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What are your plans for this car? Flip it? Restore it and if so to what level restoration?
What is your level of abilities for fixing what needs repairing. Do you have a budget in mind? Is this originally a big block car?
Do you have a place or space to work and store parts and supplies? The tools? Any help?
Do you have any supporters of your high hopes?
Each item I listed has a great deal of significance towards your success for what you wish to do. You may not see it straight off, but rest assured it’s the difference between regrets and satisfaction.
As far as value is concerned, you need to spend more on this particular year then It will be worth when you finish it. This might not matter to you but you asked for a value so it does have relevance. I would bet anything you missed a significant amount of repairs needed, or at least under estimated The reality of what it will take to make this a decent daily driver.
A seasoned Corvette enthusiast would guesstimate an easy $15,000 in materials if he did his own work. Based on this car being finished as a fairly good mechanical DD, short of a good final paint, I figure the most you could get would be $18,000 - simply because there are many good DD vettes of various degrees available and will be for many years to come.
If you are not flush with money or much of the list above is not ideal, I see it foolish to spend more than $5500. As it sits and what you say is true. Personally I believe $3500 is fair but I’ll bet unrealistic from a seller. Most inexperienced guys would shell out $7500 and think they discovered Gold.
Are you looking specifically for a project that you can, with the infusion of a LARGE sum of money and time, turn into a nice looking, nice performing Corvette?
If not, if you just want a nice looking, nice performing Corvette, you'll be able, for MUCH LESS money, to buy a completed car that meets those requirements.
Sunny,
I'm curious, what was the original color combination? I see bits of red and yellow in the door jam. Can you post a pic of the trim tag?
What state are you located in?
Cheers, Greg
Sunny,
I'm curious, what was the original color combination? I see bits of red and yellow in the door jam. Can you post a pic of the trim tag?
What state are you located in?
Cheers, Greg
its a few hours and ferry ride away so figured it would be better to get some opinions before going to see it in person. I'm located in vancouver so just north of seattle. So no pictures of the trim tag.
Always fun to go look. I personally have not done this, LOL's, but they tell me it is the Corvettes that you DO NOT buy that make you look smart.
Anyway and so, I am thinking similar money but more like 4 or 5; IF the windshield frame is not bad rusted which is sometimes hard to tell under the glass, so look carefully. More than a couple of experiences for me, looking and wanting to think, well that is not toooo bad and then pull the windshield glass out and uh oh, need to repair holes in the windshield frame. Therefore if the windshield frame (and birdcage) are more than a little rusty, I would not get it period, for any money. Better projects to be had. And looks like a 74 maybe; so even in super condition, your upside potential is kinda low. Most are upside down on these C3 projects which is not all bad, it is fun to do a C3 project. Just something to keep in mind and not get too bad upside down in case you want to get your money out one day.
Hum ... a running, driveable, '74 convertible, non-matching big block (454?), automatic, with a solid birdcage and frame .... the right buyer looking to just drive it as a fun car might shell out $3K to 5K. From the photos, it looks like there is a lot of work to just make it a reliable driver. Like the other members said, to make this a restoration the buyer will never recoup their investment, but having said that, if the buyer has the resources and enjoys the challenge of restoring it ...
You said you were looking to pickup your first c3 project. As project car goes I would consider that car a good example as it's mostly all there and as you said it runs and drives. If it does have a solid birdcage and frame I would not be afraid to own this car. It really comes down to what your definition of a "project car" is.
Ratty vettes are more fun.. if it's mechanically sound and runs well, drive it and enjoy it ! Not agonizing over a 15k paint job being nicked is liberating IMO
Pretty tough crowd here, assuming the car starts, runs and stops and has the legs to make it past the end of the driveway it's a very good starter car. Throw some soap and water on it, new tires, rubber hoses and carpet and you have a decent driver. A bottle of Windex and ArmorAll and that interior will look like a nice used penny. Who cares what the paint looks like and if that's a problem take it down to MACO for a $400 mow and a blow.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.
C3 value
