[QUOTE=1982CorvetteDude]I'm confused with the term "survivor", I thought that ment it will a low mile almost 99% original car (with exeption of belts, hose etc)? Or a survivor thats a "barn find" that has usually one owner or at least one owner for a long time (almost since new).QUOTE]


Not sure what the technical details of survivor are but im pretty sure it has to do with original unmolested condition, and not anything with number of owners or miles. the point is that the car has made it throught the decades without being modified upgraded, changed or molested. Wheather that includes belts, battery, spare, or tires is arguable. If the engine was disassembled balance and blueprinted, that blows it right there from a survivor perpective. though looking at that block, i would question as the exactly when that was done becasue that doesnt look like any "fresh" recent work was done to me. a good engine diagnosis can be done to easily confirm this fact from the ppint of vales rings and such, as far as the balancing goes, well those motors came internally balanced to begin with, so hopefully there is some documentation from the machine shop where is was done to back this up and describe what level of balancing was done, beyond the factory specs.

Just my 2 cents


tim

 

Nice find! I am excited for you.

You are going to have some fun with this car!

 

Yeah, as long as you're happy its cool, but if you're buying because of authenticity then you need to have documentation of some kind.

I might be guilty of making impulse decisions myself but this particular buy really seems lacking in solid facts & information that can only be obtained from careful examination by a certified specialist!

Is a 3 year owner really qualified or capable of making a claim of authenticity?
(Why didn't he get proof himself and how much did he purchase it for?)

Its almost like taking the word of a sixteen year old that he has a concourse restored corvette to sell parked out behind his parents trailer.

Since you only placed a deposit, you still have time to check... so good luck!

 

How do you know this is an L89? This has a CE block? What documentation did you get?

 

Hey neat car. I wish you the best. Hope to see it about Houston one of these days. When is the Chevy Corvette expo? I need to go this year.

carbster

 

we need VIN number and block number!! Let's see what you really got!

 

3,500.00 = good barn price
35,000.00 = not so sure

Which price was it again? Good luck with it!

 

I have a CE block too... If I post the VIN and Block number will someone be able to tell me something about it? (I know the basic stuff like it's a big block VIN and birthday etc)

Congrats on the find it looks exciting!

 

A survivor when I grew up was any car that hadn't been messed around with. That doesn't mean it was 100% original, it was just not messed up, i.e., flares, raced, customized, hotrodded, etc. Basically, it was a car someone's dad or mom owned, drove it like a car, and did nothing outside of normal maintenance. Kind of like finding Aunt Martha's old Dodge Polara in the garage or something. What would she have done to a car, tires, oil changes, etc.?

Then in 1987, Bloomington Gold started their Survivor Award(R) and registered Survivor as a registered trademark and tried to stop anyone from mentioning a car as a survivor, saying no one ever had until they "invented" the term. Sad to say for BG, I remember people using that term in the mid '70s.

The immaculate 20,000 mile, left in a heated garage survivor is pretty rare. Most of those have been found. What is left are those nearly abandoned cars that have been hidden away for years in a barn or extra garage out back. Often they are like this, the paint has peeled, brightwork has corroded, and the car really looks sad.

However, these cars are good candidates for NCRS Bow Tie(R) and Bloomington Survivor Award if you dont do ANYTHING to them at all but wash the dirt off.

After the initial judging, then you can decide what to do because once you begin messing with it, it isn't original anymore.

What can confuse people is that some of the first wave of restorations (mid - late '70s) caused cars to be stored away and often you find '70s restored cars that are now very old and you think they are original when they are really old restorations.

 

Without real documentation (POP and tank sticker), with NOM, and numerous other incorrect repairs and modifications, 35K is about 3x too high.

A complete big block coupe in fair condition is worth about 10k-15k, a cloned or 435hp w/o documentation can add maybe 5-10k more.

My opinion is that 35K would only be reasonable with documentation and original engine.

 

YIKES!!! That car is rough for $35K. I think that could've found a much nicer big block for $35K. Best of luck.

 

Thanks for all the concern for my welfare guys, I really appreciate it. Sorry about the use of the word Survivor. What I meant by that is that it has the original paint and interior. Again the car is not as bad as it looks. The paint is original and like original silver laquer it is cracked all over. The body is absolutely beautiful, never been hit. You can see all the body seams from front to back. As far as I am concerned the condition of the paint is just going to make it easier to strip. I know that $35000 is a lot to pay for this car but this is a passionate purchase as is any collector car purchase unless you're doing it for a living. I see an awful lot of cars in this forum that are highly and exspensively modified and I don't think that these guys will ever get back anywhere close to what they have in them but that is what turns them on just like this car turns me on. When I look at this car I see it finished, not the peeled paint eye sore that you see in the pictures. I am not buying this car for resale, it's what I have wanted for quite some time. I used to have a 69 390 horse roadster that I sold to buy a house. It was in about the same condition and I got $10,000 for it 12 years ago. I have wanted another Big Block 68 or 69 ever since. I plan on keeping this car for quite some time so by the time I do sell it the market will catch up. I didn't start this thread to get any advise on whether I paid too much for the car, I started it because I thought that you guys would be interested in seeing and reading about the car. I enjoy the process of the restoration. The information gathering, the parts gathering and the interaction with guys with the same interests. This is why I am buying the car. When it is all finished I still think that I will be able come out ahead with the car though. If you are interested in anymore information about the car just ask but I don't need any more unsolicited advise on the purchase price. Thanks, Mike

 

Thats cool Good luck bro..

 

Ha!

your money your car, I cant argue one bit with that!!! we wish you all the best with your find, and give the old boy a good home



Tim

 

Most of us don't own these cars to make money, they're hobbies, or daily drivers, or as my wife calls it "one of my toys". If we were in it for the money, we'd own C2's or C1's......

Great car!!!! Keep us posted on the restoration/modification and take pics the first time you roast the hides!

 

There are several NCRS judges that frequent this forum (I don't count - I'm a level 1.5 ) and maybe could give you a local contact. Looks like you just missed a judge training retreat in Dallas. The NCRS national convention will be August 1-5 in San Antonio.

 

Thanks for the NCRS info. I am planning to go to San Antonio. There is a Corvette Expo here in Houston the 25-26 of this month that NCRS is attending and I hope to get some names there. I guess I really need to get involved because I have a 58 that I bought in Sept also. So I need to talk to a C1 and C3 judge. Thanks, Mike

 

I agree Jetrench, I probably paid too much for mine also,($20,000 Red s/m block 'Vert) but I knew the frame was good, and the engine was tweaked. For me, it was the perfect car at the perfect time. Now, with my mechanical ability,only slightly limited, I have started the body off rebuild that I've wanted to do since I was a kid, and I'm loving every min. of it. If we both piad more than most, so be it. Now lets get our hands dirty!!!
By the way, my avitar shows what my 'Vette looked like when I bought it.
Later,
Sly

 

About those NCRS judges. There is a guy who posts under the username "Chuck Gongloff" who is an NCRS judge and owns a 54, a 63, a 69 and maybe even a C5. Then there is "Rowdy Rat" who would likely be judging your car (mechanical section) at the NCRS National. Actually, Rowdy Rat would typically be all over a thread like this - barn find L-89s are his forte - but he may be spending all of his time in the C6/ZO6 forum! A forum member who posts under the username "Paul Borowski" has a vast collection of C3 corvettes including a very original silver 68 coupe (smallblock). I think all these guys judge at Bloomington also. I would really enjoy seeing the progress you make with the car.

 

Chevrolet made less than 10,000 of the coupes in 1968. Twice that many convertibles were made. And if this car is as good as it looks in the pictures then you have a great car to restore. My first Corvette was a 68 coupe. Unfortunatly it was in a house fire a few years back. But since there are so few of the coupes left I am rebuilding it.

Good luck with your car. And I hope to see it in Houston sometime. In fact I would love to see it before you start working on it.

wayne h.