Diving into the costs of a Top Flight restoration
- K.W. Bunyap
- Feb 15, 2021
- 5 min read
In a moment, I'm going to talk about that whispered, hush-hush topic among classic car enthusiasts:
The COST of restoration.
But before I get into that, let me catch you up on what has happened in the last couple of weeks on this 1970 Corvette restoration.
Some of the mechanical parts that were sent out for refurbishment are starting to return. We are also sandblasting and painting those parts that just need cleaning up. The picture below shows the seven-bladed fan blade (found on a car equipped with factory A/C) after undergoing that treatment and it looks great.
In the background of the photo above, you can see one of the valve covers that has been cleaned up. Here's a better picture of it:
The original plan was to send both valve covers out to be re-chromed, but after cleaning them up they appear to be in great shape. The finish from the factory is a flash-chromed steel, showing a bit of an orange peel, which is not as shiny as a re-chromed "show quality" finish. In addition, you can see small dents on the top of the cover. Those are visible spot welds for the internal drippers on the inside of the cover, put in place so that splashing oil can drip from the inside of the cover back onto the valves below. Modern replacement valve covers don't have these little dimples from the spot welds and the show quality chrome finish would be a dead giveaway as not original: Big point deductions when scoring for an NCRS Top Flight award. Also, you will find that the flat bases of the original covers have wavy crimp marks around the corners, which is absent from aftermarket replacement covers. I was happy to see I'll be able to keep the original covers in their great condition.
Despite having only 10,547 miles on the car, several components are showing their age because of the fluids they were in contact with. The radiator is a prime example, and this one needed to be thoroughly cleaned and re-cored. Now finished, it looks great.
The tubes coming off the top and bottom needed to be re-soldered to complete the repair.
This next picture is a good illustration of the care that goes into a quality restoration. Here is a before and after of the front spindles and backing plates. Note the original purple and white markings that are still in place.
Now, let's move into an uncomfortable subject: What's a restoration like this cost?
Many people are reluctant to share how much money they have put into a restoration project. I can certainly understand why: It's hard to acknowledge that restorations can frequently become a "money pit." Car projects are almost always a labor of love requiring an investment of cash that the owner will probably not recoup. But like many people with classic corvettes, I'm not in this for the money. I want to see this beautiful car returned to the road - where she was meant to be.
Restorations can run the gamut:
Just making the car road-worthy
Turning it into a daily driver
Returning it to the condition it was in when it rolled off the assembly line
Turning it into a resto-mod that carries a vintage look while sporting all the modern conveniences of today's technology.
My plan with this car, from day one, was to "Top Flight" the car. I wanted to restore it to the level of condition needed to get a top-flight score from the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS).
I've had many people ask what it costs to restore a classic corvette. And of course, it all depends on how much you want or need to do to it. But I think a blog like this should be informative and revealing; that's why people read it. So I've decided to share those gritty details, the dollars and cents, so that people contemplating a project like this in the future will have a better idea of what it will cost. Many will plan to do the labor themselves to save money on labor costs. If that's you, I applaud you! But for me, I didn't have the tools, the garage space, nor the expertise to take on something like this and I wanted it done right. So I chose to pay the labor and have the work done by someone with 25+ years of experience. I'm sure some people will think it's a waste of money. Perhaps. But I've learned that when it comes to the things we love, we are happy to spend the cash. I'm not ashamed of it. On the contrary, I feel very blessed to have the ability to take this on.
So here's the financial picture to date:
The auction price for the car: $ 37,000.00
5% Buyer's premium: $ 1,850.00
Title and Registration: $ 1,695.00
American Collectors Insurance (annually): $ 355.88
13 month storage until restoration commenced: $ 1,755.00
First restoration invoice: $ 3,696.56
Total cost to date: $ 46,352.44
Here is a copy of my first invoice for the restoration, showing parts, labor, shipping costs, and tax. You'll note that shipping costs are a major expense as the various engine and accessory components are shipped off to the corvette experts nationwide who specialize in rebuilding a specific component. Dan Martin is already at 28.3 hours of labor, at $65.00/hour. The asterisks indicate parts that have already come back.
Financially, it can be a daunting task and not for the faint of heart (or wallet), but this is the reason it took me 45 years until I owned my first classic corvette. I just couldn't afford one until now. And while it seems like a lot of money to spend on this car, there's good news. I'm excited that the quality of the car's paint, interior, chassis, and other various components are in such good shape I'm going to save a TON of money by not spending dollars on some of the most common and costly items of a restoration: interior refurbishment, exterior paint, and bodywork. Recognizing the inherent quality of those items on this car was why I chose it. You see, contrary to what it might seem, I'm not one of those folks who have unlimited resources to spend on a corvette. I could never afford to spend $610,000.00 for a car, like the person who recently bought this rare 1969 L88 4-speed (1 of just 216 built,) over on Bring a Trailer dot com.
That's why I chose this car: I thought I could restore it for a bit less than what a normal restoration might cost. As most people know, there are always added expenses from unexpected surprises. But so far, all of this car's surprises have been money savers.
Of course, time will tell.
As we continue forward over the next six months, this restoration will progress in stages, moving from the front to the rear of the car. In my next segment, we will see how the engine compartment is cleaning up.
Stay tuned!
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