atljar

Hello c3 forum, first time in this section of the board!

My Dad is unfortunately having some medical conditions which have required him to move into an assisted living center. That's means I must start to consolidate his estate. I'm having a hard time trying to get a valid value on his car. He's owned it since the late 70s. Any help?

1969 convertible. 350/350 numbers matching. 4 sp manual. No power steering, no tilt wheel

Car starts and drives, and mechanically/electrically is 90 percent good.

Mostly a factory car. Has a lower rear gear, 390 (?) , some bigger leaf springs, and the heads have hardened seats and a little port work. Stock otherwise including wheels.
​​​​
The body and interior need restoration. It was originally harvest gold, but has been repainted once in the 70s to a blue, then again in the mid 90s. Neither job was stellar and it needs a fair amount of body work to make it straight and right.

The soft top is new as of 2 years ago, white.

The interior is Rough. Needs carpeting, upholstery, radio, console etc etc. Figure a complete redo.

This was really a car he enjoyed driving, but really didn't care at all about cosmetics

Can anyone even give me a value range, better yet, anyone want to buy? Thank you!!

Jared

exposingtime

Sounds like a 40k car once restored. Paint and interior will be about $15k. Not sure how much body work is needed.

I would guess 18/20k as is.

Its tough to buy any matching numbers 69 for less.

Gary

Alan 71

Hi Jared,
It's difficult to give even a 'ballpark' figure from the limited information you've given and no photos at all.

Really the first thing that will need to be determined and the thing that will probably have the biggest impact on the value will be if there is rust in the birdcage or frame.
Cars from this era could get rusty, and sometimes seriously rusty.

Do you know if anyone knowledgable has looked for rust?
Regards,
Alan

atljar

Fair enough. Ill post some pictures this evening. A local bodyshop, who has done a fair amount of c2 and c3 work, looked at the car about 6 months ago and said the frame "where they always rust" looked good. When stated he was under the car, about even with the back of the door. I dont think he looked much into the rest of the body cage.

Is there any other specific information you feel would be helpful, Ill try my best to answer accurately? I have grown up around cars, and work in the automotive world, but first to admit that I dont know much about older cars, and what creates/destroys value. I simply grew up in the fuel injection era and my knowledge base is C5/6/7.

Alan 71

Hi Jared,
NOT all cars are rusty... but SOME are.
People with rusty cars like to say rust is 'typical', but there are lots of cars with little or no rust.

The frame forward of the rear kick-ups is one of the places the serious occurred. Also look at the frame rails and body mount points that can be seen from below.
The forward crossmember and the bottom of the core support can also contain rust. So they should be checked.

On the birdcage the top and sides of the windshield frame, hinge pillars and
lock pillars can also be rusty....especially at their bottom.
The bottom of the hinge pillars can be inspected by removing the interior kick panels and the bottom of the lock pillar can be seen through the small access hole in the front of the rear wheel well.

Having someone look the car over will help you arrive at a value that is realistic and is good for both your Dad and the buyer.

Once you post some photos I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions of value.

Regards,
Alan

SimonZ06

Sorry to hear of your Fathers health.

I'm in the market for another vette and live relatively close in Wyoming, OH. I wasn't really looking for a project but may entertain the thought for the right car. It's hard to dislike a 69. There have been a couple decent ones on Craigslist ranging from $17.5k to $26.5k. Maybe we can sync up and have a look.

https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/ct...576147195.html

https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/ct...571413073.html

https://louisville.craigslist.org/ct...573672937.html

atljar

Hi Simon,
The car is rougher than any pictured, but honestly my expectations on price are less as well. Its a restoration candidate for someone who wants a project.

The car is in Glendale, so very close to you. Ill shoot you a PM with my contact info.

MelWff

try downloading to your phone a free app called Corvette DNA

atljar

Pictures

atljar

Pictures 2

Alan 71

Hi a,
Interesting photos.

The sequence number appears to be...19620 which makes it a March 1969 built car.

I can't quite make-out the date in the assembly stamp....0313 ?
Also, can't quite make out the 2 letter broadcast code....2 letters.

That clarification will help identify the engine.

The condition of the VIN tag and the a-pillar make me a little nervous... but that's from just a couple of photos. Could be fine.

Regards,
Alan

A 69 350hp 4-speed convertible has a LOT of upside... but this car will require a LOT or WORK and a LOT of EXPENSE to reach that upside.
A realistic person will take that into consideration when deciding what he might be willing to offer for it.

atljar

Thanks for the follow up Alan.

The assembly stamp is V0313HW.

Body tag shows "H20" for production date. ZQ4 for interior, and 980 for paint. Everything matches up from what I see, other than a color change repaint as noted initially. Car just needs a bunch of work but I think has a pretty good base.

Greg

Great looking project.
If you were closer to SoCal, I'd be all over it.

SimonZ06

I hope Jared doesn't mind me sharing, but it just shows how tight the Corvette community is. I used to drive by this car all of the time and always admired how cool it was. I stopped and talked to a gentlemen whom I believe was Jareds father back in the 90's and asked if he'd consider selling (I don't believe I've ever met Jared although our paths have probably crossed). The gentleman was obviously not interested in selling and continued to drive it which I greatly admired. I appreciate seeing these cars being enjoyed and not just polished in ones garage. As soon as I saw the pictures, I knew that this was the same car.

It may be too much of a project for me at this stage of life but I'm definitely going to look at it and see how nostalgic my wallet and I feel. I just hope it finds a good home and gets driven as it was meant to be.

MelWff

the HW code is a 350/350 manual transmission engine.
The Corvette DNA price for a Project with High Mileage is 12,750

Mr D.

What do you have; a 69 350hp 4-speed convertible so what's there not to like about that.

Looks to be a solid car with few "major" issues but to be a Debbie Downer that car needs a complete restoration so that is going to be your price hit.

Someone stated it was a $40K car restored so I will say based on that number and my experience doing frame off restorations you have a car worth $10K here on CF, maybe more on eBay or Craigslist.

Hayes69

I was in the market for a car with those specs for months (got one). i think ebay or craigslist would get you $10-12k depending on what is unseen.

RobRace10

I would say that is a $8-$12K car if the rust is limited. The A-Pillar also worries me because of signs of rust which most like means some rust on the windshield frame and below the cowl. Looks like a pretty good project car for someone willing to take it completely apart to restore and maybe you would have a $40K car. My 69 was much worse on the cosmetics, but had minimal rust and a perfect frame.

Wee

It's ruff but not as bad as I expected after you described it atljar...

Good luck with the sale....
Brian

Dynra Rockets

Love all the aftermarket goodies such as as the rear spring, rear swaybar and shifter. Shows it was owned by an enthusiast.

Ohio can be deadly to a C3 frame. The kick-ups before the rear tire and the pocket where the rear trailing arm bolts in seem to go first, so assuming the frame is solid then my estimate is a $12-15k car as it sits.