C3VR Member Stories – 69CRUZR

1969 Coupe Base 350/300 HP, Automatic, Can Am White/Bright Blue, original factory side pipe car, 135,000 + miles,  original engine/transmission modified with Holley 600 CFM carburetor, aluminum intake, Hedman headers, Accel dual point distributor.

When I was turning 65, my wife suggested that I should look into buying “that Corvette you’ve been talking about for the last 40 years”.  I took her up on her suggestion and started looking at C5’s/6’s. Then a good friend dropped by the house in a recently purchased 1955 Bel Air 2 door hardtop that got me thinking about the early Corvettes that first attracted me to the breed. I focused on the C3 steel bumper cars as the C2’s were out of my range. I decided to find a “Driver” Corvette under $20K that I could tinker with and could drive without worrying about chipping a $10K paint job. After some test drives in a few “interesting” drivers, I found a’69 in Charleston, SC that had been cleaned up some and was definitely not “restored”. It had the original engine/transmission that had been rebuilt, had a 3 year old ‘good ole boy” paint job, new tires/trim rings, new rear exhaust, and brakes. The interior was worn but had a new carpet. The seller who ran a paint & body repair shop thought that this Corvette had been a South Carolina car all its life, had never been hit, and had 2 or 3 previous owners. He was right about it being a South Carolina Corvette all its life.

I was able to get a copy of all the previous title/registration papers from the South Carolina DMV and found that I was now owner # 8. This ’69 was originally purchased in Pendleton, SC (near Clemson University) from Mauldin Chevrolet. I put together an introductory letter with current pictures and sent it out to all of the previous owners that I could find a current address for. I asked them to contact me and tell me about the Corvette when they owned it. I heard back from several, including the guy who I thought was the original owner. He turned out to be owner #2 and gave me the name of owner #1 who had passed away in 2010. When I reviewed owner #2’s title, I could see Owner#1’s name indicating his transfer of title. Apparently, SC didn’t have the original owner’s title on record any more. It was Owner #2 who advised that this Corvette was a factory side pipe car and that it was owner #1 who originally swapped out the original Rochester carburetor for a “Big Holley”. I pulled the aluminum rocker panels off the car and found evidence that the car was in fact a factory side pipe car. It was owner # 4, an Air Force Sgt. who told me how the rear panel got crunched in his carport in the mid-90’s. He accidently nudged the automatic stick shift while the car was idling in the carport resulting in it backing into the side of his house. It must have been a HIGH idle because he said it left an imprint on the house’s siding! It was too costly for him to repair leading to the car’s sale to the “undocumented” owner. It was the documented owner #5 who told me that it was another person who purchased the Corvette from the Sgt. and let it sit in a driveway waiting to be repaired(he was supposedly a fiberglass body repair guy). Registered owner # 5 was also a fiber glass body repair guy and talked the other guy into signing the car over to him.  He repaired the rear panel and had the engine(bored over 40) and transmission rebuilt. He really didn’t drive the Corvette very much and sold it to Owner# 6. The Corvette still had the original factory side pipes on it in 2009. They were in poor shape with broken/missing pieces. Owner # 6 burned a leg getting out of the car and had Owner #5 install a ’69 Corvette rear exhaust system swapping out the original exhaust manifolds for Hedman Long Tube Headers. The rear exhaust ports were installed in the rear fenders/panel such that it looked like a factory rear exhaust system. He put the aluminum replacement rocker panels on the car.  

 I drove the ’69 from Charleston to Davidson, NC in August 2012 on the day a very heavy rainstorm washed out President Obama’s speech at the Carolina Panther’s Stadium. The wipers only had one speed and the T-Tops let in about as much water as they kept out.  After I got the car home I began going over the car in great detail. I found a lot of small components that had gone missing over time (interior courtesy lights, door ajar switches, rear storage compartments & doors, head rests, seat belts, rear window shelf, Ignition shielding, found the rear window to be Plexiglas, not glass. On the plus side, the car ran well on the 240+ mile trip from Charleston, the steering was stable, and there were no vibrations or strange noises on the trip. Over all it has turned out to be a good “driver” purchase. I’ve put over 13,000 miles on it since 2012. I’ve had to replace the power steering, front wheel bearings, and one freeze plug, repaired the AC, put in a front-end kit in to replace the bushings and components, repaired a vacuum leak on the transmission (41 cents for a hose), and replaced all the spark plug wires, new fuel pump and a new spare wheel/tire. I’ve had a lot of fun “finding” a lot of the missing parts by trying to find 1969 used parts from sellers online. I now have a real set of cargo storage containers/doors, courtesy lights, window shelf (well…it’s from a ’72), a Jan’70 GM rear window, ignition shielding, 69 head rests. I repaired the factory alarm system and it works. It won’t deter anyone, but it didn’t do that when it was new! In 2014 I converted the rear exhaust back to ’69 style side pipes. The side pipes are Allen chambered pipes connected to Hedman Shorty headers. The covers are real 1972 GM “over-the-counter” covers I got off a guy in Ohio that had been re-chromed and were in pretty good shape. I still need to fix the rear panel/fenders where the rear exhaust ports were cut. I’ve used flat black paint to “hide” these after I took the chrome ports off.  I’ve added a set of American Racing Torque Thruster II wheels and chrome louvers to the car to dress it up. I found that the rally wheels that were on the car were actually off a ’75 as was the radio. Over time the various owners swapped out parts as they changed the car’s configuration to suit them. I’ve made it look more “standard” as far as the engine compartment and interior. The interior is pretty original and worn but I kind of like the fact that it shows its age/use rather than looking new. The “Good Ole Boy” paint job isn’t great but looks OK at 10 feet! I say “Good Ole Boy” because whoever painted it, actually taped over the Stingray emblems! Anyway, I don’t worry about it getting chipped. It’s a ball to drive and turns heads wherever I go. My neighbor claims he can hear it start up. I’m in the Queen City Corvette Club and take it to shows/trips. At 6’5”, the QCCC guys like to see me get in and out of it for their amusement. One of the guys in QCCC is a retired NASCAR engine tuner and he has it tuned up pretty good now. It will “bark” the tires when it shifts out of low if you give it some gas. I won’t go into details, but I did locate the remains of the original Chevrolet dealership in Pendleton and have actually parked the car on what was the original show room floor (building burned down several years ago). I’ve also met the Maudlin Chevy Service Manager who still lives in Pendleton and took home a “Top 25” award at last year’s Pendleton Car Show. I have created documents for the owner history and repair/modification history since I've owned the car such that the next owner will know more about the car than "it was a Carolina Car" all its life! 

July 2012 in Charleston, SC

Engine/Interior July 2012

2018 – 69’SHRK in Davidson, NC

With its younger “brother” – 2014 C7 Stingray

GREAT story...!!!  Not many folks get that kind of owner history AND interaction.

Jim Olson 

"The Toys"...!!!  Save the Wave!

Where I've been in a Corvette...!!!

SWEET!!! Gotta love the white/bright blue interior! Great story, too!!

Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
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"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"