Hello to all; so I’m obviously new to the forum. Love what I have been reading to far… this seems like a great place with folks who have “forgotten more about vettes that’s I’ll ever know.” Which is a great place for me at at this point.

So what does that mean? My story goes back to really my first car, (aside from family hand me downs); I was going back to college for my sophomore year in the early 80s. I wanted something fun to drive to take back to school as I was moving off campus and almost bought a late 70s Vette, but didn’t. I’ve always said at some point I’ll get one. Well I’m in my late 50’s and that time is sooner rather than later. Plus a move from the Midwest to South Carolina, means driving with the top down is more of a 9-10 month thing!

I’m not mechanically inclined, so I’ll be searching for a good Vette mechanic along with most likely a more recent off frame restored car. I have found that with my appreciation for the car, I’m probably looking for a higher end car than “just a driver”. Maybe good enough for some small time car shows etc… and I’ve also seen some resto mods that I’d be happy driving. I know that complicates things. But I’d love to hear feedback on those separate paths (pros and cons).

There a quite a few questions like that 1) coupe or rag / hardtop 2) small block or big block 3) stock / rebuilt / replaced ie: stoker

I’ll stop there because this list could get quite long.

I get a bonus paid every year in March, sizable enough to handle the market for a ‘69-‘71. So I’m thinking that’s my target. But if I find the perfect car before then, I’m not opposed to financing it, credit is good.

At this point I am trying to learn how to evaluate the cars out there and would appreciate anyone who’d be willing to help along the way.

Thanks for listening!
Mitch

Future C3 owner

 

Howdy & Welcome to the Forums..moved you here to the C3 pros

 

Thanks Gixxerman, glad to be here...

 

Welcome to the forum :- )
I have a 69 Convertible, and a 69 Coupe. For me, if I had nothing, then it would be a 69 L46 Coupe :- )

My 69 Coupe

 

Scroll down to post 107 in this thread, and see what you should look for in a used Vette.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...orvette-6.html

In the meantime, go take a look at some for sale in your area. Craigslist and Facebook (and to some extent Bring a Trailer) are great places to find budget Corvettes. And by that, I don't mean clapped-out shitboxes (though you can find those, too), but cars being sold by the owner, without a (massive) dealer markup. Look at the typical rust areas, and make sure you can identify them when it matters.

Try to drive a few, too. You may be incredibly underwhelmed by stock cars with tired bushings. Even a lightly modded car is a completely different experience.

In other words, do a lot of preparation now and be ready to pounce on a deal when you find it.

 

Welcome.
Your questions are personal choice things. I think you will be better off deciding if you want a coupe or convertible and BB vs. SB and then come back to the forum with some examples of cars you are interested in for opinions on them.
You can check out the classified section here as MOST cars in this forum are priced realistically since the members stay on top of the market and know what it takes for cost of repairs of any short comings.

 

Thanks for the advice Bikespace, I have actually been watching the market for a few weeks now... Looked at recent sales on BAT, followed a couple of auctions... picked some stuff from the comments and questions etc.., I also have alerts set up there and on a few other listing sites and dealers as well as some other auction sites. I'd love to get some feedback (perhaps privately) on reliability of some of the bigger dealers, not going to name names. I like the idea of getting some opinions on cars up for sale as I move along as 86hemi suggested, I probably will lean on that as well if ya'll don't mind.

I watched the video, That C3 book he mentions seem to be scarce, pretty straight forward on the problem areas. Super helpful

Unfortunately, there aren't very many for sale locally... my options seem to be to drive to the Atlanta, or Charlotte area. There are two Streetside dealerships doable as a day trip and I should have gone when they both had several... now it looks like only one between the two locations. But again, your point is well taken, I don't think I can narrow down that preference without driving a few...

Glad I've got some time

Thanks again

 

Hey 68Hemi, thanks for your feedback... I agree some of it is personal choice, but some of it is also a case of fitting my needs. For example, the idea that a restored car with less than 5-10K on a redone or a replaced motor *should*, (ya I know should); not have issues before an original 50 yr old motor with 80K on it. Of course nothing is for certain.

And on the other stuff, Convertible or Coupe or BB vs SB; (I really like the look of side pipes, but is there a downside?) I'm just trying to leverage everyone's collective experiences. Sure some of that will be opinion, but some might be more factual (like sidepipes will sound better but reduce power - if set up this way). So I'm rather looking for the the pros and cons of each side, (from experience) so that I can start making those choices and narrow things down.

You've owned a number of my target cars.. . so feel free to pass along any wisdom (or opinions); and I love the idea of tossing a few cars our for feedback when I get a little closer in my search.

I appreciate the help!

 

Hello, Mitch! I live in Myrtle Beach,SC. I have had a 68 coupe for 50 years next month. The 68-72 coupes have removable roof panels AND a removable back window. When the 68 coupe was introduced, it was called the "convertible coupe". The best of both worlds. I love having the window out to listen to the car. The biggest concern is rust in the frame and the bird cage. The fiberglass body hides an awful lot compared to a metal car. I had a 69 Camaro that I sold to buy my Corvette. Near the end of ownership, I added Thrush "outsiders" It was a huge mistake. the exhaust heat and noise hitting the back tire was very bad. My car is a small block and recommend getting one. Big blocks consume a lot of gas and do not handle as good in curves. Good luck in your search. Lou.

 

welcome

 

There are MANY threads on specific subjects like side exhaust. Yes, there is a down side to them. They are LOUD and are power robbers. I have had then and am done with them others LOVE them.
I Hate the search feature of this forum because I can NEVER find what I am looking for but if I Google the subject and put corvette forum behind it it pulls up the threads that are relevant.

 

If you use the advanced search, often that works better. You can specify posts in C3, at least.

There are several flavors of sidepipes. The 69 (only!) style has standard manifolds that dump into long mufflers underneath the side shields. They are iconic, reproduced (at great expense), and not a very good system for power.

Every single stock exhaust system that ever came on a C3 is inferior to Hooker-style long-tube sidepipes (Dougs makes them, too, and other companies). They are LOUD, but can be made quiter (and less free-flowing) with various inserts. They "should" be comparable to long-tube headers fed into straight pipes. You can pay for the dyno time to make this comparison if you need to.

The best system for absolute power is tuned long-tube headers into a large diameter exhaust with an X or H pipe connection. A bonus of this style is that you can often drive your car without earplugs. But you can't drop your differential without unbolting the exhaust. So, tradeoffs.

But don't take my word for it.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5s8nr8

Full disclosure: I have Hooker sidepipes on my 80. Perhaps not my preferred choice, but they were CHEAP on Craigslist. Like, cheaper than a transmission crossmember cheap, which is the first step of any exhaust improvement for an 80.

 

definitely go look at the clapped out POS cars near you after reading the above 10 rules thread. kind of like stopping in front of a methadone clinic to see what you do NOT want n a wife! great way to see in 3d the really bad **** you need to avoid. how far from charlotte NC are you. one very good corvette guy there. corvettes and more. DUB was his name on the forum. he left us, but is still a damn good vette guy. may even know where some local cars are for sale.

 

thanks Derek, I’ll make a note, also got a place in Charleston from somewhere else in here. I’m kind of lucky as it’s like 1.5hrs to Charlotte and the same to Charleston. Atlanta traffic sucks so it’s like 3.5-4hrs at best. I’d rather hear other directions, heck even Greenville is 1.5hrs.

 

That was a great video… I suppose the side pipes are something the car doesn’t have to have… can always cross that bridge; but like the list says get the one you want Now I just have to be sure they are “good ones”

 

You are correct about this forum. These members are a wealth of info and very helpful. I’m going to attach a link to my purchase story. You and I had a lot of similarities in our respective searches. Hope this helps, because I have received a lot of help from others on this site:

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ind-my-c3.html

Best wishes. Chuck

 

Thanks Chuck, ya I’m in the right place for sure! Now I just better not see “reds fan” bidding against me on BAT - haha

 

just finished the read, thanks for sharing… and you are right, two peas in a pod

 

In reference to the SE Z you may want to search for threads in the C2 section as there are a lot more C2s with SE than C3s.

 

and a lot of us have C3's cuz we would rather have a house than a C2. sidepipes. if you have a spousal unit, no sidepipes. they will burn their leg and blame you.