I have the opportunity to purchase a 1977 corvette with miles in the 60,000 range. The car still has original paint. All gauges work, even the clock. Air does not work, neither does cruise. Orig motor and trans. I have attached pics and am looking for experienced opinions on the value of this car. The owner is asking 8500, I believe this is a good price for the car, but need feedback. Please let me know as I must decide by Friday.
Thanks,
The Pastor

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is it an L48 or L82?

kbb and nada dont list back that far, but i had a look on ebay, and for an L82 1977 vette, 8500 in good to excellent condition is UBER cheap. good to excellent condition L82s are going for the area of 10-12grand..

if it is an L48, the price jumps around a bit...i have included a link to the list of 1977 vettes on ebay right now, there are 15 of them, and L48 or L82 is the biggest issue. something else i would look into..take a GOOD look at the paint around the fascia, and anywhere else there may be cracking from stress on the body panels. next, i would find out a rough price from ecklers, or a parts store about fixing the AC and cruise, and try to get that removed from the price, especially if it is an L48.
here is the link to 1977 corvettes, both L48 and L82 on ebay.

http://search.ebay.com/1977-corvette...Z1QQsacatZ6001

 

Hope I'm not too late to offer advice.

The cruise issue is probably due to a bad transducer (about $100). Take it for a drive, does the speedometer needle "jump" a little as you're driving? That would point to the transducer being bad. It should be replaced soon or it'll end up snapping one of the speedo cables before too long. The only other things that can really fail on the cruise control system is the diaphram on that pulls the carb link in, or a switch problem. Hey it could be something as easy as a vacuum leak or a blown fuse.

As for the A/C, depending on what's wrong with it, it's probably just a lost cause. The old R12 systems are impossible to repair and refill, and most of the time, you'd be better off just buying a newer R134 system. Myself, I'd just live without it.

The main things you want to check on the car are the brake system (the service brake calipers each have 4 pistons and tend to develop leaks, and the emergency brake pads are a MAJOR pain to replace), and the rear suspension. Any problems in the front suspension are cheap fixes and can be done by any shade-tree mechanic. But the rear trailing arms/bearings are tough to fix ..... and expensive to have done for you.

Otherwise $8500 sounds like a fair price. These C3's are really starting to inch up in price now. I think you'll be happy you bought it.