Arizona Barn Find: 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Split Window

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When you stumble across an elderly gentleman living in a shipping container in the middle of nowhere in Arizona, it would be easy not to spare him a second glance and to think that he would have nothing to offer the classic car world. However, this can be a mistake because that is precisely how the seller of this 1963 Corvette Split Window Coupe stumbled across one of the most iconic vehicles to roll off an American production line. The elderly gentleman had been the Corvette’s sole owner, and it had spent years parked in his barn. The seller has liberated this classic and now wants it to head to a new home where it can be driven and appreciated. It is located in Boulder City, Nevada, and has been listed for sale here on eBay. The owner lists a BIN of $129,995 or offers. However, in the text of the listing, he mentions a price of $99,000, and as you will see, that’s the option that I would be exercising ASAP if I was in the market for a Split Window.

The original owner stripped the Corvette back to its bare fiberglass, and you have to wonder whether he intended to perform a cosmetic refresh. A bit of detective work reveals a couple of spots of what appears to be Sebring Silver, which would’ve been this classic’s original color. The owner mentions White in the vehicle summary, but I believe that he is probably referring to its unpainted state. While some might see the lack of paint as a disadvantage, it affords us a close look at the fiberglass. There are a couple of minor imperfections, but there’s no evidence that the vehicle has ever suffered any accident damage. Looking beyond the lack of paint, all of the exterior trim is present, and it appears to be in good condition for a classic of this age. The same is true of the tinted glass, so on the surface, this looks like it could be a straightforward restoration project.

If the state of the body is nothing but good news, this theme continues when we get the Corvette on a lift and take a peek at the underside. The frame is as clean as you could hope to find, with barely a hint of surface corrosion anywhere. Once again, there are no signs of prior accident damage, suggesting that the car has led a sheltered life. Potential buyers might consider a frame-off restoration, but I would probably leave it untouched with the underside looking so clean. We receive no information or photos that provide information about the interior trim or condition beyond the use of the word “Blue” to describe the color, so we’re flying blind on that front. We know for sure that the original owner ticked the box next to air conditioning on the order sheet. It would take an in-person inspection to confirm anything beyond that or whether the interior needs restoration.

I previously mentioned buying the car as-is and not allowing the seller to perform any further work on the vehicle. As a purist, I did this for a pretty sound reason. The seller indicates that the Corvette features a 327ci V8, and studying the photos reveals a 4-speed manual transmission. It isn’t clear whether the vehicle is numbers-matching, but he does say that it runs well. He floats the idea of potential buyers purchasing the car once completed, and it’s an option that holds no attraction to me. He floats a figure of $159,000 and mentions suspension upgrades and an LS swap as part of the process. I don’t know about you, but I’d want to retain as much of this classic’s originality as possible. The thought of an engine transplant in a desirable classic like this sends a shiver down my spine.

Ultra-desirable classic cars can appear in the most unlikely of places, and that is the case with this 1963 Corvette Split Window Coupe. The seller says the day he towed this car away, its 82-year-old original owner had tears rolling down his face. It appears that this car had been a significant part of his life since it was new, and he almost certainly saw that part of his life disappearing with this classic. I have two wishes for this Corvette. The first is that someone buys it and restores it to a showroom fresh state before an LS can find its way under the hood. To allow that fate to befall this car would be a tragedy, in my opinion. My second wish is that the person who buys this car takes it back to show the original owner when the work is complete. Maybe they can take him for a drive so that he can relive former glories. It might assure him that the car that he has treasured remains cherished by its next owner. After years of devoted ownership, that seems like an appropriate thing to do.

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Comments

  1. RoughDiamond

    What a story and an incredible ’63 Corvette split window find. I think the irony here is that it wound up in the hands of a flipper rather than someone who had hoped and dreamed and longed to find a ’63 split window for their whole life and finally had that dream realized. That scenario could of course apply to any make and model classic, collector or muscle car.

    Like 39
    • Lou Tripper

      Indeed, you weave quite a tale with each post!

      Like 2
    • dougie

      @roughdiamond. I lose sleep over those deals several times a year. I even find myself angry on occasion. Then I think about my Grandfather who was in the gun business in the sixties. He was always showing me guns he bought for $500 and sold for $3k, that walked in off of the street. Finding Barnfinds is networking at its best. So all of these “side hustles” that enable our small business automotive gurus, that help most of us numerous times for free. More power too them. Thanks guys! And seller GLWTA.

      Like 1
  2. CCFisher

    I hope the seller made a fair deal with the original owner.

    Like 22
    • Buick Nut

      Most likely not. Price driven by greed.

      Like 14
    • Gary Rhodes

      Doubt it

      Like 8
    • Chris M.

      Why do you wonder? Why does it even matter?

      Like 3
      • CCFisher

        Because I’m a compassionate human being and I think an elderly gentleman living in a shipping container deserves to be adequately compensated for preserving this car all those years. I think the bigger question is, why doesn’t it matter to you?

        Like 48
      • losgatos_dale

        @ChrisM Does it take effort, or does being a dick come naturally to you?

        Like 26
      • Chris M.

        It absolutely doesn’t matter to me. As a matter of fact I could not care less what any of these proposed finds cost the seller. It’s pointless to wonder what was paid in the initial transaction or what the profit margin is with said sales. That’s kinda why I raised the question to you. But if you’d like to gloat over your superior humanity and use this venue to aggrandize your bleeding heart then I suppose some of us will have to endure.

        Like 5
      • Chris M.

        Say Losgatos dale… I guess my answer would be no. Why do you ask?

        Like 2
      • Johnny

        Alot–its called greed and you can bet the buyer used alot of con talk. To pay very little . I wonder how people like that sleep at night. Cheating people –especially older folks. How does it make you feel. Karma may visit the buyer someday.

        Like 6
    • Ralph

      Some of us care about people not being screwed. Others say non of your business….some folks just tend to be dicks. You know who you are. And some were just born with a burr up their ass.

      Like 17
      • Chris M.

        🖕🏻.

        Like 2
  3. wuzjeepnowsaab

    Wow. Just wow

    Like 5
  4. John Angus

    Someone is either blowing smoke or clueless. No engine pics? Chevy wasn’t painting engines corporate blue in ’64. At that price, there should be no unanswered questions.

    Like 17
    • Steve R

      Beyond the lack of engine pictures, the windshield sticker from the 2014 Corvette caravan and autographed glovebox dated 2013 suggest it hasn’t been buried as deeply in the desert as suggested. Sob stories like the one in the sellers description don’t bring extra money, at least not to the dealer who has already bought the car, it just acts to fire up the professionally aggrieved.

      Steve R

      Like 21
      • Chris M.

        “Professionally aggrieved” I like that. There’s more than a few here.

        Like 5
    • Mike

      Yes! All of these questions should be easily answered since the car came from the original, and only owner! Not secrets.

      Like 2
  5. Steveo

    Buy the car for full value and let the seller finish it as cheaply as he thinks he can get away with? Sounds like a plan. Not a good plan, but yet it is a plan.

    Like 5
  6. T

    All I hear is “mentions”.

    Like 1
  7. Rbig18

    Something does not add up here. Old guy living in a storage facility sands down a Corvette to the base faberglass, has a 3rd light added, has wrong motor or at least painted wrong. Just seems odd. Sadly the dealer is going to turn it into transvestite with an LS swap and other things.

    Like 12
    • Chris M.

      Careful Rbig 18 using the term transvestite to describe something as potentially undesirable may trigger the bleeding hearts that lurk on this site!! They care for the supposed downtrodden you know! Lol

      Like 2
      • Buick Nut

        Awww. Did we hit a nerve??

        Like 4
  8. Ike Onick

    Also looks like it might have been fitted for side pipes which were not available in 1963. Every Corvette seller has a story, and some of them are actually true.

    Like 5
  9. Frank Sumatra

    Six tail lights? Typical modification from the 1960’s. This car will need a lot of questions answered with documentation to bring anything near that asking price. They are in Z06, big tank range with that ask. Buyer Beware!

    Like 9
  10. 86_Vette_Convertible

    6 tail lights and exhaust plugs? Think this one may have spent some time on a drag strip during it’s life. Problem is with SWC’s, current pricing is out of line with what the average person can pay IMO.
    I’d like to see it fixed up and back on the road but it will take some deep pockets to make that happen which is a shame.

    Like 4
    • Steve R

      I think the cutouts on this car were for noise, not the track, if so why aren’t there headers?

      Steve R

      Like 5
  11. Philip

    Third light.. Engine colors… Sanded body…. Window stickers… Something doesn’t smell right here…. just sayin.

    Like 18
  12. Larry D

    It supposedly has a 327 but yet the pic of the oil pan shows it to be GM Corporate Blue. And for $130k, I would expect to see some underhood and engine pics.

    Like 8
  13. Dave Peterson

    At the price these change hands, it will undoubtedly be sold into the Bring a trailer dilettante car crowd. They usually eat their young, too, so the LS scenario is plausible.

    Like 1
  14. Geoff A

    No engine pics no interior shots, speedometer cable poorly installed. Crappy fiberglass repairs. Cutouts? This like a BHCC listing. I still question giving dealers space on BAT.

    Like 2
  15. Dougie

    Dang for all of the crabby old trolls in here, go play shuffleboard.

    Like 4
  16. RSparks

    Good candidate for a complete restoration if your pockets are deep but I’m thinking nostalgia gasser with a 327 or 427 and a tunnel ram. Definitely not an LS swap candidate for me but I’m not buying it anyway.

    Like 1
  17. Dayle Gray

    the current seller is an amature, who think he struck gold…(and in a sense, he did find a cool worthwhile car) so chances that he gave the seller of the car a fair offer, slim. Hes just seeing dollar signs. Not to mention, doesnt know much about cars either.

    Like 4
    • EuromotoMember

      He’s an armature for sure.

      Like 2
  18. Jack

    Agreed. Many issues with this car.
    Side pipes, exhaust cut outs, 6 taillights, blue engine.
    No engine or interior pictures.
    The underside is too new, looks be repainted recently.
    Also who strips a car of all paint but leaves the bumpers and all trim on?
    The sub story of the original owners is questionable.
    This listing is very suspicious.
    The seller is also a newbie on eBay.

    Like 1
    • Larry D

      Actually the seller isn’t a newbie. Collector Cars Las Vegas has been selling on eBay for a long time. In fact they have quite a few cars for sale on eBay right now. But they do like so many other dealers do. They advertise the car and then sell it on the side instead of thru ebay. By doing that, they avoid receiving negative feedback. The downside is that their transaction number stays low which makes them look like a newbie.

      Like 2
  19. Jonathan

    If it wasn’t worth anything to you allllll those years in a barn, why are you asking sooooo much now?

    Like 1
  20. Thomas

    For one, any human in their right mind that would give more than a couple of hundred bucks for any of these barn finds woukd streaight up ignorant because you are litterally buying another persons problems. A csr that been sitting around for more than a decade is way more than a headache

    Like 0
  21. George Mattar

    Way over priced. A quality 63 coupe with correct parts and no stupid third light goes for less than $150,000. Every crook has a story. All I can say is every dog has their day.

    Like 1
  22. Joseph Lively

    Old man LIVING in a shipping container in ARIZONA??? Did he sand it while living inside the container? It would be 150 degrees in the thing. Very unlikely story.

    Like 0
  23. James Bishop

    The car looks legit , the story sucks and it doesn’t matter , nobody brings a violin to play for the the owner or seller . Yes there is a lot of work including getting rid of the stupid six lights in the rear . Hard to say much about the car without the much needed info on the matching engine or not , miles , interior etc.. . Way over priced . Forget the stupid story it’s only worth what it is at the time of sale with ALL the info this guy didn’t include .

    Like 1
  24. Larry D

    All of these comments apparently don’t matter because this is the current status of the car on ebay. This is a copy and paste:

    This listing was ended by the seller because the item is no longer available.
    1963 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
    1963 Chevrolet Corvette
    See original listing

    Like 3
  25. Gary RaymondMember

    Wow, tough crowd tonight!

    Like 1
  26. Don Leblanc

    Wow, quite a story. and 3 tail lights too !

    Like 0
  27. doug bennett

    I know and helped him work on this car in KY when he broke down and yes he added the tail lights . Weather you like it or not he did. I have meet them when he drove it back to the plant where it was born. Him and his wife. Drove him to the parts store on a Sunday afternoon to the only place open for a ride in the car it’s name is Barebones because the AZ. Heat would crack the glass under the paint. Don’t call people names if you don’t know why there is no paint.. and it his car he can do what ever he want to it and back when he bought it that’s what was cool. You don’t know you must be still wet behind your ears and in your pant kid.

    Like 0
  28. doug bennett

    It’s a true story I meet the people that own this car and helped him work on it in KY. So keep your neg. Comment to your self it’s before your time . Know it all..

    Like 0

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