vette will cost you over $35,000. But buying one that is in great condition may only cost you around $12,000 so there is a trade off there.

kdf

 

The H.P. ratings changed because the rating system changed, and because GM started lowering compression ratios (which really did stunt power). C.R.'s first lowered a bit in '70..and really took a dive down to 8.5:1 in '71 [on the base engine].
'68's & '69's still have the stigma of the 1960's classics for the purists. If you want all-original and/or are an NCRS addict, buy one of them. If you are practical, buy something in the '70-'72 range; they are less expensive and they have the wheel well flares that stop the rock nicks on the areas behind the wheels. If you are carefree and footloose, buy a '73; it's "different"...the only single year of all the Corvettes without a "sister"--paint in the front and chrome in the back. I had a '74 (new one) and didn't really like it like I did my '68. I'm happy with the '71 I'm working on now, even though it has the base engine and NO get-up-and-go. Let us know what you decide...this forum can probably help you find what you want.