Some thoughts wanted on a 1975 roadster??

[97moneypit]

I have been looking for a 1970 or 1971 roadster, but just now I ran across a 1975 roadster for sale. It's a beautiful maroon and looks very sharp. Anyway, this is leading to some questions I have.

(I am such a newbie at this stuff.)

Here's what I found out from the "Corvette buyer's Guide" that I didn't know. Of course most of you know this already.

1975 was the year of the catalytic converter and at 165 the horsepower rating for the L48 engine was the lowest since the 1954-'55 inline 6 cyl., 235.5 ci. powerplant. It was also the last year the vert's were offered until 1986.

The more I get into this the more I realize that I cannot afford what I'd like to have, (surpirse huh?) a 1970 or 1971 LT-1. As usual I have been a little behind the money curve all my life and these cars are just beyond my grasp. I don't have the facilities to do a 'project car' and would like to get one that doesn't have to have a lot of work done to it. The good LT-1's are more than my career will allow. So I am having to rethink my options here.

The 1975 roadster has the look that I like, it just doesn't have the HP. The HP issue has been important to me only in light of the resale value. I wanted to get a C3 that might give me a good return later and that's why I thought of looking for an LT-1, because HP, it seems, is what the resale is mostly about.

I have my C5, and it has all the HP I need. As far as the C3 is concerned, for me it's about the "show". I want the look not the performance, but I want something that I can sell later.

But, I think the '75, while not being a must-have car later because of it's low HP, might still hold some of it's value in the years to come. Of course a car that is affordable to me right now, will be an affordable one to future buyers.

So I have a couple of questions actually.

1. What is the perception of the 1975 verts resale potential? Are there people out there like myself that like the looks and do not think the HP rating is as important? I ask that because it seems that the primary focus of most corvette forum members is the horsepower and how fast the car can go.

2. Would it be possible to upgrade the engine for a reasonable amount if I wanted to at a later date? I have no idea how much a engine upgrade would cost, but it's something I could save for down the road. What kind of $$$ would I be looking at to give such a car a little performance boost?

Sorry about the long post....
Any comments would be appreciated....thanks

 

[norms72]

Well, it is the last year for the C-3 roadsters and the first year for the cats. You can always take the slow stuff out (and save it for later when it's time to sell - motor, emissions stuff etc.) and put some go fast stuff in and have some fun. Sometimes it's hard to decise who's right, your heart or your brain eh?

 

[97moneypit]

[snip] Sometimes it's hard to decise who's right, your heart or your brain eh?

Norm, ain't that the truth.

 

[MidShark]

From what I have observed, the '75 verts have always been near the top of the desirability list and high price list in the '74-'82 series. Sure the HP was down, but it still rode and handled good, and you could drop the top!
You could increase performance by changing the cam and intake(heads too) or going to a crate engine. Depending on how much pep you want, and how much of the work you could do yourself, you could spend $500 to $5000 and beyond.
Most of the '75 verts I've seen are in the $14-15,000 price range, with some as high as $17-19,000. That is getting pretty close to LT-1 territory! Add in your performance mods and where are you?
If the car you are looking at is a good deal, and you really like the looks, great. But if you really would rather have a '70 or '71, why limit yourself to an LT-1? You could find a nice 350 vert for about the same price as a '75, yet somewhat better performance-wise. Stick the money into the engine mods, and you will out-run an LT-1!
What I am trying to say is just don't get too caught up in thinking that only the "High HP" or "Low Production" cars are the only ones worth buying as far as resale goes. They are all Vettes, and all (C-3's) will continue to go up in value. It is all relative. I've got a '71 LT-1 that I have casually had for sale a couple of times in the last two years. It's a nice car, but I have yet too see somebody stuff $25,000 in my face yet. Sometimes I think you have a narrower resale market WITH the higher dollar car.
Just my opinion!

Dick

 

[page62]

Don't sweat the HP rating. Florida doesn't have emissions testing, and more HP are cheap to come by. Remember that everything under the hood of this car is your basic 350 Chevy engine stuff.

Go get yourself a Summit Racing catalog and start dreaming! It's a lot of fun to breathe life into these cars.

By the way, is the engine currently completely stock...down to the crummy catalytic converter exhaust?

 

[97moneypit]

Yep, it's completely stock and with an asking price of 15k. But I think it would be a good deal for 12-13k but of course I have never looked at it in person. So far I am just trying to get a feel for the price/value of these c3's. It's coming along slowly and everyone's input is helping to better edumacate myself....

 

[Greekman]

I have had both. Presently I have my '79 and although its not the fastest vette around and I don't care to make it one. To me a Corvette is a Corvette and to be treasured! The mid to late C3s have some pros and cons of course, but the pros are confort, ride and you don't have to worry about finding high octane fuel eveywhere.

My Corvette gets only about 10 mpg and uses medium grade unleaded fine, but I put premium grade in it because I drive the car so little and if I couldn't afford the gas I wouldn't have the vette.

There were far less '75 ragtops made than 70-72s (sorry don't know the numbers on the LT1's if that's was you are considering).

I just think a '75 ragtop would be a great addition to anyones stable.

My Corvette I was looking for the over all condition and authenticity of the car and something I would enjoy driving.

Just my $.02

Good Luck,

.

 

[WayneLBurnham]

Ditto MidShark

The LT-1's were great engines for the late '60's through maybe '85 or so, but after that point, they really are not anywhere near as strong, durable or drivable as what could be bought already built or relatively easily built yourself for about what three or four of your '97's monthly payments cost...

For $3000 - even perhaps as little as $2500 - in parts, the stock motor in that '75 could easily put out more power and have a higher redline than your '97, if it's a stock model.

A better approach for value and ease is to get a crate motor, possibly to add some parts to it as well. (The worst thing about the '75's is the low compression...) Alternately, for perhaps $1750 you could throw on heads, cam, intake and a new carb. This will more than double the power of the engine it came with when new!

What the other poster was saying about just a cam and lifter swap is true too - that $150 brings you a LOT of power in any engine. It's a good idea to change a timing chain set whenever you do a 28 year old rebuild, and pushrods along with that new higher lift cam - another $125. Since you have the intake and thus carb off to change that, another $500 for new ones of those is also a good choice. Roller rocker arms, perhaps with a 1.6 ration or the newly popular mixed ratio are a simple, rev building, small power building bolt-on as well - for about $125. Of course those old, weaker valve springs are going to be quadruply taxed with age. weaker spring at original rated design, higher average valve lift and especially peak lift with the 1.6 ratio rockers - so a new set of them is required, along with some new valve stem seals - only $100 in parts but a LOT of effort.

You get the idea - you can easily build and build. Like the other poster said: get a Summit catalog and start planning and dreaming, but it doesn't take much to build a lot of power quickly and make up for the limitations of the factory design in '75.

For resale value, it's not so much HP as originality. For saleability, the condition of all the interior and exterior are far more important than the engine - and costlier to replace too. Regular suspension and drivetrain parts are really not that expensive, despite what many think - especially compared to 4 Wheel Drive or old, less common muscle car parts.

I am hopelessly stuck on my '75 Roadster and it was not in anywhere near the shape this one you're describing is in. I wouldn't let that it temporarily was weak in the engine area stop me from getting one - that weak engine is readily and cheaply improved.

 

[69MyWay]

I would like to look at that car before you buy it, or at least a good series of photos.

In my opinion, you can get a good bumper car vert for as little as $10K, but it may have some fixer upper issues.

It is still a buyers market, so make him an offer.

You can always buy a complete crate motor, headers, and some extra cool accesories and pull the stock unit in one piece. The crate motor can go in and give you plenty of go fast fun, and the stocker is just a weekend away from going back in the hole and making it "original".

 

[Alwyn678]

Buy it.......Verts will only appreciate in Value......I have a 74 and it would not fall out of a tree when i bought it......I decided to modify the exsiting engine and built it to Lt-1 standard from the heads to the cam to the crank to the pistons. So I have a car that performs like and LT-1(dynd at 360hp) is a convertible and I have all the original parts in case I ever decide to convert it back (which would NEVER happen)

 

[resto75]

I agree with 678 that you cant go wrong with a vert. As long as you dont overpay for it you can always get your money back or make a few bucks when you sell it.

I wish my 75 was a vert but it's a t-top. It was however a good deal as everything had been replaced or rebuilt by the last owner who restored it completely. I would love that it had been a droptop but I couldn't pass it up. Once they get a little scarcer the values on these c3 will go up. Remember there still are millions of C3 vettes on the road as they were popular and made for 14 Years.

In 5 more years the amount will decrease due to crashes and neglect. This will make the value go up for the ones still around.

Look at the value of C2 vettes. The reason they are high is:
1. They are older
2. They are scarcer
3. They only made them for 5 years and at a much lower production rate then the C3 years.

My theory is a mid 70's vette is the best buy/investment out there. You just need to improve the engine when its rebuilt. Mine is probably in the 375 hp range which is not as high as some but it will get you down the road.

 

[born2saw]

OK, I'm a little biased but---I love my 75 roadster. Yes its slower than most Honda Civics, get lousey gas milelage, and the stock exhaust just does not have that nice V8 rumble, but, it sure gets all the looks when I drive it around, and of the 50+ vettes in our local club it was chosen as one of 8 to be in the 50th anniversary show later this month at World of Wheels. I paid a little less than what you are looking at & the car is beautiful see my vette here. Although it is not quite NCRS top flight standards, it has very nice paint, a great interior, & except fro very cheap tires and a tired catalytic converter, it is in really good shape. It would have cost me about $5-7K more for a comprable chrome bumper vert (at least in my area) and it runs on regular 87 octane unleaded (but I usually put better gas except for road trips). The car is great fun to drive and I believe it will hold its value very well if not increase over time.

Yes, I have toyed with doing a few simple mods (K&N, true duals without cats) but really feel I should preserve this example of the last C3 verts.

I think in a few years when I can get away with it, I may buy a later C3 to trick up. In the meantime, I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SPRING :

 

[Alwyn678]

OK, I'm a little biased but---I love my 75 roadster. Yes its slower than most Honda Civics, get lousey gas milelage, and the stock exhaust just does not have that nice V8 rumble, but, it sure gets all the looks when I drive it around, and of the 50+ vettes in our local club it was chosen as one of 8 to be in the 50th anniversary show later this month at World of Wheels. I paid a little less than what you are looking at & the car is beautiful see my vette here. Although it is not quite NCRS top flight standards, it has very nice paint, a great interior, & except fro very cheap tires and a tired catalytic converter, it is in really good shape. It would have cost me about $5-7K more for a comprable chrome bumper vert (at least in my area) and it runs on regular 87 octane unleaded (but I usually put better gas except for road trips). The car is great fun to drive and I believe it will hold its value very well if not increase over time.

Yes, I have toyed with doing a few simple mods (K&N, true duals without cats) but really feel I should preserve this example of the last C3 verts.

I think in a few years when I can get away with it, I may buy a later C3 to trick up. In the meantime, I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SPRING :

How could you not want to mod the car....Man it sure is fun to blow c-4's and c-5's off the road in a 74.....Of course I kept all the original parts in case I want to take it back to stock...Of course that would never EVER happen:L

 

[born2saw]

We will have to see, you never know what I might break this spring when I burn those cheap tires off the car--yes, it will smoke the tires & chirp into 2nd and 3rd, but its probably because they are sooo cheap (I'm thinking Firestone Indy 500's).

Besides, I have lots of fun blowing away C3's in my turbo Volvo wagon - boy does that ever get looks!!

 

[97moneypit]

OK, I'm a little biased but---I love my 75 roadster. Yes its slower than most Honda Civics, get lousey gas milelage, and the stock exhaust just does not have that nice V8 rumble, but, it sure gets all the looks when I drive it around, and of the 50+ vettes in our local club it was chosen as one of 8 to be in the 50th anniversary show later this month at World of Wheels. I paid a little less than what you are looking at & the car is beautiful see my vette here. Although it is not quite NCRS top flight standards, it has very nice paint, a great interior, & except fro very cheap tires and a tired catalytic converter, it is in really good shape. It would have cost me about $5-7K more for a comprable chrome bumper vert (at least in my area) and it runs on regular 87 octane unleaded (but I usually put better gas except for road trips). The car is great fun to drive and I believe it will hold its value very well if not increase over time.

Yes, I have toyed with doing a few simple mods (K&N, true duals without cats) but really feel I should preserve this example of the last C3 verts.

I think in a few years when I can get away with it, I may buy a later C3 to trick up. In the meantime, I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SPRING :

Born2saw, .....YOU HAVE MY CAR!!! THAT is exactly what I am looking for. You sure you dont want to sell that beauty right now.
How long did it take you to find it? And if you ever run into it's twin ..please let me know!

:s

 

[born2saw]

97moneypit,

It was a lucky find. I had been looking (seriously) for about 5-6 months (not so seriously for 4-5 years) and found an ad for this car in the local paper. The car was about 3/4 of a mile from my house, and the guy selling it's wife used to work with my wife, & I kinda knew how compulsive he is. The price was almost exactly what I had to spend, and the rest is history.

It's not for sale, but if it ever is, I will post on CAC first.

There are at least 4 other 75 verts in town, but none of the others are dark red (only 3,342 of 40,606 dark red 75's, and only 4,629 convertibles {lets see, about 8.2% = less than 400 verts may be dark red}). I can see the EBAY ad now: extremely RARE 75 Corvette convertible--one of a kind!! LOL

If I hear of any for sale, I'll let you know. Good luck finding what you want!

 

[97moneypit]

If that's all there are out there, then what you found is paramount to winning the lottery.....you lucky dog.

 

[Alwyn678]

We will have to see, you never know what I might break this spring when I burn those cheap tires off the car--yes, it will smoke the tires & chirp into 2nd and 3rd, but its probably because they are sooo cheap (I'm thinking Firestone Indy 500's).

Besides, I have lots of fun blowing away C3's in my turbo Volvo wagon - boy does that ever get looks!!

Wow I have a swedish car as well a Saab turbo vert that I have tweaked to around 230hp.....It too will smoke most stock mid 70's vettes