I just test drove a frame off restored 68 L68. Dealer is second owner since restoration in mid-2011. Car has been in his collection for a year +. Has 300 miles on rebuilt engine/restoration. Problem is, there was a little smoke and some burnt oil odor on the test drive. Im not saying there are billowing clouds of blue smoke. A few puffs. Dealer says its because its been sitting for a year. Test drive was about 25 minutes. Dealer has no documentation of the rebuild but the engine looks like new. Restoration was done by ManTown in Maine. Engine is numbers matching. Gaskets that can be seen look new. Is a little smoke normal? Does the engine need more steady running to get everything seated? Is this a reason not to get the car?

I have a '91 with 17,000 miles so I'm not used to 1968 vintage emissions. Any advice is appreciated.

 

My '69 smoked when I bought it in '04. After rebuild in '09, it has not smoked. A rebuilt engine, if properly (and completely) rebuilt and broke-in on an engine dyno, should not smoke or use any oil.

 

The engine in my avatar car sat for the better part of a year. After charging the battery, snugging up the carb bolts, and spinning it w/o the coil wire until I had good oil pressure it lit up right away. I ran it long enough to get fully warmed up and had no smoke, oil smell, or any other problems. The only thing on that Vette engine I can think of that might have gotten brittle while sitting is the valve seals. Replacing those can be a DIY project with some decent skills and the right tools. However, I'd spend the $$$ and use a pro to evaluate the entire car, including the engine, before I felt comfortable buying it. The fact that there's no documentation on the engine build makes you vulnerable to what the dealer chooses to tell you....not that a dealer would ever misrepresent anything.

 

Thanks gentlemen. It's great to get independent advice because I'm already in love with the car and its hard to separate passion from logic. If it needs a rebuild...can either of you ballpark the cost?

Again...thank you very much for the advice.

 

It may just need valve seals guide job on the heads. Need to check it out and see if oil is actually getting by the rings or it just needs a top end refresh.

Smell can be rich carb symptom and bad /no emissions canister .

Its probally all right , just needs a few things rebuilt or replaced.

nothing is cheap to do to a corvette ...you do know that or easy

 

call the people who did the work and ask them what was done, they should remember the car.

 

That would worry me. If I was selling a high dollar corvette, and all it needed was some run time to clear up the smell and smoke, I'd sure as hell give it that run time before trying to sell it. Sitting for a yr isn't that long either. Like those guys that try to sell a car with a dull finish and say it shines up real good, if it did, they sure as hell would have waxed it.lol

 

Scott, don't let your passion for the car get in the way of seeing this as a business transaction. If the engine work was done shortly before the dealer bought the car, you can bet that they got the paperwork on the rebuild. If they can't produce documentation for you to review, something is not right with that picture. There's no way for us to give you a firm cost for a rebuild, if you ended up having to do that, without knowing the condition of the internals. Then there's the issue of finding a reputable shop to do it right. Used cars are always a roll of the dice but the lack of evidence to support their claims would really concern me here. They clearly know who they bought the car from, so I wonder what they'd say if you asked to verify their claims via the prior owner. That could be very telling.

 

Hey Scott, I have a L68, and to be honest , you may be mistaking the puff of smoke for a rich tri power carb. ( assuming its got the tri power set up still)

These are known for out of tune problems, and if its been sitting for a while , even more likely to have a dripping secondary carb.

The adjustment of the secondary carb return linkages are incredibly important that they be seating perfectly, or they will drip.
Also, I find having 3 needles also makes for good fun if you have any particles in your fuel system anywhere.

Hope this helps. marty.

 

depends what rings were used in the rebuild, and depends what type of oil is in the pan.

Chrome rings typically require 500 miles to break in and seat, hence puffs of smoke...Moly rings break in upon first start with no puffs.

If synthetic oil was used then, the break in will take almost forever, regardless what rings are in the motor....

 

STATUS UPDATE....thank you all for your valuable feedback. I found an NCRS judge nearby that owns a corvette restoration shop. I just dropped by his shop one morning and he stopped what he was doing and sat down with me and looked at the pictures of the car. He said basically the same things you folks have said. A complete and accurate engine rebuild can cost upwards of $8,000. It's unlikely that a rebuild of that magnitude would be left out of the cars restoration notebook when the restorer included receipts for everything from hose clamps to sand paper. He also said that the smoke could be a result of not running the car enough to get it broke in or the seals have dried out and possibly need replaced again or the carbs need adjusted. The tri-power is in place by the way. He also said that the majority of big block cars that are being passed off as matching numbers these days are in fact restamps. A skilled judge may be able to tell if the car is authentic by looking at the stamping and evaluating the whole car to see if it all adds up to authentic. I tried twice to call the restorer, Man Town in Maine?,but got no answer. I sent them a message on their website and no answer. Out of business?

I called the dealer and told him what I had learned and that it just made me too nervous to put out the kind of cash he wanted for the car with no real documentation of the authenticity or of the rebuild. He said that he bought the car at auction a little over a year ago and really had no more information. I feel the price is very reasonable for a real big block car but way to high for a clone. I asked him to get the car credentialed by an independent party and then sort out the smoking issue. After that call me and I'll pay him cash for the car. He really appreciated the input. I don't know what he'll do. I fell in love with the beauty and the power of this beast and he loved it just as much as I did. I'm sure we both looked goofy driving around with these huge grins on our faces. He may just keep it for himself. If I were in his position, I would. Of course my risk is he'll figure out the car is worth more than he's asking and he'll price it out of my range. A chance I'm willing to take.

Thanks again folks. If I end up with the car...I'll let you know.

 

Offer him a price assuming the motor may need to be gone through.
For all he knows that thing could have never been cracked open, merely painted and gaskets to sell it that is unfortunately very very common and people pass off a car as restored.

 

Scott
You have to get real here. This car has at least 2 strikes, if not 3 strikes, against it. If the car was recently rebuilt, the seller would have provided documentation. If the car was such a good deal, it would not have gone to auction. Third and foremost, this dealer bought it for one helluva lot less than he is willing to sell it to you for. If it is real and such a good deal...somebody else would have bought it over the past year.

 

Thanks for the reality check Faster Rat. I'm going to continue my search for the right car. I set to buy a 69 350/350 not a 68 427 cuz I knew BBs were too pricey. This experience has been priceless. I've learned a heck of alot about these cars this week. Thanks again and I'll keep you posted.

 

Where is Englewood?

 

Englewood is a suburb North of Dayton Ohio.

 

If the distance would have been a little bit closer, I would have driven down and looked the car over with you...

 

I tried offering him a lower price that would give me some room for possible engine work but he rejected it. I tracked down what he paid for it at auction and added the buyers premium. He certainly has room to come down but didn't want to. This car just seems to have too many questions surrounding it with not enough answers. I think there are better opportunities out there.

 

GDaina...Thanks for the offer to look over the car with me. If something else comes up that I have quesitons about, I'll definitely let you know and see if we can get together somewhere. I'm learning a lot from you guys.

 

Why don't you get the NCRS guy you talked with to check out the car with you?