Hello;
I'm a soon to be 71 year old geezer and we are thinking of buying an older Corvette, Something in the mid 70's to upper 80's.
Are ther any particular year models to avoid. I've been around old cars most of my life, but have only looked at Corvettes for their looks and not function.
I would appreciate any and all advice.

 

I know people who own every year model and enjoy their 'vette. On the other hand, the late C3s, 75-82, seem to me to be less preferable than the C4s after they had sorted them out (i.e., I'd recommend avoiding '84 - '86). Frankkly, as far as C4s go, the later models with the LT1 are very good cars.

 

Two things put the 68-82 Shark style (C-3) Corvette on the map, great looks and crazy HP.
As emmission standards, insurance premiums and fuel went up, HP went down, but the beautiful lines of the shark helped GM sell over 500,000 C-3's.
Front suspension is not a problem as all the parts are available at any auto store.
Rear suspension is Corvette unique and replacing trailing arm bearings takes special tools and costs 1 to 2 K.
Brakes are 4 piston disks and were ahead of there time and will stop your car properly every time.
Body trim changed a little from year to year as did the badging.
Vacuum runs the pop up headlights and in some years also the wiper door and is only a minor problem to make work correctly.
Automatics and sticks were available for most years.
Big blocks and small blocks lost all there HP in the early 70's but you can still do highway speeds, it just takes a few longer seconds to get to that speed.
Convertibles were last made in 74 and cost a little more than the T-Tops.
75 and up were equipted with catrlytic converters and were not true dual exhaust.
Areas to double check are the windshield frame (birdcage) and make sure that the frame is solid with only surface rust.
Go to a few Vette shows and talk to the owners, they will tell you what to look for, and when you find a Vette that you like just make sure that everything works and than find a Corvette repair shop, not just a good mechanic but a Corvette repair and restoration shop and let them confirm that your choice has been maintained properly and that your choice is truly a good value.
Have fun in your search and keep us posted. PG.

PS. Here's a link for basic info http://www.vettefacts.com/

 

Thanks for the info and advice.
Sounds like the right way to go.