When to walk away from a purchase?

I'm looking at a vette that apparently has some rust on the drivers side, which you see when you open the door, and right above the plate with paint codes.

2nd issue, is that on passenger door does not align nicely. Far from it.

I have pics of both issues.
Is there someone who has knowledge about these topics?

 

I would consider the rust you can't see.

 

WOW....That looks a lot like my car.

How do the kick-ups look in front of the rear tires....?

Will they let you pull the kick panels to get a look at that area.....If not a bore scope camera and be fished up and over to get a look.

The areas you posted pics of would not necessarily be a deal breaker but the other areas would have to be OK as well.

There could be other reasons why the passenger door doesn't align well besides rust....If it is caused by rust it should be pretty obvious if you get to look behind the kick panel on that side.

Good luck....
Brian

 

 

Hi LH,
It appears you ended up with 2 threads now…. you first got moved to this Forum.
Perhaps a moderator will close one for you.

Here's what I posted a few minutes ago in the other thread.

Hi LH,
Welcome!
First posts!!

When considering buying a 68-72 car the concern about rust in the birdcage (especially in the windshield frame, hinge pillar, and lock pillar) and in the frame (especially in the area of the frame 'kick-up' just forward of the rear wheels, and in the main frame rails forward of the kick-up), should be a PRIMARY concern.

There is enough rust showing in the hinge pillar/windshield post photos you posted that I would be concerned about rust in other areas of the car. Before even beginning to consider buying this car I'd want to see the condition of the lower hinge pillars with the interior kick panels off, and the condition of the lower lock pillars by looking through the small access panels in the forward area of the rear wheel wells.

The variation in the gaps of the right side door to the fender and rear quarter could be caused by serious body problems or just by a poor job of mounting the door… it's impossible to know from just one photo.

I'd want to know how much experience with 68-72 cars the person doing the inspection has before deciding how much faith I'd have in the details of the report.

There is no reason to knowingly get involved in a rusty 68-72 car.
A badly rusted 68-72 can quickly break your spirit and empty your wallet.
Even a 'somewhat' rusty 68-72 should be avoided.

So, there you go!
Regards,
Alan

From the paint code on the Trim Tag it appears this was originally a blue car.

 

Thanks for the feed back. I walked away.
Instead I bought a 1972 with a solid frame and birdcage instead.


To my believe the seller was not aware of significant importance of this type of rust.
As per one comment, there is also a price for rusty corvette's; yes, for the right buyer, who can do the work.


Glad to have found an alternative "driver" that needs some TLC to the brakes and engine, and other typical Corvette attention points.