Restoring my AS-IS Auction Corvette with 250,000 Miles for $1,400 

This is one of my favorite builds you’ve done. Super practical and super obtainable for the average guy. Awesome find!

Honestly, with an Auto trans having been rebuilt already and a clearly well maintained engine, there’s really nothing to scare a potential buyer off despite the mileage. That would be a solid inexpensive way into a nice driver Corvette

As a C6 owner who loves wrenching, this was awesome! And for someone who is under so many cars, what are you doing without a lift system of some sort? Just picked up a set of Quickjacks, and they are an absolute godsend.

I have been planning to do a cosmetic restore of my 1998 C5 that only has 54321 original miles. I have had health problems and with covid and all the rest car has not been driven in over three years. Lot of the cleaning that you do has opened up new sources for resto materials. The painting and minor body repair that I see you do makes me feel I can do what I need to do with a lot more confidence. I am 80 years young and have been driving corvettes since I was 21. My first was 64 C3 FI 4 speed coupe with the rare 1 (of) 38 option N03 36 gal. fuel tank and F40 suspension I bought it with 4600 miles from a Corvette Tech Center engineer. He had the factory closely follow the build from start to finish. They made sure the engine was built to exact factory specs and tolerances. He told me it was more of balanced and blueprinted engine. The tech center dyno showed HP at the crank to be 413. He was a rally racer

Those little harnesses are awesome. Got to love the LS. Car looks great!

Great job. This is what most of your viewers want to see, not $50k unobtainable auction cars or salvage cars that frankly, we cannot afford to buy smashed. $2-10k salvage/auction cars are a sweet spot. The rest of the car build channels are great, but truly fantasy.

Really cool to see what you've done with this vette. Mine has around 90k miles on it and this gives me so much more confidence that it will run for a very long time.

I worked in a full service station that had a full garage. Anytime we got in a car to pull in we rolled down the window so keys never got locked in them. You should take up that method. I still do it to this day of I get in a car. Can't say much else, you got a great deal and made that car look great for pretty darn cheap.

One of the best builds you’ve done, budget friendly, something most people could actually do. Hoping to see more stuff like this!

Honestly this is in my opinion your best build yet. I absolutely love this build, it didn't take months and month , no crazy wire issues, a very cool car and it's a car that's closer to reality for the everyday man. Most guy watching your channel likely will never own a Ferrari and the Corvette is about as close as we will get so thank you keep this up Sam!

Thanks for that quick reply. 6'2 here too .270 lbs. I'm glad to know that it's a fit.

Great job on the repairs and detailing. Another low cost detail is to pull wheels and clean the inside offset with a mag wheel cleaner. I also like to clean calipers and the rusty center hub section of the rotors. A wire brushing or sandblasting followed with a coat of cast iron natural finish paint makes them look brand new.

Glad you're back to regular uploads! Really like these budget repair videos 👌 haven't missed an episode since the pizza car days 😄

The self lock feature of many older domestic cars is maddening. As a former tech, I used to always leave a window down just in case the car decided to self lock. Great series on this car.

This is a great video. I have a 2010 Grand Sport Coupe Corvette manual trans and I am sitting at 297,843 miles as of right now (went and looked). I am a Regional manager for my company and have been for about 15 years, and I drive around 24-25k per year. That 6.2L V8 is such a great motor. Of course I've had the common issues that come with it, spent quite a bit in regular maintenance at this point, but the engine is still original and the transmission is as well. I've gone through three clutches at this point, but that manual transmission is bullet proof. I am not going to be in this position for much longer, but I do plan on keeping this car as long as possible, and my goal is to be one of the first (if not the first) 500,000 mile Corvette owners in the world. We will see.

C6 Convertible black on black is gorgeous. I have one with the stronger LS3 for over 8 years now here in Germany, where we have no speed limit. It is an absolute eyecatcher and incredible fast and comfortable supercar. And absolutely affordable. Maintenance cost are significantly lower than Audi TT Roadster which owned before. Love it on every ride, especially with the roof down on a sunny day.

Sam, what I do on headlight lens replacement is to use a vacuum cleaner through one of the socket holes (be sure to seal any other holes). After the sealant is applied use the vacuum to suck the lens all the way up tight. Apply some masking tape to hold it while the sealant sets and bingo, Bob's your uncle.

As a tech I can say that the mileage has nothing to do with a cars condition. It's all about the previous owners maintenance schedule and repair up keep and how it was used. That vette was well maintained mechanical and it shows.

My 95 C4 Vette just turned 50,000 Miles and is meticulously cared for. Still, watching these videos I have developed this inexplicable urge to send it to him for an over-haul.

I picked up an 08 Ls3 about 6 yrs ago and the car is worth more now than what I paid for it. I put only Kooks headers/cats/SLP Loudmouth and Toyo's on it and it ran a 11.8 @ 121MPH at Bradenton FL. The converters are very tight in these cars and will run an 11.3 with a 2800 stall converter. Close to 10's with a 3800+stall. I get 32 MPG on the hi way and 18 in the city.

This was such a fun series. Super cheap corvette z51 3LT convertible brought back to her former glory! Epic!

Man I love a Corvette restoration! I bought a C5 Torch Red last year with C6 z06 rims and rear dodge demon tires, cams, headers and more but the owner shorted and wires in the harness inside the car burnt to a crisp. Bought it for $4500 and $800 later plus a lot of labor she’s running beautiful again

I’m a new subscriber but this is my dream car. I’m 74 so it’s just a dream. I work with prisoners and addicts over here in Ireland but four of our five kids including our adopted daughter live in the States so we get back about twice a year. I’m loving your videos! Thanks! Tip

Amazing find! My 2007 is a triple black, but with low mileage..40k. Absolutely mint, never driven in the rain. Never washed. Great video

The Corvette videos are easily my most favorite videos that I've seen you do. I believe that most people would like to own an inexpensive sports car that's easy (and cheap) to work on and most people can probably relate to this video.

This man gives me the courage to fix up my old cars and keep them around for a while.

This car was well serviced, no sludge under valve covers , may have used Mobil 1 which is the factory fill

I had an ‘08 LS3 3LT black coupe with wide body rear, black/red 2-tone seats, headers, Arnold Schoech custom ZR1 exhaust. That was a monster to drive. Sold it and bought a ‘17 black rose GS. Most beautiful car I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately, it was a garage Queen and I sold it to a friend with 7K on the odometer. I had a ‘13 CTS-V and a new truck and just didn’t need 3 vehicles. Now, just the Ram. I miss that black rose every day 😢 Excellent find with your ‘07 👍

love the restoration of cars that are in reach of your subscribers, seen a few other channels get larger and move on into cars that are just unaffordable for most, so great to see this one

My favorite video of yours by far. It's really refreshing to see you working on a car that is actually obtainable by normal people and not an utter nightmare to work on either. Well done!

Sometimes you just get lucky and it all goes well. Congrats on a great find and a relatively uncomplicated restore.

As the owner of a C7 and a big Corvette fan, it makes me happy to see that C6 ride with pride again. It wound up at auction somehow. But it was obviously loved and cared for.

Nicely done, amazing car.. i did the same thing with a 2017 Z06-07 option for $46k. Owner hit a curb broke fenders on passenger side. Total repair cost with paint and new tires $4636.00. I now have a 2017 Z06 with 9800 miles for under $53K. Keep these coming, show what can be done with a little effort and time. Great job again!!

Hard to believe there were no other bidders on this car. Admit it Sam, You STOLE IT! What a sweet deal for a car that only needed a bit of TLC.

I've had to do that locked key in the car trick. In New Zealand we use no 8 wire. Which is used for fencing sheep. It goes through the window then we manually unlock the button. Takes 15 minutes, oh fun times

I love how at top of second gear the speedo shows 30mph, definitely accurate :D. Reminds me of a top gear episode where they had to do a commercial. Awesome car btw.

Rockauto is the unheralded hero of the automotive world. Glad to see they are a sponsor and that makes me want to buy even more of my stuff from them.

Great build, you should really consider getting a decent DA polisher to replace your rotary. In the sun a lot of holograms were visible in the paint which are much easier to create with a rotary polisher since they are harder to use than a DA.

👍👍 One of my favorite video's had to watch it again. 2007 Z51 Conv. Corvette 250,000 miles.

I would be happy to thrilled to have this Vet. It looks and sounds fantastic.

This was a steal! I love the C6, it's my favorite but the C7 is close second. The car turned out beautiful, you got really lucky with this one!

You should do a detail inside the fender wells and a deep clean on those wheels to compliment the rest of the car.

That's impressive. Less than $9500. You've got to be pleased with that. A very satisfying way to end the year.

This was a Driver's car, it got driven and regularly maintained. High miles would not bother me a bit as long as it was priced accordingly. Really nice Chanel and editing, all around, if I ever wanted a 'Vette, I would buy this for... $18,000.

This is great. I like when you do a more accessible vehicle like this versus all the top tier exotics. Best build in a while.

For $52.20 a pair, you can replace the coil pack harness, they come as just the harness alone, so you pull the old ones out of the plastic case, thats a $90 saving, so essentially you're paying $90 extra for the plastic case

Corvettes are just simply the best performance bargain out there. The parts are inexpensive and available everywhere and they are easy to work on. I love me C5 and have enjoyed doing the little things to update it and make it more modern recently.

Sam, What's not to like. A big thumbs up. I think that you show with a little smarts and perseverance that you can do more than you might think.....and for a reasonable cost. I put new carpet in my Testarossa and removed an ancient car alarm and fixed the radio, which never worked and re-dyed the interior door panels and other trim work....Total cost including carpet was about $1200 ish dollars. Feels good to accomplish something and there will always be things that you didn't count on.......like locking the keys in the car!!!!!!!!

Love your builds like this, start to finish with no leaking head gaskets!!

I think the “average working man” restorations are the best as they represent something that’s possible for most of us

Sam is awesome goes to show if you know what to look for amazing things can happen, I always tell people it’s all about knowing what to look for more over being able to do complex jobs, to do all this in a diy fashion with no major tools and no hoists is great! Good job Sam

I’m doing a very similar thing with a 1991 Dodge Stealth. I wish I would have documented all of it on video. Great stuff!

No fan of corvettes, BUT, by far one of my favorite videos. Great restoration. Kudos to you guys!!!

This build was amazing and turned out great.

Wow that was a sweet deal Sam. I really thought this purchase and refurb was one of your better DIY series. There were so many trouble shooting tips you went through to help keep costs down. The roof alone would have cost a fortune if you had to take it to a dealer to diagnose and repair. A low cost project like the Corvette, would make an incredible bonus/gift for Sage since he is such a great assistant and valuable protege. Keep up the awesome content and I can't wait to see more projects like this one.

Man you make this stuff look so easy that anyone can do it!! I assure you not anyone can do it. You're made for this stuff, pure awesome 👌

builds like this are my favorite, much more enjoyable than the exotic stuff.

been working on auto projects for 50 years. So satisfying when you step back and look at your finish work.

I've never been a big fan of Vettes, except that is, for a gorgeous Cherry Red C2 owned by the father of a beautiful girl I was dating Her dad was such a cool dude - he allowed us to take it out on our date, and we felt like stars driving it around Bev Hills and Hollywood for hours, showing off. That, of course, was back in the day.... In my only other time in a Vette, was in a later model which I found to be really uncomfortable. When I had finally gotten to the point where I could afford a real sports car, I bought 911s, and never even considered a Vette. This final product yours looked to be perfectly comfortable, and the most beautil restoration of a Vette I've ever seen. I'd drive this car even if it crushed my spine! For less than 10 grand all in? Amazing! My story wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention that I did drive 911's for several years, acquiring three over a perios of 7-8 years. The first two, Targas, a 911S and 911SC were dogs from the word "go." The third one, a gorgeous '84 911 Carrera coupe with a chocolate leather interior, was the most incredible, problem-free vehicle I've ever owned. Unfortunately, I drove it so recklessly, the insurance costs became an issue I couldn't surmount. I was forced to sell it after 3 years. Heartbreaking!

That Eastwood plastic dye is definitely some good stuff. I used it on some plastic interior pieces on a 1968 Ford Galaxie 500 convertible, and 10 years later when I sold the car, the pieces I had used it on were all still in great-looking condition. Just make sure to clean the parts well, and give 'em a light scuff with a Scotch Brite pad. Very light, indeed. They looked great!

Love the budget builds keep up the good work guys

I’m 19 and I grew up with a 2006 Silverado 5.3 and I’ve always had my eyes on these but corvettes always rubbed the me wrong way. But after a customer at work let me drive their grand sport c6 I think this is my realistic dream rebuild. I just love the LS sound!

It's a great car to buy and keep. Not for resale. At that mileage, no matter how good it looks & drives, it's a keeper.

Amazing deal 👍 a great value project! Really enjoyable to see it get brought back to it's former glory. Only thing that it needs is some steel wool on that exhaust to shine in back up and it's complete ✅

Love the channel and all the great projects. Major improvement on this car. A black car is really labor intensive to maintain a great finish. Although it does look better after buffing it really should have a proper paint correction to remove all the swirl marks that show up in the sunlight. All in all the car turned out great.

And I was waiting for the bit when you hand the car over to your young assistant as a Christmas gift……but I guess you done that in the past. Lovely C6 the previous owners would be happy to see how you have given it a bit love and attention. Sam thanks for making me smile and having something to look forward to a few times a week! Best of luck for 2022.

Wow. Just wow. Nice work from the UK. Shows what hard work can do.

Love this restoration. I think this is your best deal of them all. Maybe the Audi R8 is my favorite, but this is a real runner up.

Great build. Miles definitely scare me a little when it comes to internals like timing chain, cams, lifters. That kind of miles indicates that stuff could be close to needed. But still a great build and buy.

GREAT JOB!! I have wanted a Corvette my entire adult life and could never afford one. Too late at 71 to do what you did, but SUPER job and on a budget as well under 10K is amazing ...

I recently bought a 2010 Audi S4 manual (premium plus, in great condition both outside and inside) with 155k miles for 8k and they go for around 12k-24k depending on condition, milage, trim.

I love Corvettes. My favorite car. I do think the C6 is one of the most bland out of all of them, but you guys did an outstanding job. Some real motivation to get back to restoring my 76, that is in a LOT rougher shape than this one was.

Excellent work! Loved seeing such a practical and affordable refurb. You likely saved this awesome car from a premature death. What a value! I have new respect for how Chevy builds these cars. I was surprised about some of the thoughtful design that made it easier than you might expect to work on.

Great job Sam.. just a tip you can fine sandpaper and rattle can clear lacquer plastic head lights to restore them.

I'm not a big GM fan but I can admit the LS motors are the best/most reliable V8s of all time. I'd look at an LS swap in almost any old car or truck no matter the brand. Great reliability, great price, unlimited parts supply, great parts interchangeability, strong power with a few tweaks. It will be a sad day if GM ever stops putting an LS is at least one car or truck.

This was an awesome video! Love seeing corvettes being restored to their former glory! They deserve the best.

Awesome job. Well loved car brought back to where it can be enjoyed for a long time to come. Loved this build! Well done Sam, congrats.

I am glad this came up in my youtube feeds !! Awesome cleanup and purchase.....

I'm also like that you bought a car that can be obtained realistically and maintained within a tight budget. Nice video.

When you said “don’t ever leave your keys in a corvette” I felt that 😂 my C5 LOVES to lock its keys inside but luckily it has passive lock and if you wait a minute and bump the car it will unlock 🤣

@20:10 is first gear only 20 mph? Is it just me or does it seem mad slow by revving out 2 gears and only going 30 mph??

Chevrolet Corvettes are far undervalued. Especially LS based LS2 Corvettes. That is an amazing deal I can get a 2010 for about 32,000 with 30,000 miles. That's actually a good deal and it's in great shape the rear deck where the convertible goes in has some cracking in the paint. My Vans which are Chevrolets last easily over 590,000 MI and the longest I have used one is $875,000 MI and sold it and it is still running around. These were originally mine from new and all I had to do was put Mobil 1 synthetic in it for their life and change it regularly. Couple transmissions a rear end and that's it

This was therapeutic for me watching the restoration was satisfying

I found it relaxing watching you work on this car and making it a whole lot better! I think $ 8,000 for this car was inflation and maybe a little hi as it was a gamble but i think it turned out right!!

Man the stuff you do on a very limited budget is incredible Sam! Keep it up man. I love your channel!

Who doesn't root for a daring auto enthusiast who takes on the impossible: finding a luxury or performance car for a bargain and restoring it to the beautiful condition it once was...

Great job Sam! Way to bring that ol girl back to life.

I really wish I had the money to do stuff like this. Great job guys! Big fan of the channel!

Personally, I'd use paint with a flex agent in it especially on the bumper covers!

Mechanical failsafe to open the doors is the latches on either driver and passenger sides next to each seat closest to the door sills. Usually a person with a hook tool to unlock cars can go in like you did and go straight down, hook on latch and unlock. Try it, but with the keys in your hands in case it gets complicated. LOL. Great video. Love the content. Keep 'em coming!

I installed ultra power front brake pads/calipers/rotors on the front of my xj for something crazy cheap. I love rock auto. Fast shipping too.

when you buffed that wet bumper you gave every auto detailer a mini aneurysm

Great content Sam, I personally would have dealt with the broken/ missing header bolt before replacing the spark plugs, rocker gaskets ignition wires etc. European Fords in the 90s had a tendency of locking themselves on battery reconnection and because of this and always check I've got a door/window open before reconnecting the battery on any vehicle.

Bought it's twin at a Police auction, it started to rain and everyone was leaving, wound up being the winner at 6500.00, it had 85,000 miles on it and only needed a water pump. I'm still driving it and now has 150,000 on it with no issues

One of the best short rebuild series

Looks great Sam! Maybe new discs to make the wheels pop that little bit more would look good? Astounding job as always 👍

That was an awesome build. 🤗 One I would gladly own. Well done indeed.✌️😎

Redemption!!! - I'm glad this was a simple update for you. After seeing the Aston-Martin headaches, you deserve a smooth victory. I'm not a fan of Vettes, but anytime we get our hands on something and make it better, we've done something good all around.

I use a dab of RTV or Loctite gasket replacer (eg 518) to retain the soft seal gaskets. It avoids the gasket getting pinched.

Beautiful car wow - what a fantastic makeover! You missed the wheel liners! ;)