Vash the Stampede

Hi, as a potential first time vette buyer, i am new here.

I might buy a 75 L-82 T-top Stingray off of my step-dad for the good price of 8K.
It has been sitting in our garage for 2 years, only ran when it was getting washed. This is because of my parents having a 3 year old daughter. So anyways, I would like to get this car and fix it up a bit. It has 92k miles on it.
A few things about this car. It has a few oil spots under it. Now, for sitting in the same spot for 2+ years, they arent big at all. Another thing, when I was test driving it, I was checking out all the stuff on the inside to make sure everything was in working order. I flipped the lights up, and down, up, down, then up again, and when I put them down the third time, the drivers side light stayed up. It has since not to go down. Any ideas what it might be, or what the oil might be from?

Also, one last question. I am thinking about changing the engine to a big block, doing this, would it drop the resale value? The car is auto right now to, I would like to make it a standard. Would that effect it as well?

I would like to get this car as a project for the next few years, somthing I can keep with me as I grown old. I loved the Stingrays as a child, now that im in my 20's, I want to get one while they are still affordable.

ZiVvmO

well if its a number matching car (i.e. original engine tranny etc) putting a BB and manual would lower the value.....the book value that is. many people will buy something for way more than its worth just cuz it has a BB in it..... :confused:

about things to look for and check out, i will let one of the more mechanically inclined guys answer that

welcome the the forum :cheers:

Fastguy

The headlight could probably use some lube at all the pivot points after sitting around all this time. Try "assisting" them lightly by hand when they operate. As far as swapping in a BB as I have done in my 75, its a lot of work. To be brutally honest and save you a lot of time/money/heartache, if a few oil spots and a sticky headlight are serious concerns, you do NOT want to get involved in an engine and tranny swap. The car sounds like a nice driver, I would leave it as it is. If you do decide on more power, mod the smallblock with heads/cam/ intake and headers/duals.

GTR1999

Anyone know how many 75's : L-82, 4 speeds,3.70's were produced this year?And what the value would be for a driver?
Gary

page62

According to Vette magazine:
Condition 1 -- $17,500
Condition 2 -- $14,500
Condition 3 -- $11,500
Condition 4 -- $10,000
Condition 5 -- $10,000

1975 total production: 33,836, L82: 2,372 :eek: , 4-spd.: 1,057, rear axle: 1,969. Apparently no one wanted an L82 that year :smash:

page62

Vash,

If the car has been sitting for a couple of years, plan on replacing everything made of rubber: belts, hoses, perhaps tires. Valve cover gaskets, too.

By the way, oil spots on the garage floor are a normal, puddles are should cause a bit more concern :D

Vash the Stampede

Yea, I was figuring that I would have to replace alot of stuff like gaskets and hoses, needs new tires anyways.
The numbers on it do match.

I was thinking about the big block so I could get more hp. I would like to get it close to 400. At least 350hp. I have a few supra's around that I need to beat. :) Hahaha. Im not planning on driving it as an everyday car, just every once in a while so I can show all the ricers around what a real car is like. Their are way to many 4-banger's with alluminum wings around then their should be.

SuperFast80

Go to http://www.corvettefaq.com :cheers:

Buffalo Dude

'75s are not going to be real hp machines or torquers without a lot of mods(or cubic inches :crazy: ) because they need cats to be street legal. I'm sure you can get it to be a real performer, but not without a lot of work and money. As for pulling original engine and tranny, if you decide to, i would still keep it, numbers matching cars will probably sell higher than non-matching. Can't help you with the headlights, but might want to check out seals around vacuum connections. 8k sounds reasonable for what it is, granted it still has a good interior, no frame rot, or major drivetrain problems. Enjoy! :chevy

joeveto

Don't waste your money converting the car. It sounds like it's a nice car in good condition. If it were a pile of crap needing new everything, and you wanted a project, I'd recommend the swap. But if you really want a big block stick, go find yourself a big block stick. You'll spend so much freaking money making the swap, that by the time you're done, you'll have been able to buy a whole slew of cars you may have never considered (due to cost reasons).

As the others have said, the soft parts will need attention. Hoses, belts, maybe the brakes.

Have fun!

Paul Borowski

Vash, I'm a neighbor north of you by about 35mi up here in Massillon, Ohio. I've been doing a '75 L-82 Corvette Survey for about the last 4 years or so. '75 L-82's were the "rarest" of all L-82's made 1973-1980, ONLY 2372 of them were ever built. Supposedly, being the first year and all of the "catalytic converter", GM had somewhat a hard time getting the car to pass emissions. I have talked to several original owners of '75 L-82's and almost all of them said they waited 4-6months for their car to come in. According to the "Black Book", 1,057 M-21 cars were built. The M-21 option "required" L-82, so at least 1,057 were 4spd cars. I guess an M-20 wide ratio was available with an L-82, but right now it's not known how many M-20 L-82's were built in '75, IF any. 2372-1057=1315 "probable" automatics. Funny that it's pretty close to an even split between auto's and 4spds. In my survey of 56 '75 L-82's, it too is almost an EVEN split. One thing to double check first. The fifth digit in the VIN has to be a "T" to denote L-82. A "J" in this position indicates L-48 car. I've probably have seen more '75 L-48 cars with L-82 emblems THAN L-82 cars in my whole entire survey!!!!! The rare one to have is a '75 L-82 roadster, ONLY 366 of them were built, the rest of the 2006 were coupes.
Yes, it's a rare car and all, but as the other "forumers" have said, the '74-'77' "smog" Corvettes just don't seem to be very high on many people's lists when it comes to "values" on these year Corvettes.

HawkIVette

I knew that Paul would chime in here..... and he even said the magic words. :D :D :D :D :D

Paul 75 L82

I just love my 75 L82 4 speed. With my mods it's a dream to drive. Good Luck.

KenSny

Ditto here. You can get '75s pretty cheap because they were the lowest HP motors of all time. BUT with some top end modifications you can get 330-350hp pretty easy, especialy if you start with an L82 block. Well worth it in my opinion.

Paul Borowski

Rich, thanks for the kind words and all. Hey, if your ever thinking about trading your '75 L-82 roadster for a nice 138,000mi Maaco'd Silver/Silver L-82 automatic coupe, I "might" consider it :yesnod: :lol: :yesnod: :lol: :seeya

Rockn-Roll

Welcome to the forum. As for oil spots...take the car to a car wash and use some spray can engine degreaser and clean it real good especially on the oil pan and if you have power steering clean up the valve and hoses. Next, take it home and jack it up and use jack stands for safety and crawn under there with some more engine degreaser, a bucket of warm water, and some detergent...like liquid laundry detergent or better yet liquid hand soap or dishwashing soap, and some rags. Clean it up real good under there. Then take it for about a 5 mile drive....some back and jack it up again and inspect everything for leaks.

Most probably it's the rear main seal or other leakage of oil from the engine. First thing to do is change the oil...all of it including the filter. I've seen leaks stop after properly changing the oil when it gets dirty, or six months which ever is sooner after about the third oil change. Dirt gets stuck underneath engine seals and pries the seals up so that oil can leak out around it. Clean oil will flush the dirt out and let the everything seal back up. Sometimes the dirt has been there too long and the seals may have to be replaced...there's a couple in front (cam and crank) and one in back (rear main seal).

I'd like to have a BB in my vette....I wish I could find $10,000 so I can buy a GMGoodWrench RamJet 502. I've got a numbers matching L48 which is nice, but I think there's been some work done on it, and it has the L82 valve covers so it's not exactly "original", so putting another engine in there is no big deal to me.

As for the auto to manual it's more than just swapping the trannys. The brake pedal needs to be replaced with a smaller one, the engine clutch pedal linkage needs to be installed including the clutch pedal. The center console needs to be modified or replaced for the wider movement of the stick shift. The crossmember will need to be removed and modified so the shift linkage can be installed. You will need to get a bell housing, clutch lever, throw out bearing, pilot bearing, clutch lever boot, and the worth thing that can possibly be needed is that the crank shaft may need to be removed and machined to accept a pilot bearing.

My suggesting at this point is to clean it up...buy some Zaino and polish it up so it shines, change the oil...then take the T-tops off and drive it around. Also consider that any money you don't spend on parts can go into the gas tank so you can actually go places like the race track and also where your friends can see what kind of car you drive.

'79ProwlerOrange

Vash, if you are gonna keep it for a while who cares about resale? 400hp is easier than a $2.00 hooker to get out of a 350. Heads- $500, Cam $200, Exaust/Intake- $500-$1000. Considering the cost of a decent BB and the cost to put one in (if you arent doing it your self) it would be cheaper to keep the 350. Throw some good rear end gears in it and a good higher stall torque converter and you would have a real street machine.

Vash the Stampede

Thanks everyone, especially paul and rock n' roll! Your input has been greatly appriciated!

Im pretty sure im going to be getting it now. I guess I can live with the Automatic tranny.. :D

rambler323

Vash the Stampede....I know that name. You're with Ba|istik right? I hang out at killerzoo as T*S max. Welcome to the Corvette Forum!