Howdy,

A friend of mine recently came across an 'old corvette' while at work last week. He said he stopped and knocked on the door of the house where it is parked. He told me he remembers seeing a car covered with a tarp around a year ago that just kind of showed up at the house, but never paid much attention to it.

He spoke with the gentleman that lives there, but the gentleman said he doesn't own it, but knows who does. The gentleman told him he would be willing to give him the number to the owner of the car.

My friend sent me the following pictures:



















(Any one have any clue as to why there would be a door key lock in the side fender? That is on the driver's side fender.)

He didn't get as many pictures as I'd like to have, and as you can tell, the pictures he sent were rather hap-hazard.

He did tell me that it is a '74 metallic red, manual transmission, 454 V8, and a cowl induction hood. He looked up the VIN online (1Z67Z4S414XXX) and said it is a YM 1974 car with a 454 V8. He didn't know where the stamping was on the block to see if it matched the VIN. He said where it is parked, there is no grass or anything under the car, and that the tires haven't even started to sink in the ground yet.

He said he looked under the car to see how bad it was, and told me it all mainly just looked like surface rust with no major cancer spots.

He has helped me in the past with some of my car projects, so he has a basic understanding of what to look for as far as rust, etc, so I trust his judgement fairly well.

So, my question is, would it be worth pursuing? I don't know if it's for sale, whether it has a title or not, what the status of the title is, etc. Everything above is all I know.

I am fairly interested in it, but I live about an hour and a half from where the car is. I want to make sure it'd be worth driving back and forth to look at it and track down the owner, or try to find one a little closer to me.

Thanks.

 

It's all about price and rust, or the combo of the two. A big block 74 4 speed convertible (IMO) a desireable car. Reasonable price no rust good, other combos not so much, high price lots of rust not good. The lock in the fender is the factory alarm.

 

Yes worth finding out if it is for sale and what he wants. 454 big block 4 speed convertible. Lot to like there. Price would reflect the condition but this one is well worth the rebuild if you get a good price to start. Higher value resale after gone through and running.

If you pass on it post here the asking price then reply by private message to those who message you about the contact info. There will be interest if it is for sale.

 

if he found it in a garage, maybe.

In a field, hell no

 

Definitely a desirable car. Great combo and color. Inspect underneath carefully, from front to back and behind the kick panels in the interior, seeing as it's being stored outdoors.

 

That's the factory theft alarm.

Rear bumper cover is 75 up; not 74.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies!

He is going to get the information for the owner and see what we can work out.

Ruh Roh Raggy...

I'll have to look closely at the back end to see if it has been in an accident, cause the VIN checks out to a 74.

 

The rear bumper is a 76-79 bumper cover, but it's really not a big deal, or all that surprising.

The urethane material that GM used for bumpers from 73-75, tended to dry out, shrink, crack, crumble and fall apart. Nearly every 73-75 Corvette, has had it's bumper covers replaced, and I'm sure that's why that car is missing it's front bumper cover.

The car may have been in an accident, and got a later bumper cover put on it. More likely, the later cover was installed, because the original one fell apart, and that cover was readily available. The 76-79 covers are fairly common and easy to find, especially when compared to the 74 cover, which is a one year only part. Even if it was in an accident, it's not a big deal. Very few cars go through life, without being involved in some kind of an accident.......especially a 40 year old car.

A 74 454 convertible, is definitely a car worth pursuing. Just be careful, about checking the car out.

Do yourself a favor, and read the sticky at the top of the page about "ten rules for buying your first Corvette". Then go back and read it a couple more times!

 

when i saw the "454" badge, i thought wow.
it is worth pursuing....as stated, read the 10 rules....
i just got a parts book from this corvette supply place that a friend
recommended....whew...the stuff is not cheap....

i think it needs to be a passion, and obviously you have to have the know-how to fix these things (well and $$), i sadly don't have it...so something like this is way out of my realm....

i guess when i see pics like this, i just think it's sad that someone let this car sit and deteriorate like this....and i admire folks who could take this and put it back together and run....and look good....it's a great skill!

good luck!

 

That concerns me as well. That car has to be put on a lift for a thorough examination of frame, running gear, etc. The 1975- rear bumper does not worry me. As noted above the original bumpers were prone to disintegration. The 454 badges are cheap; check what is under the hood.

Check the recent paint thread re costs. Very interesting. And big $$s involved. The top looks "OK" but the pics are not the best.

Do a costing on probable repairs (including paint) and compare that to the Hagerty values site. That will give you some idea of how up-side down you might become. People poo-poo such guides but Hagerty does place values on vehicles and insures them accordingly.

http://www.hagerty.com/valuationtool...eport?vc=33945

But as you can see I am partial to the year and colour. I would certainly go have a look at it.

 

If its what you like its worth getting if its in reasonable condition and the price is right. You really can't tell anything much from those pictures, you need to go see it in person.

 

I was going to say the same thing... ugly bumperettes.

 

A 1974 4-speed convertible big block. Very desireable.

I'll tell you, guys...there would have to be a LOT of AWFULNESS going on underneath this car for it not to be worth something.

Sitting covered in the grass would make me suspect the worst. Lots of opportunity for moisture to really screw things up.

AT THE RIGHT PRICE, it would make a really neat project, even if that involved a complete rebuild.

This is one of those situations where BECAUSE it is such a desirable car, you could overpay a little for what the car is today. My meaning is that if it were a "regular" '74, it may not be worth $2k...or even $1k...as it sits. If the underside is as rusted as we all suspect, it may be worth next to nothing.

But BECAUSE it is a 4-speed convertible big-block 1974, The "worthlessness" of the husk is somewhat eliminated and leaves us with an interesting situation. If purchased for the right price (<$4k or $5k?), the birdcage is OK (hoping given the condition of the top), the frame can be salvaged, and a not-NRCS-quality frame-off is performed in someone's garage, you could be looking at a car that is even with the investment.

And of all the C3's out there, the chrome-bumper cars have already trended up in value and THIS car...THIS car...will be the next-most-desireable given the "lasts" of the big block and the low production numbers of this particular combination.

My point being that it isn't quite right to be so dismissive of this particular car given its inadequacies. It COULD be a valuable car with the right TLC.

Just my thoughts.

If the guy is unreasonable and wants >$15k for it, please forget everything I said. Let it rot. Shame, but that is the price dumb people must pay...let a (potentially) very valuable car rot beside your house.

 

Keith,

You have made some excellent points for the OP to consider.

 

I took the plunge and went and looked at it today.

I was only able to get one side up in the air at a time, but I found no major rust on the frame. It does have a lot of surface rust, but I couldn't find any weak points in the chassis. The rear suspension definitely needs a rebuild. The rear suspension looks similar to the the one in the "10 rules to buying a corvette", except maybe not quite as bad. The interior needs a good going over. The dash and the gauges are all in very good shape and should clean up nicely. The listed mileage on the odometer is 64,569 miles. The seats look in good shape, but smell pretty musty. Floor pans felt solid, at least, I couldn't find any holes poking with the butt of a screwdriver on the carpet.

I looked at both the front and rear, but did not find any accident damage. It does not have any mufflers on it. The stock exhaust manifold terminates just belong the cabin of the car, but the rest is gone. It certainly will need a new coat of paint.

I did forget to look at the door hinge area to check the bird cage.

However, in bad news, the owner of the car....

...isn't actually the owner. I called him up and was told that the car doesn't belong to him. He said the car was on the property when he bought the land/house a few months ago, but was able to give me an address for the actual owner. The property owner said the gentleman that owns the car is in his mid-80s, so who knows, I may get lucky with it being a one owner car.

The car owner only lives about an hour from me, so I may take the time this weekend to go by and see him. Any pointers on trying to talk to him about it?

 

Is the 454 or a big block still in it???

 

The car owner only lives about an hour from me, so I may take the time this weekend to go by and see him. Any pointers on trying to talk to him about it?[/QUOTE]

Be respectful and honest.
That car is worth pursuing.

 

Concur. This is a car worth pursuing.

I'd take a peek to make sure the big engine is still in there, as Mr. Eljay suggested.

The general condition sounds acceptable. The musty smell and surface rust is certainly expected given its poor storage conditions.

If the rear suspension needs a going through, that's fine. If I purchased this car, I'd give the whole thing a going through.

And like Mr. Tokim, I'd be very honest and respectful about the car. Possibly point out to the potential seller that the car AS IT SITS is creeping in on being a "basket case"...a car that, IF IT WERE GIVEN AWAY FOR FREE, would still not be worth the expense of reviving. Unfortunately, given a year or two, this could possibly be the case.

I'm sure others will have their opinion, but a knowlegable seller would put this car somewhere over $2k but probably less than $4k...the upper end being kind to the seller.

Bear in mind that the price reflects the particular combination that this car represents and the condition you've shared...surface rust without CANCER. Complete car. If it was a "regular" 1974, we'd be sitting about $1k and most on this forum would probably politely suggest that you sprint in the opposite direction of this vehicle.

If it didn't have all the potential water problems, it would be worth more as it sits.

If you could hop in it, start it, and drive it around the block, you could be sitting closer to the $4k to as high as $6k. North of $6k, you start getting a little upside-down on this particular car. I'd say. My opinion. I bought my not-particularly-special 1970 (chrome bumper) car, running and driving, generally OK condition with some rust and a previous accident for $7k in 2012.

Looks like an amazing project if you're willing to embark. Like everyone has said, this particular car is a real find.

 

Good question. Next one is whether the big block was stock. To be honest, all we actually know is that it has 454 emblems on it.

 

True that.

If this particular car turned out to be one of those goof-ball back yard deals where someone swapped a big block into a 350 car, OR WORSE...put 454 emblems on a 350 car (ack)...then the whole conversation resets back to there being some random Corvette sitting beside someone's random house, both of which you're running away from unless he wants to give the car to you.