How expensive is it to restore a roller Corvette? Maybe the seller should pay someone to take this car! The title of this article is correct. This 1979 Chevrolet Corvette is on the East Coast and is listed for $1. It was left behind in an estate sale. There is very little information on this Corvette other than the odometer shows 76,703 miles. The engine is out of the car and the interior is damaged. In 1979, Chevrolet produced 53,807 Corvettes making it the best selling 3rd generation (C3) Corvette.
The pictures in the ad show an engine on a stand. As in prior years, the base engine in the 1979 Corvette was the L48 designated 350 cubic inch V8. For 1979, this engine was rated at 190 hp. The performance upgrade was the L82 350 cubic inch V8 that was rated at 220 hp. Obviously, this is a project car and will need a lot of work to even getting it running. The engine on the stand looks like it has an aluminum manifold which might indicate that it is an L82 engine. The car was built with an automatic transmission but there is no word if that is in the car.
Chevrolet upgraded the seating for the interior on the 1979 Corvettes. These seats were also 24 lbs lighter than prior years. Many enthusiasts prefer these seats and install them in earlier years. There are several options that were introduced in 1979 based on the prior year’s black/silver Indy 500 Pace Car. These included the optional glass mirrored T-Tops which cost $365. However, this car has the body colored T-Tops. Also introduced in 1979 was the D80 front and rear spoilers. This car does not have this option either. The spoilers were reported to decrease drag and actually increased miles per gallon by about 0.5 mpg. Regardless, the interior is in really poor condition and will probably need to be completely redone.
This 1979 Corvette is located near Wilmington, Delaware. It is listed here on Craigslist for $1. It has been listed for 4 days. The seller states that there is no title but hopefully it could be loaded on a trailer. So is there any value to this Corvette?
For a buck someone with a trailer and storage could take it away and part it out, and make some money. Probably not a good investment to restore it as nice finished examples are in the $20K range.
$20K range should tell you what most enthusiasts think of the C3 Corvette, slow and fugly.
Well here’s my thoughts on this vette for what it’s worth. In my opinion these were really good looking vettes I bet that most everything is there because it appears to be a stalled project in progress. If the frame and under carriage is in good condition then I would buy it. There’s a good possibility the engine is rebuild able. So you could rebuild the engine put it and the trans back in get it running and be able to drive it. Then take your time with the interior restoration and body and paint. If I was a younger man I would have already bought it. To the buyer enjoy it often.
The ad has expired and so has the Corvette.
It would have been nice to see the ad. Typically when a Craigslist ad says $1, it’s not a price, but a solicitation for offers.
Steve R
The interior looks like it would clean up. I would put a LS in it and drive the hell out of it.
I see the “LS” solution for just about everything up to, and including the heartbreak of psoriasis. How much does it cost to get one? And how do you know the one you are getting is any good?
Chevy’s small block was fitted/swapped in every thing back in the days ! The upgraded version is the great LS , these engines are in many vehicles and plentiful in good used condition so , no wonder they are seapped as in the past but its not as simple as a carbed setup …
YOLO
Sad thing,those cars rode hard,steered hard an were nothing special,for a dollar you probably wouldn’t go wrong