drave199

So ive been looking for a old muscle car to hopefully do a light restore and drive around on weekends and such. I actually went and drove 450 miles to look at a 71 monte carlo that turned out to have a broken frame. Then cam across this.

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/4901856516.html

Got him down to 5K. My father actually went to look at it and says that the body is actually pretty straight and the interior pretty fair as well for 40 years old. BUT, the owner and i are pretty sure it isnt the original L82 motor. Not really a huge deal for me as eventually i would probably want to put something bigger in it, but thats where most of the value in these come from and why people get this car, for the L82.

Also, doesnt have a gas tank in it. he claims to have removed it and can get it for me but it is full of sludge. not really a big deal, can get a new one for $250. BUT we are only able to run it for a second by dumping fuel in the carb. we know it needs and new exhaust manifold but reallt dont know anything else that could be wrong with it because we cant run it for very long. Also dont know about any of the electrical as well like the lights. doesnt have the radio, spare tire carrier, needs probably a full brake job (especially calipers). also needs the front and rear bumpers. All in all, about 2K worth of work that i know of. Probably needs about 500-600to get it running to look at everything else. He has both t-tops luckily.

What do you guys think? im not looking to make it original or anything. and i realize that it isnt going to happen overnight. Really 5k is tapping me out so i wont be able to do much to right away, but i think id be alright with that. but is the clean body and interior worth the 5k alone? i offered 4k but wouldnt take that. My fathers old buddy that has worked at a corvette shop in LA said based on the car and not the original engine, it is worth $3200 at best.

IDK, tell me what you think, sorry for the long story.

drave199

C'mon, any thoughts at all??

briankeery

I think that blowing your entire wad just on the purchase of a C3, or any vintage car for that matter, is foolish. Buying the car is just the tip of the iceberg on many of these cars. That motor looks tired, and no brakes means big money right off the bat.....never mind no mention of potential rust issues. Not trying to bum you out, we've all had the fever at one time or another. Maybe get yourself a bit more dough so you can get into a little more car, and actually save you money in the end. Good luck.

champs65

It looks nice and I like it, but that doesn't mean anything with these cars. California car or not, you should be aware they can rust.

I suggest you take a serious look at the frame, in particular in front of the rear wheels and the rear axle crossmember as well as the front crossmember where the control arms bolt up.. They tend to get rusty, thin, and weak in those areas.

Also, body mounts and the 'birdcage' get rusty. Look at the windshield posts (and look at the VIN tag area too, it's a small piece of exposed windshield post that will give you an idea of how clean the posts are). Check the area just above the upper door hinges for rust or swelling of the paint/fiberglass.

LOTS of info here on these two topics by searching. Anything is fixable, but you really want something solid. LOT of work involved repairing birdcages and changing frames.

I like later era C3's in brown/tan BTW. I don't know why, but they're sharp Good luck...and fwiw based on the pics alone I'd be all over that at 3200 if it was solid. 5K seems like a good price for that car if it checks out.

LS4 PILOT

Even if somebody gave you car for free .....corvette or Pinto ......the parts and labor are such .....I see very few fixed up for under 15 grand into any kind of driving condition . New paint, interior , engine rebuild , suspension overhaul....etc......I think most guys wind up wit 20-40 grand in a car you would be proud of.

Best buy , buy a good car of any make, where someone else has paid out the azz and done all the expensive stuff.

Jud Chapin

Looks like a lot of work and $. I'd pass and keep looking.

Easy Mike

What we think may not matter much; we aren't buying. What you think is the only important point. The question is do you want this Corvette for $5K? Only you can answer that.

Brother Rob

$5K wouldn't be terrible if you knew it was running well and the brakes, trans, and suspension were ok.

Not being able to check out major areas makes this a pass for me. Too many unknowns and we've already blown our wad.

drave199

I value everyone's opinion. Thats why i signed up here with the hopes og getting people who have been in this situation before, to chime in.

And yes, that's exactly where im at. There is just to many unknowns. I already know that it needs about $500 to just get it running and probably an additional $1800 to get it looking ok and on the road. Which i wouldn't mind, IF everything else were to check out ok.

So for now, i shall keep looking and saving. Unless he decides he wants to go lower on the price. Thanks for everyone's input!

SB64

Smart choice Drave199, I do believe you are making the right move. Good Luck in your search.
r

Brother Rob

Enjoy the process of looking. After years and years of wanting a car, I finally got serious about looking for a vehicle in October. And had mine in the driveway by February. I wound up with the right car at the right price. It took some time for me to realize what "right" was for me. When I think about some of the cars I almost settled for...

74Ken

Since I have one of these I can definately say there is more than 2K in making it look "nice". Front and rear bumpers will cost you more than 2k.

A brake job is not really that much. If you do it yourself, you are looking at $200.00+.
Gas tanks are not that expensive either.

The problem is you will need to spend money for the first couple of years to get it were you want it. Then you can slow down. If the car needs an engine rebuild, you are into some money there.

Having a nice interior is a big plus. You need to take a mirror and look up at the frame. If there is rust, punch it with a hammer to see if it is soft. If not,it's just like mine and is all labor to remove and paint up.

I think your friend is right 3200 is all this car is worth. I paid 7500 for mine, but my bumpers were already replaced and the interior was fine except for the vinyl seats. The car was repainted a few years ago after the bumpers were replaced.

But once you have it fixed up, they are fun to modify and drive. You won't believe the looks you will get.

drave199

There were a couple sites out there selling the fiberglass bumpers for about $400 a piece. they jump up to about $800 a piece if you want the urethane ones. But who's to know if there any good. I could probably get them fairly inexpensive from the connection i have at a corvette shop in LA. Again, still so much in the unknown. going to pass for now.

Just out of curiosity, came across this one today

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/4862820348.html

Its arizona which is about 700 miles away so im not even really considering it, BUT if this was the one i was originally asking about, im curious to see what your reactions would be? The whole L48 to L82 swap kinda of worries me but...

Easy Mike

Read the listing again. It does not say the L-48 was swapped for an L-82. It's says "upgraded and badged as an L-82".

drave199

Calo69

5 grand now = at least 10grand later and that's conservative. If 5 grand is all in now it just sounds like a good possibility that you'll spend money only to end up with an unfinished project that you will take a financial bath on.
Just my .02 you asked

74Ken

Wow, that Arizona car has a lot of stress cracks. I have never seen that before. $7700 is a lot for a car that looks that bad.

The one distinguishable detail on a 74 is the split rear bumper and this guy went to the trouble of replacing it, with a 76 rear end?????

If I had to pick between these two, I would go with the first one. At 5K it is still a little steep for me, if you could get it for 4K, that would be worth it.

$400.00 for fiberglass bumpers is a steel. My front is fiberglass and I like it. If the rear goes, I will use fiberglass for sure. I do not want a completely stock car, but I want it to look stock.

Like I said before, Even if you spend 20K for a clean car you are going to be spending money on these cars every year. Guaranteed. Some parts are cheap, some are not, but you ARE going to spend money on it as time goes by. It's a life-long love affair. Are you up for the challenge?

I didn't know this but my car had front-end damage. It wasn't until I tried on some 255/60 front tires that I found out. Took it to a body shop and they fixed the frame for 175.00.

As for the L-82 badge on an L-48 engine....who cares. I have no badge, once I get my engine done, I want a badge that says L-NOYB.

You have to decide what you want. I wanted a car that would not rust away on me, being up north it's a big problem. I drive it only on nice warm sunny days (when it is not in my garage being worked on). Every time I drive it, I think of how much I love it...and then I think of the next thing I want to fix on it. That's just how it goes.

Ken

7T1vette

If you can do all the 'wrenching', then buying a car that needs work is no big deal. Just make sure that the stuff you CAN'T DO is in decent shape: make sure the frame/birdcage/windshield frame aren't rusted beyond simple repair; if you can't do glasswork or paint, make sure the body is in decent condition.

Parts for these cars are easily obtainable and resonable, if you don't just go out and buy everything new. Repair everything that can possibly be repaired; REPLACE only what you MUST replace. Farm-out only what cannot be done in-house.

If you consider working on the car as much fun as driving it, you'll do fine. Just pick a decent car...and check it out WELL.

joewill

5k for a 74 is not a bad price IF it is not rusty, then even if free you will regret it.

replace bumpers? then they will need painted, and matched to the old paint, and then possibly have to paint the whole car since old paint can't be matched right. need a tank?, then you will need gas lines, which means unbolting the body to raise it up to fit the lines, which means several broken body bolts. you are only estimating 1/4 of the cost to get it decent, and 1/10 to get it nice. Then you will be big time underwater in your investment.

not do the work yourself? then the shops will gladly take all the money you can throw at them.

on the other hand if it is not rusted out, then you will not find a cheaper vette...

I have easily seen 500$ just for a couple of trim pieces and some ***** and hoses.. your costs will escalate.

CA_WxMan

Bigge,

Great thread! I love seeing this type of transformation. I just finished an LS swap too and I love it!

One note of caution though, since you're running a used set of VBP lower control arms.
The early versions had a tendency to crack near the ball joint and spring bolt, just past the end of the square tube. (See pic)
I think they added a doubler there on later versions, which is what I did when we repaired mine.



Mine came off of a parts car that we bought specifically for the suspension and differential.
I blasted, inspected, and powder coated them like you did, but after about a year of driving and several autocross events, both lower control arms were cracked in the same place.

Please check yours before you go driving it too hard - Hopefully they're newer and have the reinforcement already. If not, you should probably pull them and add it. I know it sucks to have to grind off that fresh, shiny powder coating to weld on them, but it would be better than having them crack and then having to do it later when the car is all together.

-Chris