Bfail

I am back on the vette market and looked at a 73 today. I would say the body and interior of the car is relatively clean (nothing special but nothing damaged). Amateur paint job, but it is pretty nice paint.

The engine has a problem. Seems that a rod is bent on the right side of the engine. I think there was a major oil leak, car was ran without oil and the rod bent.

I assume I would need a new rod, cylinder head, someone to machine the block, seals, etc...basically a rebuild.

What am I looking at paying for a professional rebuild? Another option is a new crate motor, but I am thinking I would like all original, but at the same time the reliability of a new engine would be nice.

Any thoughts if this is smart for a first "stingray" purchase?

Thanks a bunch for any info.

-Bryan

Duane4238

If the price is right, I'd pull the original engine and install a crate engine. Then somewhere down the road when you have the time and some more money, you can have the original rebuilt or do it yourself. Good luck!
Duane

Bfail

Thinking about offering 9k, more than likely we would settle around 10k. I think for the condition, that is a pretty fair price.

Mike Ward

Coupe, convertible? Big block, L48, L82? Auto, manual, A/C?

Give us a clue.

Bfail

Coupe, L82, Auto, No air coming through vents. White diamond paint, no major scratches, no chips or cracking on the front bumper, tan leather, straight interior, no cracks in dash, wire wheels, solid bfg tires, new gas tank, new exhaust.

Mike Ward

Maybe $7K max. Needs an engine, needs (better) paint. This assumes it's got a solid frame and birdcage.

CaseyJones

Bfail

Thanks for the input guys. He said a couple people had offered him 6k and basically laughed at them. Maybe 1-2k more would get him to bite .

garygnu

you could remove the engine and have a engine builder check the long block to see what is wrong with the motor .if the block is good you then could buy a 383 rotating assembly and put some aluminum heads on it .on another thread some one else saw a 383 sbc on ebay for under $3500,looked like a good deal.

lagnaf

I too have a '73... vert. Upon buying it, I promptly pulled out the motor (original) and replaced it with a stroker. Let's face it ... by 1973, horsepower numbers dropped significantly. The motor is a dog. That said, I do still have my original numbers-matching engine. I also have a motor that's pulling about 425 horses under the hood and I'm having my fun.

I'd totally recommend changing it out. IMHO.

donnie1956

Seems kind of steep for a non running car. Here is one you could drive home. http://dallas.craigslist.org/sdf/cto/3656506824.html

Bfail

@Donnie. The one I am looking at is in better condition than that 73 (atleast the interior/exterior, plus yellow is a no go.)

Having the car inspected tomorrow. From what I can tell, everything is pretty clean for a 73, other than that motor issue. Called a shop in town, which I was quoted @ $2800 for a rebuild.

I have the guy down to 9.2k right now. I might be able to squeeze him down to $8.7k after the inspection.

Bfail

@Lagnaf....I was looking into the Yearone 350 crate @400+hp/400+torq. Not sure if I trust myself with that much power and no traction control. Other than my c5, I don't have much experience with pure muscle cars and their limited technology.

7T1vette

The market on vintage cars is pretty well "in the tank" right now. So, you have these folks who have had a C3 for several years and now want to sell them. A '73 is a bit more desirable than a '74-77, IMO; but not enough to justify that kind of money for a car with a 'bad' engine.

If the paint is in really good condition and you don't mind it being painted a non-standard color, it might be worth $7K with a damaged engine. Personally, with all the cars wanting to be sold right now, I wouldn't bother with a car like that. Repairing the existing engine is iffy, if it's been run dry; so you're talking about paying $3K for a crate engine and at least another $1K to swap it out. By then, you've got $14K into a $9K car. Why?

I respect that the owner likes his car. He just thinks its worth a lot more than it really is.

Bfail

Well, I made the guy an offer at 8.5 and he didn't take it....so I backed out.

Big thanks for all the advice, as I probably would have overspent into the 9-10k range. This is why this board is so great! Now, if anyone wants to sell me a 72 or 73 hit me up