What to Know About Restoring a Corvette
If you are finally ready to restore your dream Corvette, here are the things to know.
1. Find Your Dream Corvette
You might have one in mind, and it is possibly the one you wished to own as a child or have a nostalgic connection with. In order to find your dream car that is also within your budget, you will need to do your research and thanks to the Internet, that process is simplified. Keep in mind to ask questions before buying your soon-to-be restored Corvette, since it is, of course, like buying a used car.
The 1978 to '82 Corvette has been named one of the best cars to restore since these will be easy to find for less than $10,000. Of course, your dream car might be a little older than a '78-'82. Take forum member caskiguy, for example, who began rebuilding his 1970 Stingray in November of 2016 and has posted images of his process in Corvette Forum.
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2. Inspect Your Newly Bought Corvette
You will need to thoroughly inspect the Corvette you will be restoring, and don't just glimpse at the exterior and interior. Grab a flashlight and investigate the trunk, engine, dash, belts, underneath the car, tires, condition of the paint etc. You will need to know exactly what needs to be repaired so you can begin to get an idea of the cost and time it will take to complete. There are some cases when you will find a car that has been partially restored, but know that it will cost you more than buying a Corvette that needs a complete restoration.
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3. Determine Your Budget
Determining your budget is crucial to a restoration project. Not only will you need to find a budget for buying the Corvette, you will also need to factor in the actual work. This is why inspecting the car in question is important. Besides the cost of parts, and the car, you will also need to consider the professional cost if you decide to take it to a mechanic. As you begin to progress, you might find yourself going over budget. A helpful tip by Cars Direct is to add 30 percent to the final number you have calculated.
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4. Finding Parts
Are you a purist and hope to get original parts? Well, the older and more rare your dream Corvette is, the harder it will be to find the parts, and not to mention expensive. A cheaper option will be to visit salvage centers, and as usual, you have the Internet to ease in finding the parts that will make your classic a working machine once again.
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5. There are Different Types of Restoration
According to Street Directory, there are different levels to restoring your car: Driver Restoration, Street Show, Show Car, and Concours. You could read more on these here, but in short, Driver Restoration will get your car running but with little cosmetic work, while the Concours will require complete restoration work to be done by professionals, but is only meant to be shown and not driven.
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6. It Will Take Time
This isn't a weekend thing and it might take over 1,000 hours, but it all depends on much time you will focus on the project as well as the type of restoration. But besides that, you also have to consider the time it will take to track down the parts you need. So know what you are getting into and decide if you have the time, as well as dedication, beforehand. Forum member stinger12 is probably the definition of dedication. Only 18 at the time, he created a thread back in 2007 posting images of his restoration project. His hard work paid off, as his restored 1976 Corvette made it into the January edition of Corvette Magazine. For more on his journey and the positive fans, check out the thread here in Corvette Forum.
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If you wish to do some DIY maintenance and repairs on your Corvette, allow us to help you with our How-To articles available here in CorvetteForum.com!