goodluck on whatever you deceide to do

 

PLEASE..........would someone check my Corvette photos. My c4 vert was 10 times worse than this car is. My opinion is do what feels right. I am so tired of hearing that a wrecked car will never be 100% again. The car is only as good as the person fixing it. If this were true we would junk all cars once they were wrecked. I am an ex body man until I started my own business. I have built many rods from ground up. Including my 32 5 window coupe. I build my own frames bodies.....etc...I am not saying that I am the best, but a car (including mine) can be better after it was wrecked than some new cars rolling off the assembly line.Dealerships that I worked with would fix cars that weren't 100% delivered from manufactures. I have seen cars with 1 mile come in and receive $1200 worth of body work and they would still be sold as new. Please check my photos, the paint and body on my car weren't that nice when she was sold in 93...My car looks better after I fixed it from my accident

 

Ok I am going to give you some advice. This is coming from someone who has rebuilt an 86(totalled), 79 (rough), 96 camaro(totalled), and currently rebuilding a 90(burned car). I have pretty good knowledge as far as do-it-yourselfers go. I do all my own body work, paint, mechanical ect. Only thing I can not do is machine work or "bad" off frame work.

So having said that even knowing how to do all these by myself, I would not buy that car. You keep saying that you want it because it is an LT4 & 6-speed, but it really isn't, it isn't anything. The LT4 is the motor designation, of which it has none. Have you priced an LT4 lately, or better yet can you find one. A motor alone will cost you more than that car. And if you are having problems affording that car, then how are you going to buy the motor if it costs more or the trans which will cost you close to the same? So after you have bought these 2 things, get them shipped to you, you are out $6K. And you haven't even started the body, which unless you know how to paint a good paint job will run you $3K easy, or if you get a "friend" to do it, maybe $1000, but any less and I garauntee the work will be crappy. I just spent $600 in paint alone, just paint, to do my project car.

My basic rules for buying a builder is:

1. Must have motor and trans
2. Must get it cheaper than I can part it out in within 1 month (ebay is a good place to judge this)
3. Must get all parts AND MATERIALS prices and they must not total over the trade-in value of the car (thats just if you want to break even)
4. No major frame damage or roll-overs

I've been around this kind of stuff for more than 10 years now and thats more project than a novice needs to start with IMO.

 

Yes but yours had a motor and trans to start with, which is the big draw-back for him. That and the fact that I bet he doesn't know how to paint.

 

I agree about the motor and tranny

 

I do agree, but i think that these numbers are way to high, i mean i can get a lt1 with trans for about 1000-1,500, and you can get a paint job (which I dont even care about at all) for paint cost if my buddy does it. just the frame and braces and body parts is what is going to cost more money but i dont think all together it will cost me over 4k for everything counting labor. Its a 18-21k car with a clean title. It being wrecked will reduce it to about 12-15k if it is fixed the right way. I am not doing this to be a show car just a nice vette that runs good i dont care if it has a carb on it to be honest

 

Sounds like you have already made up your mind.

I'm with the rest of the 'you gotta be kidding' brigade. This is too much money and too much work for even a professional to take on - better off finding a complete car and then doing the rebuild. If this was a 53 then it would be worth doing - on a C4? - not for another 20 years.

 

Ya but its 2k, for the car. Thats it I can sell parts off of it for that if i had to. But with an 350 engine and trans 1k, body parts 1500 tops through salvage, small things like brackets and bolts and steering wheel, windsheild, and exhaust, and head lights if needed 1200. paint 600 that is not a bad idea it will just take time. It could be a 12-15k car when done and putting 5k in it all together is not a bad idea

 

I'd part it out and make at least $4k or more. Sad to see a nice LT4 Vette go in pieces.

Use that money towards the purchase of a running C4 or better yet, just some extra cash on hand.

 

There was a guy yesterday in General talking about his $3500 vette that he just DROVE back from texas. It needed paint but looked pretty good overall. You can get a "rough" running Vette for $4k look more and take the advice you are getting.You will not be happy with a hunk of metal sitting for as long as it will take you to fix this car.You will be even less happy with the cost reguardless of how many corners you cut.A good engine and tranny on ebay will cost around $4k,Frame work another $1-$2k, Paint $2k minumum, Misc parts that are ruined but you don't know yet another $2k. I paid $7200 for mine and it runs great and even looks good do the math.

 

First you say you're not worried about the little stuff. Now you say it could be worth 12-15K. I don't think you're being honest with yourself. And anybody that knows this car was rebuilt will not give even $10K for it after you get it running w/o an LT4.
I'd listen to what these guys are saying and pass on it. I don't think anyone has said "yeah, good idea, go for it"

 

your energy is impressive but i think it is mis-directed. the engine, tranny and hood probably can be found for around 3500. but this isn't going to be the problem, the problem i think is going to be the little things. how many little things are there on a vette? how many zero's in bazillion? the little things will have you pulling teeth. jusy my .02

 

That LT1 and trans may go for more than 1k and they had more than 100,000 miles on it. A cherry low mileage LT4 car might be worth 18K, however, a beater with a mismatched LT1, w/o airbags, non factory paint and a bunch of other half-baked systems is not going to be worth near that.

How is the front suspension? What are you going to do for an ECM; will a 1993 LT1 run with the OBD II ECM?
As others have stated building a basket case is difficult, however, building one that is incomplete becomes difficult and expensive. Take the price of every thing you want to do and double it. I bet that when you double your estimates and actually do the work the estimate will be LOW.

I know how it feels to want a car badly. If you need to buy it buy it however, don't buy it thinking you'll save money and don't think that it will be worth more than 10K in the next decade or two.

Mike

 

you can always fix it and retittle it, if you get the corect papaers, the salvage tittle dissappears....mine had a slavage title (theft), I retittled it in Md (got it from VA) and its gone....haha

 

Yes, the title can get fixed but what does CARFAX say about your car? Even with a clean carfax and title without the LT4, new airbags, and a bunch of expensive little things it will be a beater. Right now beater C4s are inexpensive.

 

At the risk of piling on, I agree with the rest. This car isn't a 1996 LT4 6spd, it's 2/3 of a shell of a 1996 LT4 6spd. Don't know how old you are, I'm 48. When I was in my late teens and early twenties I saw big potential in every POS factory hot rod I saw rusting in some barn yard some where. Seems like a waste, and it is, but most of the time cars like this are just good for two things, parting out or drag racing. For a project like this to make any sense at all the car has to at least be complete. No engine, no tranny, no chance of coming out ok. Years ago it became obvious to me that it's cheeper to buy a car that's already done. A decent looking high miler c-4 can be had for $6k or maybe even less. If the object of the game is to be tooling down the road in a vette as fast and cheep as possible, buy one that's all there and running. That, or save your money for a while till you can afford to buy what you want. This wreck would just be a money pit. jmo

 

There really is NO additional advice anyone can give you. Ive read these posts and they are certainly correct, in every aspect, and from many years of experience. I could only say the same, at my age, and my experience, this would be a huge project, in every way............. believe it or not..............................obvious ly the choice is yours

 

 

 

, I don't want to discourage you-but I'd definetly pass. Air bags deployed-major expense-frame damage etc. I think you'd even come out ahead just finding one and financing the purchase. It's shocking when you find out what some of the parts cost-even salvaged ones-and God forbid if you have to pay any shipping charges.