G\'day guys... some queries about 1982 c\'vette

[Nik]

allo guys

now, here are a few questions I have, and an explination of my circumstances :)

Ok, im a 20yr old aussie working & living in washington DC for 2yrs (im at around the 6th month)... now, when I got wind of me moving here (I'm living with my parents) the first thing I thought apart from "goodbye social life" was "hello corvette :D"

anyway, so my plans are to get the car I've allways dreamed about having, a C3 corvette, and because its the design I love most - a 1980-82 vette its going to be.

Anyway, on to my questions.

In NSW are there any places that do RHD conversions? or do I have to travel up to QLD for that?

What price is reasonable for a RHD conversion? How much did u pay if u did, and what did u get for that?

I believe its a 3month ownership rule for importation w/o tax in NSW going off the rta website (im going to own it for about a year methinks before importing), do I have any leeway in how long I can drive the beast around before I get it RHD converted? because otherwise that would suck.

Are there any good corvette parts dealers in nsw area? or do I have to do it all interstate?

cheerios :)

ill post more q's when I think of them - ive had a few hahn premiums (ahh the aussie beer, how I miss it) in the process and so I need to rest to think more :)

and welcome me to the forums :D (thats me talkin to myself if no1 else wants to do so :D)

later guys

[Nik]

man those piccies are weird...

[Nik]

oh yeah

import costs

and how much for a decent sand & spray job of the car? I want really really really really deep polished black :)

cheers again

[david_moore]

Talk to Canberra and convert it yerself!;30

[Brutus]

Nik...You should seriously consider making as many mods to your car while you have it over there rather than wait till you get it back here. A new engine comes to mind as well as upgrading the suspension and brakes. I've brought most of these bits and pieces back with me in suitcases during my past trips to the US and I can tell you the cost as well as the weight was nasty!:b2

[69 DIRTY RAT]

Gday Nik,I worked in LA for over 3 years and came back last year with my beloved 69 big block.Government charges are still a big rip off!By the way you need to own the car for a year now to take advantage of being a personal import.which means you dont pay import duty BUT they hit you hard on everything else.Just a note the RTA website is not well maintained! its all old information,a lot has changed.Your better off trying to call someone in the RTA that knows what there talking about.when you bring it back make sure you under value it!.you still have to pay GST plus a whole lot of other costs that they dont deserve!then when you register it they want stamp duty etc ,everybody wants there little piece of the pie!.Can I make a couple of suggestions.If youre getting paid in US dollars,I would try and make any repairs or do the car up over there before bringing it back.It works out cheaper,and there is more likely someone that knows vettes better over there.there iare a few people who sell parts here,but they sell mainly basic parts.there are heaps of big parts places over there.Next suggestion is - do you know about the 30 years or older cars dont need right conversions.so anything up to 74 you will save money by not having to convert it!and usually these cars have higher resale value!youll save 10-15 grand aussie ! in other words buy a BIG BLOCK there more fun!!!!

[Nik]

I was considering that

but i love the rear spoiler on the 82! :bold and the look just looks a lot more refined...

but, we shall see :) I just love the basic stingray design... by the time I come back to the USA, I will be able to have up to a 1975 without having to have it switched over to RHD i believe.

What major mods u think I should do over here in the USA before I bring it back to aus?

Any company u can suggest for importing? And a round abouts cost in AUD or USD? and yes, I am getting paid in USD.

[69 DIRTY RAT]

Ycould buy a 74 or 75 and do what the bloke done to Rebels vette before he bought it,his is a 74 which has been converted to look like a 80-82!but thats a lot of work!.when you buy the car,get on the computer and find a local vette club and find out which mechanics they recommend,then usually for a hundred bucks or so get them to fully check out the car(he may do it for nothing?)and get a list of priorities that need to get done ,and slowly do them while your there.My mechanic in LA used to be on the vette  production linein the 60's.he knows every nut and bolt and rattle them off in an instant!amazing guy - and best of all he owns a 68 genuine L-88 worth 180,000 us$ and 6 other great vettes! If you buy an original 80-82  then it may be worth doing up the engine and gettin somemore horses in there!as they only had 190 - 200 hp.which is still good but depends on what you want out of the car.As for exporting the car I got the company I work for to pay for my household items and I snuck the car into the container,heee heee hee.I went through Wrighways in Sydney,but they were pretty ordinary.there is heaps of companies on the Net.as for price,mine was mixed in with furniture so I dont have a exact price.I've heard from 1500 us$ up to $5000 or more so you'll have to shop around.Also it depends on how much paperwork you are prepared to do to cut the costs.It can get pretty complicated,thats why I would try and find a company that deals with mainly cars.With getting parts just put into your search engine the words "corvette parts" you'll find heaps.hope this helps a bit.

[Brutus]

I'd be inclined to have the car (whichever model you choose) fixed up as mechanically perfect as you can while over in the US, but leaving the body and interior slightly ratty. Then bring it back as just a spare parts vehicle which could alleviate some of the duty involved with importing a "newer" car. This has been done before, but how it stands these days I'm not sure, but it could be still worth investigating.