tony1963

My favorite car is the 1975 Caprice convertible. I am looking at one that is red with white/black interior white top. Claims to be 33k miles. It is engine code U which comes back to a 400 4-bbl.

I would very much appreciate any advice in acquiring this model vehicle. I don't expect anything this old to be new, but what would you guys recommend as a precaution?

Is the 400 solid in this model year?

oilcanhenry

Sure, the GM 400 cubic inch was a good motor, until the smog laws reduced the engine power. Drove a 1971 Chevy Caprice with a 400 C-I mill in drivers training and it had lots of power. Anything built from 1973 to 1985, no matter what brand, is likely a low HP , low-compression, "smog-motor". Wouldn't touch any brand of vehicle built during those awful years at all, unless you can boost the compression. 33 K on a 1975 vehicle sounds like someone was messing with the odometer to me.

kevinkpk

Or the odometer has rolled over.

tony1963

Well, so much for that question. I'll go back home and go to bed.

oilcanhenry

True that.

tony1963

I wouldn't buy the car with the idea that the mileage was original. From the looks of the car, it is very, very original and clean. So, I could see that kind of mileage. However, the age gets to everything.

If I buy the car, I know that I will need to spend at least $5000 to get everything up to snuff.

kevinkpk

It's not impossible to have that mileage. Parts are still available (restore) price is right, why not? I have a 1970 Delta 88 that I drive.

kevinkpk

If you are looking to recover $ from a car, better rethink something that is more than a Caprice. If you are going to keep the car, restore (even partially) plan on $ that you can only get back every time you drive the car, reality is what you physically spend, you won't get back in $, but you will realize driving a great car!

jimmyblue

When I bought my '75 (decade+ back) it had even less mileage on it, junkyard said they had just bought it out of an estate and had been stored for 17 years. Condition of upholstery and other soft bits bore it out (since has begun showing its age). I'm still under 40K miles I think. These are not the kind of cars that see commuter duty.

400 motor is stout. I got a set of "1X" heads from the aftermarket which are some oddball GM casting, big valves and ~ 9:1 CR (so I can run unleaded bottom grade). Baby cam and you won't be sad about pep. I have towed 3500 pounds of rock behind the 400/TH350 with one trailer tire and one spindle on the pavement; tore up the road but the old girl didn't break a sweat. However when I went to the better heads I ditched the kludge '70s style EGR and that took me down from 10MPG to a sweet 8MPG.

These cars / years were some of the low point for GM rust resistance. I have holes (putting it mildly) in 3 of the 4 floor pans, the cowl sump. The usual GM cowl rot in the corners near the hood springs. Front corners of doors. The most concerning is all around the edge of the body where it meets the top, perforated and cracking the sheet metal. Seen other B-bodies (Deltas 88) with the exact same issue. Gonna be some serious and expensive sheet metal surgery getting that fixed right. The "gutter" in the trunk that's supposed to catch rain water has shrunk and stiffened to where it doesn't even try. So plenty of trunk rust too, although that was easy to get at.

I see "restored" ones going for about $25K around here. They're popular for donkin' so you don't find too many unmolested.