Restoration advice

[Warren L.]

Hi, I am Warren and am a new member. I just inherited a 1960 Corvette. The car was originally purchased by my uncle while stationed in Japan in 1960. I have the shipping invoice from GM to Taiyo Motors Ltd. in Tokyo. The engine compartment also has an aluminum plate that says TAIYO MOTORS CHEVROLET DIVISION TOKYO, JAPAN with the serial number stamped. The car

My question is - is this Corvette rare? And who would you recommend on the west coast to do a restoration?
Car is located in southern Cal.

Thanks for your response in advance.

Warren

[Donald H.]

Re: Restoration advice

As a corvette, there is nothing particularly rare about your car. It looks just like one I restored. Some things about a car like this make it more desirable, but not particularly rare, like engine and other options. Generally the most desirable would be a fuel injected car with power options, next would be a dual quad car, etc.

I can't help with restorer recommendation. But I can tell you that if you do a full body off the frame restoration and pay to have it done, you will be up-side-down financially.

[Don H.]

Re: Restoration advice

Welcome to the TDB Warren.
Here is a very recent thread on the same subject you are asking about. So CAL restoration shops.
https://www.forums.ncrs.org/showthre...048#post850048

re. whether your car is rare, it certainly is in one sense, and that would be the modifications to it for Japan delivery. There won't be many other Corvettes with that Taiyo Motors Chevrolet Division identification plate I'll bet. Thanks for posting on the Tech Board.

[Mark P.]

Re: Restoration advice

Hi Warren - has the car been well cared for and is it still original ? If so, you may want to consider getting it judged as a Bow Tie car. I am well into the restoration of a 1960 and it is very expensive. I have often wished I would have taken some of the money I spent on mine and found a well cared for original car that I could enjoy and not restore. You can focus on the mechanical issues while still maintaining originality.

What your car does have going for it is that you have a 1 owner car back to when it was new. That is pretty hard to find.

Take Care,

Mark

[James O.]

Re: Restoration advice

hi warren-you have a big advantage over most having the original owner documentation. did you get a build sheet spelling out the original options?. i think the smartest thing in your position would be to get the new ncrs judging manual and have the car judged, as is ,at a local ncrs meet. go there with an open mind to get an invaluable evaluation of what you have and don't be offended because judges a really trying to educate you. after that you can make a better assessment of what would be involved to restore and how far you want go. for example, if the there is not a lot original on the car, then the restoration cost and effort would be very high. the comments in this thread about costs are very real. jim o.

[Mark E.]

Re: Restoration advice

What your car does have going for it is that you have a 1 owner car back to when it was new. That is pretty hard to find.

Take Care,

Mark

I agree with Mark. Not only is it one owner, but it's been a member of your family since birth. That's certainly special. And from a practical perspective, you know its history and secrets.

Its export to Japan makes it interesting; others may comment how this affects market value. But that only matters if you decide to sell your family member. :-)

[Richard G.]

Re: Restoration advice

I would have it Survivor judged at a NCRS meet. During the summer their are many local NCRS meets, a great place to start and learn about the car. I would differently begin there. The car may not be particularly rare. However it could be vary rare if it has the original paint and is unmolested. Unmolested original documented cars are definitely a premium these days. So many were modified to the owners tastes any unmodified car has special value. If you Uncle wasn't into modifying the, car in my opinion, you have something very special. You may consider posting additional pictures of the motor and the spare tire. These items tend to give an idea of the car and history of the car long after the original owner has passed.
Best of Luck
Rick

[Patrick H.]

Re: Restoration advice

I would have it Survivor judged at a NCRS meet.
Rick

Survivor judging is at Bloomington.

Bowtie/Star is NCRS, which can be evaluated at a Regional or awarded at a National.

Having it judged or evaluated at a Chapter meet as suggested is a great way to start with the car so that Warren has an idea what he’s got.

Patrick

[Frank D.]

Re: Restoration advice

Survivor judging is at Bloomington.

Bowtie/Star is NCRS, which can be evaluated at a Regional or awarded at a National.

Having it judged or evaluated at a Chapter meet as suggested is a great way to start with the car so that Warren has an idea what he’s got.

Patrick

I agree - that would give you a baseline on how original things are and where you might want to go with the car....and I'd avoid any major changes until then... You can also buy the Judging Guide on this web site to start giving you some insight into what you're dealing with.

[Warren L.]

Re: Restoration advice


This was with the documentation I had. Another list "Extras": 1 extra wheel and tire, 1 radio and antenna, 1 sealed carton of parts, 1 heater and defroster. Another sheet says "TWO TONE PAINT RE/WHITE. S.S. RADIO & MANUAL ANTENNA" . FOB Flint Michigan.
What is considered 'high" in restoration costs?

[Warren L.]

Re: Restoration advice

Thank you for all the replies! The car has not been painted, but sat outside. Nothing except the seat covers have been changed. The original top has not been up since 1962 when it was exported to San Diego. My uncle in 1961 ordered a hard top for the car, but it is a 1961 top and has the little indent at the bottom of the weather strip for the 61 raised rib along the center of decklid. My brother has a 61 corvette and wanted the 61 top so he bought a 1960 top to trade. It also came with a record from Chevrolet -Sounds of the Corvette I believe. I will post photos of the record when I get back to the garage.

[Mark P.]

Re: Restoration advice

Hi Warren - to determine the cost to restore you will need to decide what you want the car to be. If you want it to look and run like the day it left the factory (i.e. a National Top Flight Car and perhaps a Duntov award) and you have a very complete car with a no hit body and all original parts in good condition and little rust and you want to outsource all the work out then I think $150K might work in your area for a decent restoration. If you did a lot of the work yourself and were good at it then you could save on that. I know a very skilled guy in my chapter and he does all the work himself and has done 3 Corvettes (54, 59 and 65) and they all took about 3,000 hours of labor to get to Duntov level. A shop could do it for less hours but at $80-$100 on hour for labor and with $20K in parts, plating and paint supplies you can see how expensive it is. Mark

[James G.]

Re: Restoration advice

Thank you for all the replies! The car has not been painted, but sat outside. Nothing except the seat covers have been changed. The original top has not been up since 1962 when it was exported to San Diego. My uncle in 1961 ordered a hard top for the car, but it is a 1961 top and has the little indent at the bottom of the weather strip for the 61 raised rib along the center of decklid. My brother has a 61 corvette and wanted the 61 top so he bought a 1960 top to trade. It also came with a record from Chevrolet -Sounds of the Corvette I believe. I will post photos of the record when I get back to the garage.

The fact that it is a SAN DIEGO car from 1962 on, tells me it is a very nice So Cal car. I lived in So Cal for 50 years. San Diego has one of the nicest climates in America. 68 degrees......some say so boring, it never changes. But that weather is perfect for collector cars. JOIN SO CAL CHAPTER. Great group of people and activity. I know, I started the chapter in 1980.

[Loren L.]

Re: Restoration advice

Buy the Judging Guide; join SoCal NCRS; hit the member's list for contact with Dan Holstein of SoCal (former 58-60 Team Leader IIRC); freshen it mechanically so that it starts and stops and goes and then start opinion gathering at the next SoCal meet. Might want to buy a lottery ticket too, because you're on a streak.....

[Warren L.]

Re: Restoration advice

Ha! Well I really like this NCRS forum! You people are a wealth of information.
looking forward to bringing her back to life!
I will post some photos circa 1960 when the vette was in Tokyo

warren