biackbenz

Looking at a 1978. Appears to be original including paint . Interior was redonne. And looks very amature . L82 4 speed. Paint looks 35 years old and has usual nicks but no gouges. See picture of left. rear quarterpanel. There is a bulge at the seam. I tried to reach up the back side but could not reach the back side of the seam to see if it might be damaged and repair. Will bring flashlight if I look at it again. My question to the. experienced: is this bulge at the seam indicative of 1978 GM build. quality or does this need more investigation. Thanks

biackbenz

vettebuyer6369

Moving from Cars For Sale classifieds to General discussion section.

F22

Pretty strange. Does it have a matching bulge on the right side? It could be either poor body work or maybe an effort to reverse some kind of fender mod, like a flare.

929nitro

Need better pictures. Is it really a bulge or is it a depression in the quarter panel? Looks like it is in the right location for the body seam and could be a bad repair on that.

BKarol

GM did some pretty crappy painting back in 78 but no 78s I have seen developed a bulge. More investigation is needed. Also, there are missing parts from the engine compartment so as it sits it is not original from the factory without the parts. Good luck but do your homework on that rear panel. Cost of body work is expensive.

Is that Corvette Yellow (code 52 on the trim tag)? seems like a 4spd, L82 that color and interior would be rare.

Easy Mike

I'm not sure you're looking at a bulge. The factory bonding seam is in that area. They shrink with age. My guess would be the fender and surround panel are okay and the seam has shrunk.

Similar bondiing seams also run the length of the front fenders.

These are 81s, but the factory seams are the same for all C3s.

BLUDICE

I agree - I think it's a rare one for sure!
More pics and details would be nice.

qwank

the car seems to be in decent shape from what I can see. what is the seller asking for it?

biackbenz

The color code is 52L for yellow. Does the "L" mean anything? Interior code is 12C for oyster cloth leather. I think yellow was the lowest number of vettes in 78. Lower than brown!

The bulge I talk about is only on the left side. I have seen this on other cars but not so pronounced. Does not appear anyone tried to modify flare or any stuff like that. It feels like a buldge not an indentation. The wheel well flares all feel very smooth. I think this is either age of the seam, poor build or a replaced quarter panel.

If this is a replaced panel what should I be concerned about? What should I inspect? Frame in that area of course.

I know the shield over the distributor is missing. Anything else anyone can missing.

Air conditionling does not work. Not sure I care other than a negotiation chip.

Owner says he is third and owned it for almost 20 years. Thinks origial owner was female which might explain the oyster interior instead of black , brown or doeskin.

He is asking $9, 000.00. Not in a big hurry to sell. Think it a fair price? I will take the car to a corvette specialist repair shop for an inspection. Particularly the frame and bird cage.

Thanks for all your help.

hunt4cleanair

Don't confuse rare with added value and therefore worthy of more $! It is not like the rare power option of the late 60s and early 70s...those assessments were horsepower options...not cosmetics. I mean who cares its yellow.

BTW, L simply means lower...U = upper. It was a GM standard coding when cars were painted in two colors and used in 1978 and than later in Bowling Green Corvettes.

While the shielding is missing, the plug wires look original. It may have a majority of its original mechanical components and therefore worth a second look. Get it for $7,500 and you've got some room to upgrade but make sure you've checked underneath for leaks...like, brakes, oil, power steering and differential.

Easy Mike

BKarol

Front air cleaner intake hose is missing. Do you know if it has the intake duct that sits over the radiator? Not a deal breaker because you can buy after market or search for an original but missing in the pic.

I agree it appears to be a nice car, an inspection is in order. The fender would be the most troubling but if you can live with it.
Just a fyi, back then original paint was acrylic lacquer.

Brandons72vette

The interior looks great from the photos, a lot better than most C3s to be honest. But it always comes down to the details. It looks nice. Although, we only see a little portion of the car from the 3 pics. It is a great color combination. Yellow with tan. Very cool. I had a yellow 2001 C5 with tan interior. It took months searching for it. I chased the car from Mississippi to California. I finally got it. I sold it sadly, but I always wish I hadn't. Yellow and tan is the way to go IMO.