Gentlemen, I am one of the unwashed masses yearning to own a classic corvette. I've done some homework but I'm still in the dark about what I should look for in a car I'm thinking of buying. It's a 1962 body off restored/ white ext./red interior/ 327 #'s match. Powerglide/original engine with a little over 62,000 miles/both tops are in very good condition. I don't know the horsepower (300?)and I have yet to talk to the actual owner...the owner is selling the car through a friend who's a mechanic. He says the car is in great shape...of course he does. Are there a couple of things I should look for specifically? Or should I just get the book from the merchandise office and do some more homework? Any advice would be appreciated...thanks! Ed Cox
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Re: 1962 possible purchase
Hi Ed,
Is this 1962 the EXACT one for you? If so, then right now, I would say do not buy it WITHOUT taking someone with you that KNOWS 62's (or has one). Otherwise build enough knowledge FIRST, so that you know what you are doing, buying, and getting NOW, before you buy. Not later.
Look through the archives here. There is plenty of buying advise given already. Look through this site's book merchandise, some of us can give you recommendations for your interest/year. Before you buy, you can never have enough good information. Good luck. Tom #24014 -
Re: 1962 possible purchase
Hi Ed,
Is this 1962 the EXACT one for you? If so, then right now, I would say do not buy it WITHOUT taking someone with you that KNOWS 62's (or has one). Otherwise build enough knowledge FIRST, so that you know what you are doing, buying, and getting NOW, before you buy. Not later.
Look through the archives here. There is plenty of buying advise given already. Look through this site's book merchandise, some of us can give you recommendations for your interest/year. Before you buy, you can never have enough good information. Good luck. Tom #24014Comment
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Re: 1962 possible purchase
Without a doubt the best advice anyone can give you is to hire a knowledgeable Corvette restorer or mechanic. Preferably one very familiar with the year you're looking at. I was about to make an offer on a C1 in a large nearby city when I decided to have it looked at by a Corvette restorer. It was the best $35 I ever spent. Within 10 minutes, he had found two accident repairs, a place where the frame had been hit, evidence of a fire in the area between the driver's compartment and the engine with resultant wiring harness damage, several non-matching #s (the car had been represented and priced as a numbers matching car), need for new king pins and brakes. Sure, no car this old is perfect, but the more you know the better off you're going to be at getting a good price or deciding to look further.
I thought I knew something about the C1 then, but looking back, I didn't know half what I know now. And I'm still learning!
Good luck,
MikeComment
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Re: 1962 possible purchase
Without a doubt the best advice anyone can give you is to hire a knowledgeable Corvette restorer or mechanic. Preferably one very familiar with the year you're looking at. I was about to make an offer on a C1 in a large nearby city when I decided to have it looked at by a Corvette restorer. It was the best $35 I ever spent. Within 10 minutes, he had found two accident repairs, a place where the frame had been hit, evidence of a fire in the area between the driver's compartment and the engine with resultant wiring harness damage, several non-matching #s (the car had been represented and priced as a numbers matching car), need for new king pins and brakes. Sure, no car this old is perfect, but the more you know the better off you're going to be at getting a good price or deciding to look further.
I thought I knew something about the C1 then, but looking back, I didn't know half what I know now. And I'm still learning!
Good luck,
MikeComment
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Re: 1962 possible purchase
I agree as well as disagree with advice given you by others. The first issue should NOT be the Corvette, but what you want to do with it. While this sounds absurdly naive, it's not so far fetched....
At NCRS, our motto is restoration/preservation. The two are inter-related but NOT the same. We offer more avenues of recognition than any other concours Corvette organization on the planet, and the car you buy limits and/or directs you along particular recognition paths.
Think of a 2-dimensional space with the y-axis being 'car' and the x-axis being 'owner'. Our recognition awards spread across this space. Our Mark Of Excellence and Bowtie awards focus almost exclusively on the car itself with the former pointing to restored Corvettes and the latter to unrestored Corvettes. The yardstick for measurement is our 'Flight' factory concours scoring system. There is very little the owner can do to influence the outcome of the car's final score in these events except to either add restoration (MOE) or preservation (Bowtie) time/$$$.
Off the y-axis lies Flight. Here, at each event, the owner can and does have a direct impact on the outcome of his award. We give milage driven bonus points for Corvettes that are actually put on the road, used, and driven to an event. You can essentially raise your Flight score a full notch (3rd to 2nd Flight, 2nd to Top Flight) by judiciously operating it and need not devote as much time/attention to achieving 'full bore' restoration/preservation....
About in the middle of our 2-D space (equal owner/car weighting) is our Founder's Award. This recognizes the owner who has a 'clean driver' AND has given of his time to participate in each/every major aspect of NCRS. The same Corvette goes to Chapter, Regional and National meets in a given 3-year period with the owner making significant time contributions to his fellow NCRS members along the way. The award is impressive and you get the fun of owning and operating your Corvette instead of dragging it in a trailer....
Almost totally on the x-axis is our Sportsman's Award. This has almost nothing to do with the car. In fact, you can gain the award recognition with multiple Corvettes! You simply drive them to various NCRS meets where you declare them as Sportsman cars and enjoy the meet. Points are given for each NCRS event you participate in with more points for higher levels of NCRS meet.
So, knowing what you want to DO with your Corvette has a BIG deal of influence on what price you pay and/or how near to factory concours it is in its present condition. Most, simply jump in and snap up 'baby' then start throwing time and money down the 'hole' of restoration/preservation without having fully thought through the 'end game' up front.
So, I advise you plot/plan what you want to do with the car BEFORE you start shopping vehicles. Then, I'd advise you to join NCRS, your local chapter, and get active to find out more about what's what. Last, after you take these steps and maybe do a 'little' judging of a Corvette and/or drive one spotted you by your fellow NCRS Chapter members, you're in a position to start really focusing on shopping that car of yours.
I'm sure there are those who'll disagree with me. But, you be the judge -- give my advice a test read and weigh the wisdom....Comment
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Re: 1962 possible purchase
I agree as well as disagree with advice given you by others. The first issue should NOT be the Corvette, but what you want to do with it. While this sounds absurdly naive, it's not so far fetched....
At NCRS, our motto is restoration/preservation. The two are inter-related but NOT the same. We offer more avenues of recognition than any other concours Corvette organization on the planet, and the car you buy limits and/or directs you along particular recognition paths.
Think of a 2-dimensional space with the y-axis being 'car' and the x-axis being 'owner'. Our recognition awards spread across this space. Our Mark Of Excellence and Bowtie awards focus almost exclusively on the car itself with the former pointing to restored Corvettes and the latter to unrestored Corvettes. The yardstick for measurement is our 'Flight' factory concours scoring system. There is very little the owner can do to influence the outcome of the car's final score in these events except to either add restoration (MOE) or preservation (Bowtie) time/$$$.
Off the y-axis lies Flight. Here, at each event, the owner can and does have a direct impact on the outcome of his award. We give milage driven bonus points for Corvettes that are actually put on the road, used, and driven to an event. You can essentially raise your Flight score a full notch (3rd to 2nd Flight, 2nd to Top Flight) by judiciously operating it and need not devote as much time/attention to achieving 'full bore' restoration/preservation....
About in the middle of our 2-D space (equal owner/car weighting) is our Founder's Award. This recognizes the owner who has a 'clean driver' AND has given of his time to participate in each/every major aspect of NCRS. The same Corvette goes to Chapter, Regional and National meets in a given 3-year period with the owner making significant time contributions to his fellow NCRS members along the way. The award is impressive and you get the fun of owning and operating your Corvette instead of dragging it in a trailer....
Almost totally on the x-axis is our Sportsman's Award. This has almost nothing to do with the car. In fact, you can gain the award recognition with multiple Corvettes! You simply drive them to various NCRS meets where you declare them as Sportsman cars and enjoy the meet. Points are given for each NCRS event you participate in with more points for higher levels of NCRS meet.
So, knowing what you want to DO with your Corvette has a BIG deal of influence on what price you pay and/or how near to factory concours it is in its present condition. Most, simply jump in and snap up 'baby' then start throwing time and money down the 'hole' of restoration/preservation without having fully thought through the 'end game' up front.
So, I advise you plot/plan what you want to do with the car BEFORE you start shopping vehicles. Then, I'd advise you to join NCRS, your local chapter, and get active to find out more about what's what. Last, after you take these steps and maybe do a 'little' judging of a Corvette and/or drive one spotted you by your fellow NCRS Chapter members, you're in a position to start really focusing on shopping that car of yours.
I'm sure there are those who'll disagree with me. But, you be the judge -- give my advice a test read and weigh the wisdom....Comment
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