Bought this 1974 Stingray a few days ago. Was told engine and trans were rebuilt, both with only 50 miles on them. I’m not offended to admit I am not the most knowledgeable on these cars. I’m 25, love the look, and made enough this year to go out and make a purchase. Tell me about what I’ve got, the goods/bads. Did I pay a fair price? $10k at a small mom and pop dealer. New radiator, tires, rebuilt engine with a cam, rebuilt trans. Pictures added. Cons: Headlights don’t pop up, vacuum leak to headlights causing it. Small oil leak. Small power steering leak. Intense gas smell after cold start when started in the garage (with door open obviously). Fuel gauge doesn’t work. RPM gauge doesn’t work. Power windows work, slow going up. Heat from under the dash in the footwell when driving a long ways on the highway.

 

I bought my 76 a little over a year ago and it had the same power steering issues as yours. I replaced the hoses and rebuilt the pump, valve, and cylinder. Parts are readily available. Messy job. Be sure and research how to balance the valve when done.

 

Welcome to the Forum! You'll have fun learning about your car!

Regarding the tachometer not working - I'm not positive about 1974 models, but I believe they used a distributor unique to Corvettes that had a drive unit that used a cable to 'spin' the tach, much like the transmission has a cable that spins the speedometer. The distributor in your car looks to be an aftermarket HEI distributor that may or may not have the drive unit. Regardless of that, I think I see the end of your tach drive cable laying below your brake power booster. If so, and it can be connected to the distributor, you may be in business. Otherwise, you'll need a Corvette-specific tach drive distributor. Good luck, and enjoy!

 

Welcome to the Forum and good luck with the car.

 

Nice car and Welcome to the C.F.

 

Welcome to the forum! Beautiful ‘74 with some custom touches. Some that stand out to me are the ‘78 pace car front and rear spoiler with the bumpers glassed in, those wire spoke wheels, and that collection of stainless braided line all over the engine bay (each one adds 5 horsepower btw)

With the amount of leaks and the overall look of the engine bay it’s very hard to believe it only has 50 miles on it. Do you have documentation of when the rebuild was done and what parts were used? You appear to have an HEI distributor, which would explain why your tach isn’t working. Like what was said above, ‘74s came with a distributor that had a cable that spins the tachometer.

If the frame is solid and the engine runs well I’d say you got fair market value for it. The only other glaring thing is that fuel line in the picture. There should already be a filter in the carburetor, so the inline one is unnecessary, and the whole thing being made out of rubber is just asking to melt and catch on fire. I would be on the lookout for an OEM metal one to replace it.

 

Congrats and welcome to the C3 world! Oil leaks are a thing with vintage cars, I just live with it, however a gasket on the oil drain plug may solve that. The body had been modified and aftermarket seats added, that tends to reduce values but if it runs great, at $10K, I'd be happy.

Have fun!

 

Those look like '79-'82 seats to me, not aftermarket...

Congrats & Enjoy!...

 

Some more things of note in the engine bay.

A Quadrajet is the name of the original 4 barrel carburetor for your car. Great running carbs when set up correctly, and much better than almost anything you can buy new today.



While this is a Quadrajet. It’s one from the 80’s as shown by its torx bit screws and by its 1975 and later “M4M” design. That wouldn’t be the end of the world, but based on the sticker on the back of the carb body you can tell it’s been commercially rebuilt. You can do your own research here on the forum about these kinds of carbs, but the short of it is that it has completely different jetting settings than what’s ideal for the car, and likely has multiple setup issues that prevent it from running correctly. Another thing to note is the unplugged float bowl vent on the front. This would explain your fuel smell.

The PCV valve vacuum line is going somewhere behind the engine. It should be going to a vacuum nipple on the carb (not the bowl vent I just mentioned.)

Furthermore your radiator fan is the “flex fan” type. People install them thinking it will gain them more power over a stock clutch setup, when in reality they actually reduce power and can come apart at high speeds in a spectacular fashion. Your best bet would be to find an original metal fan/clutch setup or converting to electric to actually gain power.

Lastly, it looks like you have an aftermarket aluminum radiator, which is an upgrade over the factory copper one, but you’re missing an expansion tank. Being in Texas you’ll want that sooner than later.

 

Welcome and enjoy your new ride. I like the color combination. If I stumble across grey interior mine is getting changed!

 

Your new to you Stingray looks beautiful!

You are missing two of the four springs that go on the headlight assemblies.



How to troubleshoot headlight problems:

https://www.corvette-101.com/vacuum.htm

 

Also, remove the plastic fuel filter, could melt from engine heat, then you have a fire on your hands.

 

FYI: As stated you bought it from a dealership, I'd be returning ASAP & asking to have these major items of concern fixed. Curious why you didn't check it out in detail especially the headlights before taking delivery ?

HEADLIGHTS MUST WORK, not sure what state you live in but that's a MUST WORK / FUNCTION SAFETY VIOLATION & will not pass inspection in New York where I live, so i'm a bit uncertain how they can legally sell you a car that fails a safety inspection from day 1 ??? Shame on the dealership for selling a car in this condition & shame on you for nor doing your due diligence. ( LSSON LEARNED ) ??? ( father in me )

BTW: Welcome to the forum & "CLUB C3" where you & your wallet will soon be separated ..........ENJOY your new ride / hope it all works out for ya !!!

 

I agree, the dealer should have fixed the headlights but good luck thinking they will do it now.
Most '74 models are exempt from needing an inspection (for me in NC). I don't need to have my car inspected, but your dealer should have a new one done before the sale.

The seals in the actuators often need to be replaced.
Here's what they are:



Post your year and location.

 

Our inspection in NC doesn’t amount to much, check headlights, brake lights, and turn signals, that’s it-$13.68. My 76 is exempt as well, but why wouldn’t the state want to make sure my lights work as well? That’s the gubermint for ya.

 

OP did not say his lights don't work, only that they won't pop up. You can manually raise them.
Here is a vid for replacing the seals Peterbuilt posted, if you find that is your problem. jump to the 3 min mark.

 

Well mentioned video. That youtuber (Problem Solvers Garage) has many vids that you will find useful (along with this forums helpful folks) as you go. His series is all about his older model (offhand, I think his was a ‘69) but many of the systems/components he covers were either the same or very similar to your year. Watch the above vid and scroll through his other C3 vids. I’ve watched most of them 2-3 times. While he is more of a make what you have work (with minimal new parts being bought), there is another youtuber who has excellent vids where he buys/replaces most everything new (also very detailed with good camera work, his is a ‘71). His username/channel goes by the name “The Driveway”. Other good ones are Rat Farm, Corvette Ben, C&S Corvette… forget some of the others, but those are enough where (if you are like me) you can learn and get inspired for hours and hours.

 

AFTER ALL THAT WORK:
No chance i'm putting those nasty, rusty, shitty looking actuators back in. Either sand, detail & paint or replace with new !! MAKES ZERO SENSE

 

He has the hood off. When I did mine (78) I removed the hood support and was able to move the hood forward a couple of inches. Made it easier to remove the actuator reducing the possibility of scratching the paint..

 

Correct, they do work. They just do not go up and down on their own. I can manually get them up. They are functioning headlights. Along with turn signals, break lights, etc. Thanks for pointing that out.