As the price of mid-year Corvettes ascends into the clouds, an occasional bargain can be had if you are willing to put in a little elbow grease. Take for example this 1966 Chevrolet Corvette convertible being sold here on eBay out of Los Alamitos, California. While the $29,500 Buy It Now price may be a bit high for a project, there is a make offer button to possibly get this Vette into your garage a little cheaper. While the car is a number matching 327/350 car with a four-speed and a number of desirable options, there is a bit of a problem. The car was hit in the rear years ago, and a 1967 rear end was spliced in to make this unlucky Corvette whole again. Is this kind of repair a deal breaker?
The tale of this Corvette is a rather sad one. According to the seller, the car had previously been hit in the rear. Whoever fixed the damage used the back half of a 1967 Corvette convertible to repair the car. Additional pictures in the ad show how small the seams are where the grafting was done. Under the seller’s ownership, the car was driven daily by his wife and ultimately a restoration was started. The blue paint was sanded down and some disassembly was done before disaster struck. The seller was injured and can no longer do any restoration work on the car.
A number of parts were collected or refurbished before the injury sidelined this Corvette’s restoration. The transmission and rear end were rebuilt. The seller didn’t specify if the trailing arm assemblies were rebuilt as well. However, any prospective buyers should ask, as these can be a weak link on Corvettes if not handled properly. A completely new interior set from Al Knoch Interiors is thrown in with the sale. This will include carpet, door panels, seat covers, and dash pads. The car is currently rolling on a set of Corvette Rally wheels, and the seller may throw in a set of reproduction knock-off wheels.
There are some negatives to be considered. The seller, who seems to have given a very honest and thorough description of the car’s faults, tells us that the car was hit in the right front fender and lower valence at one time. We are also told that the original engine is a bit tired and is missing the correct carburetor. The last time it was started was six months ago. and that it has likely never been out of the car. This is also a soft top only car.
As you can see from the picture above, the interior has been partially disassembled. The original seats look pretty good for their age. However, there is a purposely made hole in the driver’s seat that may have been for an additional seat belt than the factory lap belt. Does anyone have a better idea? Further analysis of the picture shows an optional teak steering wheel, an AM/FM radio, and that the car was equipped with power windows.
Under the hood, we see the optional 327 cubic inch Chevrolet small block V-8 with the 350 horsepower option. These were higher compression 327s with hydraulic lifters, an aluminum intake manifold, and aluminum valve covers. We can see that this is a power steering car, but it did not come with power brakes. The ignition shielding is missing, as it is on many of these cars, and it would be interesting to see if the rest of the parts are marked properly for the build date of this car.
Overall, this is not a bad car and would make a great driver once finished. Parts are plentiful and these cars are relatively easy to work on. You would also have that gorgeous midyear design in a drop top. The grafted-on rear end would make purists nauseous, but the repair looks more than good enough for a driver level car. At least you would know what you are getting into. Would the spliced on 1967 rear end cause you some hesitation in purchasing this Corvette?
As I’ve said before, if the hard work is already done on a car like this the ’67 rear end won’t hurt much and will make a great project.
Other than the back up light hole there’s no difference between the 63 and 67 fiberglass, so I don’t see much of an issue there. Fill it (properly, looks like a mess now) if you want to go correct, or stick the correct ’67 taillights/backup lights and drive it. SBC/4-speed/convertible… IMO the nicest C2 combo.
I agree with Andre…it will never be an NCRS car so put it back together and drive it. Keep in mind you’ll be into the car $50k when done (unless you can do the work yourself). Still could be a decent buy.
easy fix , don’t want no NCRS car, wanna drive
Only hit twice.. I bought a car a few years ago.. in same condition.. seller said it was fantastic.. bought it put it together and when I got it running it did u-turns by itself.. whole front end needed replacement (welded incorrectly)..backyard builders.. you can get a good one or a bad one.. it’s a toss up..
That is NOT a teak wheel! Why is it that Barnfinds writers want to claim midyear Corvettes have a teak wheel, as soon as they see a Corvette’s standard plastic “walnut grain” steering wheel?
The 67 rear clip is not a big deal. 66 and 67 Corvettes used the same black fiberglass, and the only difference is the center mounted brake light on 67’s. Any competent Corvette shop can easily swap the taillamp panel for a correct 66 panel.
Other than the missing shielding, rubber fuel line and replacement copper radiator, it looks like a decent and pretty correct 66. From what I see, this is one project Corvette that appears to be priced fairly.
The only concern I have is the seller’s comment that: “Vin Are Not Correct on Listing Tools”. I’m not sure what he means by this, and the VIN he listed, 1946777111, is not a 66 Corvette VIN number. If the car has a state issued, or a VIN other than a correct 66 Corvette 13 digit VIN, then the car is probably $5000 to $10,000 over priced. That said, if the VIN checked out, and the car wasn’t 3000 miles away from me, I’d be very tempted to look at it.
I was about to make the same comment regarding the steering wheel, you are right, it seems they claim a “teak wheel” for the plastic. HUGE difference, even the amateur Corvette guys know that.
I always loved Corvettes from a distance, never enough money to get into the game. So for the Vette guy, why does so many ppl discard the ignition shielding ? I always thought it looked neat under the hoods of these things and would never discard it.
It’s simple, it’s an absolute pain in the you know what to take off and put back on, every time you change plugs, tune it up, set the timing, or do just about any other maintenance.
I have ALWAYS wanted a 65-67 Roadster. I still do, but, if someone like me felt they could get this at a 10-20 thousand dollar savings, this would be great candidate. Yep, it needs work, nope, it will never be ncrs quality, but you can take it out, and have a blast, for about 1/2the price of a trailer queen.
It is refreshing, to have a seller be transparent in the condition of a car. Best of luck to buyer and seller.
This Corvette looks awful familiar , like its been listed here before, I remember the explanation, illness, wife using it as a daily driver ETC & the seat belt cutout on the drivers seat bottom for no submarining. If the splice was done properly and no frame damage it should be good to go at a great price for a driver, which that 327/350 does very well.
I can’t tell the rear end of one from the other. It has all the right goodies to me including color. For a vette the price sounds normal but I am not familiar with what they go for lately. I don’t have the money or the place to store it either way. I hope it goes to a good home.
Not a teak wheel. You people need to do your homework. Missing ignition shielding is the least of your problems. You need to do all the work yourself to make this project worth it.
One of the best years!!!
I just bought a ’64 327/365 AC, PW, leather interior, California black plate car with 27000k all numbers matching, one owner car. Original riverside red with white soft top and red and white interior. I’ve only had a chance to drive it to the tire shop where the heater core blew. Changing the core on a AC Vette is not fun. I paid 52k with a new soft top installed. I was having buyers remorse until I read about this car.