Greetings:
I am considering buying a 81 Vette. It is a 2 tone white/silver, the 39000 miles is correct. Build date is 11/80.

I checked underneath and there is no rust on the frame, as a matter of fact the frame Has been painted black. Everything under looks new, no oil leaks at all. There are no cracks behind the cills. I could not find rust anywhere.

I know the paint is not factory, it is an 82 colour.

Two questions:

1. What is the best way to find out if it has been wrecked?
I am suspicious because the doors sag a lot

2. I was told that the c3 models almost always leak water to the inside
Is this true?
If so can it be fixed?

Thanx in advance
N

PS I think I can get it for 10k

 

"I am suspicious because the doors sag a lot"
I'd be suspicious too!
You need to post some pics to get some good help here!
Door hinge pins don't wear out in 39000mi. Odometer mileage on a 30 YO car means nothing unless the owner can document it.
Does it have an 80mph speedometer on it? That was stock and most got changed.
The underside being painted black is like putting lipstick on a pig. That would make me suspicious too. Get under it with a bright light and a screwdriver and poke around.
Better yet have it checked out at a shop. I paid $6800 for mine last Nov. from California. It was solid but needed a lot of TLC, skinned knuckles blood and sweat. 81's don't command very high prices yet. even super clean ones struggle to get past $12,500. you can drop $10K into one in a heartbeat if you can't do a lot of the work yourself. A friend bought a sweet 72 BB 4 spd for $30K and still spent another $7K on brakes, A/C work and some transmission work in the shop.

 

I didnt answer all your questioons:
1. The only way to tell if it was wrecked is to have a body shop that knows Vettes check it out. Its too old for a CarCheck report.
2. They leak because all the weatherstripping is usually petrified. Thats an easy but tedious fix.
The windsheild frame can rot out from water seepage around the glass over the years and you will have wet floors when it rains. It's almost impossible to find without removing the glass or the dash. That can be a major repair job depending on the extent of the cancer. Or just never drive it in the rain.

 

1st. Take a look at the a-arm alignment shims - is there a THICK stack of shims (or NO shims)? Especially if the shim count is vastly different side-to-side or fore-and-aft.

2nd. CAUTION CAUTION CAUTION

Feel around on the firewall just below the wiper. If you fingers come back bloody, then the car has been hit in the nose.

Because the C3 frame is narrower at the front than the sides, in a front-end crash the sides (wider part of the frame) bow out and this splits the firewall - often below the wiper. Most collision shops will straighten the frame, but the firewall damage is out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

Like the previous posters recommended: have someone that knows check it out.

 

Your correct, the white over silver was an 82 only, two-tone combination. With an 11/80 build date, the 81 your looking at could not have had a factory two-tone paint job anyway. The two-tones were only offered on cars built at Bowling Green, and Bowling Green production didn't begin until June of 81.

A wrecked car, that was repaired properly, shouldn't show any sign of repair. Unfortunately, many Corvettes that have been in accidents, haven't been fixed properly!

Poor repairs usually can be found by feeling around in the wheel wells. If a car has had fender damage, there will often a build up of bondo, or a very rough feeling surface. Bonding strips (1"-2" wide fiberglass reinforcement strips, that were glued to the back side of the factory body seams), that are missing from inside the fenders, is also a clue to damage repair.

Cars that have had nose damage, often show signs of repair in the under hood drip rail. Shops don't always finish the drip rail as well as the factory did. You'll often see signs of rivets, or rivet holes, in this area. Shops tend to use rivets to hold panels together, before gluing. Because this area isn't normally seen, they don't always bother to finish it off completely.

Body lines that don't line up, or don't have a uniform look or finish, can also indicate repairs. I'm not talking about gaps here, but instead the lines along the top of the fenders and along the body side. Rough and uneven body edges, where the front and rear bumpers attach, can also be a clue to former damage.

I can't imagine both doors sagging as the result of an accident though. I think something else must be going on. It could have worn hinge pins and/or bushings, as this is a common problem.

Is the door actually sagging when you open it, or when it's closed is the gap at the top of the door larger than at the bottom? If it's the later, it could be a body mount problem, either deteriorated cushions, or rusted out body mount(s).

"Almost always", maybe, but I've never had a water leak problem with my cars.

The main issue is water coming in around the windshield moldings. The factory put some sealant in the windshield header, behind the upper outer molding and under the header molding. With time, what little is there shrinks and deteriorates, allowing water to get in and eventually rust out the windshield header, A-pillars, cowl area and even the floors on 76-82 Corvettes (which have metal floors).

People often think that the problem is a result of the t-top weatherstrip being bad, but it is almost always from the sealant in the windshield frame.

Rust in the cowl area, could also be causing the door sag you referred to, but unless the car spent much of it's life stored outside, it doesn't seem likely for a car that is supposed to have only 39,000 miles on it.

 

Hi

Thanx for the great info.
To answer your questions:

Yes it has the original speedo in it (0 to 85mph)

The car is at my friends shop, he is a good corvette machanic.
He has'nt had time to go through it yet, but he will.

Doors:
Both doors sag, the drivers side is so bad that you can't even close it.
The starboard side the door closes, but you need to slam it.
I will go by there this Sat and check the spacing in the passenger side door.

By the way the milage is true 39k

Thanx for all your help.

N

 

Paint underneath? Sagging doors? New Paint? only 39,000 miles?

No offense, but something is definitely not right with this car.

The answer is, yes, all those things can be fixed. If you have the time and money.

80 thru 82 are the least desireable Corvettes for a number of reasons.

I paid 6,000 for mine and it was in much better shape than you describe. 10,000 is way too much. With what you are talking about and the repairs to the doors, and other issues....half that.

 

Actually you can run a Carfax on an 81 - that is the first year available. I know because I have one on mine. As you know, Carfax isnt perfect but it may help.

 

Both my doors sagged, I changed the both hinge pins and it's fine now. The drivers side would not close you had to lift up real hard on the door then close it at the same time. Problem fixed with two hinge pins, less then $20.00.

 

I have an '81 w/ 123,000 miles on it and my doors don't sag a bit. Check the frame from front to rear f/ welds that shouldn't be there and f/ straightened sections-that aren't perfect. Good Luck.

I've never had any water leaks either, anywhere, and I have T-tops. Possibly my car being garaged f/ a great majority of it's life kept the weather molding from shrinking, as I have had the car in some super heavy rainstorms a number of times.

 

Just from the description of it I wouldn't take it for free unless I could use something on my '80. Water leakage is a sure sign of decaying pillars, windshield and/or the whole bird cage. Take off a kick panel and see what it looks like in there. If it's full or rust chips then take a walk. If he vacuumed it out tap the area with light plastic hammer and see if any rust chips start to fall.

Friendly advice get the best C3 you can't afford in the first place and most of this stuff will already be fixed and you are paying a fraction of what the owner has put into it.

One more check for a solid frame that is very easy, jack the Vette up with one jack at the front jacking position and the rear tire should almost come off the ground buy the time you get the front wheel off same for the rear jacking position you should pull the front tire off the ground when the back is jacked high enough to get the rear wheel off.

Mine only has 3400 miles on the odometer.........

 

i have a 79. the gap on the top/front edge of the door is wider then on the bottom. on both doors. i was told that means the car was in a front end collision. the vette shop here said its an easy fix but... i had rust around the windshield frame. the worst was on the drivers side lower corner where it rusted thru and let water in that ran down the inside of the fire wall and rusted wired on the back side of the fuse panel.

 

Okay. You are entitled to your opinion, but you are somewhat misinformed. There is absolutely nothing undesirable about my 80 L-82.

 

i agree with your Mike. i love the aggresive nose of the 80 vette.

 

Ditto here, Mike.

 

I love my 81 as well.

Unfortunately, they will never command the same money as any other year in equal shape.

Sigh

 

80 thru 82 are the least desireable Corvettes for a number of reasons.


Please enlighten me, because I have heard this crap and never heard a good answer only opinions.....please tell me those illusive reasons since they are not pulling any less money than most others right now...

 

For some unknown reason I don't think your going to get a very legit answer

 

You should get the hot rod you want .... for what ever reason .... I got an 82 cause I really like the lines on the 80-82 .... and wanted to challenge the CFI thing .... and am not sorry ...... I know we may have made a little more power with an 80 or 81 (non CFI) ... but I love the way our Crossfire is coming together ......

 

I agree 1000% I paid good money for my 81 which had 10,600 original miles, but it was worth it.

I am doing a resto on it at the moment, and the great thing is I don't have to replace any parts, just freshen the originals up. I've been through every part on that car, and there were only a few that were replaced over the years.