I have the convience of 2 cars, but I only want one. Keeping up, and gassing 2 cars is twice as expencive as one(go figure right). :jester Not to mention selling the second car will sure help pay for school.

Of the two I have, I want to keep the vette. The other is history ASAP. I actually want to do this by April if possible. So i have 4 months to cover any last minute "reliability" issues.

Right now Im solving the radiator rust problem, as well as making the engine area pretty. After that, the car will be pretty much done. Unless I decide to go for uneeded things like a suspension rebuild. I know I should do the suspension rebuild, but I think it will last long enough for me to graduate from school.

If I go straight from the engine detail to suspension rebuild, I think I can do it by march, but in february It has to spend a week or two at the paint shop getting touched up, so I'll have to probably do the front suspension, then take it to the shop, then do the rear suspension.

Is there anything Im forgetting? Should I skip a suspension rebuild? As I said, I know it will make it for me to graduate and get a job(a new car).

Daniel

 

Throw a stack of good CDs in it and start driving!

Lars in Denver
'85 Coupe daily driven 110 miles/day
200,000 miles - no problem

 

should I go through the money and time for a suspension rebuild? thats my main question....the $600-$700 it'd cost me to do it, will go a long way for school stuff....so thats where the issue comes in.

Daniel

 

Just a little random feedback:

I guess I would have the brakes checked. How's the alignment? Tires can get expensive.

If you do the suspension and you have power steering, scrutiize the power steering system. The control valves often leak.

Good luck and may the shopping carts be terrified of your DD vette : )

-Rick

 

brakes where just done a few months ago...I was trying to fix them myself and got pissed off at them and finally took it to a shop. :jester $350 later, they work like new. :eek:

EDIT: I just buttoned up the power steering about 2 weeks ago...I "exploded" a hose so I figured it was a good time to do all that mess...

Daniel


[Modified by daniel77350, 3:27 AM 1/3/2002]

 

Tough question. On one hand you want to save little money to unexpected repairs; on the other you want to prevent expensive repairs down the road. It's a tough call with suspension parts.

However, if the rubber is really worn out and cracking to the point of being non-functional then, it doesn't look like you have a choice. :eek:

Oh, make sure you have collision coverage on your insurance! If you have glass T-Tops, glass breakage would be a good idea too.

-Rexx

 

I've got full coverage.

Hopefully some people who have done a suspension rebuild will chime in on weather or not its a good call...If I do it, I'll end up doing the rear bearings too, and thats costly...May have to look at used books if I go that way.

and if I go with the rebuild, I'll have to go without a decent radio for a few years probably. Im soon to become a poor college student, so I need to do what I can while I can, that will give me the most comfort for the next 4 or so years.

Daniel


[Modified by daniel77350, 3:34 AM 1/3/2002]

 

ttt

 

Daniel,

Preventative maintenance for a driver, and restoration are two entirely different animals. My advise to you would be end your current projects and save your bucks. Wait until something absolutely must be fixed and then fix it. If you play the fix it now because it will need it in the future game you might as well start a frame off restoration. Drive your vette, sell the other car, and set some cash aside for repairs. You are gonna need them and usually when you least expect or want it. OH and invest in UHAUL stock cause your C3 aint gonna move you to and from school. :seeya

 

Hi Dan,
You can use a C3 as an everyday car as long as it's in good shape. I used my 67 coupe, 69 vert, and 72 coupe all as drivers when I first bought them. The 69 I used every day even through snow storms!
It sounds like you have a good head on your shoulders, I've seen some of your other posts.
I would get the car up in the air and give it good look over. Check the rear for play in the wheels and suspension parts, brake lines and hoses,spare tire, exhaust, hows the tranny,does it need an oil PM?,you went through the brakes and PS systems so that's a good start, get the cooling system set, the front suspension you can check the wheel play but if you just had the brakes done then the front bearings were probably greased and adjusted?
One thing I had a problem with everyday or week was the lock/outside handles binding. I removed the latch assembly and cleaned it with carb cleaner and greased with white grease to solve that problem. You don't want to get locked out of your car at school! Follow oil changes and checks and don't beat it too much :cool: and you should be ok. How many miles have you got on it?
Good luck,
Gary

 

Daniel:
I'm no expert by any stretch.. but a few easy, inexpensive things can be replaced in your suspension. Swaybar links & bushings, rear spring links & bushings, shocks, stabilizer bushings, can make a big difference in helping the rest of your suspension last... untill you can get to the harder and more expensive stuff. I am in the process of doing this now....impatiently waiting for the big brown truck!! Hope this helps :cheers: :cheers:

 

The first year of driving my 77 the mian problems i had were brakes and rubber. The heat dried everything out. the rear was ok, but i had to replace the front bushings.If it was me i'd have the suspension checked, and if everything is sound don't worry about it. Since you've already taken care of the brakes and steering you're all set. Just put something aside fo those little emergency repairs.
If you shop right you can do pretty good stereo for about $300. Not the killer boom system, but I couldn't bear to do a road trip without the stack of cd's Lars mentioned.

 

well my daily driver has a $300 CD deck that I got for my birthday a few years ago, as well as some brand new 5 1/4" speakers in the back. I plan to remove the deck and speakers and put in the stock crap stuff before I sell the car. The CD player will go in the vette but I'm going to need to cut the dash. And the 5 1/4" speakers will go in the back. Then all I'll need to replace are the dash speakers(I can put some in the kick panels). And maybe I'll search ebay for an amp and a 10inch or something, just for sound quality. Im not a thug. :jester

Daniel

 

My 2¢ is to spend the money on a good alarm system with a pager, so if your vette is in trouble it can page you. That, and what lars said. :)

 

You need to wreck it a couple of times first so you don't feel bad when some old lady lets her shopping cart bash into the side of it. Or the old man that's legally blind try to parallel park and I watched him hit and smash nose and the license plate three times. Before I could run across the street and start beating on his window to stop! :mad


[Modified by gkull, 9:18 AM 1/4/2002]

 

Daniel,

What is the condition, milage of the engine and trans. I would be more concerned about them. Unless suspension is real bad I would save my money for unexpected repairs.

 

I agree with Lars (as I daily drive my '69)...

1) Insert key.
2) Turn.
3) Press gas pedal.

 

Rainman69, you forgot to add carry a big stick for door ding bone heads :lol:

 

the car has about 69,000 miles on it, and the engine/trans about 5,000...

however there is bad news on the dan-front( :jester ). My parents are pressuring me to get something "more reliable and something I won't mind as much if someone dings it". :sad:

The vette goes in the body shop in february, so I told them to at least think about it until then. I go off to college in the fall, and they also want me to get something I would feel comfortable taking with me. This is to charlotte NC, this place is supposidly bad news, and I dunno how I'd trust my vette sitting outside while I run in the laundry mat. I have a lot of thinking to do.

I may be vetteless by march. :cry :cry :cry :cry I would defy my parent's, but you have to realize, they are paying the insurance on my cars, paying tuition, buying books, giving me a place to live, possibly paying rent in an appartment(dorm) when I go off to college, and so on and so on. If I make them mad, they could drop any of the things listed above, and I'd be screwed and have to sell the vette to compensate anyway.

They are also expecting me to help in tuition when I go to college. And I guess the saying "You have to make sacrafices to fallow your dream" applies here. On the semi-bright side, If I do sell, I'll buy another C3 the day I graduate college as a present to me. There will always be a place in my heart for corvettes, expecally c3's.

Its not official yet, im still trying to talk to them, but Im powerless. They are, afterall, my parents.

Daniel :cry
PS. Im going to keep going on for now as-if Im keeping it forever, but I will let you guys know as things progress.


[Modified by daniel77350, 7:09 AM 1/4/2002]