I am not very familiar with Corvettes but I have always wanted one. A friend of mine has offered to sell me a 1972 Stingray with a 350 and auto. The car needs a ton of work. Probably ground up restoration needs to be done. I was hoping someone would respond to me and tell me what to look for and what it's worth as it sits and what it will cost me to get it running and looking good. Also the manufacture date is 12/72 does that mean it is a true 1972 because I know the year is important. I would appreciate any response.

Joe

 

you want the c3 section. Also, include the asking price, mileage, ect.


good luck.

 

Frankly a born on date of 12/72 sounds more like a '73 to me. You can tell easily though if it has a metal front bumper or a plastic one. The plastic is '73 or newer. And yeah, this should be moved to the C3 section. Good luck! :blueangel:

 

The front bumper is definitely metal but is rusted pretty bad and it is black, seems like it was sprayed black. The back bumper is chrome. How do I check the numbers on the engine.

Joe

 

As tempting as the price may seem you'd be much better off spending money up front in the purchase of the best car you can afford. What you are describing sounds like a nightmare. You'll be dropping thousands of dollars into the car just to get it drivable. Unless you are extremely talented with tools and have a good working knowledge of auto restoration run away from the car and save yourself a ton of money and stress. It ain't worth it.

 

I agree with "Midget", sounds like more than you would want to chew, unless you are a mechanic with a full set of tools. The thing that I also find puzzling is your reference to a December '72 build date. While I do not have my reference manual in front of me, I recall that July '72 or early August '72 was the last of the 72 production year. Either you are reading the trim tag and/or the GM blue label on the inside the Drvire's side door wrong or the car you are looking at has been altered.

 

No question it has been SEVERELY altered :yesnod:

 

RUN AWAY FROM IT!

 

Look at the driver's windshield pillar and read the VIN sequence there. A 72 VIN will start with 1Z37L2S5XXXXXX. The second character will be a 3 for a coupe and a 6 for a convertible. The fifth character will be L, W, or K depending on which engine. The sixth character is the year. Unless that was change out, it will tell you what year the car is. If you have read the sticker on the driver's door jamb correctly, this is a 73. :crazy:

Since you didn't give enough of a detailed description, telling you what it is worth and what it needs to get running is almost impossible. My wild guess is $4000 for paint and minimal body work, $2000 for an engine rebuild, $1000 for an interior kit, another $2000 for various component rebuilds and replacement (brakes, fuel system, etc). All of this assumes that the frame is good, there isn't any rust visible on either side of the windshield frame, and that the majority of the components more or less work. Just a WAG here though and again, that is with you doing a lot of the work.

Others have posted opinions, but here is mine anyway. If it "needs a ton of work. Probably ground up restoration needs to be done." then you had better get this for a song, and be very good wity tools, rebuilding, body work, paint work, interior work, etc. Base engine cars with autos don't command the price of optional engines, four speed transmissions, and convertibles. Make your decision wisely, since there are a lot of Corvettes out there that have been restored over and above what they are worth. I know, because I did this with a 66. Paid too much but fortunately I did every bit of work and managed to recoup my expenses.

Gary

 

Joe,
Check out our homepage link in my signature. My son and I are rebuilding a 72 (he'll be 15 in January). We sold the dirt bikes and bought the vette from our neighbor for $2500 the same weekend. It was wrecked and had sat for 4 years and needs a lot of work, but a great project. We're not restoring (can't afford to), just repairing as a daily driver for him. Yeah, I'm a pretty cool Dad.

We'll probably end up with about $10-12K in it. For the NCRA purists, it won't be original, it doesn't even have matching numbers. But we're saving it from the boneyard, and its still one very cool car.

 

That is one sweet looking progress! I am impressed and jealous! That is lots of work and I am sure your son and you are growing a great apprecaition of each other :chevy