Advice needed

[Dpchef66 up]

I'm looking into buying a 1976 corvette with an L82 motor. It was my wife's uncles before he passed away. Things is it's been sitting (not ran at all) in a garage/barn for about 30yrs prior to that he used it rarely. He was the second owner.
I'm looking for advice areas of the car that might be problematic. From the outside everything looks ok.
Would rust be a factor even though it was stored inside?
I already figured I would have to change some mechanical stuff. That doesn't bother me.
I'm more afraid of not looking in the right spot to see if the frame is good or not.
As for the price we havent determined one yet because I told the owner I want to see if the motor would turn over (with a new battery of course) and only after I looked the frame over thoroughly.
Thank you in advance for any information

 

[rfh928]

I'm looking into buying a 1976 corvette with an L82 motor. It was my wife's uncles before he passed away. Things is it's been sitting (not ran at all) in a garage/barn for about 30yrs prior to that he used it rarely. He was the second owner.
I'm looking for advice areas of the car that might be problematic. From the outside everything looks ok.
Would rust be a factor even though it was stored inside?
I already figured I would have to change some mechanical stuff. That doesn't bother me.
I'm more afraid of not looking in the right spot to see if the frame is good or not.
As for the price we havent determined one yet because I told the owner I want to see if the motor would turn over (with a new battery of course) and only after I looked the frame over thoroughly.
Thank you in advance for any information

I had a 78 L82, bought it when it was 6 years old and drove it many km's for 15 years. Had a 98 since then and now a 2019. The C3 was mostly steel underneath...vs the C5 and C7 which have a lot of aluminum...and mine wound up rusting pretty badly underneath before I noticed it. We have our family vehicles sprayed at Rust Check every year and it works wonders, but I'd never thought of doing the Vette. Other issues as it got older...the rubber seals on the windows and t-tops deteriorated over time, even with putting Armor All on there to try to prevent them from drying out...but they did and when it rained the interior would get wet. The carpets would never fully dry out from this, and when I lifted them up I found that the floorboards were rusty underneath as a result. Mechanically the C3 is not nearly as durable as in comparison the C5...I drove it reasonably and maintained it well, never tracked it...but the motor was burning oil and leaking oil in many places as it aged...the clutch release bearing was weak and I went through 2 clutches...the synchro's on the 4 speed transmission would wear out and start grinding... the u-joints on the rear axles were awful...they had to be replaced every 2 years. And many, many other issues. Don't get me wrong...I loved the car...enjoyed it for the 15 years I had it putting 160K kms myself on it...but compared to the C5 I had for the same length of time...the latter had none of these issues. I love the looks of the C3 but if I had to make that choice, I would never buy one again. I'd gladly buy another C5...in the end you may wind up spending less if you find a good one than all the potential money you may have to sink into the C3. In any case, good luck in whatever you choose to do.

 

[Jcpstrat]

Dpchef66 up ... I had a '74 for around 13 years (never in storage), and had no serious issues with it but when it comes to frame rust, both C2's and C3's seem to have one area in common to check for. Look at the frame (just in front of the rear wheels), where the side rails end and the frame kicks up over the suspension. There's a plate on the end of that side rail that can be very telling about the frames general condition. ​

The picture below is the passenger side of my '74. The plate is completely intact and just normal rust on frame but no serious scaling.

This is a picture of my '67 after the body was removed before I stated it's reconditioning. Needless to say I had to find a replacement frame it.

I would suggest starting there with your frame check. Good luck! John

 

[Dpchef66 up]

Thanks for the advice guys.
I'm not in a rush and am doing a lot of homework on these cars. I always like the look of the c3.

 

[gdh]

Birdcage needs to be checked out thoroughly as well. Better drain any gas left in the tank, change the oil. Valve seals likely deteriorated, check fuel/brake lines, carb would need rebuilding, brakes, tires and so on. Hopefully mice did not get at the wiring. Good luck just remember that not much on these cars is inexpensive. I would bring someone with you who knows these cars and what to look for. Let us know what you find.