Thanks to some of the C3 members who opined on my potential purchase of my first C3, I am now the proud and somewhat skeptical owner of a 1969 (in many ways) non-original convertible.

This is my first "classic" car but my 7th Corvette. I'm a huge fan of the brand and have owned 3 C4s and 3 C6's. I have not retained ownership of any of them and the C7 Z07 is a little steep for me right now so while I save up, I wanted to keep a Vette in the household.

I don't know if I am a classic car guy but I guess we will find out soon enough. I bought this car for a few reasons: 1. I've always wanted a classic. 2. This is one car my wife is excited about and will drive (the later model cars must be too intimidating). 3. Me and my father make a good team of amateur "shade tree" mechanics, and well as life goes by so fast I wanted something we can continue to do together.

So enough about me, onto the car and my plans.

I found the car through a craigslist ad. Turns out it's right in town so I went to look at it. I paid a fair price, certainly don't think I overpaid but also don't feel like I stole it. My intention was not to consider this an investment, but in case I didn't like the car, I wanted to make sure I could sell it within too much of a loss. I intend to drive it, it's not original, and it won't sit in my garage as long as the weather is cooperative. I'll probably drive it 3-5k miles a year if I had to guess.

Some facts:
1969 base model convertible
44k miles on odometer but no confidence that's original miles
Painted red with black interior (original tag showed yellow exterior)
Originally 350 motor but swapped out to a 327 at some point
4 speed auto
Hard top and soft top.






The Good:
Paint is in decent shape and looks good from a short distance.
Chrome in great shape.
Both tops in great shape.
Motor runs strong and starts pretty easily.
Good wheels and tires.
The price.
Most of the gauge cluster seems to be working fine.
No apparent rust or issues with birdcage or frame.
Half of the interior carpet has been replaced.

The Bad:
Paint has some runs and lots of overspray. Couldn't find any evidence of a crash but will keep looking.
Seats are trashed.
Most of console and stack are beat.
Needs new carpet.
4 speed auto.
Vacuum system need attention for wipers and headlights







So my intention with this thread is to start to fix the things that are broken and worn down beginning with the interior. After that I'm not sure how far I am going to go, as I stated I drive my cars so this won't be a museum piece. However, my delusions of grandeur have a 4 speed 427 with side pipes in my future. We shall see!

I will periodically post my progress and share what I'm doing, and of course be asking for lots of help. I'll try to post pics and links when appropriate and hopefully it turns out that I am a classic car guy after all!

Thanks to the guys who have already chimed in on my questions and hopefully I can make it an interesting story to follow. I can already tell there are some very helpful people in this area of CF. look forward to interacting with you all!

Wish me luck!

Jason

 

LOL! You're car is where I want mine to be at this point!

Classic cars are a challenge.......but I think that you can handle it.

( First......saw off about a foot of those exhaust tips!)

 

Sweet car ...congrats...

You might want to take a look at my build, well, so called build,


Mine to is a 69 convertible, I am going a lot more radical than most but in the spirit of "old school"

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...m-project.html

Things like big blocks, side pipes and sticks are c3 must haves and not too hard to swap in......we have to build our idea of the perfect c3...

 

I'm jealous. Wish I only had some interior bits and vacuum troubleshooting to get me to a very respectable driver. Looks like you bought a really solid foundation for whatever you want to do with it. Which is exactly the right start. Congrats!
The key to building what you want is patience. You can go quickly if you have lots of cash, but there's a certain pleasure that comes from hunting all the best parts and deals. And in the meantime, you can do what we all do and get neck-deep in "while I'm at it" jobs... If you have space to work and the desire to spend (mostly) enjoyable hours working at your own pace, classic car ownership is cheap therapy.

 

Looks great. The best with it.

 

Hahaha! Yea they are kind of ridiculous.

They are in place of a back up camera, so I know how far I can reverse it before damaging the body.

 

Good luck Jason, looks like you a have a nice car to start with

 

Starting easy, just ordered new steering wheel and seat belts.

Taking the seats in to a local shop for restoration estimate. Stay tuned. As best I can tell ordering new foam and vinyl covers could go for over $700 for parts alone! That doesn't include any hardware or trim pieces either. Is that the going rate I should expect?

 

And found the original color while looking under the carpets.

 

A 69 (or 68) BB red convertible with hooker side pipes is a wonder delusion to have. good luck

 

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Hopefully they kept at it over the past 10 years since they posted this!