1976 Twin Cam Cosworth- 405 original mile-never registered

[jstouffer1989]

I worked for a Chevrolet dealership detailing cars a few years ago. When I first started, I had to go get a car out of the body shop to clean. When I walked in I saw 2 cars under dusty covers. After about a month, I couldn't take it anymore and had to see what was under the covers. One was a low mile, 1970 big block Corvette convertible. I was excited to see the vette, but the other car made my heart skip a beat. It was a beautiful 1976 Twin Cam Cosworth 4 speed with 405 original miles. Been at the dealership all of its life, never registered. They wouldn't let me touch it for the few weeks, then, just to shut me up, they let me push it out of the body shop and wash it, on my lunch break. The motor is about 75% complete, over the years they took some parts off of it to fix customer's car when parts weren't in stock, but it's still the matching numbers engine and transmission. I'd ask everyday if they'd sell it and they always said no. Before I quit, I asked again and they said they would let it go for the right price, but wouldn't give me a price. So, I need some advice. I seriously doubt I can afford it, but I still want to make an offer and see. First off, is it common to find a Twin Cam Cosworth with low miles? Correct me I'm wrong, but I think I read they only made 5000, are there many left today? I know this next question is hard to answer without more info and pictures, but can anyone give me a ballpark figure? I'm going to try to get a few pictures for you guys this weekend, I haven't seen the car in about 2 years and I hope they didn't sell it without letting me know, but I don't think they'd do that. I think it's a very special car and its wrong to put it in the back corner under a dirty cover where no one can see and enjoy it. I would hate to see anything happen to it. They put boxes and leave tools on it, it already has a few dings, but I'm worried it will get worse if someone isn't careful. All I want is to see it go to a good home, be put back on the road, or see it at shows. I don't want to get anyone's hopes up, like I said, it may be gone or they may have changed their mind about selling it, but if it is available, and someone on here is interested, I'll pass along their contact information. I really don't care if I can't buy it as long as it gets a good home, that's all that matters to me.

Thanks for reading, and sorry for such a long post. I'm going to try to get to the dealership tomorrow to ask about it and get some pictures, if they won't sell, I'd still like to take pictures and share them with everyone. Thanks everyone! -John

[hammerdown7]

They made 3507 or 3508, we haven't been able to clear up that discrepancy, 2061 in '75 and 1446/1447 in '76. Low mileage Cosworths, less than 1000 miles, have sold in the $20-25K range but these cars have been pristine. One not running, with dings, scratches and missing some original parts might sell to someone for $9-10K. You may be looking at a repaint and re-striping. If there are some EFI parts missing that would be another hit to the price. The EFI components carried matching identification. Another area to check would be the battery tray. If the battery was left in the car and leaked battery acid, there could be some real damage there. Club members have seen a 75 mile Cosworth with the entire area under the battery eaten away.

To get other opinions I will copy your entry here and post it on the Cosworth Vega Facebook page and the Yahoo Groups page, check those.

Club members would also like to know the dash number and VIN if you could get those, thanks.

Dick

[dindin]

Hi John,
Sounds like you may be in for trouble..lol..

If the car has been sitting in a dusty shop for 40 years and has been cannibalized for parts and never started, the question is not what its worth but what it will cost to get it back to life..

its worth whatever someone is willing to pay..

Al

[jstouffer1989]

Right before I quit, he brought a guy in to pull all the little dings and bring the paint back and the guy did an amazing job. The paint still wasn't flawless, but it looked nice for an original paint car. After that, I detailed the interior, again on my own time, I didn't mind doing it off the clock, I was happy just to be around it, it was the first and only one I've ever seen. After all that work, I had him talked into putting it in the showroom with a new vette, but he changed his mind, put the same cover back in it and pushed it right back into the corner. I was pretty pissed off, but he's the owners son in law, and a major jerk so there was nothing I could do. That's why I want it to go to someone who will appreciate it. I knew it wouldn't be cheap, but I couldn't afford 10k, so if you guys know anybody that is looking for one, I'll help in any way I can, I'm not trying to make a profit or anything. I won't be able to see it today but I'll get the numbers. I'm pretty sure the number was around 1250, I know for sure it was between 1200 and 1300. I don't have a Facebook account,but I'll check out the group on Yahoo. Thanks again everyone, I'll post the numbers and a few pictures asap. -John

[hammerdown7]

If the dash number is between 1200 & 1300 it would be a 1975 model. Is the window sticker still in place? Where is it located?

Underhood pictures would also help.

Dick

[T-FATTY]

I would think it's worth 4 - 5k due to the fact there are many low mileage CV's for sale complete.

[hammerdown7]

Any more info on this car?

Dick

[Biscayne John]

I have been a Chevrolet collector/restorer for about 40 years and it always surprised me that the Cosworth's really never acquired any real value considering the rarity of them.

[vegastre]

it always surprised me that the Cosworth's really never acquired any real value

Any collector car has to have a certain mystique and popularity based around positive values which translate to dollars. Of course rarity certainly counts. H-Bodies and specifically the Cosworth Vega misses on just about every point except rarity. The brother Vega is the culprit which has been wrapped in controversy and bad press from the getgo. all well deserved by GM rushing the H-Body platform into production. So, the poor Cosworth had little if any chance to capture the imagination of the car buying public which translates to todays dollars also. Still the irony and your comment holds water because to my way of thinking an inordinate number of Cosworths have survived with lots of mystique only to be shunned by most Chevy Collectors which is perplexing to say the least. That said, Cosworths will eventually find its niche. Pretty obvious to us.

[dindin]

Why is a Yenko or Motion so valuable?? ..Most collectors want more power in a 70's car..I thnk.

Al

[cjbiagi]

Car value has a tendency to peak determined by the age group of people who were maybe too young to afford the car when it was new. Now they are older and have a little more funds to purchase that car they may have wanted when they were young. With that said, the odds of H bodies going up in value has probably already peaked. These cars are 35-45 years old now which means the people who were young when these were new are in their late 50's to mid 60's. Younger folks yearn for different cars and most kids today don't give a hoot about older cars. I can see the change in the cars at car shows over the last 20+ years. Used to be all sorts of street rods, customs, 50's cars, etc. Now, unless you go to a specific venue for these cars you just don't see anywhere near what used to show up. The people who were into these cars are either too old or have passed. We can wait a lifetime for H body values to go up.....

[Biscayne John]

Why is a Yenko or Motion so valuable?? ..Most collectors want more power in a 70's car..I thnk.

Al

They are a total different animal, they were COPO cars with dealer conversions done to them after they arrived to the dealership, they were brand new cars that were not really offered for sale through "normal paper" and normal channels. The numbers on those cars were very small. Some of them were ordered as six cylinder cars and the 427 conversion was done at the dealer. The owner of one of those cars is not looking for the speed, it is the uniqueness they have. I strongly doubt that any of the owners of an true original car (today)is winding it up and banging through the gears. Most are museum pieces either public or private and seldom move from their parking spot. They have become more of a display of wealth by the owner then anything else

I am speaking from the collector stand point there really is very few post 72 Chevrolets that would be considered collectible, one would think the Cosworth would be a more desirable piece putting aside all of the stigmas.