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Barn Fuelie: 1961 Chevrolet Corvette

barn-fuelie-1961-corvette

When it comes to iconic barn finds, the Corvette is one of the most coveted to come across, especially fuel injected Corvettes. This 1961 Corvette was pulled from a barn and is now road worthy. It’s a number matching car, but needs some work. Take a look at this Fuelie here on eBay.

barn-fuelie-1961-corvette-engine

The seller claims this is the original 283 cui V8, but the fuel injection system has been swapped out for a carburetor. The fuel injection system is still with the car, but needs to be rebuilt. The seller claims this Vette runs and drives nicely. They don’t state whether it is the 275 or 315 horsepower motor, but either way it will be a fun. Just be sure to do your due diligence before bidding.

barn-fuelie-1961-corvette-interior

The interior is complete, but is in need of some freshening up. Not only did this one come with fuel injection, but it also came with a four speed manual, which makes it even better.

barn-fuelie-1961-corvette-rear-corner

Early fuel injected Corvettes can fetch up to six figures, but this one is going to require a complete restoration to even come close to that. The seller’s estimate of $30k to finish it seems conservative and it will likely take more than that to complete. For the right price though, this could be a good buy.

Comments

  1. Avatar scot

    ~ there were very few people i knew with the skill to keep a mechanically injected (Ram Jet) Corvette running well. replacing the Rochester set up with a four-barrel or two was the easy fix. letting them to sit for extended periods of time allows the fuel inside the fuel meter to evaporate, leaving behind a film of varnish. eventually, this buildup will start to affect the way the system operates.
    http://www.corvettefever.com/techarticles/153_0303_chevrolet_corvette_fuel_injection/viewall.html

    Like 1
  2. Avatar J. Pickett

    If I had the cash now I’d make it a rolling resto.

    Like 1
  3. Avatar Mike Burnett

    Hi from sunny France! I have come accross a number of cars described as a ‘black plate’ car. Can anyone tell me what this means, please?

    Like 0
    • Avatar joe

      California license plates were black in color years ago.

      Like 0
    • Avatar Brent

      In California the license plates stay with the car. The value associated with “black plate” California cars is that the plates serve to verify that the car has spent its life in California, and not some rust belt state in the North East. Black plates were issued in California from 1963 thru 1969. This ’61 Vette, had it been sold new in California, would have had black (letters) on yellow (background) plates, and not “black plates”.

      Like 0
  4. Avatar tkd

    I had one of these back in the day! memories……..- 283 carter 4 barrel- automatic trans- electric windows- wonderbar radio ….I have been looking for it for years.- Trying to buy it back!! fire engine red…

    Like 0
  5. Avatar Slim Chance

    “If your are a serious buyer call me if not please dont waste my time.”

    Marketing genius.

    Like 0
  6. Avatar jim

    if you must have a 61 this is a great find. if you must have a corvette there are about 459 on Ebay right now with a “buy it now” equal to or less then what the sell wants for this one. most might not need work and a few are brand new.

    Like 0
  7. Avatar DRV

    You are looking at an 80k resto here because it is a corvette. First because of their standards, and second because nothing goes back together on them the way it came apart.
    A blck plate is the original plate bought for the car in Calif. In other words, it can mean it was bought in Calif. and stayed in Calif. In this case of a Corvette the only advantage there would be the frame is possibly in really good shape, otherwise the sun and heat play havoc on the interior and fiberglass.

    Like 0
  8. Avatar Christian

    First of all, many FI cars were downgraded to carbs because period mechanics didn’t know how to work with it but I think you can find people with ability to handle it nowadays.
    BUT you’ll have to use regularly the car ; no trailer queen as it suffers from long non-use.
    BTW give me this car and I’ll use it almost daily !!!

    Have you noticed RPO276 wide 5.5″ wheels with “dog dishes” base Chevrolet hubcaps ?
    This is RARE ! My “Black Book” doesn’t give a figure but I know only 246 were made in 1960 and 561 in 1962.
    When you see this please understand this car was meant to be driven hard or raced ! Maybe raced as FI was very nice on circuits avoiding what you find on carbs in fast curves : a cut of gas.

    Next the car IS a RPO354 315HP and not a RPO353 275HP because it has a CS suffix (would be CR for a 275HP).
    It would be hard to find a 275HP with wide wheels I think especially when you consider than only 118 275HP were made compared with 1462 315HP.

    Finally, it would be nice to restore just the engine and keep it in this fabulous barnfind condition !

    Greetings from a C1 (and C2 …) fan from France :)

    Like 0
  9. Avatar 10toone

    One oddity. The seller says the car was found in a “northern barn”, which may, of course, be true, but the license plate on the front of the car is a pre ’76 Florida plate from Pinellas county (Tampa Bay). However, Florida only issues one plate for the rear of the car. The car is apparently located in Florida not too far from Tampa, but a 47 year plate on the front of the car! Just sayin’.

    Like 0
  10. Avatar Frankster

    That plate has a “4” prefix. I thought it was for Orange county (Orlando); I’m pretty sure it was in the early 70’s, perhaps in the early 60’s it did represent Pinellas county. The prefixes represented each of Florida’s counties based upon their population ranking. Dade = #1, Duval = #2, Hillsborough = #3, etc. Those prefixes were retired after ’75.

    Like 0
  11. Avatar Dolphin Member

    The ‘northern barn’ info in the listing also raised a red flag with me, especially since there are no pics or information on the underside. That, and the seller’s attitude tell me this is the kind of car and listing that I would definitely have to go to with my best buddy Corvette C1 expert to evaluate in person, then make an offer or bid based on the facts and nothing else. The $47K price is already close to the value range of a #2 condition FI car, which doesn’t leave much room for the high costs of a good restoration.

    These FI systems are problematic in large part because they run on *very* low fuel pressure—around 2 PSI I believe—which isn’t the best way to design a FI system. No car runs pressures that low nowadays, It can be sorted out, but only by by someone who knows exactly what they are doing, IF the system is in top condition. Then the driver needs to use the right start procedure to avoid problems. No wonder a lot of these FI cars got carbs retrofitted instead. I drove a friend’s ’62 with FI back when it was new and it plain HAULED, but like I said, it was new.

    Like 0
  12. Avatar paul

    Steep!

    Like 0
  13. Avatar joe lonzello

    Last Fall a client drove me home in his 1965 Corvette Roadster 4 speed 396 at sunsetwith roof down. Dam . Cost him $300.00 in Church Raffle tickets !

    Like 0
  14. Avatar Matt

    I used to own a 61 that was originally a dual quad car, converted to single four. First thing I noticed in this picture… wrong dog dish hubcaps for a 61 :-) For starters, I’ve never seen a Corvette that came stock with dog dish hubcaps… so I googled and found this article… http://www.vetteweb.com/features/vemp_1105_1961_chevrolet_corvette/viewall.html – so, it seems there was another rare option, RPO687 Big Brake and Suspension Package, which came with dog dish hubcaps. Even more odd than that… they came with 59-60 full size Chevrolet dog dish hubcaps, not 61. Now if this car was one of THOSE, then maybe it be worth spending the big bucks to restore… otherwise, buy one finished, it’ll cost less.

    Like 0
  15. Avatar Jesse Mortensen Staff

    The auction did not meet reserve at $33,300 and 27 bids.

    Like 0

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