Alright so the title kind of gives away the question. I am looking to sell my 1977 Camaro and I have no clue for how much. I have an offer on the table for $4,500 and I was looking around online and almost everything said to sell it for $8,000 - $10,000. This isn’t the first car I have sold but I could use some pointers. Most of the options on some sites don’t go back to 1977 so its a little more difficult than I thought.
The car runs but does not move. Transmission is in good shape but the detent cable was ripped out when going over a tall speed bump. Unfortunately, I am no good with working on cars and I my everyday driver is a bust. I can’t afford to fix either right now. So I’m looking to sell.(Not on here but in my town) It has a rebuilt motor and rebuilt transmission. Motor is a 350 bored over 30, automatic transmission. Edelbrock carb. Dual exhaust with two glass packs. Paint looks very good and chrome bumpers that still shine. Slight crack in the windshield. driver and passenger seats are Corbeau racing seats with a 5 point harness. Dash is coming up a bit in the back which is a quick fix. This seems to be about it though.
I’m not looking to sell on here like I said and I will not accept any offers from anyone. I am interested in knowing what you think an ideal price would be.
Anything is worth what you can get someone to pay for it, of course. If there is no rust whatsoever, and no bondo holding the car together, it may be worth that to someone that appreciates old muscle cars and has an interest in a project. And with the rebuilt motor, misc. issues, mods, numbers that may not match, and unknown history, it would pretty much have to sell to someone like this. Also 1977 wasn’t a spectacular year for Camaros I think, or for pretty much any American iron. And a car that can’t be driven is pretty much always going to be worth less than one that runs and drives well.
If you can find other cars similar to yours in similar condition, possibly on ebay, I’d look at what they’re selling for/sold for and go from there. Personally I wouldn’t pay more than half what you’re asking unless the motor had been professionally rebuilt and you had all the paperwork, as most of the value would be in the engine.
Any potential driver can’t test drive the car, since it won’t move. That pretty much kills the value for me. As it sits I’d go no higher than $3,000 and it would have to look great to get that.
Find the money to fix the transmission issue and you gain at least another $1,000. I’d take the $4,500 offer you have now. For a car that won’t move, it is a good offer.
If you are looking on ebay for equivalent cars, don’t pay attention to the posted price. You have to look at “completed sales” of equivalent Camaro’s. Lot’s of cars don’t sell at the listed price and are relisted again and again.
How is rust on body? I bought a 79 Camaro from Arizona and I live in MN. Has never seen snow and body is very nice. Leaf springs are still gray. Drivetrain is a minor issue since its so easy to fix. But rust is terminal. Bad body means the value is minimal.
Looking at the '76-'78 Camaros that sold on ebay, any with issues (like yours) sold for less than $5,000, most for less than $3,000. So $4,500 sounds more than fair.
Here’s what you do-contact those folks that said $8,000 - $10,000, and tell them you’ll give them a deal: $7,000. Come and get it!
Let’s say you can actually get $8000 to $10,000 if the car is in good shape. That’s at least $3500 more than your best offer. Get it towed to the shop, have the detent cable replaced, and list it for $10,000. The tow and cable can’t cost anywhere near $3500.
Thanks for the responses. There is no rust on the body except under the back left side of the car. Maybe a patch about 7"-8". Small hole directly in the center of the patch. I do have all the paper work for all the mods and the rebuilt motor and transmission. Which both were professionally done at a classic car shop near my town.
If I were to get the detent cable replaced how much do you think it would cost? (I know, newbie)
When it did run before the god awful speed bump it ran great. It was previously an everyday driver with a lot of horsepower and torque. But it does need a decent amount of work as well.
Here is a picture of the vehicle.
The car is not worth 8 to 10 grand. My price guide shows that it would be that much if it were a No. 2 graded car; meaning that it’s been restored in and out and is fully functional with everything operating as it should.
The car (which I assume to be a standard coupe, not RS or Z-28) is probably somewhere between a 3 and 4; probably closer to a 4.
I’d take the 4500 and run as that amount is higher than a No. 4 graded car.
I owned a '77 Camaro RS way back when and it was almost new. In my case, I got lucky when I went to sell it after a couple of years and someone offered me almost to the penny what I paid for it. The fact that both the door armrests hadn’t fallen off yet probalby helped…
I’ve never been that much of a Camaro fan, but that car looks in pretty good shape for the year, especially if it’s never been restored. You might get your 4,500 for it. If all that’s wrong is the shift linkage being bunged up, I’d definitely fix that before selling it—you will get more for a drivable car and sell it quicker.
The cable is $20 to $30 at O’Reilly’s. Register at autozone.com and you can see the replacement guide for a Firebird. I’m sure it’s the same for the Camaro. I would guess that it’s way less than $500 for the tow and replacement.
