• Hello there guest and Welcome to The #1 Classic Mustang forum!
    To gain full access you must Register. Registration is free and it takes only a few moments to complete.
    Already a member? Login here then!

69 Chevelle?

tarafied1

tarafied1

Well-Known Member
I went to Somerset KY this weekend with my 14 year old son for Mustang month. There was over 550 Mustangs out of the 1400+ cars that showed up! Anyway, on the way home I stopped at Walgreens to get NyQuil for my wife (she is sick and stayed home). There was a 69 Chevelle 4 door in the lot for sale. It is in pretty decent shape, has a 350 4V auto, PS, PB and AC. It has the Corvette style wheels with center caps and trim rings. It's white with a black vinyl top. Not bent or rusty (not too much anyway). The guy started it up by just reaching in and hitting the key. It needs front seat upholstery and a headliner, probably tires too. All the trim is there and decent. It has dual exhaust. He want's $2500 for it.
I've been thinking about getting a DD for when/if I change jobs. My 14 year old really wants a Chevelle so I was thinking I could drive it until he is 16 and pass it on. hmmm... what to do, what to do...
 
JUST BUY SOMETHING......that is what my wife said as I looked at Broncos all over the place.

That sounds like a deal and since the son wants one.....we will wtill let you post here......lol
 
hey, I'm just thinking out loud. A 69 Chevelle should be cheaper to insure for a 16 year old boy than a Fox Body GT or LX with a 5.0?
it's not what I want but it might kill two birds with one stone. It is kinda cool just cuz it's old and in pretty good shape.
 
Haters. So what if it's a 4 door chevy. If you want it, get it. I would have loved to have a Chevelle as a teen. Almost bought a 70 442 clone for 2 grand back when I was 18, but my dad put the brakes on that real quick. Instead I was stuck with my crappy jeep Comanche.
 
Have you thought about getting the drag car road worthy? Maybe its not destined to be a dedicated drag car yet and deserves another chance at street life and track duty.
 
"Antlerfiend" said:
I say if you want the Chesnail, get it. At least it is American Iron and not a Fart Pipe car.
Click to expand...

Lol yea. Honda civic with a coffee can muffler, top fuel dragster wing, and a bunch of vtech stickers...cuz they add HP!!!!!
 
"tarafied1" said:
hey, I'm just thinking out loud. A 69 Chevelle should be cheaper to insure for a 16 year old boy than a Fox Body GT or LX with a 5.0?
it's not what I want but it might kill two birds with one stone. It is kinda cool just cuz it's old and in pretty good shape.
Click to expand...

The issue is I'd not recommend an older car for a teenager as a daily driver simply because the older cars don't have safety items we now take for granted such as air bags, 3 point seat belts, ABS (depending on how old the cars is), unibody crumble zones, etc. A teenager is obviously inexperienced and is more apt to have an "incident" and I'd rather my offspring were in a newer car (does not mean brand-new) with some of the modern safety equipment.

One daughter drives a '99 Camry with 100k, airbags, ABS, 3-point belts, etc and it's value is only (?) 5-7k.

Just a thought.
 
The safety thing is a strong point. I have considered that. He is likely to get an old Muscle car anyway but as you say, maybe when he is more experienced driver. He wants a Chevelle pretty bad (I don't know where I went wrong!) but it isn't a Civic with a fart can! The 4 door doesn't bother me and I have talked to him about the value vs a two door. Have you checked the prices on two-door Chevelle's? I think I could make an old car safer with better seat belts but I know it wouldn't have air bags, ABS and crumple zones. That's one of those things that's hard to argue but I grew up with out all that, no germ killing soap, no bike helmets, etc. etc and I'm still alive. I obviously don't want to put him in a death trap and I want to give him a good chance to survive an accident so it will be considered.
The Drag car would be a candidate for me but it needs way too much work and I don't have time. I need to replace the rear quarters and rear frame rails and basically put the whole thing together and then hope it would be reliable as a DD. I have thought about it and It's possible if I were home more but I'm gone every week and have limited time on weekends (especially now with school started and the boys involved in things at school). I still need to collect a few more parts but it's almost enough to assemble a driver. I suppose I could put it together without worrying about the bodywork...
 
"garner67" said:
if you do buy a classic, make sure you install good 3-point seat belts
Click to expand...

:stu

I have added three point belts to both the Mustang and the Trans Am (the TA already had three points in the front from the factory but I added them in back). The boys don't ride in the Mustang or the Trans Am very often but when they do I wanted them to have shoulder belts.
 
"tarafied1" said:
That's one of those things that's hard to argue but I grew up with out all that, no germ killing soap, no bike helmets, etc. etc and I'm still alive.
Click to expand...

You hear a lot of people say it "I didn't have all these safety measures and I made it through alive!" That may be true, but, you'll never hear the counter statement by any of those that didn't survive, because they're all dead.
 
"AtlantaSteve" said:
You hear a lot of people say it "I didn't have all these safety measures and I made it through alive!" That may be true, but, you'll never hear the counter statement by any of those that didn't survive, because they're all dead.
Click to expand...

My graduating HS class has lost several members through the years since graduation due to things like cancer, one guy was killed in 9/11 and another was killed in a Naval accident but I don't recall anyone in my class passing away until after we graduated...except one guy that put a shot gun to his own head and pulled the trigger but his deal was not an accident.

There was one fellow who was in the class ahead of me that got drunk one time and jumped into the creek. Picked the wrong spot because it was shallow and he has been paralyzed from the neck down since.

I went to school with most of those people from kindergarten through graduation. Back when we were growing up, we didn't have bike helmets just to ride to school, my Mom's old Oldsmobile only had lap belts in the back (and I don't think I ever put them on), etc.

America has become pretty wussified as far as I can tell.
 
"AtlantaSteve" said:
You hear a lot of people say it "I didn't have all these safety measures and I made it through alive!" That may be true, but, you'll never hear the counter statement by any of those that didn't survive, because they're all dead.
Click to expand...
A clearer picture can be painted by asking how many of your peers died, etc. at a young age because they didn't...fill in the blank. (Rusty Red types faster than me but I shared the same thought)

To me, the only safety device innovation that has made a significant difference is the air bag. Seat belts are also huge contributors but they have been around a long time. It's just that we all use them now. I personally would not put a teen behind the wheel of anything without an airbag.

I can make an argument that things like anti-bacterial soaps etc. have had more of a negative affect that good. Just saying. And, Craig don't buy a four door Chevy!
 
I know I can't make a good argument against being safe. I appreciate the advise as well. I didn't start driving a car with airbags until I got my first company car in 2008. My 92 T-Bird didn't have airbags. I don't personally know anyone who was killed in a car accident but I know safer is better and teens need all the help they can get.
With that being said, the Chevelle might not be the best choice. I guess I should stick to my plan of a Fox Body for myself and worry about the boy's1st car when he's older.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top