Oklahoma Academy

Hello all,

I am Fred Volz, auto shop teacher at Oklahoma Academy, here in beautiful Harrah, Oklahoma.
Our auto shop class just acquired a 1971 Stingray 350/330 with T-400. The front has been wiped out, but other than that the car is very nice and the frame is still good. It has no engine, but the guy we got it from threw in a 1972 Four bolt main/1.94 head 350 to sweeten the deal.We hope to restore or customize this car and sell it as a fundraiser for the school.
This is a new experience for me as well as the students and, outside of some 'glass work many moons ago on a '67, I have no experience on Corvettes. So I will be asking a large amount of silly questions as we go through this in the next year. I have a few no-brainers to start out.

1- Is there any difference between a Stingray and a regular base model Vette in '71 or were they all called Stingrays?

2-Is the 350/330 option a big deal or is that the standard equipment engine?

3- If the car cannot be numbers matching are we better off in terms of return on investment by customizing the car (flares, hood, air dam)or getting as close to stock as possible. (NO, this is not a "Corvette Summer" thing, that was one ugly car!)

4- What is with the name inscribed on the steering wheel (duntov)?

As you can see, I'm a definite newbie.

dfellinger

All 1971s were called Stingray

The 350/330 HP Option in 1971 was called an LT-1. 1,941 out of approx 21,000 cars produced in 1971 were Lt-1's, so it is a valuable option, but you said that the original motor was gone so that eliminates the LT-1 motor still being with the car, therefore the value that the original motor would have given to the car is gone. It is now a non-numbers-matching car and as such has no special value, other than it is a "chrome bumber" car which still does have a great deal of appeal.

big_G

1...They are all Stingrays
2...The 350/330 was an optional engine, LT-1, but not used with automatic transmissions...does the hood have a LT-1 designation with a stripe?
3...The vette will be worth more original
4...Zora Arcus-Duntov played a major part in the development of the Corvette in the 60's and the 70's ...that is probably an after-market wheel, more than likely....

P.S. WE LIKE PICTURES!!!!

Glass Act

Hey Teach,
How about some pictures before your class starts and along the way to completion. There's a post here called "Mod or Stock" and it voices Corvette owners views for both. Good Luck and keep us posted.

Star79

Making it somewhat original would be more interesting for the kids, and it is (was..) a fairly rare car. Customizing can be done to anything (might as well have a 85 Monte Carlo out of the junkyard).

Post pics of what you have, then we'll have a better idea of what you've got, what it needs, etc. People may even volunteer parts if you need them, and labor/expertise if they are local. You definitely came to the right place!

dboz

Without the original motor, I would get creative and do some mods. Vette Brake suspension, flares, hood etc. Nothing wrong with original either, but make it unique since the ORIGINAL aspect is now gone (motor). Maybe even go with a modern LS1 or 2 setup for the engine with a 5 speed that way you can learn about old and new at the same time.

Scottys78

if the numbers don't mach, might as well do some mods. just don't make it look like a ricer! try the idea of putting a newer motor and trans in it.

79VetteMike

Hey,
I live over in Midwest City. I'd be more than happy to offer any assistance. Message me if you are interested and I'll give you my phone number.

platato

No doubt that a factory restoration would be most desirable. That said, here are my thoughts

1. Keep the car as close to factory as possible. Pick up the NCRS Judging Guide to help you with the process. That and the Assembly manual are the best manuals I own. The restoration would be a terrific lesson on correct restorations, a great example of 1971 technology, you'd have some fun hunting parts on Ebay, here and other places plus the Vette would fetch good money (especially as a fundraiser). It's not impossible to find a "correct" engine to drop in it.

2. Keep the car cosmetically correct. Don't mess with the body or interior. Modernize the engine, drivetrain, suspension and brakes to make the car a better performer. (A resto-rod). This will probably be a more interesting project for your class and you won't have to search as many original parts. The car might not bring as much as a factory restoration but it won't be as tough of a job either. The nice thing about this type of restoration is that there is a demand for modernized C3's and someone really interested in a factory restoration might pick it up for the factory body and interior and then go hunt his own factory correct parts.

A couple other ideas

1. Contact the Corvette parts houses - Corvette America, Mid America Motorworks, Wilcox, Ecklers, Chicago Corvette, Paragon Reproductions, Corvette Central, Zip Products, Van Steel, VBP etc. and see if they would be willing to donate some items or give you a good price on what you need for your class project

2. Contact some vette magazines and let them know what your doing. There might be a feature story in it.

3. Never hesitate to come here for help. I've been everywhere and this IS the best Forum out there with the best group of people. We'd love to follow along with your project and help where needed. But........You better get a digital camera and post pics as we love eye candy!

STW!

Platato

P.S. Definitely post a pic of the steering wheel, my curiosity is peaked!

Wife'sVette

dunno ...... reads like the byline on my copy of the movie, just don't take it to Vegas

anyways, if you could find the original motor, go bone stock ... if not, tick it up a bit.

sounds like a great year is in store for you and your students

ngcolby

I think step one is to have your class do a bunch of research on this site. Assign each one a particular system on the car and have them determine what the best course of action is. "Do we replace the leaky powersteering box or do we upgrade to a rack and pinion?" "Replace the leaky oil pressure gauge with same, or upgrade to electric?" "Will that big fat tire fit in the wheelwell with single, or double offset trailing arms, and what backspacing does it need?"

Eh...maybe not...but they would learn a ton...

Original or brought into the 21st century, a nicely restored vette is a beautiful thing. Personally, since it's not going to be numbers matching, I would do some modernizing to the drivetrain, and whatever other areas require attention. A agree with some other posts, don't mess with the lines of the body or with the interior too much...then you *will* annihilate the value of the car....

73 LS-4

If your looking at return on investment, your best bet is to go as close to original as possible. some modern upgrades are nice, but for the most part they don't help sell the car but they tend to make it more enjoyable to drive. Changes such as converting the points over to electronic tend not to hurt the value and make the car more maintenace free. One thing I would deffinitly try in research is the vin number on this car sothat the original options will be known, I'm guessing you'll probably find that this wasn't a 330 horse car at all and somebody probably just put the plate on the console to make people think it was a 330hp lt-1, especiall since it's an auto and the LT-1 wasn't available with an auto. In any case the vin should be your basis of rebuild in my oppinion. For example if you do find out that this is an originally an LT-1 car then your best bet if the original engine is not available is to build your engine up to LT-1 specs and convert the trans over to the 4spd that is supposed to be in it M-20 or M-21 muncie (doubt it would be a M-22 car). then get the correct LT-1 hood and striping. What you'll end up with is the correct car without the correct matching drivetrain, but it's worth more then an old LT-1 car with the wrong engine and trans. Of course if the vin comes back as a base motor automatic car, then you have a little more leeway as far as what you can do before you start losing it's value. As far as corvette values go, the major increasers in value are optional engines, convertibles, and 4spds. Let us know what you find on the vin number or better yet if you can find the build sheet it will gve us all the info we need. Best of luck.


Pat Kunz

dfellinger

If I am not mistaken, the VIN number of a 1971 will not indicate if it is or is not an original LT-1. They did not start indicating this in the VIN number until 1972. Research of the VIN number will not give you the information you need to determint the legitimacy of the LT-1 claim for a 1971.

Oklahoma Academy

Thanks for the responses. Where would I find the build sheet?

dfellinger

On top of the gas tank.

litevette

While an original style resto would fetch more at selling time, it will also cost more to accomplish. I'm sure you'll be working on a tight budget. A modded car will cost much less to build than a correct resto will. At selling time, I would not advertise that it was restored by students. Potential buyers may think it was done half assed.

JungleCat

This sounds like a class I would love to sign up for. Good luck on your project.

steves_77vette

No kidding. That sounds like some "higher education" that I'd be interested in.

ThereIsNoSpoon

Sounds like a great project, and sounds like the kids are lucky to have a great teacher!

Oklahoma Academy

I found a couple of more details.
First, the car was originally green, but has been painted red. And came with a green interior that has been dyed black.
Second, the metal tag in the door jamb reads:
Chevrolet A25
Trim 423
983 Paint

The vin # is 194371S100887

Third, The engine specs are embossed into the automatic console itself, not on a plate that was added. The embossed section reads as follows:

330 Horsepower 360 Lbs Ft Torque

350 Cubic Inches 9.0:1 Compression

How can I run the VIN? The Vin decal does say "350, 4bbl , Automatic"

Lastly, the forum "tag" at the bottom of my screen says "You may NOT post attachments", otherwise I took a few pics this morning. Perhaps I could email them to someone.