When the C2 Corvette was introduced in 1963 it had a unique feature. The rear window had a dividing post and the rear glass was “split” giving this car the obvious nickname of “a split-window Corvette.” The design only lasted one year though and was replaced in 1964 with a one-piece rear window. Owners of Corvettes from ’63 began cutting the rear pillar out and fitting a new rear window to make it appear they had a “new” 1964 Corvette. Along with the one-year design, the amount of people that hacked up their ’63 makes them a pretty valuable commodity. I guess that’s the theory with this car. By looking at it, you would think “wow, nice ’63 Corvette” when in fact, it is a 1964 that has been converted to look a year older. It can be found here on eBay with a current bid of over $41,000. The ad says the car is selling at no reserve, so the highest bidder takes it. Currently located in Palm Springs, California, this is a great looking car with an interesting story. Let’s take a look and let us know what you think.
Arguably one of the best car designs of all time, poor visibility was certainly a factor in the decision to remove the center pillar. According to Car and Driver, “What factors ultimately resulted in the decision are not documented…scornful reviews from the enthusiast media may have been enough to kill it. Ironically, cost issues may have contributed to the demise of the split window as well, since it was cheaper to manufacture and install one rear window for the fastback rather than two.”
This car is titled as a 1964 but according to the ad it has been the subject of a professional conversion to a 1963. Along with adding the split rear window, the front windshield trim, door pillar trim, and roofline scoops have been added from ’63. The stinger hood from 1967 is an awesome design also. When combined with the hidden headlights, split bumper and raised fenders, this is a sharp-looking car.
According to the ad, this car was given a full mechanical restoration in 2015. It has a non-numbers matching 350 that has less than 2000 miles on the rebuild. The transmission is a 4-speed manual with Hurst shifter that was also rebuilt in 2015. The engine gets air and fuel through a rebuilt Edelbrock intake and Holley 600 cfm carb with an electric choke.
The interior looks pretty good, but there’s a little room to upgrade if the new owner chooses. The carpet is said to be original and the leather seats look decent. The console and gauge cluster are from 1963 and everything works except the clock.
As good as it looks, this car is in primer! It has been shot with a dark grey primer with one coat of semi-gloss clear. The ad says that photos of the restoration are included which shows the car being stripped down and sealed. The nice thing is the new owner will be able to pick the final color. So, what do you think of this car?
WOW! If if looks that good in primer, it’s going to really be a knockout when painted!! I’m curious to see what this “custom” will go for; as for me I LIKE IT!!!
GLWTA and to the new owner!! :-)
https://www.keenparts.com/corvette-parts-detail.php?cat=450&year=C2&partnum=450230
Geez. I was going to buy it for wall art but that California warning that it’ll cause cancer spooked me away.
Nice, but try finding the chrome molding to go around it.
Not an original 1964 so if it looks this good in primer/clear no reason to paint her..
3/4ths+ of the work involved to paint a car is the prep.
It seems silly that this car was never painted (just primed & cleared), because NOW the new owner is going to have to remove all of the trim & emblems again, then sand off the clear, & reprep the car AGAIN for the final finish coat.
What was the point of the decision to not just paint it the 1st time around?? :-O
If the owner’s end goal was to sell the vehicle, then I think he did absolutely the best thing. Let the end buyer pick the desired color.
Kinda like why put new carpeting in a house you’re selling? Buyer’s gonna just rip it out for different color/style, etc.
Car looks spectacular as it is, though!
The eBay ad and the air cleaner say 327… Your write up says it has a 350.
I just read the ad. it says “IT HAS A LATER MODEL 350 V8 ENGINE WHICH HAS LESS THAN 2000 MILES ON THE FRESH REBUILD.”
Also in the BF write up.
Everything else on the car is fake, why not the engine labels?
center bolt valve covers are the give away if you know your engines
so what is the give away, i know from living in the era and owning many early v8 chevy etc, no small block chevy had center bolt valve covers, from 265 and early 283 with the staggered pattern all the way through later 350s with the inline bolt pattern the valve covers were the same. studebaker, oldsmobile, and i think early cad had the valve covers in the top as these pictures show. im guessing they may be adapted to the much later engine. since im old im not too familiar with all the ls engines as far as the valve covers go. i do know that several companies make adapters to bolt almost any valve cover to any engine. lots of ls adapters to make those look vintage. those of you calling things fake need to look elsewhere for your kicks, these are for people that appreciate cars and the work involved.
Im not a fan of modified vettes..except this one is done ….well..with good choices
well done …. got my vote
Great looking car in primer. It is also amazing how that design still looks fresh today. I’m not sure the younger BF readers understand how radical this car was in its time. Beautiful!
Nice clone.. i would enjoy it and probably punch 🥊 it more often since its non original. I run my split through the paces less often for not wanting to mess it up and devalue 😙
I concur on why not finish painting other than a pro only charges for vettes his special price to get his vacation cash 💰😏
I get its a lil more prep with special fiber primer to seal but.. the square area to spray is a lil more than a Miata …
It always falls under what the market will bear strategy 🐻👀💰 and insurance companies willing to pay 2000 or a small dent which makes spraying a whole car less feasible for effort and time.
FYI:
The bar shown above at Keen Corvette was reasonable but the chrome around rear window is just a mere 3000 plus shipping 🤑
I own a 63 Split and yes thank god all original with no missing parts because the smalls add up quickly.
The listing is iffy. “Item Location” tag says “Reno, Nevada”, but the writeup says Palm Springs. Seller is based in Canada. The listing says “THE PICTURES WERE TAKEN ON DEC 20, 2019” and they show the car both in flat gray primer and glossy black. The writeup says it’s primered.
Whoever wants to buy this car needs to get a PPI done, one, to make sure this thing actually exists and two, to insure all is what the ad says it is. And…that Rte. 66 plate on the rear looks like it’s photo-shopped in there, as does the front.
Don’t want to seem like a know it all, but how exactly do you rebuild an intake manifold?
JB Weld?
I have used a deemed tool and polishing to smooth out flow on inside of intake and exhaust manifolds.
I was wondering the same thing unless they mean sandblasted and clear coated or a piece of the aluminum broke and was rewelded and remachined
with a credit card and a call to your favorite vendors
Seems odd that they’d add the split and make all these other ’63-only detail changes (gauges, windshield trim, roof vents, etc.) and then skip the REALLY obvious (and relatively simple) items like the hood and wheels.
If it’s in primer then the picture is not the car for sale. The picture is clearly not primer.
Couldn’t agree more Peter.
That is definitely not clear over primer and it certainly isn’t satin as they suggest.
Ooooops!! Problem!! Buyer beware.
A 63 clone you’d not be afraid to take out and drive, and drive it I would.
Good looking and open to mods, that’s a winner IMO.
Funny everyone talks about how bad the visibility is out of a 63 SWC. I’m blessed to own both a 63 SWC and a 69 Mach 1 with rear louvers, and I find the 63 SWC the much easier of the two to maneuver, especially going in reverse.
@JohnfromSC. I have a 63 SWC and a 70 MACH with louvers so I totally get it.
LJ
try the ’71-’73 mustang fast back, both of your whips have way better rearward visibility.
When Bill Mitchel heard that Chevrolet had decided to drop the split window for ’64, he said “They’ve ruined the whole car”.
I had a 63 with a Carter AFB and over sized jets. Why go with the Holly when you have a tried and true? And with a 4:11 rear and to hear that cam purr was priceless. Where was my mind when I sold it? A bright celebrity red would do this car real justice. And an owner whose constant smiles would be forever. And I am old school on these. Why ruin stock with a Hurst as so many do? Leave it alone.
No hack saws required or desired.
first the afb didn’t have jets, they had metering rods, the cars came with a holley and they worked fine and very easy to tune. the weak little shifter from the factory wasn’t precise, the bracket bolting it to the trans wasn’t very thick and the shift rods were smaller , the handle was smaller diameter also. the hurst bracket was much thicker and kept the shifter body in place better, the shifter body itself was stronger and built better, the shift rods were half again as big as the original. again the afb wasn’t a bad carb but lots harder to tune than a holley. oddly my preference was the quadrajet, i was taught early all the tricks to make it work and with everyone else discarding them for a holley i had plenty that came cheap and i made them work. some are capable of more cfm than a good 780 or 850 holley.
Kinda long story. My dads friend Staffy had 2 of these back in CT. A yellow one bought brand new & a maroon one bought in ’76. Back in ’63 or ’64 when new, 327 auto he drove it to Indy. The race was sold out. That wasn’t going to stop him. Being he was owner/operator of a small 3 piece heavy machine co (dump/trailer/backhoe/bucket combo) Staffy contacted a local crane equipment company and he literally sat in the bucket and raised over the grandstands, no BS,LOL! When he came back, my dad was owner/op now of my tramps welding co, so had to do a repair. He asked Staffy how the ‘drive’ to Indy was, said ‘like crossing the ocean in a canoe’. Fast forward to ’76. Staffy & his wife were at a drive in burger place when a kid pulled up in another ’63 sw 327 4sp. He ended up buying it on the spot. I was 16 then, had some $ saved & begged dad to help cover buying it as Staffy knew how much I loved the yellow one. Staffy paid $400 for a repaint so had $3900 into it & would sell to me for $4k. Only thing is, headlights glassed over and square ones underneath. Black leather door panels pleated. Tail lights had 3 across each side I found later was a dealer installed option. LSS, Staffy passed on like 8 mos later. I begged pop to help cover if I go see his wife to buy. He said OK. She said Oh sorry Alan, Frank said no lower than $4500 in his will. I raced back home. Begged. No go. Three yrs later one nite I come across an accident. New owner t-boned a suburban. Medium damage. Five or so yrs later in LE now, I ran the ‘TOY 63’ tag & happy to see was still registered.
Why fix the clock it’s the wrong one leather seats in an old corvette hmmmm not sure if that’s the right chrome around windshield as they say it is should have put flat middle caps on instead of 70s caps
Al camino… He probably has to run the “Top Hats” as the flat caps and disc brakes caps might not be deep enough to clear the front spindles. I had to beat in the spindle dust caps to get the disc brake hub caps to fit my ’64 Chevelle.
Dennis mcCutchan….that’s because your wheels were 15 by 7 corvettes are 15 by 8 and I seen them on a 70 el camino on line last week
Enough, enough. Let the nitpicking stop. Either you like it or you don’t. I do!
It’s a modified Corvette… big deal…
As it is now it’s got great potential to be a very nice driver. The original engine is gone with a modern 350 in its place, I would have nixed any carbs as all and went fuel injection! It’s a driver why not make it the best driver possible!
It was done right it seems. If it passed me on the road I’d of waved back and said “nice 63′ with a 67′ hood. Had rallys on it too, I think.” At least the wheel wells aren’t butchered. Needs to get the shielding on. I have a 63′ split FI 4speed. Its a little hard to back up in the dark and rain. ( I drive all my Corvettes in any weather except snow if I can avoid it ) You young ones don’t understand that a working clock in a old Chevrolet is not safe to ride in. Primer & clear ??? I like this car. Price ? a bit to much. How much ? And the hunt for Jimmy Hoffa goes on. Later……………JIMMY
Too shady, something doesn’t feel right about this car, and the explanation about the conversion causes even more doubt. Nice car but I’d pass. Good luck to whoever buys it.
reminds me of the net adds that say in fine print “pic is for representation purposes only.”
Pretty good job making it look like a 63!! I personally would not have done it!!
Stop crying over the split window about visibility. I had 71-73 mach1 about 6 ins. Of visibility. And as far as clear over prime if done right. You don’t have to sand clear off to paint.if you spray your prime like paint you won’t get dry spots.
In 1963, I remember that the visibility thing was just a joke, that if a Police car was following you at a distance, and in the middle of your lane, the partition would block your view. That’s all. Chevrolet must have been paranoid to can it.