By 1977, the C3 Corvette design was getting long in the tooth, having been around since 1968, and GM was still on the fence about continuing the car while in the midst of dealing with downsizing models and meeting ever-stricter EPA emissions standards. C0nsequently, Corvettes from this era can be somewhat “blah” when compared with earlier or later models. That being said, a Corvette is still a Corvette, and this 1977 model that is offered without a reserve here on eBay is still striking in it’s silver paint. 29 bids have moved the price to $5,900 and the car is located in Enid, Oklahoma.
Right off the bat, that right front Firestone 500 tire leaps out at me. If you are too young to remember, the 500 was considered a defectively designed tire and eventually almost 20 million of them were recalled! I haven’t seen one on a car in decades! Between that and the SUV tires on the left hand side, I’d be towing this car to the tire store immediately after purchase! However, the seller tells us it has only 60,000 miles, a good thing if it’s true (more later), and that it is numbers matching, which helps it’s value with Corvette folks, even on a less-desirable model like this one.
The silver paint has been repainted and is in pretty good shape, but the seller recommends buffing out some small flaws. I suppose I should revisit the whole Corvette/luggage rack issue here as this one is a particularly egregious example, but maybe you folks are tired of me ranting about how positively ugly they are and don’t belong on a Corvette. Whoops, I let that slip there, didn’t I?
As is typical for a Corvette of this era, this car is well-equipped with air conditioning (non-functional), power brakes and power steering — except the power steering pump belt has been off since the seller has owned the car. You might start to sense a theme of not fixing what breaks unless it stops the car from being drivable. I’ll return to that in a moment.
According to the seller, the engine was “freshened up” around 20,000 miles ago – which has me wondering why the normally reliable 350 V-8 would need anything after only covering 40,000 miles. Thus, I’m guessing it’s 160,000 total miles on the car rather than the 60,000 claimed. The car has also been fitted with a new “date coded” carburetor although the original is included with the sale. The exhaust system has multiple leaks and should be replaced – but it doesn’t stop the car from being driven.
Okay, I’m not going to beat around the bush here. When I see a “repair” like this screw replacing a turn signal lever, I worry about what has been done (or not done) on the rest of the car. I found multiple vendors selling new turn signal switches for well under $50 and some nicely videoed replacement methods; in other words it wouldn’t be hard to make this right. So while this car may well be a bargain, go into the sale with a plan to check everything out first — and replace those tires!
@Jamie: I concur w/ your assessment concerning that !@!*&! luggage rack, AND the jack leg turn signal stalk “repair”! This one may be a bargain, but a close personal inspection should be done. GLWTA! :-)
Correct as always, Moparman! Check the frame and birdcage. No way would I sell a car with a repair like that, even a disco vette! Rattle can paint job on the engine by virtue of the orange egr valve. Good luck.
Stay safe and wash your hands
Cheers
GPC
The real purpose of the “luggage rack” is to carry the t-tops when they are off of the car. I had them on my ‘77 and they did the job all two times that I took the tops off. Cut up the luggage racks all that you want, the real waste of money is any car with a t-top or moonroof.
I drove a ’77 for years and the T-tops fit just fine in the area behind the seats that loosely passes as a trunk. Mine came with leatherette zippered “Bags” that protected them from each other, and there was a bungee cord thing that hooked up to the chrome brackets in that area to hold them down. Never had a luggage rack; I had an Indy spoiler back there.
I had a roommate bought one of these new. He was a submariner on a nuclear attack sub and spent a good bit of a reenlistment bonus on an almost identical car. It overheated on the way home from the dealership and had to be towed back. Crappy car back then and still the low point for Corvettes. Can’t belive it sold for almost 7 large.
The turn signal switch is not the problem. Besides the turn signal, the stalk also operated the wipers and the high/low beam. What breaks is the pivot on the wiper switch, and not the turn signal switch. 77 was the only year the wiper was in the column, other 68-82’s have the wiper switch on the dash. Unfortunately the 77 wiper switch was discontinued 20 years ago, and there is no aftermarket or reproduction switch available. People have been able to fix them using a 77 Chevette switch, but those are discontinued and drying up too.
At $6100, this car is already to high. 77 was the highest Corvette production years, with over 49,000 cars being built, so there are plenty of nicer ones floating around, without the issues this one has.
That was supposed to say 77 was “one of” the highest Corvette production years. For some reason, the 5 minutes to edit has disappeared from Barn Finds????
Thanks for the commentary on that switch, gbvette. One year only is the bane of a parts man!! Possibly one of the first uses as a multi function switch. Watch ebay! 6100 and we still don’t know how the frame and birdcage are. Caveat Emptor, the devil is in the details.
Stay safe and wash your hands in parts cleaner
Cheers
GPC
There’s some parts store wire splice near the firewall. That kind of stuff puts me on alert for electrical problems. No telling if the screw signal switch may have shorted anything out for example.
My 77 (also silver) had the luggage rack. I thought it looked good, especially with the t-tops mounted on it.
Tires are always the first thing I look at. I’d rather see a worn set of matching Michelin’s than mud-matched off brand tires. I believe it’s an indication of how much the owner cares about the car.
That rattle can engine sets of an alarm, as in 1977, all the engines were painted blue! Makes one sit back and say Hmmmmm.
I don’t recall exactly when in 77 the changeover to blue engines paint took place, but early 77’s did come with orange engines. With a VIN of 3720, this car was built in September 76, and would have come with an orange engine. Besides the VIN, you can tell this is an early 77 by the lack of any emblems on the fender sides. Early 77’s didn’t come with any fender emblems, while later cars came with crossed flag emblems on the front fenders.
Ok. Here is the dirt on blue engines. I was asst service manager at a large Chevy Olds dealership when these cars were new. GM started painting the engines ‘corporate” blue in Sept 1976. 76 production ended in July 76. 76 was the last year for a Chevy orange engine. I found the 77 to be really cheap especially the interior. Junk corporate radio. Black plastic all throughout the console. Stingray name gone and those terrible leather wrap optional steering wheels which turned to dust from the oil in people’s hands. If you did not order tilt and Tele wheel, guess what you got the left over Vega wheel from the 76. Same in 78. One bright spot in 77. Black paint returned after being discontinued after the 69 model year. We had a black 77 L82 4 speed with red leather and YJ8 wheels. Demo for the dealers son. It was a beautiful car. I now own a mint 73 coupe. Luggage rack ruins these cars. Always dealer installed. Not from St Louis. We installed several.
Glad my ’70 had a luggage rack. It allowed me and my girl to go camping with the top down. That rack held sleeping bags, tent, everything needed.
I think they look like crap without them.
Jamie,
I know you hate the luggage rack on C3’s, but they really did help solidify my love for these cars. I grew up (b. ‘75) with my dad owning a ‘74 as his daily driver. Pre-seatbelt and child seat laws, I was small to fit behind the seats for years, which put my older brother in the passenger seat most of the time, with all of our camping gear squarely on the luggage rack, which meant we took that Stingray everywhere. And even with just the two of us, that luggage rack meant we got to head to those Seagull and Seafarer weekends in a Corvette! Even without my emotional attachment to them (which the luggage rack played a big part in), the pre-anniversary window C3 coupes still have some of the best lines of any American car ever made, making these particular models the end of an era.
SOLD for $6679.
Some of the tires say “Trail” on them in white letters – could be truck or suv tires.
I would think 1 might be able to wire the wipers with an aux or earlier switch on the dash.
Tho, who uses the wipers anymore on classic cars?
Just rainx the windshield & check the weather & radar before taking the car out. lol