Deciding whether to restore our Corvette or preserve its originality

Update by Tim Suddard to the Chevrolet Corvette Coupe project car
Apr 25, 2024 | Corvette

A big question loomed: What to do with this Corvette?

We had handled a few basics and started to feel more comfortable around the car. In fact, it could be called a budding love affair. Now it was time to pen a plan for our 1965 Corvette.

Despite some faults, the car was surprisingly honest and original. At the same time, there was enough wrong with it that a NCRS concours restoration was not in the cards. We simply couldn’t justify the time and money.

The car was good but not great. The chrome trim, for example, rated an 8 on a scale of 1-10. To make the car perfect, therefore, it would need to be replaced.

But for a driver, the chrome looked very much good enough.

And for how good this car drove, it should remain as one. It would be a shame to turn it into a concours car and never drive it.

We are thinking that this would make a nice, practical, reliable, inexpensive-to-run touring car–and that is what we plan to do with it.

As for the level of restoration, while we often tear a car down to the frame and rebuild it from the ground-up, this time we have a different plan in mind: We are going to turn this Corvette into a solid No. 3 driver. And we’re going to so do safely, reliably, quickly and inexpensively.

We are also going to stay very sympathetic to its originality with an eye to leave as much patina as we can, yet keep the car from looking too ratty. We will do this project in easily digestible chunks of weekend or, at worst, week-long tasks. 

So, that means that instead of fitting new carpet, we will teach you how to patch and dye the existing carpet. We will try to fix, rather than replace, the seats, door panels and other areas that need attention. We will show you how to turn a ratty chassis and engine bay into something good enough to show, at least locally.

Our budget is $5000, and we will source most of the stuff we use on eBay or Facebook Marketplace. This will get us parts that match the patina of the rest of the car and will save us a bunch of money.

So far, we have spent less than $1000, plus the price of the car, and made much progress. We just picked up the correct grille for $200 on Marketplace. We have also sold unneeded parts the same way.

Most of all, we think this is the way most mere mortals restore a car. Most cannot send it off to a professional or dedicate the time, space and expense that it takes to explode a car and rebuild it from the bare frame.

When we are done, we will take it to local events and long-distance tours. You can look for it probably at one of our own tours this fall.

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