I am looking at and want to purchase a 1976 vette. Seems to be in outstanding shape, but I would like to know the trends in what to inspect before purchasing. It has an L82 fixed to 383 strocker with approx. 500 miles on rebuild. Trans has also been newly rebuilt. Body has fresh paint and in good shape and looks good and underbody has been restored with new coating. Has no rust under hood by windshield. Speed-O has approx 86,000 mile on it. Interior is in good shape as well. Suppose to be #'s matching car but I have no proof. ???Price????

Thanks

tankmec76 said: I am looking at and want to purchase a 1976 vette. Seems to be in outstanding shape, but I would like to know the trends in what to inspect before purchasing. It has an L82 fixed to 383 strocker with approx. 500 miles on rebuild. Trans has also been newly rebuilt. Body has fresh paint and in good shape and looks good and underbody has been restored with new coating. Has no rust under hood by windshield. Speed-O has approx 86,000 mile on it. Interior is in good shape as well. Suppose to be #'s matching car but I have no proof. ???Price???? Thanks

I recommend you get a copy of the July 2003 Corvette Magazine. There is a full Corvette Market report for C3's.

According to this issue, 1976 was the year for record sales, and I quote "That makes this particular model one of today's great bargains in classic Corvettes." (page 61).

As far as I know, no Corvette came standard with a strocker engine. Therefore, I will be carefull for the matching # comment.

I recommend you make contact with your nearest club and ask for advise and assistance, before you make the purchase. They should know what to look for, should you want to buy a matching number Vette.

All of the best. If your e-mail address is avaialbe, I will mail you an extract with the price indications, else, please drop me a mail on elmienvw@hotmail.com and I will forward it to you.

Best of luck.

Elmien

I owned a '76 for several years so I'll give some advice from my experience.

Just some additional areas to check:
1. The radiator support on this model had a flat bottom which collected water. They eventually rusted out. This piece of steel can cost about $300.00 to replace. Hopefully yours is in good shape.

2. Be sure the bumpers are in good shape (no cracks). A new cover, painted can cost $500 to $800 to replace. While your are there, look up under the rear cover for rust.

3. Make sure you check any rear end noise. As in all C3's the trailing arm assemblies, rear ends, and bearings are big bucks to repair.

4. Check all the power steering hoses and connections on the valve and piston. These are known for leaking.

5. Check all the body mounts for rust. These are also known for rusting and can be a real problem to replace.

6. I had to replace my motor mounts as well.

Keep in mind, that '76 is the least valuable (re-sale value) year according to many sources. Although I loved my '76, I knew the money I put into it would be for my pleasure only and I would probably not recover it upon selling it.

Good luck!

Kevin

Thanks for the information, I didn't even think of this Vette being one of the lower valued vehicles but that does make sense. I would like a price quote if possible. This car is in outstanding condition inside and out. They was asking $11,500. but already dropped to $10,000.
The only thing wrong with the vehicle that I have found is:
Air cond Inop
Wiper Motor Inop

It actually has show quality looks. That is what it was being used for prior to the new owner who bought it a month ago for his wife and she refused to drive something that old.
If the price they are asking is way out of the ball park Please let me know.
Thanks

The best way to tell if it is overpriced, is to look at prices in your area. Values are different in different areas. To me, it is overpriced, first off because of the "in-ops". I know around here you can pick up mid 70's to 80/81 for under $10,000 fully operational. Not "show cars" but still very nice. The first rule you should follow with buying your first Vette is....... be patient . Don't rule out the one you are looking at, but try and see what else you could get for the same money in your city, county, state, or region, how ever far you are willing to go to get it.
In MERIDIAN NAS, MS for example:
1981 CHEVROLET CORVETTE, 98K MILES, 350 V8, 4-SPEED, A/C, POWER WINDOWS, TAN LEATHER INTERIOR, AM/FM CD, T-TOPS, TILT/TELESCOPIC STEERING COLUMN, ANTI-THEFT, POWER STEERING, POWER BRAKES. WELL MAINTAINED AND IN EXCELLENT CONDITION, LOOKS AND RUNS GREAT, EVERYTHING WORKS. $8800


|UPDATED|12/2/2003 4:49:24 PM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

I purchased my '76 a year ago for $7000. It was for a father son project. We have put in about $6000 and still need to do paint. Understand that we completely striped the interior and it is now near show room quality. We had the 3 speed auto changed to a 700r4 and the complete rear drive train was rebuilt. The motor was a fresh rebuild. Not a stroker but still 350+ horse power. Other than the items mentioned in the other replies, check the floor boards very closely for rust. Remember that 1977 was the last year of the flat rear window which makes the mid-70's cars a little more rare. I think you will see the price of these cars have depreciated about as far as they will go and in the future will start to increase in value. Be patient! Look around and remember that car transport from coast to coast is not very expensive. Look for a southern car that was not on the salt water coast.

Hi, I'm new to the Vette world too. I bought a 76 this spring. It looked nice on the outside but the interior was trash and nothing worked. I paid $3800.00 and put $2500 into it the first month. I had probably the best summer of my life. My wife loves it and is always asking to go for a ride. It turns heads everywhere we go. It is beautiful, fun to drive and dependable. We put 5000 miles on it in about four months. My advise: If you can afford it then buy it. The advice about looking around is good, but it sounds like your in love...what are you waiting for? ...john

The best and most insightful material I have read so far on C3 Vettes is in "How To Restore & Modify Your Corvette 1968-82" by Richard Newton. The first 3 chapters are about choosing and evaluating your "new" Vette. If you like C3's, read this book before you buy a car, if it's not too late. I'd consider this to be the best first book a C3 enthusiast could own. One of the more sage pieces of advice in the book states, "When you start to rationalize about why a certain Corvette is a good buy, start walking away." I'm sure I paid plenty for my original, unrestored, numbers matching car, but that isn't the important thing. The important thing is that I felt great about the car from the moment I saw it and it's only gotten better since. Having a Vette is supposed to be an up thing. My number one rule about buying anything important is to feel great about it. That is nature's way of telling you that you aren't just doing a good thing, it's telling you that you're doing the RIGHT thing. There can be a huge difference between the two. JMHO

If it were me I'd want everything working before I bought it. If the a/c is important (and it should be) to you, have the seller get it fixed along with the wiper motor. Your could be looking at $400.00 or more if you get it done post sale.
I bought my '76 eight years ago for $5K, I probably put $1K each year into it and sold it for 6K in 2000. When I sold it, I was asking $8K but it needed some work done (repairs are never ending). My car was also very non-original (numbers).
Personally, I think the price is a little high, but that's up to you.

Happy 'vetting

Kevin

hummmmmm what can I say..... I just bought a 76 and it needs work, but don't they all anyway - take a good long look at it, if you really want it and your heart tells you so - then go for it. I paid 5500.00 for mine and the interior is trashed, so it will be reaplced this coming spring. The mechinal work is alittle here and a little there - but it will always be like that, at least that's what I hear, plus your buying a car that is 27 years old - there's gonna be stuff on there that needs replaceing just do what feels right and don't look back!