Jive-Bomber submitted a new blog post: What Would You Do With It? Continue reading the Original Blog Post
I'd sleep next to it in the garage for a while until I figured it out. A C1 is dream car status for me.
I'd do a clone of the Watson Vette you shared...if that's what it is...with a similar smallblock...you have good taste...
Fix the wiring and drive it like it is. Drive the Corvette people crazy and not have to worry about it. Look's like an old Great Race entry.
Yes to this (with the exception of the wire wheel hubcaps)! Life is way to short for all corvettes to be NCRS cars.
A buddy of mine bought a 63 Vette that had an interior fire and the roof was melted . It took some time at the body shop but came back perfect. go for it! It’s fibre glass and can be fixed. A C1 vette is a dream for most of us !!!!
I know what I would do... mild custom corvettes are awesome.... drive the matching number boys crazy.....
ANYTHING but a stock restoration! Personal dream to find a '57 Vette only as bad as that. Something involving heavy 'flake.
Probably do the same thing I did when I found a 58 Vette more than 45 years ago, I drug it home and let it sit in the front yard and sold it a few weeks later. I like them but I am akin to Neanderthals and simply don't fit in a early Vettes.
Either mild custom or drag car...anything but stock. And, yea, a dream car for me too. My dad built a couple mid-year vettes that had been in fires when I was a kid. That one is no where close to as bad as the ones my dad did back when they were worth almost nothing. I still kick myself for not buying a buddies 66 427 roadster that burned about 30 years ago that I could have bought cheap...
^^^^^^^ Fiberglass can be a PITA but so can metal.......looks like a good start. Fix what needs to get it running.....drive it and it'll probably tell you what it wants! Good Luck!
Buy it. Rare car. Only something like 3500 made that year. Do with it what you like. Personally, I like leaving slightly roachy old 'Vettes alone. Something about them just gets me going. Kind of flies in the face of all the perfectly restored ones out there. My buddy has a '66 convertible that he's owned since he was a kid. Paint is ROUGH but all one color. He recently had the car mechanically freshened up and is considering painting it. Every time I see him I beg him to leave it alone and tell him to drive the wheels off it. LOL Andy
I agree with the mild custom approach. Clean up the fire damage, hopefully the engine is still good, but if not it's a SBC and there are numerous options there. Lowered suspension, some tasteful paint with maybe some scallops or two-tone paint. Interior is good as-is, save the upgrade for that until later. For wheels, I like some straight 5 spoke style.
Not to hijack this thread, but I have a buddy who is retired and disabled with a '57 that he has for sale. He's big into C1 'Vettes and has done many professionally over the years. Serious. It's been glued together nicely and I believe it has a 265 dual 4 barrel SBC in it. Needs a lot of finishing but it's mostly all there. Message me if anyone is interested and I'll put you in touch with him. Think he wants 20K for it. Once again, apologies for hijacking. Andy
I love the Watson painted cars and if I don't have to do the work, that's the direction I'd love to see it go. But honestly, if I got that car, I'd fix the fire damage under the hood and blend in the top of the fender and keep it as a driver-stocker with crappy paint. Not as if that's the coolest or best thing to do, but I just can't ever seem to undo anything that's even semi-decent. Everything I usually start with is hyper-trashed and I generally look for the easiest path to "good enough".
My one and only C1 story. Back in high school (early 80's) I was working at the Daily Oklahoman newspaper ,in the mailroom. I was catching papers as they came off of the presses. It was a Saturday and we always printed the classifieds for the big Sunday paper. I was on break, perusing the classifieds (before CL and FB marketplace existed) and I saw a 58 C1 for sale for $2500. I grabbed a quarter and ran to the phone. (Mind you, no one has seen the paper yet, because it had not been sent out yet.) I called the guy and he said "Sorry man, it's sold." How in the world could someone beat me to the score of a lifetime? Turns out, a guy in the printing press room bought it. Story of my life. What does this have to do with your question? Absolutely nothing.
At least it's not just me... My son uses that constantly and I only think in year groups. I have to count every time to figure out what each Cx is...
I’m not even sure the year breaks. I only know one for sure...well I know when it starts anyway. I know so little about Vettes....mainly because I don’t wanna hafta wear the mandatory jacket.