Domdavidson

I am on the fence of putting a luggage rack on my 76 c3 Why or why not would you recommend one. I like the usefulness of it.

Raphiki

Welcome to the crazy! I'm not a big fan of luggage racks. Always thought that if you want to haul stuff get a pickup.

The13Bats

Personally, i think they ruin a c3, the only ones they look soso on are 68 to 73, but it also kills other "feels" those years give me, like being a mean sports car,

Any gear on the rack is subject to theft, weather and has to be removed for gas up,

But it doesnt matter one obese rodents rectum what i like or dont like, this is YOUR car, if you want the rack , add it,

I respect people who build THEIR car their way.

terrys6t8roadster

I like them, even bought one 15 or so years ago. It is still on the shelf. T

Alan 71

Hi D,
WELCOME!
First post!
People have various feelings about the luggage racks.
What makes the choice difficult is that the racks require holes in the rear deck. If the present owner, or a new owner, decides the rack needs to go, dealing with the holes is a REAL problem.
How folks deal with the holes ranges from coming up with some sort of plugs, to doing the fiberglass repair and painting the deck.
Think carefully on this one!
Regards,
Alan

oldgto

Luggage racks are like paint color....purely subjective to personal taste!
You`ll find some who swear by them... wouldn`t be without them.
You`ll also find many who would`nt have one. I`m in the latter camp.
I agree with Raphiki... I didn`t buy a small sports car to haul a bunch of stuff around in!

sshort67

I like the looks on our 69 convertible, and it is functional. Wife and I are following route 66 to Chicago at the end of the month and we need the room for stuff. We should know how to pack light as spent several years motorcycle touring on Goldwings and Electraglides. If someone knows if GM stated the trunk/luggage capacity in cubic feet for the 69 convertible I would like to know. Yes it is a pain and with the gas filler in the middle it compounds the problems. We use REI dry bags used in kayaking and strapped so there is still a little tunnel to use the interior rear view mirror. To each their own.

rmgny44

My car came with a luggage rack! Although I've never carried anything on it I'm OK with the look on CB cars. Wouldn't put one on a '74 or newer!

7T1vette

I would recommend installing one ONLY if you NEED to have a functioning luggage rack. I've used mine on several occasions. But, if you are considering one just based on 'appearance', I would not recommend it.

They look OK on early C3 coupe models, especially if they are a darker color and have stock rally wheels. In those instances, the chrome on the rear deck adds somewhat to the appearance of the car. I don't care for them on later model C3's (with the rounded off tail), nor on convertibles. But, that's just my preferences.

Bills17n72

yes I have one for my 72 ,but I just cant put it on my car!!!

3JsVette

A very polarizing question.
No not on a fit for me.

tokim

Practicality wise for certain people-sure, although Corvettes aren't really practical.
Asthetically-no, especially in the case where someone has mounted them incorrectly (too far forward).

marshal135

I have a dealer installed stainless steel one on my 68 coupe.
I would not in this day and age seek one and drill the holes into my deck myself. That said its there and I'm leaving it.
I use it to place the T Tops into the bags when I remove them.
It has with a large piece of cardboard on it served as a work bench for light work.
As Alan pointed out, I have seen them removed and .filled and you could still see a faint trace of the holes in the new paint.
Marshal

Alan 71

Hi,
I put a luggage rack on my car within a few months of buying it. I actually sort of liked the look.
But when I began restoring the car I was very sure that it wasn't going back on.
Filling the holes can be tricky.
I believe that if the surface around the holes, both topside and underside, is v'd out to the size of a silver dollar (remember those?), and the repair is done using just layers of mat and resin, but NO filler, there's a reasonably good chance that the holes won't show through the paint as time goes by.
At least up to this point I'm glad I removed the rack but don't think it's worth doing the work unless the car is being painted anyway.
Regards,
Alan

docmow

had one on my 76 and a set of t hop holders was grreat moer room inside thy did not rub and get scrached al thoe you will dneed 19+77 factory style hase the pins on it
docmow

resdoggie

It is useful. I store my t-tops on them. That gives me more useful space behind the seats.

GUSTO14

In 1977 I bought a new Corvette off the lot and it came with a luggage rack. '77 was the first year it could be ordered from the factory. Before that they were dealer installed options. We took a number of trips in that car and found it very useful. I probably would not have ordered it, but quickly found it definitely served a purpose. I even used it regularly to carry the T-tops on.

Years later I bought a '73 convertible and it already had a rack on it. It was also quite rusty so I bought a new one. At that time stainless ones were not available. It was a pain to keep corrosion under control. If it rained on it, it would start to rust in a few days. When they started offering them in stainless I quickly bought one and found it to be maintenance free. If you do decide to go with a rack, save yourself some aggravation by buying the stainless version. It is well worth the difference.

Good luck... GUSTO

CVO2FIXUP

Love the look, and I think the rack balances out the rear end if the car. Makes it seem more proportional. With out the rack the rear of the car slopes down to much. Hope the images are the right way up. LOL.

vettebuyer6369

Agree on both counts.

First thing I did on my '69 after it came off the truck was take off the rack.

0Willcox Corvette

First... No Corvette ever came with a luggage rack, they were all dealer installed and made by Duer Tube Bending Co. I did a write up on this on our tech site years ago.

http://repairs.willcoxcorvette.com/1...story-updated/

I have a rack on my 72 and while I like it for carrying my t-tops, I really don't care much for it. The issue with the luggage rack is it is next to impossible to hide the holes should you remove the rack from the car.

T-top carriers are cool though because you can stack the tops on the back of the rack and roll on... the only issue is when you need fuel you have to take the tops off (same with luggage). http://repairs.willcoxcorvette.com/w...op-carrier.pdf

When we distributed the racks back in the 80's they were one of the most popular parts we sold... But the reason we sold so many was that the racks would rust and the reproduction racks made today don't have the weep holes in the ends of the tubs so they tend to rust out even faster.

So my advice is if you are going to do a rack, go with the stainless rack. it'll last you a lot longer than the chrome one.

Willcox