corvette opinions

[WhiteCamaro88]

theres a local vet for sale 1989 in black the paint looked good to me no cob webbing only minor swirls here and there , come to im talking to the owner and he says to me its been repainted by the previous owner . to me it wasnt obvious he had to tell me there was no runs drips overspray , would this lessen the value, be a good or bad thing its accident free (CARFAX'ED AND EYED OVER THE BODY WELL) . I thought at first a good thing as if any extreme damge it can be wet sanded easier then the facotroy paint .


feel free chime in im stressin it out now that im told its repainted

[Hannibal]

so it WAS repainted? and there are no drips and runs? I do not understand your question.

If there are drips and runs, they can be wetsanded but that is quite a chore. Is it a single or dual stage paint? You would need to know the thickness of the paint, hardness etc. etc.

Good Luck!!

[stealth]

Having owned numerous Vettes & other high end units the main concern is if the repaint is in the origional color as per factory paint code. If so & the job is as good as you say no stress just try to pay less for the unit. If it's not the original color it's just a daily driver so try to pay even less & enjoy the ride.

[Pete-FWA]

Just as Stealth said, it's a "driver" and not a show car, so pay accordingly. Does it match? WHY was it repainted? That means more than a Carfax.

[Desertdawg]

A 1989 vette isn't going to be a collector, or NCRS corvette, way to many of them made that year.

So approach this vette as you would any other car, look at the mechanical condition, and aesthetics. If you think it's a good running vette that looks like its all there, and hasn't been hurt then buy it. BTW, whats he asking for it???

Your probably going to buy it to drive, thats what Corvettes were made for. So be sure your not buying a lemon.

[Aurora40]

Like was said, unless you plan on making it a collector car (1989's are eligible for NCRS), then who cares? As long as the paint is good, and more importantly, the rest of the car is good, then go for it! Would you rather have nice respray, or a tired 15 year old original paint job?

You might check the doorjambs and such, though, sometimes you can see some overspray there.

[Accumulator]

I too would wonder *why* it was repainted and I'd also wonder why it's (really) for sale.

Having owned a bunch of them, I'm generally paranoid about used high performance cars in general, and I'm always warily on the lookout for "story cars" that oughta be avoided. With all the '89 'vettes out there I'd find one that doesn't have anything that makes me wonder.

"No runs, drips, or overspray"....sheesh, I should certainly hope not Sorry to be such a downer, but I'd be surprised if there isn't some reason why the current owner is unloading it- a reason you won't find out about until it's yours.

No matter what you want, there's almost always a great example out there if you wait for it. Heh heh, the great ones usually show up right after you buy something inferior for the same money

[Black Bart]

I have a 89 vette and had the bumpers repainted three years ago to remove some slight flaws.
This fall I had some hair line cracks starting to show in the hood so I had the car stripped to the gel coat and repainted with 7 coats of clear. I don't understand those who insist on original paint. The difference between my car now and when it was all original is it now looks a 100 times better. Oh yea it trophies every time I take it to a show.

[RandyG]

Originally posted by Accumulator
I too would wonder *why* it was repainted and I'd also wonder why it's (really) for sale.

Having owned a bunch of them, I'm generally paranoid about used high performance cars in general, and I'm always warily on the lookout for "story cars" that oughta be avoided. With all the '89 'vettes out there I'd find one that doesn't have anything that makes me wonder.

"No runs, drips, or overspray"....sheesh, I should certainly hope not Sorry to be such a downer, but I'd be surprised if there isn't some reason why the current owner is unloading it- a reason you won't find out about until it's yours.

No matter what you want, there's almost always a great example out there if you wait for it. Heh heh, the great ones usually show up right after you buy something inferior for the same money

I would have to agree. I would try and get a lot more information on the car, i.e., how many previous owners, any accidents, etc. Sometimes people will get rid of a car like that because something is about to cost a lot of money to fix. Always expect the worst and negociate the price likewise.

[Aurora40]

Originally posted by Accumulator
I too would wonder *why* it was repainted and I'd also wonder why it's (really) for sale.

It is a Corvette, though. So it is more likely than a typical car that someone would have it repainted purely for cosmetic reasons. But of course you want to make sure everything's ok.

However, there should be a price difference on an all-original, no doubts car, and one that's just a good driver. If all you need is a driver, and the car checks out, why pay the premium? It's an L98, it's not a Ferrari motor. They are pretty reliable and cheap to replace should the worst come to pass.

Really it depends on what you want out of the car. I wouldn't have been interested in a ZR-1 that had been repainted. If it's bothering you that it's a repaint, then maybe it's not the right car for you. There are certainly a ton of Corvettes out there to choose from, and C4 prices are really in the toilet. So take your time and find the one you want.

Just FYI, but the 1990 will have the newer interior and dash. No worries about the digital dash. Though I had an '87 for about 5 years and never had a problem (never had a problem with the 4+3 either).

[Accumulator]

Originally posted by Black Bart
.. I don't understand those who insist on original paint...

There's a practical aspect to this- a car that hasn't been redone is less likely to have any hidden stories, and 'vettes, F-bodies, 'Stangs, etc. are always likely to have stories behind their for-sale status anyhow.

When buying a car that might've been thrashed, I want the peace of mind that comes from knowing what Aurora40 touched on: all original = no doubts.

Taken to an extreme for sake of an example, a car with the original tires and the original clutch probably hasn't been launched hard very often. Similarly, a car with the original paint probably hasn't been wrecked, or even neglected if it looks good.

I'd be curious about how many high-performance cars that appear to be bargains turn out to be disappointing money pits. I suspect it's a pretty high percentage. That's why they're for sale.

[Black Bart]

Since the prices on C4's are now so low you may be right some may be trashing them but all of the people that I know who have them that is not the case.
Example this week I replaced my tires the old ones had seven thirty seconds of tread the new ones have ten I only gain three thirty seconds but have new G-Force instead of old tires. My steering wheel showed slight wear I replaced it at a cost of $500;00 was nothing wrong with old wheel other than the leather was beginning to wear. I replaced all the carpet because it started to show a little wear. I keep my car looking like it was new, No actually it looks much better than when it was new.
Everything is kept to the absolute best running condition possible. My point is you may be right about this particular car but just because a vette is not all original don't mean it is trashed, One that has had nothing done and it has normal miles for the age it is going to need a lot of repairs to put it back to new condition. Some vettes are neglected because the owner really could not afford but a lot of them are kept in meticulous condition. If it is used as a daily driver as some are since they have become so cheap they probably will need a lot of things. Those that are not a DD you can tell it as soon as you see it.