With the 1963 Split Window Coupe having achieved the status as one of the most iconic Corvettes of all time, there’s literally no such thing as an undesirable example, with nice drivers easily fetching more than $100k consistently. This 1963 Corvette here on eBay in Richmond, Kentucky, is a project, and it needs quite a bit of attention before it’ll be a high-roller in the dual-glass community. However, it may be one of the more affordable entries, with bidding up to $25,100 at the moment, though that’s short of the reserve. The good news is that it can be yours right now for the buy-it-now cost of $63,000.
C2 production began with the 1963 model, and it was the first year a coupe version was offered in the lineup. The individual rear windows were quickly branded a safety hazard, with the pillar in-between said to block vision, and many of these cars had them removed and replaced by a single piece of glass. There’s no background provided on this particular ‘Vette, and the windsplit that runs the length of the car seems to line up across the entire roof back to the tail end. However, if you look closely, the two rear windows don’t appear to be quite evenly placed from the center, so I’m curious if this one might have gotten converted back to how it was originally manufactured.
The body is stated as complete, but the seller points out that the front end and quarters are press-molded components, which are aftermarket parts manufactured under vacuum pressure and known for their strength. The buyer will have to source the windshield and anything else not seen in the photos, as the owner says what you see is what you get, and nothing more. He also believes this one is a good candidate for a Restomod, which is worth considering, as this ’63 is past ever being a numbers-matching original again.
No drivetrain is present, nor are any photos shown of the engine bay. The builder will have to decide whether to install another 327 or choose something different that will suit their needs better. Some of the interior is missing, but fortunately, most of the gauges are still there, and the steering is hooked up for easy loading onto a trailer. Kudos to the seller for providing a few shots from underneath, which show some corrosion, so attention down below will be part of this project as well. Is this 1963 Chevrolet Corvette one you’d consider worth the effort to restore?
63000?? Never.
It sold on Friday for 63K
Original 63, I don’t think so, the rear windows are so far off kilter that it looks to me that who ever put it in did not measure correctly!
I agree with you. I was looking at the pictures and it looks like it was put together.
Measure twice, cut once. This is a mess. I wouldn’t pay the current bid.
That’s why the black primer is all round the rear glass.
Steve H
The black primer was there to hide the cut marks!
Complete running driving MAYBE….
Another point to consider is the age of the fiberglass. Has it degraded from the elements?
I have to admit this car has so much wrong and missing I couldn’t see more than possibly $10,000 and that’s only because it’s a Corvette.
$63,000 plus another $50,000 to restore it. Save the headaches and buy one that’s finished and ready to drive. Just my opinion…
& it might even be a 63′ instead of a 64′ turned into a 63
MORE LIKE $150,000 in repair and replacements parts. i always wonder what they do with all the add ons and bolt ons. have they already sold those parts for $150,000… pieced out for the quick cash…
Yes, good examples do fetch $100k plus, and that should be a mostly turn-key numbers matching car. But at a $63k starting point on this one with what’s left to do and no drive train it’s no bargain. By the time it’s a well-done good looking example you’ll have more in it than if you just bought a nice one. And that could be a far more original / valuable example. I have a friend that buys stuff like this so he can store it and fantasize about how great it’ll be when it’s done, but it will never happen…yes, you know who you are lol. Sometimes these projects make sense, sometimes they don’t.
With nicely restored examples pushing $200K……..yeah, I know…….insane………$63K plus another $60K means that it could prove to be a decent investment…….for those brave enough to take the plunge. At least it has a jig assembled front clip instead of those 1 piece abominations. 1963 SWC’s are in a league by themselves and the days of finding one at any sort of a reasonable price are over.
Russell, I’m in agreement with you on mostly everything. But I’ll carry it one step further. I would not invest $200k in a restored vehicle unless the seller could provide detailed before and during pictures. This particular car would fail miserably on the auction block if the restoration shop showed full disclosure. Metaphorically speaking you can’t make a silk purse out of a sows ear.
Based on the rear windows being slightly crooked and the raised seam between the rear windows being crooked, I would suggest that this car was either seriously wrecked at one time in its life or it is a ’64 coupe with ’63 rear window modification. In either case it would not justify anywhere near the price. . If purchased cheaply enough it could be built into an interesting restomod but that is probably about it…
Bondo dust got to his brain
Measure once, cut twice?
Whoever did this work was so incompetent that they got the absolute most important part of the body on one of these wildly wrong. That will have to be redone unless it’s truly just a “cheap” (ha ha) driver, and even then, I’d say this is unacceptable. What else did they muck up?
whiteviper rides again. I wish I knew how he finds so many split window coupes.
He doesn’t find them. He creates them.
I don’t know. They look legit. VIN plate properly attached with correct welds.
Could be a legit ’63 that was converted to a full rear window back in the day. Then someone did a super low effort attempt to restore it to the original… 🤷🏻♂️
Well there’s a lot of things on this car that make me thinks it had a hard live its worth rebuilding at around 30k
I didn’t know Lego made a full-sized Corvette…
looks like it could be one of those kits to make a 64 coupe into a 63 Coupe they made back in the 90’s, real cheap never lined up right, windows always crooked.
Are you Kidding me!
Someone had to have it – sold.
$6300.00 maybe on a good day.
But its only off a little…………………………………..
Not every split window is worth its weight in gold. Here’s proof. Definitely a pipe dream but if the owner thought so much of it why did he do such amature bodywork on it? Not enough here to ever come out on top.
Personally I would not pay 10 dollars more for a 63 over any other C2 That crap about them being special and iconic is garbage It is all about guys ego and having everyone telling them how great it is to own something so special They are not special no better than any other C2 Save your money and buy a better car for less money And before anybody starts screaming that is my opinion and nothing more
Perhaps the window is straight and the rest of the car is crooked? Where is my coffee…
Keep it….
Whole car appears to be cobbled together…
Well, they were cobbled together at the factory, too. Misaligned panels, orange peel paint, coupe doors that had huge gaps and many that didn’t close properly. Long waiting lists with no discount, with many being sold for over invoice………….And TWICE the price of a fully loaded Impala. That’s just the way it was. Today, people tend to over restore them but to an NCRS judge, all the flaws equal higher judging points.
The name for that is called production. And if you notice it’s lacking important letters. E and Q which is engineering and quality.
It looks like the builder ran into some issues that he did not want to pursue….hence, put it on the market as is and try to recoup……..While I do my own restoring on British cars even though I grew up in this Corvette era, I would stay away from this project…. something just doesn’t seem right………
Sold. As an owner of a previously listed barn finds car that was harshly critiqued in the comments as not being worth the effort to make it nice again, the vision and talents of a buyer are not always factored in. My car suits my needs, was affordable to me, and my skills/ resources are up to the task. I don’t build them with regard to unsolicited opinions.
Like the song said,, Dream , Dream, Dream !!!…
Looks like plastic surgery on those split windows! Is this a fake ‘63?
A split crooked window coupe of junk.
something one (me) could buy affordably (o0Op, not @ sixty-three).
Just never take to Vett’s Cars’n Coffee (who?, not me, cares).
Any drive line!, not one I’d restore for sale. Only one I like after or
before ’58/60 is this ’63 splittie. May B even the carter YH trips &
Blue Flame motor. It’d be a candidate for me. Not my 1st frankinstine~
Not a fan of people expecting to start with a pizza and expecting it to look and taste like Chateaubriand! $200 in total will not make this one worth $120. IMHO! Just buy a nice one and make it yours. If you want cocours start withe cleanest one you can find. Not one like this.
As mentioned earlier, someone hit the BIN button.
I guess I’m the only one that is not surprised. 63 splitties are THE bucket list car for many people.
It only takes one person to have the dream (and the wallet) to make this a street driving beauty once again.
Russell, I’m in agreement with you on mostly everything. But I’ll carry it one step further. I would not invest $200k in a restored vehicle unless the seller could provide detailed before and during pictures. This particular car would fail miserably on the auction block if the restoration shop showed full disclosure. Metaphorically speaking you can’t make a silk purse out of a sows ear.
This isn’t the first 63 I’ve seen with crooked back windows.