Question from the new guy

[jcreme]

How much does it cost to restore a C3?

Now I've restored a few cars before, so I know that it's just about any range, so let me give a few perameters:

With a 69-72, let's assume I find a car that has complete trim, interior, etc; but besides that the car's in poor shape. Rusty, needs an engine and trans rebuild. Let's say the interior's crap but all there. I want a respectible car, but I'm not trying to win concours correct overall and I also intend to do all of the work myself.

Is $5k reasonable? $10k? $15k?

Is it hard to find a corvette that's complete?

Thanks in advance

Justin

 

[Yoda]

Justin,
I would venture a guess.. Not counting the purchase price of the car, not repainting but doing the engine, trans, suspension, interior, and tires..and doing the bulk of the work yourself.. somewhere in the range of $5,000 to $7,500. Of course this is subject to what you build for an engine and what you want to do to the suspension.

BudD

 

[Eric]

Is it hard to find a corvette that's complete?...
Justin

Your timing couldn't be better. Complete cars that need work are plentiful and this time of year is when the people who have been asking too much all summer long start to lower their prices.

Go to http://www.collectorcartrader.com and do a search, you'll get tons.

Good luck and let us know what you find.

 

[69MyWay]

This stuff is expensive!

To do it right, from motor to trans, weatherstrips, suspension, etc, $10-$20K.

It is all up to how much you want to spend.

 

[jcreme]

thanks

Thanks for the input.

Unfortunately, I don't want to purchase a car until late this winter. We're moving.

I really just want to be able to tell my wife that I can restore a 'vette without spending more than it's worth. And not be lying. And not choke myself on a short budget.

69MyWay: I checked out your stuff. Very cool. I really like your idea for roll-bars. The thought of turning a convertible wrong side up always steered me away from them. I love the car that you're using for a target model. Sweet.

 

[Bullitt]

On a budget

It's hard to say or comment on a budget. My receipts have gone beyond what I originally thought I would spend. If you can rescue most of the stock parts, refresh the trim and chrome (replating can really get out of hand) and not lose control, it should be practical in the aforementioned $5000 range. My problem is that I'm not satisfied with leaving things alone. As soon as I take a part off to just clean, I find myself sanding it down and repainting or looking for something better to replace it with. I thought I would stop, but the allure of more power and increased performance anywhere I can find it, is just too damn tempting. Will I ever be finished? I don't know, but I'm having fun trying to find out. --Bullitt