I need to sell my 1978 L82 corvette but I am not sure what it is worth. The car has 75,000 miles on the drive train and transmission. The engine was rebuilt about 3,000 miles ago with stock parts. The interior is average for a car of that age. Someone with different taste installed **** carpet in it. The seat covers are decent. The car has been repainted but I would rate the quality of the job a 6 out of 10. Any advice you have to offer would be greatly appreciated.

The link below should take you to a few pictures.

https://plus.google.com/116257167195...ts/bjDNo6tEsww

 

Hello sir OR ma'am, based on the pictures I could not take a stab at it's worth. I will let the others chime in.

BUT, I can say I really like the color of your car. So I am certain others do and that would affect it's worth.

Good luck on your possible up and coming sale and hopefully you will get some good feedback on your corvette.

Best regards,

 

what works on it and what dosent? ill say this, I got my 77 from a used car dealership, brakes need attention, A/C dident work, original paint, P/S dident work, tach dident work, interior was in great shape, cruise dident work, 73k miles, paid 4700$

 

The car drives well. The steering is very tight. The transmission shifts well and the tires are like new. The AC does not work. The auto door locks don't work well and the windows are slow going up and down. I think most of the cars flaws are from lack of use. I bought it from a friend and he owned it for about 10 years and he hardly ever drove it. Are the 78 vettes worth any more since they are the anniversary editions.

 

in 78 they had the corvette, corvette silver anniversary edition, corvette pace car. someone correct me if im wrong on that

 

I am not familiar with corvettes but my car does have 25th anniversary badges on the gas tank filler door, steering wheel and front end.

 

All 78s are 25th Anniversary models and have the nose and fuel door emblems. Silver Anniversary paint was the optional two-toned silver. Pace Cars were separate models.

Have your car appraised for a possible value or use the value you're paying taxes on.

 

If you have trouble selling this car and/or decide to keep it, I'd highly recommend going into both doors and lubricating the power window channels and rollers as soon as possible. This is what will kill both your window regulator and your power window motor, as they have to fight the 35 year old rock hard grease in the tracks.

While you're there, get the door locks, door handle mechanisms and you'd be surprised how easy it all works.

Far easier, by tenfold to lubricate it, than to replace it!!!

 

I assume if I have trouble selling the car I might be asking too much for it. What holds the door panels on? Is it screws and clips?

 

Yes.

 

I think you're getting a pretty good sense of value. With a rebuilt motor with stock parts (I assume new rings, bearings, gaskets but not much else), and presumably decent mechanicals, you might try starting at $7500 and then dropping it to $4800 on the bottom end. The sticking point, as you're obviously aware, is the interior.

Honestly, eBay is a superb resource for pricing something like this. Here's a quick search of cars that actually sold: http://bit.ly/1bCQHP3
You may need to log in to view the results. If you wonder why there are dozens of cars on Craigslist and the for sale forums here priced over $10,000 ... check back in a few months. They'll still be for sale.

 

As with any piece of merchandise, you need to do your own research, because I could give you my opinion, and another member can give you theirs, so which one would you end up using???? The high # or the low #???? Remember anything that you ever sell is only worth what the buyer is willing to pay..... so how do we make that determination????

1-check every possible source that you can around the country, (craigs list, ebay, local papers, old car trader, etc., etc. to see what
78's are selling for and if they are selling at all.....
2-make a list of the pro's & con's of your vehicle and what you would be willing to fix or correct before offering for sale.
3-clean the vehicle inside and out and also the engine bay and underneath of it to, as it takes no time to use a power washer where it needs to be used.
4-and whatever you do, do not misrepresent the vehicle, there is nothing more annoying to a buyer then getting to see the car and finding out it is no where what it was represented to be.....

I feel that if you follow the above steps, then you and only you will be able to determine the price your 78 should sell for. You could always ask more $$$ and have room to negotiate for your price which would be your bottom line, then as opposed to asking to little and hoping that you got more.......good luck.....................Tom

 

Thanks for all the advice. The car seems to be in the range I was thinking. It seems like these vetts can be had for a deal. It may be hard to let it go for much less than 7k.

 

Location?

 

I bought my 78 SA for $9K back in June. Mine still has issues of course. The bank valued mine a $12K, but as with anything, it is only worth what one will pay for it. My paint was the selling point for me. It has a new base coat/clear coat with the original scheme. My interior is not as nice as your though, but pretty close. I do have leather and not vinyl though. My engine, while original, is not stock. But, not in a good way like I initially thought when I bought it. It runs well, but Bubba has done some questionable wrenching on it. All in all, I believe I got a good deal, so I would start at $9K and test the waters.

 

I think the interior could be really cool looking if all the crap was vacuumed off the floors and then everything deep cleaned with a carpet shampooer...not the stuff in a can but an actual machine.
Lasty, take small brush and some 409 and scrub that nasty, black hand grime off the steering wheel.

Exterior color looks nice and that light two tone interior can look incredible.

Just don't be one of those guys who puts his car up for sale with the insides looking like a bag lady has been living in it.