F1

Hello, its been a while since I been on the site, but I found this car and would very much consider selling the Chevelle to purchase this..

Matching #’s but needs to be restored, 74k miles

Convertible
Factory A/C
Power Brakes
Power Steering
Power Windows
Power Door Locks
327/300 HP
M35 Automatic
Knock offs

I am not sure what other options it may have.. These off the top of my head from what I remember.. Car is all there including all the Original Parts..

Let's call it a VERY Solid Project car sitting in storage for 25+ years and not running.. Partial disassembled…I know it’s a vague question.. But what is something like this worth (ball park)?? Knowing out of all 20k + built cars built in 1963 "278" had A/C.. How many would be optioned like this and a drop top?

Thanks, Dave

Bluestripe67

No midyear came from the factory with power door locks or knockoff. How much of the needed work can you perform? Is the owner asking a $$ figure? If not, try starting at 25K. See what the other here think. Dennis

vintagecorvette

Are you sure that the power brakes are correct? how about the poser steering, even the A/C could have been added. If a A/C true car in a vert it is a rare car indeed. How many of the correct 1963 only parts are still present? Do you have the vin number, it will help determine if it is a true Air car. As for the KO's they were an option that if real are worth quite a bit. power locks were not an option.

oWEN

wmf62

Dennis
OK, i'm puzzled; what do you mean that no midyear came with knockoffs?
Bill

F1

Thanks Dennis,

I would plan on doing all the work myself... Cars date on the trim tag is I5... Is that September 5th 62???

Look forward to more input..

vintagecorvette

Are you reading the trim tag correctly? Sept 62 is too early to be a factory Air car.
I am not sure of the exact vin # when air appeared, but it was well into production. Post the numbers if you could.

oWEN

stingrayl76

It's reported that there were only 50 convertibles with A/C in 63. That included manuals and autos, so it looks like a rare piece if it is indeed an "original" A/C car.

Dave

Bluestripe67

Sorry guys, fingers were moving ahead of the brain. Should read, no '63 came from the factory with knockoff and power locks!

vintagecorvette

KOs were an option in 1963. There is the arguement of the 2 bar spinners, were they factory or not.

oWEN

MikeM

KO's were released as an option for '63 and then cancelled before production models were released to dealers. The first engineering release for spinners were two bar which were nothing more than the Corvair/Dayton wire wheel spinner already released for Corvair and in the parts system. The next engineering release on the '63 spinner, which came before the option was canceled, before production models were released for retail sale. There shouldn't be any argument on how many bars the '63 spinners were supposed to have.

There is evidence that some cars left the factory with the ko's installed. It is a FACT that there are a number of '63 only ko's in the hands of the general public.

If you like the idea of factory air, make sure all the pieces are there and in usable condition. It could get really pricey finding something correct for there systems.

I think 25K is too much to give for the car as a basket case. Maybe 20K.

split_window

I5 on the trim tag is June 5, 1963. This is late enough to be an air car. I have been learning quite a bit about air cars in my efforts to authenticate the AC system in my 63.

Do the ducts have shut-off flappers.
Does the compressor have a stamped metal tag? What number does it carry?
The compressor bracket should be stamped metal, not cast.
The chrome ball registers on the ducts are 63 specific.
Look for an AC operation sticker in the glove box door. What date does it carry?

These are the easy things to spot. Report back what you find.

F1

Well,

I just got back… Car is the real deal matching vin SD code block and all.. Car is somewhat in pieces but has everything and is the original equipment.. I didn’t pull all the numbers off of the little pieces but he is a pretty honest older gentlemen.. Here are some pics.. Thanks for all your replies.. And any more input would be Great!

Working out some numbers and I will keep you all posted..

Dave

rayvaflav

I will not comment on the car and what is correct or what to look for. My only comment is Wow!, these are some great photos (especially the first on 4 flat tires !) and how many people have passed by this car sitting in the open (albeit shaded by tropical foliage & fauna) ?

Trophy Blue

Wow is right! Now why can't I find stuff like this?

Seaside63

For 1963 I5 means the fifth week of May.

My car is a May 30th build and it has I5 on the trim tag. My vin is 16224, probably very close to yours.

What a great find !!

Ron Miller

One quick thing I note, having owned a '63 340 hp car in the past, is that this car has the high performance hood (read as fake louvers) in the hood. If I'm not mistaken, only the hipo cars had the louvered hood, not the 300 hp. Someone else will chime in, I'm sure.

Not a big deal, but leads me to believe there may be other items "added" by a previous owner, not factory original. I'd check all things out, but a great car to restore. Congrats!!

Bluestripe67

All '63's had the aluminum inserts in the hood depression! The '64 did not have the inserts, but continued the depressions! No such thing as a HP hood for '63. Dennis

rene-paul

Incredible! Makes one wonder how many more are out there!
Tires gone sitting on KO's, what if those are originals?
Keep us posted!

Get your flack vest on Ron, there will be some incoming!
brgds
rene

1963GrayGray

I owned and did a body off on a 63 C60 Convertible several years back.
This car shows many of the 63 only air parts that were used on these cars. The trim tag is a dead giveaway. It shows a 490XM interior code which translates to a saddle vinyl interior in a C60 convertible. The tag looks unmolested, so it becomes self documenting. Thats the good part. Now for the other part. Because of the rarity of 63 air cars, this car will be verrrry expensive to restore. The parts are just not available and very few 64-67 parts are the same.
Dave

Procrastination Racing

The car looks to be an original air convertible. There were about 50 of these. The 490XH indicates dark blue vinyl in a convertible with air.

The compressor is the correct vintage. The brackets in '63 are special, and different from the passenger car. The angle is wrong to see if these are the Corvette ones or not.

The condition doesn't add up. The steering wheel looks like it sat 20 years to get that way. Rust in the engine area looks like 10 years maybe. The paint looks like 5. The top is far too nice from what I can see to sat out 5 years, especially since there have been some hurricanes.

The tires coming off is not surprising. I seriously doubt they are original '63 KOs, since by May they were not releasing any and the car is basically in too good of shape to have not been restored in the '80s. At that time, someone put on the KOs. (A Cadillac or Buick found like this probably has all its original parts; a Corvette is likely to have been changed.) In any event, they will need serious cleaning on the inside so that the tires will seal.

With today's prices, I would not be shocked to hear $25-$30,000 for it as is.

You need to check more items. There are lots of '63 only items that could have been changed/replaced during an '80s restoration. If you post more pictures, I can tell you some of them to look for and what to shoot.