As some of you may have seen from another thread, I recently bought a 1979 L48 low mileage (42,000) 4 speed car. Winter stored, never driven in rain 2 owner car. I was actually looking for a TR 6 or a Alpha Graduate etc. when I stumbled across this Corvette. It was close by and thought I should go take a look. Long story short I loved the car bought it for $3700 less than the guy was asking and after having it for a week am very pleased to own this car and I have less than $10,000 invested taxes in, about the same as what it would have spent for a rebuilt, repaired and wore out Triumph or Alpha. Question is how long will these type of bargains exist? I now there was a good number of these cars made but what a bargain for someone looking for a low priced very cool car, they turn heads where ever you go and you don't need to have a ton invested. So at what age will these beauties start to command the money that some early C3's are getting or will they for ever remain the bargain they are today?

 

The prices of the later model C3 with emission controls from 1975 through 1982 remain steady and slowly increase in value over the years. I believe this because there were so many of them built and many are still on the roads today.

You were lucky to find one with less then 60,000 miles and in great shape most I looked in my travels when buying a Vette earlier this year were over 80,000 miles and some close to 150,000 miles asking between $8500 to $12,000. I saw about 6 in the $8500 to $12,000 price range before purchasing a 1977 with 42,260 original miles on it for $9000.

 

How can anyone know that?

See above.

 

They probably will never bring the kind of money that 68-72 brings.

 

Well there is one thing thats for sure. The later C-3s are slowly creeping up. How fast and how high, is anyones guess.

 

I think the later ones will bring, not HUGE money like a 70 LT-1, but as the base models are getting more expensive for the 68-72's an average joe with a 9-5 job cannot afford them, so the later ones will start to be bought up, ive seen it with Camaros already, the 76-81 Camaros are hard to find now for a good deal, and I once paid 100$ for a running driving 305 84 Camaro and now you cannot find a 2.8L Camaro running for under 850$! ours will bring money, we just have to wait.

 

 

This is true, I have had several 76 to 81 Camaro Z 28's and always keep an eye on the price of them and they have crept way up around here anyway. A 4 speed Z 28 in the condition of my 79 Corvette I just bought would have been twice the price.

 

They will never command the money of a chrome bumper car, which Uncle Sam made illegal. End of story.

Bargain? If you want a bargain, buy a later C4. A late model C3 is a dead slow vehicle that gets terrible fuel mileage and happens to look sort of cool, but still severely compromised and weird due to the regulations of the time.

I've got a Camaro of the same era. I was never (and am not now) under any fantasy that it is a great bargain or was all that good looking. I hated the front end from the day I bought it, so I bought a '73 RS front end that is still sitting on the shelf. The car was cheap because it wasn't that desirable. I don't expect that will ever change.

 

wished I'd never seen a C4, what was GM thinking? Have you seen the inside of one of these? I will stick to my C3 and some of it's quirks thank you very much LOL

 

I think the later C3s can only continue trending upward. At what rate, no one knows and they will never catch the 68-72s of course. However, the fact is the Corvettes started their "modern car" look with the C4 and never looked back. Yes it was a landmark car in its day, but the fact remains C4-5-6 etc are not remotely related to the styling designs of the past, and no matter how slow or how unperformace-based the late Corvettes are, the cars up to 1982 will remain the final leg of the vintage/extreme styling days of GM.

 

Indeed, I have, seen the inside! Because I own one too, a '95 and to be honest with you, the late C4's have very comfortable seats, that were done up with premium leather and they're waaay more comfortable than what I've got in my '74! The only C3 seat, that I think even comes close, is the last of the C3's and their 'spaceship' seats.

 

Just kidding around nothing wrong with C 4's just a bit new for my tastes. I must have the "spaceship seats" in my 79 cause they are very comfy once your in them, have the 4" bolsters not sure how the 2" ones feel.

 

I have been looking for a deal on an 80-82 and haven't found one , if they are not pretty well thrashed they are $12,000 and up. I also agree that C-3s in general will continue a slow steady climb in price , in large part due to what vettebuyer said , C-3s are about the last of the cars that had a very distinctive look to them , a style I think holds up very well for being 40+ years old.

 

Wow! Really?

 

What I really like about the 74-82 C-3s is that there are lots of them and it is not a crime to modify or alter the car to your own personal taste as I plan on doing to my 77. I will be taking all the stuff from different years that I liked and incorporating them into mine. You really can't do that with a lot of the pre 74 cars because of the value and rarity of some of them.
To the guy hatin' on the later C-3s. If I am not mistaking most of us here are C-3 fans. If I were into C-4s I would be on another sub-forum. I know I am a new guy here but, Im just saying.

 

The rubber bumper cars are creeping up some in price, not huge, but they are slowly going up. A lot of people really like the rubber bumper cars. I think the 73 front end is one of the cleanest and best looking front ends of any Vette. I like the 80 to 82 rear bumpers too. I have one on the back of my 75 Vert. Some day I'll have the 73 front on it too.

The C4 cars are still going down in value, except for the ZR1 of course. They are climbing slowly. The C5's are really dropping in price, as are the C6 cars, like any newer car does. The one thing about the C4's, you can make one heck of a track or autocross car out of them for a lot less than any other Vette.

The real answer here is, don't look at these cars as an investment. You will spend money on repairs and upgrades that will outpace the rate of value climb. I know I am buried in mine well beyond what I could ever sell the car for, or 2 or 3 of these cars for that matter. I don't care though. You can't put a price on fun!

 

Oh, I agree with that. I never cared for the look of the C4. But they are a bargain. I just don't see people ever paying much more for a late model C3 unless it has been significantly upgraded. In my mind, that's where the potential lies: Great body style and a drivetrain that can be fixed with an LSx swap.

It's tough to talk about the desirability and value of a late model C3 in a C3 forum, because you are always stepping on someone's toes. But I simply don't see any scenario where a stock late model C3 ever becomes anything more than a cheap entry into an old almost classic Corvette.

As for not not being a fan of a car I own--I don't own a late model C3, and never would own one in stock form. As far as I'm concerned, in '73 GM started turning Corvette into a different car because they had to, and by '74 had pretty much completed the job. From there, it went downhill until they figured out how to fix the ugly bumpers in '80. It was a challenging time for automakers, and it took some time to get things straightened back out, but they did. I mentioned my Camaro to illustrate the point--it lived through the same set of horrors. If someone says it's ugly, I don't care. It is, compared to what went before it, and I would never expect the value to outstrip inflation.

I don't think it should be terribly offensive to say these things are always going to be fairly cheap. Be honest with yourself: Would anyone seriously pay more for one than a C5 or C6 after looking at and driving both?

 

Quote:
"Bargain? If you want a bargain, buy a later C4. A late model C3 is a dead slow vehicle that gets terrible fuel mileage and happens to look sort of cool, but still severely compromised and weird due to the regulations of the time."

Yea but you can modify the hell out of them without fighting a computer.

 

The later C4's are the best deal in town for a fast sports car. the only reason I sold my c4 was to finance the 75.
once I get most of it done I am going to be back in the market for a vert 95 or 96 6 spd.

GREAT car.