'71 Original Paint Question

[Charlie P.]

I bought an extremely low mileage '71 that appears to me to have been re-painted. There is body paint on the edges of rubber gaskets for door handles and locks. It appears that the egg-crate grills were removed at one time, and are a slightly different shade of Warbonnet Yellow. There are minor flaws under the paint that I wouldn't expect to see in factory paint, although I know Corvette paint quality of the time was not too great.

I have talked to the son of the deceased original owner, who knew the car since it was new (and for 29 years thereafter), and to the two other owners before me. Every one is adamant that the car was not re-painted on their watch. All other info I have gotten from these guys has been totally substantiated, so I tend to trust their word.

Is a complete re-spray at the factory or at the dealer prior to sale a possibility? What clues can I look for? (I don't think a lie-detector test is feasible).

THANKS

[Bill W.]

Re: '71 Original Paint Question

Most cars at the St Louis plant had lots of spot repairs done before leaving .They would almost always spot /blend a panel rather than paint the whole car.Everything was masked including the Corvette name on the back. Time was more important than quality.After this amount of time it will be hard to tell who painted it.Your best bet is to take it to a large NCRS show and ask the experts .We painted almost all the new Corvettes we sold back then before the owner/buyer knew they were in .Bill

[Tom R.]

Re: '71 Original Paint Question

Charlie:

Recently I went through the archives on the egg crate fender louvers to learn what the consensus was regarding whether they were painted on the car or off. Well, the supplier painted them before they got to the factory and therefore may account for the color difference you're seeing.

Look for the red primer underneath the grills. Also during bowtie judging, we find red primer in areas where color should be...workers "shot" the lower areas and therefore paint coverage was not the same as upper areas...look for these telltale signs to convince yourself of the 71's authenticity.

And Bill's right on! There were paint repair stations all over the factory and "most" got repair before they left. You may want to do an archive search on "paint" and see what other signs to look for. Hope this helps.

[Chris H.]

Re: '71 Original Paint Question

Charlie, before I bought my '70 Daytona Yellow LS5 Coupe, I wanted to verify the seller's claim that the paint, as far as he knew, was original. I saw evidence of overspray on quite a few areas of the car that made me suspect it had actually been repainted somewhere in its past.

Through the power of the Internet, I was able to track down the previous two owners, who were adamant that the car had never been touched. In fact, the original owner claims that when the dealer called him in January of 1970 to say his car arrived, he rushed down to see the car, and the paint "was a disaster". He even verified thin spots, etc, that are on the car today.

[Dave F.]

St. Louis Quality Issues

Charlie, as painful as this might be for some to read, it probably is no surprise to most folks that the quality control on C3's was in a large way mostly absent, starting '68. My first Corvette was a brand new '68, and I finally gave up on it after about 6 months. Almost everything imaginable was deficient in that poor car, ranging from 3 quarts low on oil, and no lube in the differential to non-operating wiper door and malfunctional wiring (with the ignition key in the off position, you could put your foot on the brake and the heater fan would come on). And, yes, the paint was spotty in several areas, almost as if someone used a spray can for touchup. This was the first coupe delivered in Northern Kentucky for 1968, came right off the showroom floor. So, every post I see here regarding issues similar to yours really brings back some memories ;-), and more so, puts me in a deeper conflict with the NCRS "mission" of restraining one's self from "over-restoring". IMHO, if some "over-restoration" is not done, some of our early C3's would be almost painful to live with. For me, it is a balance between leaving alone what was executed properly, and correcting what was shoddily done in the absence of what is currently considered to be adequate quality control. Philosophically, maybe it boils down to whatever it takes to live with no regrets, and making my car as good as it can be, and by this I mean completing the "original design intent" is how I approach it. Having said all of that, knowing and documenting all of those little nuances on your factory original brings a completely unique level of satisfaction few of us will ever be able to experience , as untouched originals are few and far between. Most of us would be extremely lucky to own a vehicle with only minor "flaws" such as overspray. The saying "They don't make them like that anymore" is a rich part of Corvette's heritage.

[Rich G.]

Re: '71 Original Paint Question

Charlie

I have a 68 which I know has the original paint. There is overspray, actually a run or curtain on one tail light lens. I was told by the previous (second) owner that if I fixed it he would hunt me down and kill me. As others have said, the issues you describe most likely are the work of the factory or the delivering dealer.

Rich Giannotti

[Wayne W.]

Re: '71 Original Paint Question

Man, you have to work to run lacquer, but they could do it at the factory all right. I counted 12 runs in the bottom color on a 78 aniversity car. My customer had waited all year for it while they built the pace cars. He drove it to my shop before he took it home. It had spot paint in several places and one place where the door didnt fit they had ground the fiberglass with 16 grit and painted right over it.