so many sellers overprice their car.. can't blame them, they just want to get top dollar.
the fairly priced cars will sell fast, or else they themselves are overpriced also due to rustout or condition issues.

I think you will find that that 74 is either already sold, or rusted out. I may be wrong of course, but one must peruse craigslist daily and be ready to pull the trigger immediately in order to get a good bargain.

 

This is a very true statement and a reflection of my experiences, B67, is spot on. For that price of 10k-12k, it had be better have a nice interior with no tears and if not new, then at least the look of being well-cared for! Same with the rest of the car. Repaint or well taken care of original paint and and a nice engine compartment. That's what I'd expect from a mid to late C3!

 

Your memory's pretty good, but I think you are only remembering the M21 close ratio option. The base transmission was the 4 speed wide ratio.

In 1974 there were 37.5K cars built, 25K came with M40 automatic option, 3,500 came with option M21 close ratio manual, the remaining 9K cars came with the base wide ratio manual.

So the actual breakdown is 66% auto, 33% manual, and 1/3rd of the manuals were optional close ratio.

 

what happens often is that a potential buyer will ask for expertise in helping to look at the car and that same expert will point out the many many things that make that car less than perfect and non original. this scares away the buyer. even though if the car was indeed perfect, then it would be priced far higher.

if you expect excellent condition and original cars then you have to pay for them. Its a simple concept.

 

Thanks!

 

i am new to all this also, been looking, not sure what i want, other than i like the 70s corvettes.
i know that in my search, i don't see too many 4 speeds.

good luck

 

Well, let's put it like this. The more work you can do yourself, the better the deal on a car that needs a little work. What I mean is, a buddy of mine bought a 76 for 6k. It needed some work, but he is a competent mechanic. The car was a solid AZ car. It took a bit of money to make the interior better, fix the AC, put a set of side pipes on it and buff it up. I believe he spent a couple grand. So he had a nice looking non original color 76 that ran pretty good and looked cool.
On the other hand, I'm 3 yrs into a body off restoration on my 72. It is now awaiting an opening at the paint shop for its final paint. I've done all the work. Every nut and bolt was off the frame, I've torn every part apart, rebuilt, re sealed and re installed. I've done all the body repairs, 4 months alone, block sanding for the past few months. When it comes back from paint, I'll wrap up the interior. I'm into it for roughly 20k, including original purchase price. I'll need 3k to finish it up. That's shopping sales pricing, doing all installations myself and utilizing as many original parts that I can. So, it depends on what you want the finished car to look like. If you buy a very nice car with very little work needed for say, 10k, you've done very well.

 

yeah I'm far from a mechanic so any work id be getting done would be paying for parts+work. That in mind am I right to assume I should try my best to buy one thats turn key and go?

 

The best advice I ever received about buying classic cars is "buy as much car as you can afford." You often pay less for more that way.