C3 Makeover: Modernizing a Classic Corvette
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- čas přidán 2. 05. 2024
- In this video I walk through how I modernized my 1977 C3 Corvette through a number of modifications with a primary goal of improving the overall driving experience.
To help judge the final product, I then score it against a modern sports car, my 2023 C8 Corvette in (4) key categories: Comfort, Road trip-ability, performance and maintenance.
Check it out and let me know what you think! - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Can't argue with your scores man!
Old cars have a totally different appeal and it's nice to see you appreciate all of what's great about these two very different sports cars.
I think a lot of people struggle to understand how someone could rate a nearly 50 year old car so highly, but gearheads get it.
Great video!
old cars have character
@@BuckingHorse-Bull Yep and Id never make a change to neuter that aspect
A proper adjusted carb/choke will start immediately hot or cold. Never sit for hours in 110 deg heat so not worried about vapor lock. To me adding EFI just adds more to go wrong/fail.
I will never get tired of the side profile of the C3. So beautiful.
Nice lookers but after owning, the ride and suspension components made me not want another .
Not for tall people
I've never seen a car youtuber go in this direction with a build. Some may find it less exciting than MORE HORSEPOWER BABYYY, but this is the real car stuff I appreciate. Completely agree with your scoring, awesome to see someone modernize an old car and make it comfortable to drive.
Same. I get the die hards but I’m in my 40s now. Comfort is and ease of use is what I’m starting to value. Otherwise, I find myself just looking at it in the garage.
a lot of people dont know how to appreciate a car for what it was. this is also why i heavily dislike LS swap anything, bet those projects have more time under a tarp than miles
I really want a totally modernized ‘68 Corvette. I want it to feel modern inside, while being classic everywhere else. So, I, for one, was stoked to see this video.
I did it 10 Years ago with my car but I prefer to leave it in secret, as I´m not a CZcamsr anyways....
Love this. You are respecting the car and giving it a usability that fits the times, technology and personal taste. Not everything needs an LS swap, or a Concourse rotisserie resto
The C3 was imho the best looking Corvette made.
Agreed. I remember the first time I saw a C4 on the road... I was shocked... so disappointed. It felt like the Corvette lost its identity. I was really happy when the style started to come back with the C5.
I'm a C5Z guy but man this build is beautiful.
C3 all day. Those curves wins over everything. Back in the days it was all about design. Something we lack today because of safety rules and regulations.
I do miss the days of cars being beautiful, but it’s more to do with cost effectiveness and the emphasis on maximising company profits more than safety regulations, I’m sure many companies especially the smaller ones would love to make more interesting designs but it would simply cost too much for too little return
@@Anon-dx1rl yea it’s all about money and how cheap they can make it add to rules and regulations safety factors and it takes away great designs. If I had the money I would so get a c2 resto mod. My dream car. Maybe one of these days. 🙏
Yes and probably aero more than anything else. They're grinding all the corners off.
@@relaxgaming8872 Yup....if mfrs were that worried about safety they would take most the gadgets excessive buttons out of them. Nobody needs all that garbage and a screen to drive.
I'll take the 77 over the new one any day of the week.
I rarely comment on videos. What you did here is amazing. So down to earth while talking about these incredibly thought out upgrades. Good job dude. Looking at you drive that C3 in the sunlight put a smile on my face. Respect
Really glad you used a post-smog C3 for your build. The iconic style is there, but the performance and driving experience suffered critically from shoehorning all the necessary emissions equipment into the late 70s models. While it might bother some enthusiasts that it's not stock, personally I don't see any value whatsoever in preserving the lesser driving experience of a gas-guzzling, less comfortable, lower performing car when bolt-on upgrades are so readily available and make such a huge difference.
@bitemedude - totally agree - and - its easy to upgrade C3 / other classic cars too / thanks for the comment!
Exactly, screw the purist crowd. Stock they were pig slow, boring etc .
Stock doesnt equal more value (which I could care less about) either theres a butt for every seat
My #s L82 buyers could give a chit if the #s matched or not ...purists just wanted to nit pick it and tell stories while chiseling $$.
Never again
C3 is one of the most beautiful car designs ever.
I dont think anyone now-a-days are buying c3s for their performance. For a long time i think its just purely because of their unique style. So seeing someome upgrade one to modern comfort standards is so satisfying! I get to live vicariously through your amazing beauty shots of the car 😂
C3 is one of the most beautiful car designs ever!
No joke... this video made me fall in love with my '81 all over again. It was my first car I bought at 17, and i've seriously been considering selling it in the spring because it's "hard to live with", and i'm heading to college in the fall. But now, i'm understanding it just needs more love. Going to look at fuel injection kits right now! Lol
Why? Qjet and an HEI, proper choke is as reliable as it gets.
I think many aftermarket efi purchasers assume they will have oem reliability and that doesnt happen
C3 .... Oh my god I love it and allways have. Thank you for keeping it alive :)
Really enjoyed this. It's a nice balance between the hour long videos about specific tasks on car builds, and the 2 minute "here's what I did, it's sick!"
Not a corvette guy at all here, just a gear head. I love the practical approach to your video and the way you broke down each of your mods, not just how you did it but WHY you did it and what the benefits were. I have a 2000 Mustang GT that I've updated over the years and I was nowhere near as coherent when I did my videos -- plus I can tell I'm not as rounded of a mechanic -- your work speaks for itself. Very clean and concise work here and I can tell you clearly have a passion for your cars. I have a bone stock 2011 GT500 and love driving it but have to say with some of my upgrades to the 2000 I enjoy the car so much more. There is no doubt though, it's nowhere near as safe as the newer car. I augmented my fuse boxes in almost identical fashion BTW -- the fuse box for a stock 2000 mustang is under the drivers dash -- you have to be a monkey to change the fuses and I curse when I have to get down there and change a fuse. So I added an augmented circuit setup very similar to yours. Made a world of difference. Plus it helps that the new fuse boxes have leds to show you what fuse is out.
Loved your video and approach.
@fericyde - thanks for the nice comment - 2000 GT had the 4.6 I believe correct? Nice motor/nice car and tons of cool mods are out there for this gen of mustang. 2011 GT500 too!?! Nice garage myman!
LOL, yeah, the 4.6 I have to say was the best part of the car that I had to remove to swap in the Coyote (this is what I said in 2012, I've driven it over 10 years swapped now). The 4.6 was reliable, didn't use oil at 160k or so miles and still ran great -- sold it to a ford mechanic and his son who were rescuing another GT that had been blown up (after some mods I understood -- they were going a more stock route). I also put in a T56, major suspension upgrades, an android head unit (I use Torque from time to time but just android auto alone is an improvement) UPR k-member up front and a griggs racing setup in the rear with a torque arm (very similar to the one that is on a 3rd gen Camaro BTW). I'm shooting for 51/49 weight distribution some day :) at the moment I'm at 52.5/47.5 -- close but that 40-50 lbs of weight are rather hard to move without something drastic happening.
@@TacoJoe
100% I subscribed. Just found the channel. All hail the algorithm?
Quality video.
I love my C3 and I appreciate your hard work on yours.
Wow. Masterfully done and thank you for your very clear, straight forward and polished video explaining it all. Congrats and thanks for sharing. Most of all enjoy that C3!
Your videos are very educational and well edited, thanks for sharing your work in a clear cohesive way!
Hey man, you are awesome at explaining everything, simply. I am not car savvy so it was a great experience listening to you narrate your video. Cheers!
I absolutely LOVE your C3! Extremely well done build.
If I were rich I would ask if you would build me a car. Genius, man.
Amazing good sir,you made this beautiful classic your own,and you're happy with it,that there is a success,love it and goodwill.
I absolutely love what you've done. I have been wanting to resto mod as C3 corvette for a long time. Clearly, i'm not the only one....
Wow. GREAT VIDEO! Thanks for taking the time to give the details. Well done.
I love the stance and those chunky BFG's! Perfect.
The C3 is still my favorite Corvette of all time and for me personally because it's a build somewhat more like a resto mod I give it a 37 that's just my opinion though and a 33 for the C8 it just fits me like a glove at 5:5 but definitely this C3 is done better than well and it's modded to your comfort
Great build I think I like about this video is you basically covered a lot of the points that need to be it was right to the point of how to build a badass machine.😊
Wow. Incredible story-incredibly told with the video setup of all the parts and everything.
Extremely well done, both the build and the video! Pro-level work all around.
You took a lot of work on this. Most people would not be able to do this. Thank you, thank you, thank you !!!!!
Outstanding. Had a 1981 way back when.
If I could have afforded to have this done at the time, I'd still have it today.
C3 wheels look fantastic. The entire build is really well done, but I especially love that you kept the wheels that way. beautiful.
glad you like it / thanks for the comment!
Love it . BUT! Black wheels are terrible.
@@stevelee2833 I love using rims to contrast I have a white car so black rims, i woulda went for silver with the color of this c3 but looks amazing regardless its all preference i love every car and every build, its amazing to see how engineering can tailor the same rough idea to so many different visions. love c3, c4, c5s I'm hoping to buy a base c5 next year and enjoy it for a while before i start modding. I wish i could have a c3 exterior on a c5 thatd be the ultimate car imo.
They never came painted black
I have a 72 and an 02 Z06. The one small change I did that made a huge difference was swapping out the steering wheel. The stock wheel in 72 at least (maybe not by 77) was pencil thin and so large that you only have a couple inches between it and the door panel. At 6’2”, it also sat on my thighs. Ecklers makes a reproduction that looks identical, but is a few inches smaller in diameter and leather wrapped, so it’s thicker and more comfortable to grip. It made a world of difference in leg room.
Hey well said & totally agree. My steering wheel needs an upgrade too and thanks for the tip!
Makes anight and day difference!! 6ft3 that stock wheel was a joke and made driving feel way more cramped than it was
Found this video completely by mistake. When you talked about the dash that you custom built, I felt the same, a bit out of place being all squared off, but still looks FANTASTIC! I think the car looks perfect!
I appreciated the keep it simple approach. On point on the issues you addressed.
This is one of the best videos, auto comparison, that I have ever seen on you tube
Maybe with a little clay you could have build out the old dash to accept the new dash components and update its styling and then rendered it in fiberglass. Just a thought. That said C3’s are, for me, close to the Jaguar E Type in beauty and being a national icon. I like the C3 better than the original E Type but not quite as much as the restomoded Eagle Speedster. It would be wonderful for a company to do for the C3 what Eagle does for the E Type.
well said @CX0909 - I like the fiberglass idea / longer term I'm still thinking for ways I can make the new dash look more natural (and not like a Greenwood Vette, racecar or something similar) - Totally agree that E-types are works of art too - Thanks for the comment!
Probably my all time favorite body style! This is a car to modify the way you did it! Congratulations!!!
Great C3 build! I love that green color and simple style. Good choices of mods too. Thanks for going into such detail and comparing it to the new C8.
Great upgrade plan, excellent video. Thanks!
Really great comparison, inspiring, thanks!
Great build, great video, great story. Thanks
OMG, I love this video! Thank you for giving me some ideas for my c3 restomod!
Wow Excellent Job! love the look of this unit!
Great video; it felt like a big production! Good content, time management, and flow. Very informative.
Just beautifully done
Professionally done all around! Clean ride…totally well planned and explained…great post brother!!!
Love the C3's Nice job abd awesome overview. Really enjoyed the video along with the choices and explanations.
Thanks
Young boy , brilliant work .
This is such a great & informative video! Than you for creating and posting this!
This is a textbook instruction on what “doing it right” means. Great work sir. Top out, stereo up, pipes rumbling. Keep Corvetting and Save the Wave.
Thanks, will do!
c3's are easily my favorite cars ever made, from any time period and any manufacturer the c3 takes the cake its got a special place in my heart
Well done! I agree with every point you made.
Excellent editing on the video, impeccable build.
Love the creativity!
I love this! This is great!
Thank you for the video. Enjoyed the whole content and presentation, it was very well done.
good content! you explain things in a way that is easy to understand. Great breakdown of normal person usage and recommendations.
One of the BEST video's I have seen in a LONG time! The video itself is super well put together. I honestly think with your knowledge and a bit of thought applied a BIG channel could arise from it. WELL DONE!
beautiful and thoughtful work. i’d take it over the C8 or damn near any modern car, any day of the week.
C8 & C3 totally different beasts, a great pair to drive. Props to diy skills.
Great build! I like the dash as well. And that paint color is amazing!
great video. Thanks for the great commentary and ideas. I have a 69 that I want to modernize and this helps me out.
Thank You, This is amazing as I am thinking of getting a C3 and would want to do some of these mods.
That was awesome! Great job!!
Great video! Awesome concept for a comparison
Great video. Thanks for sharing
Great swap, great job, congrats.
I love your take in simply making the C3 a joy to own and drive. It all seems very reasonable. There are so many channels promoting projects that are unrealistic for many car owners, and C3’s don’t cost an arm and a leg.
Glad you enjoyed in @BridgeGuitar - C3s are great cars with tons of potential - thanks for the comment!
C3 is my favorite…great job
Great video in all regards, Excellent job!!
Awesome video. A while back, I was thinking about buying a classic Corvette (Maybe same year and body style) and doing some modifications. I got a lot of great ideas from watching you.
This is pretty awesome. I'd totally do this with a c4. I'd go all in on the digital dash and make it the ultimate 80s car.
really amazing video, love the animations and attention to detail in all the information
Very informative. Thank you.
Damn man. Dream car right there!
Great attitude for building cars !!!
I just rematched your old cobra videos yesterday. Great channel. Love your content
this was such a cool and ORIGINAL video.. thx bud!!
Great work! Like the way you scored both cars
All of this vid was really well done!
I'll keep my eye out for you and that gorgeous C3 on the road once the snow melts up here!
Great video as always!
Wow...beautiful rebuild...!
I owned a '76 'Vette so this was a fun video. 😀 Nicely done!
I'm glad i found your channel. Great video
Beautiful car. Nice work!
Great video! As a kid I used to wake up early every morning to see a red C3 Corvette that passed by on their way to work. I was enamored with the car. I still love it.
Sounds like you should find a red C3 for your garage / thanks for the comment!
Love the dash , well done
Great video! Thanks for doing this.
OUTSTANDING RESTORATION😊
This style C3 is gorgeous.
Excellent vid. I had a 79 coupe, red on red L48 gutless 350cid SB. The one thing I did to the handling to absolutely change it to something modern, was to replace the rear buckboard spring with a fiberglass rear spring. Now they have CF rear spring as well and you may be able to find different spring rates. This ONE change was enough to make me go further. It eliminated the rear end harshness without inducing sway. The IRS really did what it was designed to do at that point!
Next i squared the stance with some much wider wheels and tires tucked into the wells. You couldn't even tell without getting out a tape measure. This took a TON of work on caster and toe-in to get just the right mix of quick response with ultra stable straight line speed. Big tires up front was tough to get just right. These are very work your time and relatively cheap. I wish I'd had fuel injection and overdrive transmissions when I owned mine.
Thanks for sharing. Consider smoothing your interior with some 70's carpet on the tunnel.
Best edited car video I've ever seen on youtube. Nice work.
This was very good and informational video! Thank you
This editing is unreal brother. Very impressed.
Thank you TJ - this video is outstanding! You have provided useful information and advice that can benefit so many people to have more enjoyment with their later model C3s. You have communicated your points with clarity and honesty. Super impressive!
That c3 is beautiful. Nice job.
That’s a rad C3 build. Really classy and great enhancements.
I love that you have the same stereo that I put in my 2000 Honda Accord back in high school.
Haha - ok so maybe I could upgrade to a more current stereo too (lol)