I am very seriously considering this car http://www.camaros.net/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=37494&cat=44&date=1190430905.
I have talked with the owner several times and she has sent me alot of pics of the car. According to the owner this car is a real 69 L48 SS survivor with original paint, interior and drivetrain. The original engine is not in the car but is crated in her garage and was running when pulled from the car and should still run with no problems. She stated that she pulled the engine due to "a little blue exhaust smoke" and put in a 327 that she had rather than having the original rebuilt. The car was in a minor parking lot fender bender in 1970 and the driver quarter was patched above the body line using a GM quarter panel under warranty by a dealer. Other than that there are 2 spots of rust, 1 on the lower fender, 1 on the lower quarter that are minor and a dent in the header (which a new one comes with the car) panel and a dent on the rear lower valance. I have decoded all of the numbers and they do match to what she says the car is. The only docs that come with the car is the original title and the car is said to be a 3 owner car. She has alot of extra parts that she is willing to include with the sale at full price such as new header panel, new carpet, new upholstery kit, new emblems, a new bumper, and new door handles. The car has had new body bushings installed, new exhaust, new rally wheels and tires and new seals on the 12 bolt rear. I would leave the car as-is at least for a while and drive to enjoy. However if I did end up wanting to restore this car I can't help but think that I am going to put in way more than what it is worth for a small block SS. I live 12 hours away from the car and will need to hire an inspection company to look at the car and verify at a cost of over $500 so I want to be sure that it is a good investment. I need some opinions???

wish I happened to be back in OKC, I'd go take a look for you. That's pretty good paint and interior for being original. If the motor's out of the car, it would be pretty easy to get pics of engine stamp and hidden vin #.

i have the same set up i paid 26k for mine 2 yrs ago,, mine still retains the orig 350 300 hp motor m20 4 spd. in my opinion i think id offer a bit lower for it. like 26000 its a very nice looking set up love the white. but its up to you its your budget. also to me the bigblock small block thing doesnt fly i love all of them. And if all them extras come with it thats a good thing too. if you need a good inspection company i use jason phillips look him up online hes honest and reasonable and does a thorough job,,good luck

wish I happened to be back in OKC, I'd go take a look for you. That's pretty good paint and interior for being original. If the motor's out of the car, it would be pretty easy to get pics of engine stamp and hidden vin #.

LeMans Blue can be decieving here is a closeup pic. She is going to snap a pic of the engine pad for me tonight.

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd286/78MBA/Blue69010.jpg

I would shoot a littler lower, maybe the $25,000 if they don't except it, walk!
there's plenty to choose from.

I would shoot a littler lower, maybe the $25,000 if they don't except it, walk!
there's plenty to choose from.

:confused: plenty of original paint 1969 camaros to choose from :confused:

Well if your looking for a original paint job on a '69 then your good, because there's
probably not alot of them out there. I'm not sure if I would pay that kinda of money,
you said you plan on driving it for awhile like it is. What about 2-5 years down the
road when you want to paint it, that's another 6 - 10 grand! So now your around
35 - 40 grand for the thing. Ouch!

I think he said in a previous thread that he is maxed out at 2Xk. There's no doubt that for mid thirties he could get into a "better" car in the long run. But, for his budget I think that mid 25's would be a good deal on this car.

Chris, if it is indeed mostly original paint and #'s matching, then I would not "restore" it. Think of the blemishes as just "patina" :)

Rich

I would shoot a littler lower, maybe the $25,000 if they don't except it, walk!
there's plenty to choose from.

I'm thinking more like 20K........I bet I could find a nicer first generation small block SS Camaro for 25K. This is a buyers market.

I think he said in a previous thread that he is maxed out at 2Xk. There's no doubt that for mid thirties he could get into a "better" car in the long run. But, for his budget I think that mid 25's would be a good deal on this car.

Chris, if it is indeed mostly original paint and #'s matching, then I would not "restore" it. Think of the blemishes as just "patina" :)

Rich

30K is budget.

I'm thinking more like 20K........I bet I could find a nicer first generation small block SS Camaro for 25K. This is a buyers market.

#'s matching with original panels? :noway:

However if I did end up wanting to restore this car I can't help but think that I am going to put in way more than what it is worth for a small block SS. I live 12 hours away from the car and will need to hire an inspection company to look at the car and verify at a cost of over $500 so I want to be sure that it is a good investment. I need some opinions???



Even if it was a BB car if you do a full resto you would probably end up with more in it than it is worth.For $500.00 I would go look at it myself.If you are buying it because you want it I say go for it.If you are buying it for an investment put your money in a jar and bury it in the backyard.JMO

PS I think it is a really neat car.I would install the carpet and other parts and drive it.

For the right price I would buy it and fix what needs fixing to drive and enjoy the car as it sits. Yes a full restoration and you will be upside down. With the original paint - at least you know what you have got. A similar Camaro for $30,000 maybe all hacked up and hiding all kinds of bad body work. Looks like a nice color combination. Did you see this SS/RS on the site to compare the two cars http://www.camaros.net/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=37488&cat=44

-Doug

i think 25 maximum for the car is right, its a buyers market right now, banks are tight lending cash so i would offer something that isnt insulting to her but at the same time realistic maybe 22,500 but that's my opinion, it will need body and paint work and some places that can be costly as paint jobe from reputable places can start at 5k etc..

Is is the block in the crate in her garage is it the original block? Does she have the POP to prove matching numbers? I know you say matching numbers but these days everybody has a diffrent idea on what mathching numbers are and how they can prove it. For myeself id have to have that block back in the car and also body and paint work would be taken into consideration, is there any rust or bubbles under the vinal etc?

i think 25 maximum for the car is right, its a buyers market right now, banks are tight lending cash so i would offer something that isnt insulting to her but at the same time realistic maybe 22,500 but that's my opinion, it will need body and paint work and some places that can be costly as paint jobe from reputable places can start at 5k etc..

Is is the block in the crate in her garage is it the original block? Does she have the POP to prove matching numbers? I know you say matching numbers but these days everybody has a diffrent idea on what mathching numbers are and how they can prove it. For myeself id have to have that block back in the car and also body and paint work would be taken into consideration, is there any rust or bubbles under the vinal etc?

It's actually pretty clear what matching numbers are. Now, telling a real stamp from a fake is a different story but you can worry about that when you get the pics. POP would be a bonus. Also, I wouldn't be in a hurry to put the original motor back in right now either if you're gonna make it a driver. If it were a big block and wanted to feel the horses maybe. otherwise just drive it and have fun.

I like this one better... For your 30k budget if he would go for it..

http://www.camaros.net/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=36530&cat=44
http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r216/skeeter55/Image04542.jpg

It sounds like this car is going to be a mid size project; body and paint, interior, rebuilding what they say is the original engine and who knows what else you'll find. But if you like to wrench.....

Get it inspected for sure. I almost bought an old Vette from a dealer that assured me it was in excellent condition and by the pictures it appeared very nice. I searched the net and and contacted a Vette club nearby and a member looked at it for me and the report came back bad, real bad.

Is the $500 for an inspection for you to make the trip? I've seen $150 -$300 quoted from many services or $50-$100 for a fellow member. The guy that did mine would not accept any money for his time.

If you are looking for originality I think it is worth it. Great combo all the way around. It is a great car for the money.

If you decide to offer a lower price and miss out, how will you feel about the money you "saved"?

Hell, I have more than that in the garage I built to house my Camaro........

How much is a done one (8/10) low 30's?

He pays $28,000
Paint $5,500
Interior finish $800
Engine rebuild $1,200
Going through suspension $1,000
Misc repairs $2,000

= $38,500

+ plenty of owner labor/stress/grief/rage/ beating of the dog... ect ect ad nauseum.

It sounds like a pretty fair deal to me. I happen to have a car that is somewhat similar:

L-48 (But with a TH350)
Original Paint (But it's fathom Green)
Original interior (but it's black)
Original motor (but we rebuilt it last year)
NOM trans, but our of another 69
It's an LA car, and I have the build sheet :thumbsup:
All original sheet metal except the driver's fender - it was probably replaced in the 70's and painted to match the car.

Most of the rest of the car is original. I think that if I were to sell mine I would expect something around that number. I say, if you like it, and it's in your budget, go for it. If it can be documented for what it is, and it is what you want, it should be in your garage.

You could always do what I did --- I found a member on this site that lived near where the car I was interested in lived. I PM's him and he went and looked at it for me. I paid him for his time and his driving expenses, he took a bunch of pics, and then I contacted a shop in the area that did restorations. They inspected it for me, verified what I wanted to know, and I bought it sight unseen. But I felt good about it because someone I thought I could trust looked at it for me. But it's a roll of the dice if you don't look at it yourself... I got lucky. I probably wouldn't do it again unless I knew that I knew that the person who was looking at it for me knew what they were doing. Then, I would probably still go see it myself. But I wouldn't pay $500.00 to have an "inspection" done ... unless it was a blue chip car and that was the last thing to be done to make the decision.

GM repaired a damaged quarter panel "under warranty"? What kind of GM warranty does that??? That doesn't sound right.

"...patched above the body line using a GM quarter panel under warranty by a dealer"

"The car was in a minor parking lot fender bender in 1970 and the driver quarter was patched above the body line using a GM quarter panel under warranty by a dealer."
That kind of throws the orig paint statement out the window. Nice looking car though. If the rest is orig paint I would never repaint it. Preserve what is there. You could drive it and not worry about your first scratch on a new paint job. I would spend more time looking at this car as it is over pretty much any restored car at a car show.

GM repaired a damaged quarter panel "under warranty"? What kind of GM warranty does that??? That doesn't sound right.

"...patched above the body line using a GM quarter panel under warranty by a dealer"

Well to be fair i did have aq uote from a dealer at their body shop 4 yrs ago and they do warrantytheir work for reasonable amount of time, i.e cracking etc, that show i found out about POR and other stuff they used to do their body work, but if the sheet metal isnt bad and they are simply patching etc why shouldnt they warranty their work, Id hope all shops warranty their work for what they cahrge in regards to body work today.

Withthat being said i hope she is refferring to the original warrnty the car was sold with in 69 lol..

#'s matching with original panels? :noway:
I thought it said something about the quarter panel being replaced? I see that car as a money pit, I just think for that kinda coin, he could do better. Might take some time, but if I was looking, I would keep looking. The market is still way down on these cars right now, a couple years ago this would have been considered a steal. That's just my opinion, so don't take it personal.

I found another SS 350 4spd that I am going to go look at tomorrow that is supposedly matching #'s, original panels, and fully resotred for $32,000. We'll see!

If this is the same car that was at the chickasha swap meet last year .I looked at the car ,it is a fairly nice car and looked to be original paint, with the exception of the q/p that had been replaced and it was gray primer.I especially like surviver cars, but if i had this one i would probably restore it. Just my opinion.i did not look at any of the numbers.

IMHEO, all things known/considered, that particular car is overpriced by about 20 percent even with the parts included.

I would shoot a littler lower, maybe the $25,000 if they don't except it, walk!
there's plenty to choose from.


yea plenty of garbage to choose from!!!


my bad, forgot some can't see the difference

I like this one better... For your 30k budget if he would go for it..

http://www.camaros.net/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=36530&cat=44
http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r216/skeeter55/Image04542.jpg

looks nice and original

Don't know about original but a nice vert....

You can better,for the same money.Original yes clean no,just zooming in on the pics can see many areas that need attention.

Now I could be mistaken, but I believe the car is not a real SS since it does not have the backup lights mounted below the bumper. They are in the taillights which I believe is not correct for an SS.

You're thinking RS, not SS, backup light have nothing to do with it being as SS.

I have recently looked at this car being a friend of the owner. I didnt look it over with a fine tooth comb and didnt check any numbers. It appeared to be a legit SS with original paint with exeption of the quarter repair that was noted. I fires up with a click of the key reaching through the window and runs/sounds strong.

Everyones oppinion of "clean condition" will vary but I would say the car is very clean for an unmolested/original paint car. Like Clill said, with original paint you know exactly what your getting. I agree also that I would walk past ten fully restored 69 Camaros to look at an unrestored original paint camaro. I have seen original paint cars with quite a bit of flaws, scratches ect bring far more money than ones with flawless new finishes.

I dont think the car is over priced for what it is IMO.

If it needs paint and body work, what is this huge value in original paint? A lot of people will have before and after resto documentation pictures and many times a nice restored car will have been stripped to bare metal before being squirted.

Look at the picture of the right front fender, it looks like the stripe goes down too low onto the fender filler, past the seam. That would make me question the original paint statement unless a better picture clears it up.
I also dont see place a great premium fo original paint when every panel is going to need work, who knows whats under that vinyl top. Over priced.

Look at the picture of the right front fender, it looks like the stripe goes down too low onto the fender filler, past the seam. That would make me question the original paint statement unless a better picture clears it up.
I also dont see place a great premium fo original paint when every panel is going to need work, who knows whats under that vinyl top. Over priced.

That's interesting I never noticed that! I started going back and looking through some vintage ads and photo's and some do go below the line and some don't. I wonder which is correct or if both were known to have happened?

The stripe continuing onto the fender extension was on early cars IIRC.

The stripe continuing onto the fender extension was on early cars IIRC.

This particular car is an Oct. 68 build so I would say it is correct!

If that car looks anywhere near as good in person as it does in the pictures, and it has more than 85% of the original paint/stripes on it, I would NOT repaint it! I only wish my big block convertible had not been repainted back in the 70's. That is the one main thing that is keeping the car from "survivor" status, and presents the big dilemma for me in regards to restoring the car.

I would buy it - as was said before, restored cars are getting pretty common. gems like these are hard to find.

Looks like a good car for the price... then again, I am from Canada and everything from the US seems like a good deal. If only I had the cash...

Look at the picture of the right front fender, it looks like the stripe goes down too low onto the fender filler, past the seam. That would make me question the original paint statement unless a better picture clears it up.
I also dont see place a great premium fo original paint when every panel is going to need work, who knows whats under that vinyl top. Over priced.
Yea, we all know how exact and perfect the cars were brand new lol. Anyone with a little experience with these cars knows that anything could have and generally did happen.

The factory stripes on my 69 Z10 were horrible.

To solidify what R.A. Dave said, the stripe is not a mistake. There is an early and late version of the D90 stripe. On early cars [up to Nov 68?] the stripe continues about 1" onto the fender extension. After that time it ends at the extension seam.