67vetteal

I just finished reading a post about a well-known corvette Dealer who got caught misrepresenting a C2 on BaT. Nothing new there as the sharks have been in our midst for decades. This leads me to ask, "Just what matters for anyone shopping for a C2?". (For the record, I have been driving and working on C2 Vettes for over 60 years.) We had so much more fun with our cars Back in the Day when the investment aspect did not exist. So, what matters most? Having owned our 67 Coupe since 1972 I have so much of the actual provenance including who the original purchaser was and the Dealer, (Byrne Bros.), where it was delivered to him. This fact takes me to the question at hand. Would you as a purchaser/shopper rather have all this information or the joy of owning the badest, shiniest, unknown, possibly fraudulent C2 around? BTW, my car is being handed down to one of our sons in the far-off distance. I hope it's far off!

Factoid

I love having as many details about my cars as possible. That includes the good, the bad, and the ugly. None of that prevents me from ensuring she is sound and reliable and then enjoying the badest, shiniest, unknown, possibly fraudulent C2 around.

Nowhere Man

What matters is how to get the most enjoyment out of the car for the owner. Some times you need to dive in the snake pit to get what you want. Just be protected. Not everyone in this hobby is a thief but there is a fair share of them. Money is the route of all evil as they say

Gavin65

and there you have it, I couldn’t have said it any better.

Vega$Vette

For me the only thing that matters is the quality of the car. #s and who owned it when and where don't make it a better car. Now if that's important to you and adds value in your eyes I respect that. Just make sure you get what you pay for.

FYI my 65 is a #s match car. Installed a TKO600, the original Muncie is in a box. Repro Bluetooth radio, original in a box, and just recovered the original vinyl seats in leather. To me it's perfect and i drive 3-4 times a week.

I didn't buy it because of the #s. I bought it because of the quality.

jim lockwood

Something about knowing the history of a vehicle appeals to me at a deep level. It adds a certain je ne sais quoi to the car.

My unrestored '54 #3300 was purchased directly from the original owner by my Dad. It was neat to meet her, even though she had become an alcoholic by that time.

I bought my 32K mile '57 210 from the original owner, a lady who lived through and had vivid memories of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. What an experience it was listening to her recount the harrowing days immediately following!

I wish I knew the history of my '63 roadster. Also my Dad's car, I don't know anything about it before my Dad acquired it in '71. I just know that he had a huge amount of fun with the car... which will always mean a lot to me. Maybe that's all the history that's important.

Jim

Vettrocious

None of it matters unless you’re in it for the money. And frankly, for the ordinary, honest, guy, there really is no money to be made. Take the ‘67 435 horse cars. In 1990, these cars were selling for around $125K, give or take $25K. Most still are. The dollar was worth an awful lot more then, so those of you who were concerned about money lost your ***, as you usually will, if you count restoration costs and your own labor. With rare exception (the one’s you always hear about) it’s only the guys who’s sole goal is to flip the cars that make anything. And to do so they “occasionally” need ‘skew’ the truth a bit. Hence the invention of the current totally meaningless “numbers matching”, “original”, and best of all, “survivor”. Jeeeeze. If you want to make money go elsewhere, there are smarter, a hell of lot more devious guys in this hobby - and they’re way ahead of you.

Enjoy they cars, whether they’re a patched together POS, on its fifth engine and second front end, labeled “original”, or a trailer queen. Drive ‘em and wave, forget about the money.

Mike

road pilot

I don't care about numbers, paperwork, history. I
only care what my vision of my car will be. The
last owner of my car ,pretty much flipped out
when I told him what I was going to do to"his"
Corvette. I told him that was his vision , now,
the car will be my vision. I lived in the real world
when these Corvettes were new. They were just a bucket
of bolts. The advertiseing dept. at Chevy tried to convince
the public that these cars were special. But they also tried
to convince folks that the Vega was special, too.
No mystic to me.

mikelj

Color combo, options, documentation, and as much originality as possible after the first three are satisfied.

56early

Some buy for fun some , some buy for investment. Some buy for fun and have an investment. Your ride your choice

Ol Blue

QUOTE Road Pilot....."I lived in the real world
when these Corvettes were new. They were just a bucket
of bolts. The advertiseing dept. at Chevy tried to convince
the public that these cars were special."
.....a bucket of bolts??? Au Contraire Road Pilot, Is the Mona Lisa just paint and canvas? The Mid Year Corvettes did have lots of Chevy Hype as well as Magazine accolades but in comparison to other offerings they set (and met) the bar high in all of the right places. Stunning (and long lasting) design, outstanding performance on road and track far surpassing anything on the market at the time. Ahead of it's time with Fuel Injection adding performance and better gas mileage and with the right shocks and tires is no slouch in performance even today. It doesn't have magnetic ride, traction control, multi-gear transmissions that can shift faster than any human, but it does have soul.

Drive one on a familiar road, not full out but just aggressively. Notice how you have to set up the corner just a smidge before going in, be ready for the slight feel on the steering wheel and the seat of your pants when you go over that little uneven place in the road. Listen to the engine, feel the vibration of the shifter, feel the shiver up your spine when it comes on cam at 3000 all the way up to the 6500 shift. That's not Chevy hype, that's a real life experience, an unforgettable one.

Does it match up with it's later generation counterparts? Well I guess that depends on meeting each individuals needs, but more than that the Mid Year Corvettes were part of an era that is not likely to ever be repeated. An era of joy and optimism, at least where I grew up, a time where anyone willing to work and sacrifice some of the day-to-day "feel good" things could elevate themselves into the dream world that Chevy sold to the public. Was that dream world just an image that Chevy sold to the public or was it real?

I maintain it was real, or at least became real because of not only the car, but how it was used (abused) and viewed by the public. In many cases, owning a Corvette for just a little while created unforgettable memories, memories of accomplishment, an elevation of mood and yes, status of being able to own a pinnacle in the automotive world. Once you have been there, it's not a big leap to achieve other high goals in life. Soooo, did Chevy convince the public that the Corvette was special, or was it the Corvette and their owner/enthusiasts that made it so special? I'd say that one only has to look at the dedicated following of these old Corvettes that continues to this day for the answer to that.
Gary

JF in MI

Bought my first Corvette (used '68) from Byrne Bros back in summer of '69.

Mark G

There seem to be different kind of owners who have a focus from the following categories.

1) Originality guys
2) Owners who get into the history and minutia of C3-dom (documentation matters)
3) Speed and race guys (guys who modifiy their cars for such)
4) Cars of sentiment (Youth, parent's car, aspired when a kid, etc)
5) Value owner (investment related)
6) Casual owners who just like the cars and really don't care about 1-5.

I'm more of a 1,2 & 4 guy myself.

vettefred

My NOM, NOT, NODIFF 65 coupe is a joy to drive. Looks original and has specific upgrades that I like that suit ME. I work on the things that are within my skill level and love doing this as it keeps me occupied. Still gets plenty of looks and sounds great.......and I drive it,.....often. I hope many on CF enjoy driving theirs instead of just looking at them, Fred

ah53

Matching numbers and provence on a car are fun to have and fun to chase, In the end for me it's the experience of owning a vintage car and the response from people seeing it and the memories they relate. My cars have created countless conversations and amazing smiles on the faces of people who sit in them. The numbers and provence are meaningless to them, to me it's just a a fun treasure hunt.

Joe

DiabolicalDave

JF in MI

This is exactly why the wife and I like taking our cars to car shows.

vettebuyer6369

When I see people say they don’t care about numbers, documents, correctness, market value, etc I wonder if they buy houses that way, too.

No need to inspect… don’t care about things like market value. I’m buying the house because J like it.

I understand not wanting certain things that cost more. I do not understand not being extremely informed on the market and what affects current and future value.

Whether it’s $25k or 250k, it’s an investment whether you want to admit it or not.

Vettrocious

The best part of it all is letting little kids sit in them, their joy is worth whatever it costs…

reno stallion

I think they're neat