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Sitting that long I feel it would be a huge mistake to try and turn the engine over. I would drain all fluids and change. Pull spark plugs and put some oil in the cylinders. Then I would pull the distributor and prime the oil pump. That motor is bone dry up top.
If it is the alternator, I got a buddy from work willing to come down and look at the engine, he used to build sprint car motors
I would take my time deciding . Good C3 s like yours is htf. Also in 10-15 years your looking for a project and wished you d never sold your fathers car. Think long time. Do just enough to protect the frame and engine . Like not storing it ouside under tarps ...LOL.....i have memories of my mother riding in my 74 , she loved it . My father in Law driving it ...h loved cars too. Those memories pop up nearly every drive.
Last edited by LS4 PILOT; Apr 1, 2018 at 06:20 PM.
Got to say you are lucky having your dad's car.
My dad died early but he helped me buy my 66 gto in high school.
When I bought the 69 last year I used a krugerrand for part of the price that I inherited from dad just to make him in on the deal.
Just a thought.
VERYSOON
Having revived a lot of old machines like this, it will get costly fast. Not sure you will really gain any value. If it has to sit to gather the funds, it will decay further. Clean it up, take the best pics you can, I would just check to make sure the engine turns freely-pull plugs, give a squirt of some oil, put it in gear (4th) and see if rocking it back and forth moves it. you might get it running briefly for a few hundred and be able to drive it around the block.
But, making it drive properly and safely with cost thousands, more or less depending on whether you are a good shade tree mechanic, many thousands if not.
Think tires all filters, belts, hose, full brake rebuild fuel tank and carb cleaning/rebuilding-cooling system work etc.
Tune up including all parts and a set of wires.
Then you will be able to drive it well enough to figure out what else is wrong.
My guess on price is $4,000-5,500 (way less if it is rusty) and also depending if you are in a big or small market
Hi. I too have my Dad's 73 that sat for over a decade. I've spent thousands of $$ and hours on the project. Lots of good advice the guys have given. First, clean it as best you can. Get her up on jack stands, degrease the frame if needed, and really check for rust. Open the two kick panels in the foot wells, check the body mounts there. Start a list of parts that jump out at you. Brake calipers, booster, master cylinder, rubber fuel lines, carb rebuild kit, tune up parts etc. How are the wire harnesses? Write your list of parts down, and price them out. Once you get the car going, other issues will present themselves. I love the body on these cars, and am lucky enough to have the spare time and money to restore mine. I still have a ways to go to finish her. Your car has a lot of cool things going for it, and I appreciate the sentimental connection. Consider what you might be able to get for it, 6K? And might put into getting it drivable, 4K? That's 10K plus how many of your hours. Working on it in a carport, in Pennsylvania? Can you hold on to it, and slowly repair/restore it? Just trying to give you some thinking points, with much respect. Been there. Good Luck Sir!
I took an old junk distributor drove out the roll pin and pulled the gear off the bottom. Makes a perfect engine primer. Chuck a drill right on the the stud on top where the rotor goes.
Update, found the alternator and the clock was showing a short with a test light, got the alternator rebuilt and now only the clock is showing a short, so went to hook the battery up and it sparked pretty good from the negative cable, the only thing I found was the ground from the block to the frame was exposed and rubbing on the frame. Is
the clock suppose to show a short with a test light and also would that exposed ground cause it to spark.
a clock should not draw much unless it is shorted. Put an ammeter in-line with pos or meg battery cable to see what the current draw is. Disconnect clock or fuse and see if it goes away
a clock should not draw much unless it is shorted. Put an ammeter in-line with pos or meg battery cable to see what the current draw is. Disconnect clock or fuse and see if it goes away
But when I hope the battery up it sparks and I think it blew a fuseable wire cause I didn't have any power to the car after it sparked
Unless you have ALOT of money, please sell this car. IMHO you don’t have the resources to refurbish this car and if you can’t get it into a functional car, the money you sink into it will be lost. Your non runner ‘73 isn’t going to bring you much.
I am willing to bet that car has a ton of rust and you don’t have the means to fix that. You don’t have the space to store or work on the car.
Please be realistic. If you don’t have THOUSANDS to put into this car, let it go. You can always shop of a nice one in the future if your money issues are resolved. Don’t let sentimentality cloud your judgment. Think whether there are better uses for the money you would dump into this car. Have you put money away for emergencies, medical expenses, kids education? Those should be priorities.
Have you tried to turn the motor by hand? to make sure it is not locked or dragging?
If you can turn the engine by hand, you first need to do the following before you try and start a motor that has sat that long. Remove the plugs and squirt some oil in the cylinders. You need yo change the oil, make sure there is no water in the engine.
This car was your dads and he left it to you. Keep in mind, if it costs you nothing to have it parked, then you should keep it and learn to work on it yourself. That costs nothing. And you can think of it as a long term project that you do not have to pay any money out unless you have it. A dollar here a dollar there, one day you will have it running, then maybe hand it down to one of your kids. Break out a hose, soap, vacuum cleaner, scrub brushes, and what ever else and clean her up. Maybe that will help you decide to keep it and get it going.
Unless you have ALOT of money, please sell this car. IMHO you don’t have the resources to refurbish this car and if you can’t get it into a functional car, the money you sink into it will be lost. Your non runner ‘73 isn’t going to bring you much.
I am willing to bet that car has a ton of rust and you don’t have the means to fix that. You don’t have the space to store or work on the car.
Please be realistic. If you don’t have THOUSANDS to put into this car, let it go. You can always shop of a nice one in the future if your money issues are resolved. Don’t let sentimentality cloud your judgment. Think whether there are better uses for the money you would dump into this car. Have you put money away for emergencies, medical expenses, kids education? Those should be priorities.
I am taking Scrappys side. Sell it dead. Get lowballed. 2 to 4k wifey will spend it in 2 weeks. Car is paid for. He has a sprint car buddy. He can deal with the little stuff and make it a live car at least.
I have a 73 that I purchased two years ago.
I know what I will need for the car, so as it sits in my garage, I am slowly purchasing new parts to do a full frame off resto/mod, which I will start when I have the majority of the parts I will need to completely rebuild the car.
Its a project I'm looking forward to which, once I start, I know will take several years to complete.
If you have the room to store and preserve your dad's 73, keep it, get it so you can drive it occasionally like I do mine, save your money, purchase what you can as time goes and complete the restoration.
One very important question is;
Are you a car enthusiast? Do you enjoy cars and will having a classic car appeal to you?
If the answer is yes, you scored big, you inherited a classic free and you are $$$$ ahead already.
Last edited by OldCarBum; May 1, 2018 at 06:16 PM.
Well here is the update, after rebuilding the alternator, and finding out in the battery compartment the hard way that the red cable is negative and the black cable is positive, so after replacing the fusible link and spark plugs. Took the ignition coil off and turned the key to turn it over with no load. Put the coil back in and she fired right up. So next is changing the oil and antifreeze and then going to look at the brakes cause the pedal goes straight to the floor. But I'm so excited that she runs, it was so emotional working on his car cause I was never allowed to touch it. I want to thank everyone on here that gave me advice on this process it was well worth it. Thanks again guys.
Sounds like keeping it is the right choice, doesnt have to be picture perfect to be enjoyed, just roadworthy. Nothing like a free C3.
Even if it takes years its still worth it.
