From: Jeff Wilson <jwilson@c21wilsonteam.com>

Date: Sun, 23 May 2010 00:11:44 -0400

To: Michael Mouravieff-Apostol<mma@apostol.net>

Subject: Re: talks on corvette

 

Hi Michael,

Here is some paperwork for you.  I purchased the car directly from First State Bank in Brazil, IN.  My wife at the time worked at the bank, so I got word of the car from her and we purchased it through closed bidding.  I paid $6000 for what best could be described as a piece of junk.  Any other car you would have paid $100 to have it towed to a junk yard, but at the time a raw Corvette was at least worth $5000 for parts.  So at best, it was worth $5000 back then for spare parts, and everything else that was done to make the car drivable has been done since that date.  The transmission was shot, the paint was cracked (it was red at the time) and the interior looked as if it sat out in the rain with the T-Tops out for a year, brakes did not work very well, the power assist steering leaked, the windshield wipers wouldn't work, etc.  I bought it in my 20s as a project car just to play around with.  I noticed it was a 72 title, but the body looked like a 69.  It was disclosed to me by the bank that the engine had been replaced.  The VIN number matched the title, but I did call the State Police to see if I should check anything out on it.  From what I recall, they told me that if the VIN number matched the Title, that was all that mattered to them.  It seems like either the BMV or the State Police verified the title/VIN match prior to getting it licensed.  From what I was told, it was repossessed from the former Clay County Sheriff, Chuck Jones.  Here is a link to him I found on the Internet http://www.thebraziltimes.com/story/1593843.html.  It is possible that he has some insight into this vehicle's history, but it has been a long time and it may have left a bad taste in his mouth having it repossessed.  I believe I found out that he borrowed money against the car to put in a new engine, and I called the guy who rebuilt that engine to see what he could tell me about it's status.  That engine was not the original, but I think he told me that it came from a 69 police car.  Richard, who purchased it from me replaced that engine with a high performance motor, so it is at least two engines away from the original.  I believe the odometer reading was in the 80K range when I bought it.

Attached is a picture of the car taken a year or two after I rebuilt it.  I had some of the car when it was junk, but those may have been lost in the divorce.  Also attached is some paperwork that shows the address to First State Bank.  That paperwork was obtained during my divorce to show that there were no liens on the vehicle.  I financed it through this bank and they were the owners that I purchased it through.  Included as well is the paperwork that was obtained when I applied for a duplicate title prior to selling it to Richard.  The original title either was not sent to me after the loan was paid off or it was sent to my ex-wife who did not bother to forward it.  In Indiana, you obtain a title shortly after purchasing so that you can license it, but if it has a lien on it, the title is held by the lien holder until the loan is paid off.  According to that paperwork, I apparently purchased the car in July of 1992.

What I did to the car.

I basically started repairing the car by getting it running.  That included installing new brake calipers and rotors, brake lines, replacing the vacuum actuators for the headlights, replacing the radiator mount, the belts and hoses, front wheel bearings, exhaust, distributor, brake light actuator, door handles, throw-out bearing on the clutch, replacing 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and reverse gears in the transmission (4-speed Muncie) along with all of the slider sleeves, synchronizes, small parts kit including speedometer gear, and linkage to the transmission (all that was left was the case and the main drive, which included first gear).  I may still have the original gears in my Dad's barn. 

Once it was running, I focused on making it look good.  The paint was stripped down to fiberglass.  This should interest you.  Under the red paint, the doghouse and hood were metallic silver.  The doors and the T-Tops were red down to the fiberglass.  The very rear of the car seemed to be gold metallic, but not all of it.  My impression at that time was it was pieced together from multiple cars.  I painted it myself with Martin Sennour Tech-Base basecoat/clearcoat paint using a red color.  I don't recall, but I think the original paint code called out silver, but that may be incorrect.  I chose an 80's Corvette red color.  I figured it was a raw Corvette, so I painted it a color I liked.  It was the first car I ever painted, so I was more interested in how I could do vs how original it looked.  There were a couple of significant cracks in the fiberglass front fenders.  All of the Vette places told me that they would keep cracking if I fixed them, but being an engineer, I took that as a challenge.  I came up with a technique where I drilled small holes parallel the the cracks and the ground some grooves across the cracks so that I could use fiberglass threads to stitch the cracks together and then use fiberglass resin to seal them.  After all that time, they never cracked.

Next I purchased new interior carpet, emergency brake console, the dash bezel, gear shift boot, the interior door panels, exterior door handles, window roller handles, Stingray emblems, door sill plates, rocker panel covers, seat covers (seats seemed to be from a 79 or early 80 vette), new tail lights, weather stripping, front grills, and I re-chromed all bumper parts.  I put some cheap mirrors on it until I could locate the originals.  The center hub caps are what came with the car.  I believe the outer rims are new.  If I remember correctly, the shark fins were pock marked, so I filled the pocks with sandable primer and painted them black leaving a chrome edge.  Several instruments in the bezel area were replaced, and the instrument glass was fogged up.  I couldn't find any replacement glass (actually plastic), so I wet sanded it and shot it with clear coat to make it look new.  It had a Kraco radio, which I replaced with a Kenwood from Eckler's Corvette in Titusville, FL. along with new speakers.  Most of the parts came from three places; Eckler's Corvette in Titusville, FL, Piper Corvette in Vermillion, IL, and Corvette Specialists in Indianapolis.

The frames tend to rust out on that model Vette near the front of the rear tire.  From what I was told, it was a common problem and many had to be replaced.  This one was very much starting to rust out on the boxed part of the frame, but no other damage was noticed.  I knocked out the rust and re-welded it.  It seemed sturdy otherwise.

I hardly put any miles on the car, probably less than 1000.  When I sold it to Richard, I was unloading it to clear out my garage.  He told me he was looking to buy one on Ebay, so I showed him mine.  I let him know that it was a 69 body style with a 72 title and that I had purchased it from a bank that way.  I sold it to him in 08, and he dumped a significant amount of money into it including a new engine, tires, brakes, headers, etc.

Much of the parts have been replaced on the car since I bought it and what wasn't replaced was significantly restored.  If as you say the frame and the transmission were identified as once belonging to a car that was reported stolen, that was the first anyone had heard of it.  I suppose it is possible that the car was recovered and parted out and the records lost.  It is also possible that those two parts were stolen and recycled without being returned to the owner.  However, it seems that given the VIN number doesn't match the stolen car, and much of the parts have been known to have been replaced, that if the latter was the case then those two parts might be in question, but the other parts would seem to be known to not belong to the original owner.  That could be proven through receipts or testimony from prior owners.  I'd be surprised if the insurance company could show contiguous records of the status of the vehicle, and prove that it wasn't recovered and legally parted out.  Indiana certainly didn't seem to have an interest at the time I acquired it other than the VIN number matching the title.

I hope this helps.  I can't imagine the insurance company putting forth a valid claim to the entire vehicle given what you have told me and what I know about he vehicle.  If it is just about the transmission case and the frame, then why would they bother.  A pieced out Corvette of that age would be worth what the parts would be worth at a wholesaler/salvage company, and if those of the two parts then they should be able to calculate that pretty easily.  I wish I had the original photos to compare to what you have on your website.


Jeff Wilson