I purchased a body off restoration vette from a fellow who sold 'old' parts to have enough money for the restoration. He sold the radio, wheel covers, and of all things the original 327 V8 engine. I have finally tracked down the engine (which was sold for somewhere in the neighborhood of $300.00 to $600.00) and he now wants $ 2,500.00 for the number-matching (#2538). It needs to be rebuilt. He pulled the heads off but has a complete engine minus the carburetor.
My questions are these. If I were to purchase this engine, does anyone out there have an idea of what it is really worth and how much would it increase the value if (God forbid) I decide to sell the car later.
Other than the Sony radio, the SSBC brakes, the 350 V8, and the polished aluminum American Racing wheels; it is original.
Thank you for any input. There is one other fellow interested in the 327 (according to the seller) but of course I am the only one to really benefit from having the engine.
Jere
Submitted by: Jere Colman
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Your problem is a pretty common one. Unfortunately we can't easily tell you what this engine is worth because the only thing that gives it any value is that it presumably is the original one to your car. In and of itself an old, non-rebuilt Chevy 327 isn't worth much more than a few hundred dollars. The price an owner is willing to pay for the original engine is one that is nearly impossible to quantify, but we think $2500 is too much for a number-matching block with no guarantee that the heads are correct or that it can be rebuilt.
If your car had the original engine right now and you put it up for sale we doubt that the difference in selling price would be enough to justify the price of the engine and machining costs and associated parts necessary to make it original. In view of the fact that your car has other non-original parts the total amount necessary to make the car a "factory original" one would easily grow to be a great deal.
We would suggest that you obtain a rebuilt, correct displacement engine from the same time period and install it in your car, or at least tell the engine seller that you're planning to do so. He might come way down on the price of his "original" engine. If so, be sure he can prove that the numbers match.
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Posted by Administrator on
12/4/2009 1:13:58 PM
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