Every so often a Corvette turns up that has been neglected and sitting under a carport for decades, and this 1981 Chevrolet Corvette is one of them. The seller says it has been off the road since 1988, which helps explain the 70,331 miles on the odometer. It is located in Conway, Arkansas, north of Little Rock, and the asking price is $6,000 or best offer. It was posted three days ago, and you can find it here on Craigslist. We appreciate Chuck Foster sending us this lead. Of interest, St. Louis cars were painted in single colors such as Black, Red, Silver, Beige, Yellow, Dark Blue Metallic, Mahogany Metallic, Charcoal Metallic and Maroon Metallic, while Bowling Green added two tones like Silver over Dark Blue and Autumn Red over Dark Claret.
This Corvette is finished in a maroon metallic color that has faded after years outside, and it rides on the factory aluminum wheels. The interior is trashed. Interiors were offered in colors such as black, camel, dark blue, dark red and silver gray, and a power driver’s seat was available for the first time. This one probably looked good from the factory in camel. It has an automatic transmission and appears to still have its original L81 engine. It has new tires and a new master cylinder, and about $900 worth of parts come with the car. The seller believes the 70,331 miles are accurate since the car has been parked so long, and it has a clean title. Since it has been sitting since 1988, the fuel system, brakes and cooling system will all need attention, and the buyer will need to bring a trailer.
There was only one engine in 1981, the new L81 350 V8 rated at 190 horsepower. It had lightweight magnesium valve covers and stainless steel exhaust manifolds, and GM’s Computer Command Control emissions system became standard on every car. Buyers could choose a four speed manual or a Turbo Hydramatic automatic, and only 5,757 chose the four speed. That made 1981 the last year for a manual transmission until late in 1984. Automatic cars also got a new fiberglass monoleaf rear spring that saved more than 30 pounds.
The C3 Corvette debuted for 1968 and stayed in production through 1982, making it the longest running Corvette generation. The 1981 model is remembered as the year Corvette production began moving from St. Louis, Missouri to a new plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The first Corvette came off the Bowling Green line on June 1, 1981, and the last one was built in St. Louis on August 1, 1981, making 1981 the first year Corvettes were built in two plants at the same time. Chevrolet built 40,606 Corvettes for 1981, and 8,995 of them came from Bowling Green. A non running C3 Corvette is not for everyone, but is $6,000, a good starting point for a driver quality restoration?
Raccoon tested, raccoon approved.
Some of that junk I was talking about last week…
I own a Corvette parts business and I wouldn’t give more than $1500 for it.
I could break even fairly quickly parting it out, but it would take a while to make any money on what’s left. The glass tops are worth $700-$1000, the aluminum wheels another $300 for the set, the trailing arms are worth $250 as cores to rebuilders and the brake caliper are worth $100 for the 4 of them as rebuildable cores. Eventually what’s left might bring another couple thousand…if I lived long enough to sell it all.
Too far gone, where is the interior, C3’s aren’t particularly expensive, start with the best car your budget allows.
Steve R
Seller is seriously dreaming. I’ve seen running C3s in MUCH better shape than this for about the same money. So have lots of other folks. It’s a $1K car tops, imo. Undesirable year too, pretty much the worst of the C3 generation, imo.
Hey look folks it’s a miracle! The first time I’ve seen a seller take their non running car( I assume after 38 years ) and put it out in the open to take a picture of it.