When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
So this car has been brought to my attention and the dealer doesn't seem to know exactly what it is. Looking into the model year 1969 they range from L36 to ZL1 including L88 & L89's. I doubt it's any of the latter 3 but maybe you can see from the pics I have exactly what it started out as ? I have the VIN and checked the C3 registry and it's not listed. It was described as rust free, numbers matching blah blah blah. It's a fresh import to the UK
At first sight of the photo's I lost interest, badly fitting wiper door, wrong hood ?, weather stripping tatty & engine bay messed about with but I thought I best just check it's not a diamond in the rough before I walk away ?
Hi Stuart,
I would start by examining the engine stamp pad to give you an idea if it is original to the car. The pad wil have the VIN (partial) , engine assembly date, and engine suffix code. That code, if the engine is original, will tell you what it is. The pad is located on the passenger side, on the block, right where the head meets it ( forward side of the block). If you can, take a clear picture of that area and post it. If the pad was painted, which they were not originally, carefully use a thinner to remove it. Use a non-abrasive pad. The stamped pad surface has distinctive tool markings that will help experts here get a good idea if the "matching numbers" are original to the car. Good luck! John
Hard to tell a whole lot from those pictures...
Tach redline means it was likely an L36 or L68. The L88 hood is one of the most common C3 mods.
Immediate things I am seeing wrong:
1. Aftermarket aluminum radiator and electric fan setup.
2. Aftermarket intake and cheap valve covers and air cleaner.
3. No wiper motor or wiper door actuator, so it will not have any wiper functionality
4. Alternator was moved to the opposite side of the engine which means wiring has been messed with as well.
5. HEI distributor, likely the tachometer isn't hooked up correctly.
Hi Stuart,
I would start by examining the engine stamp pad to give you an idea if it is original to the car. The pad wil have the VIN (partial) , engine assembly date, and engine suffix code. That code, if the engine is original, will tell you what it is. The pad is located on the passenger side, on the block, right where the head meets it ( forward side of the block). If you can, take a clear picture of that area and post it. If the pad was painted, which they were not originally, carefully use a thinner to remove it. Use a non-abrasive pad. The stamped pad surface has distinctive tool markings that will help experts here get a good idea if the "matching numbers" are original to the car. Good luck! John
Thanks John
vin: 194679S704893
Haven't made any plans to see it yet pending what it may have started out as. Wasn't looking, it was just offered.
Originally Posted by chazde3
Hard to tell a whole lot from those pictures...
Tach redline means it was likely an L36 or L68. The L88 hood is one of the most common C3 mods.
Immediate things I am seeing wrong:
1. Aftermarket aluminum radiator and electric fan setup.
2. Aftermarket intake and cheap valve covers and air cleaner.
3. No wiper motor or wiper door actuator, so it will not have any wiper functionality
4. Alternator was moved to the opposite side of the engine which means wiring has been messed with as well.
5. HEI distributor, likely the tachometer isn't hooked up correctly.
Thanks Chaz.
I spoke to the seller and he didn't seem that well versed in Corvette's, this came on a shipment including 3 e types. When he said it was 7 ltr I thought I best check but then saw that there were quite a few with L36 being the base car.
There is no option information in a 69 VIN. Without other documentation, how this car left St. Louis is anybody's guess.
Bugger!
I may just go look anyway. Is the engine pad the same location as my 71 & 72 Mike ?
It's up at £30k but I'm told negotiable but unless it was something a bit more special I wouldn't be interested. The trim tag is missing or were they different in '69 ?
Youve got bigger problems than a missing trim tag here... this (the red circled area) is a Replacement VIN tag issued by a state after a total or an insurance settlement. Could be a theft recovery. In any event, the value is drastically reduced and chances are its impossible that any numbers match the replacement VIN.
Youve got bigger problems than a missing trim tag here... this (the red circled area) is a Replacement VIN tag issued by a state after a total or an insurance settlement. Could be a theft recovery. In any event, the value is drastically reduced and chances are its impossible that any numbers match the replacement VIN.
Might be good reason that car got shipped overseas...
SADLY, my wife got hit from behind, a couple of years ago, while stopped for a red light. The impact from the hit not only messed up the back of the car, it also shoved her into the car in front of her, crunching the front end, too. It was her 2012 Jaguar XJ. The insurance company "totaled" the car, but I was curious what would happen to it, and I was able to trace it to an insurance auction. From there, it "disappeared".
My friends at the Jag dealership felt that it would most likely get sent "overseas", and given a "half-assed" repair, and retitled. They said that repair shops elsewhere, aren't held to the standards that the American shops are, and given the car's excellent condition and very low mileage, prior to the crash, made it an excellent candidate for this.
What's this 1969
