Priceless yard find: 1954 Chevrolet Corvette

[Chris]

This dreams-do-come-true story appeared in the Hemmings Motor News e-mailbag recently. Here’s the unmolested account directly from the Hemmings true believer who sent it in…

What’s better than a barn find? How about, preserved under a Ponderosa Pine tree! The second owner of this early ‘54 Vette drove this car to a friend’s house to have the seats reupholstered and took them out, set an old wooden Pepsi pop bottle case in place of the driver’s seat and drove it home and parked it under a Ponderosa Pine tree. That was 1963 in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado at an elevation of 9,000 feet.

Well, 43 years later, I had the good fortune of rescuing this gem. All of the tires were flat and sitting on the ground, one would think there wasn’t much of a frame left. Well, not only is the frame rust free, but the original painted frame stamp from the factory is still on the frame and very much legible. The umbrella of green pine needles above and 6-inches deep on the ground miraculously saved this car, along with the rare hardtop.

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2008/10/31/hey-corvette-folks-what-would-you-do/

Only 3,230 were produced in Polo White, but it was the most popular color.  300 were built in Pennant Blue, 100 in Sportsman Red, and only FOUR in black.

[Rebel]

I cut off one of my nuts for a 54 Corvette. Shape doesn't matter as long as the numbers match. 

[Chris]

I did a quick search on prices.  They're anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 and up.

[Rebel]

I did a quick search on prices.  They're anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 and up.

I'd pay 50 grand for a '54. If they're mint, I'm thinking they'd be at least a half a mil.

[Chris]

Give it the Barrett-Jackson treatment and watch it sell for $250,000.

*this is the same auction that sold the first 2009 Corvette ZR-1 for a million dollars.  All money and no sense.

[Lord Undies]

I have a friend who has a dad who owned a VW dealership.  They have seven 1979 original VW's hanging from hooks in a warehouse. 

I've seen them.  They run WD-40 stuff though them every six months.  They plan on selling them for $50,000 each.

[Chris]

I have a friend who has a dad who owned a VW dealership.  They have seven 1979 original VW's hanging from hooks in a warehouse. 

I've seen them.  They run WD-40 stuff though them every six months.  They plan on selling them for $50,000 each.

I like the pre-1964 Beetles.  The later ones have a taller, larger windshield that just doesn't look right.  

Its a neat little car... I had a friend that owned one.

[Atomic Lib Smasher]

Very nice cars. Here's one all restored and cleaned up.



I can only imagine how much this one is going for.

http://www.hobbycarcorvettes.net/1954whitecorvette.html

[Chris]

I went to see an old man that lived outside of Kannapolis, NC (China Grove) about buying an old car once.  He had a '64 Impala with a tree growing through the trunk.  The rest (except for the Buick Roadmaster that he refused to sell) were in similar, nasty condiition.

[Atomic Lib Smasher]

I went to see an old man that lived outside of Kannapolis, NC (China Grove) about buying an old car once.  He had a '64 Impala with a tree growing through the trunk.  The rest (except for the Buick Roadmaster that he refused to sell) were in similar, nasty condiition.

So did ya buy any off him?

[Chris]

I bought a 1958 Chevrolet Apache.  It was nice, but the floorpan in the cab was rusted through and I had some doubts about the frame.  I did some work on it but never got it running.  The motor was in nice shape -- it probably would have fired right up if I had bothered.  I sold it to a junkyard for $100 when I moved back to TN.

[Atomic Lib Smasher]

I bought a 1958 Chevrolet Apache.  It was nice, but the floorpan in the cab was rusted through and I had some doubts about the frame.  I did some work on it but never got it running.  The motor was in nice shape -- it probably would have fired right up if I had bothered.  I sold it to a junkyard for $100 when I moved back to TN.

Finding a replacement for the Apache might have been a big pain in the ass. Can't say I blame ya there then.

[Chris]

Finding a replacement for the Apache might have been a big pain in the ass. Can't say I blame ya there then.

Actually, it's easier to find parts for the Apache than it is to find them for my current (25-year-old) bike.  There was a previous-generation/WWII-era Chevy pickup that got used as a work truck in my neighborhood in NC.  It was painted olive drab from a spray can -- easy to cover up scratches and dents and it looked pretty good.

[JohnnyReb]

Colonel Springs of "Springs Mills" (Springmaid) supposedly had a '53 Corvette, one of only a half dozen or so built that year. Don't know if his family still has it or not.

[MarshallLaw]

I cut off one of my nuts for a 54 Corvette. Shape doesn't matter as long as the numbers match. 

I thought there were only two and pretty much shaped the same on most people.