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Hi,
The fit of the bumper and of the grill lower trim to the bumperette is really unacceptable.
The BIG problem is that if/when the bumper is raised up to the point it's supposed to be, the bumperette will come with it and the fit at the bumperette/grill lower trim will be even worse with no recourse except for lots of bodywork and paint.
I'm wondering if the wiper grill and wiper door aren't on the car because they don't fit either?
Not a very nice car to my eye. (Money stays in my pocket!)
Regards,
Alan
Here's a typical fit of the bumper to the body and the bottom of the bumperette to the grill lower trim. (71)
Come on Alan, that is in no way typical of the vast majority of chrome bumper front ends out there today. I would wager that no more than 10 to 20% of these cars look like yours does... today. The vast majority of the ones I see, even so called restored ones, look more like the one the OP posted and the one in redbarchetta's post. Heck I would also wager that few ever left the factory back in the day, looking as good as yours does. I remember well when the '68 was introduced and even then the fit on many of them was not what we wished it would have been. Had it been, the price of the car would have killed many of the sales records the C3's set over the following years.
Having said that, one reason I personally shy away from these cars (68-72) is that I would never be really happy with anything less than what yours looks like. Anything less would drive me nuts. I've helped a friend assemble two very nice C3's (a '68 and a '69) after completing frame offs. We probably spent as much time adjusting and readjusting all the many pieces of the puzzle that make up the front grill assembly on these cars as any other, one area of the car. (Second would be the wiper door assemblies. )
Admittedly it can be done, but to look right, it really needs to start before the paint is applied and all major bodywork is completed. All the major pieces of the "puzzle" must be assembled to the body and any additional bodywork completed that it takes to get all the pieces to fit together correctly. Then and only then should the paint be applied. The same process applies to fitting the hood, doors and any other major removable body pieces. Unfortunately you aren't talking about 6 or $7,000 paint job, you're talking $15k or more, depending on how much additional work needs to be done to get all the pieces to play well together.
I certainly admire the job you've done on your '71 and enjoy seeing the pictures you post. But I also know what it takes to achieve that, patience, persistence and lots of time. I'll also admit I get a complex just thinking of what more needs to be done to mine, to make it the car it should have been.
You've set a standard even GM would be envious of... GUSTO
I think most C3s have a decent fit on the front bumper. This is mine and I think it came from the factory like this,(of course there is no way to know for sure.)
Seller was transparent about some repair on the inside rear, but swears that the vehicle has never been hit up front. His words: "The car hasn't been hit so there isn't fitment issues. It's a factory clip with the rivets they just put too much of a skim coat on and didn't clean out where the hood fits."
I've asked him to address the bumperette issue and am waiting on a response.
For arguments sake, how much would the above repairs entail to get the front-end right? Are we talking $5-6k or more than that?
People will tell you anything to sell you the car but there is no way that car came from the factory with the front valance sitting that low . Most of the problem is in the center of the valance sitting too low maybe some due to the panel being warped but obviously there was collision damage at some point . Often you will see the misalignment on the chrome trim and the bumperettes due to a warped panel but there are more problems here that are going to require a repaint of the front section.
IMHO there is no way I would buy a NOM 68 that cannot be heard to run and run well.
You will be shocked at how long it takes and how much it costs to finish what someone else started.
As others have said a 68 has a lot of one off parts.
Do they have a DYNO run on the motor? Who did the rebuild?
Getting the body lined up could show that maybe the front clip has issues.
All this being said I would suggest you drive a BB automatic, BB 4 speed, and then a 350/350.
Nothing like a BB 4 speed with all that torque. I own a 70 350/350 and if it runs as it should you will be very surprised. It runs very very well and was one of Duntovs favorite motors.
Too many clues that this car has had the front end smacked pretty hard. They didn't even bother to replace the headlight shields. Nothing wrong with the 350HP motor, and it may even be a better fit with the C3 chassis, but it doesn't feel like a BB. FWIW here's the front of my 54k mile car which we believe has never been hit.
All this being said I would suggest you drive a BB automatic, BB 4 speed, and then a 350/350.
Nothing like a BB 4 speed with all that torque. I own a 70 350/350 and if it runs as it should you will be very surprised. It runs very very well and was one of Duntovs favorite motors.
Good advice that I'm hearing from multiple sources. Another friend of mine has suggested looking at LT-1's as well. I'm just concerned that I'll be wondering what I'm missing if a go with a SB. I really need to find a couple local that I can drive and compare.
Originally Posted by JohnnyQuik
Too many clues that this car has had the front end smacked pretty hard. They didn't even bother to replace the headlight shields. Nothing wrong with the 350HP motor, and it may even be a better fit with the C3 chassis, but it doesn't feel like a BB. FWIW here's the front of my 54k mile car which we believe has never been hit.
Beautiful vehicle - I'm glad I ran this issue by you guys here before I got any more involved in this. It's now clear that corners have been cut.
Too many clues that this car has had the front end smacked pretty hard. They didn't even bother to replace the headlight shields. Nothing wrong with the 350HP motor, and it may even be a better fit with the C3 chassis, but it doesn't feel like a BB. FWIW here's the front of my 54k mile car which we believe has never been hit.
VERY NICE ! My 72 has the same fit with the same miles 53k. but I left the headlight shields out purposely because I like the look of it seeming to peak out through the grille.
A closer look - how is this any better than the vehicle that I showed to start this post? The bumperettes certainly look off, and there's something going on with the hood/clip as well:
I believe this is a members car that he recently bought and is selling already.
That is correct. My larger point isn't so much about this particular car (which is beautiful), it's that I'm not seeing many 68-72's for sale that have perfect alignment of front-end components. This one is just a recent example, and the bumperette alignment isn't so much different than the one that started this thread.
Edit - here's a comparable close-up of the subject vehicle leading this thread:
Last edited by redbarchetta74; Mar 5, 2017 at 04:18 PM.
if the body and trim are not aligned properly (Prepped) before paint,
you end up with what you see.
basically to get that front end together you will need to rework the front end and repaint.
someone got in a hurry to shoot color, and did not bother to massage all panels and trim.
If its eating on your mind you definitely need to drive more than one big block car they feel nothing alike plus the visual impact cant be beat!
Ignore hp #s and see how they feel.
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