Back in 1979, everybody in my circle wanted either a Corvette, a Trans Am or Camaro, or a Cutlass.
A longtime Corvette enthusiast even at age 20, I backslid that year and bought one of the new downsized Cutlass Supreme Broughams (the horrors) – a beautiful car but not really a high-performance car with its puny 260 V8 engine. But it sure looked nice in silver with a matching vinyl roof over those plush cloth seats in blue.
Anyway, a lot of folks gobbled up Cutlasses like me, but a record number wound up springing for a ’79 Corvette, with some 53,807 T-top coupes built that year in St. Louis.
One of those ’79s is currently up for sale at no reserve on eBay, where the high bid has climbed to just $7,100 with the auction slated to close down at 6:33 p.m. Monday.
While Corvettes of this era are often denigrated for their lack of power, this one has a 350 V8 that was rebuilt and beefed up about 5,000 miles ago, according to the seller, who says now it’s “pushing about 385 horsepower.” If that’s accurate and can be backed up with documentation, that would be pretty impressive considering the stock L48 engine only belched out 195 horses.
Meanwhile, no luck with a four-speed manual transmission, but the original automatic “shifts perfectly through all gears,” the ad claims.
Appearance-wise, we really like this Corvette Dark Blue that was chosen by about 10 percent of customers that year, with 5,670 coated in this shade, but we’d prefer to see the addition of the optional front and rear spoilers to complete the aggressive look. The seller says the paint was redone about 10 years ago, calling it “very nice for its age” though acknowledging that “it’s not perfect but very nice and shines up nice.”
The body does remain straight and all original, he adds, and the birdcage and frame are said to be rust-free. The car reportedly has never been in a wreck or a flood.
Inside, the Light Beige interior is described as being in “nice” condition, though the seller admits some TLC is needed to take it to the next level. The rubber cover at the back of the console, for example, looks pretty faded and scratched up. Some new seat covers and steering wheel would help, too. On the other hand, the door panels are in good condition, and the dash and carpet look OK as well.
If the price doesn’t climb too much before the close of the auction, there appears to be room for the new owner to make these desired upgrades to create a special car.
Already, while admitting it’s not “showroom or a trailer queen,” the seller does believe this ’79 to be “a solid, clean, daily driver vehicle that runs and drives great, doesn’t burn any oil or have any leaks, and definitely doesn’t overheat.”
Of course, there is one problem with the car that can’t be easily fixed, as the seller points out that this Corvette “gets so much attention everywhere you go – people give you thumbs up and they always want to take pictures next to it.”
If you can handle that kind of public persona, this might be just the car for you.
Source:
eBay Motors via BarnFinds.com
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