Okay so I'm a newbie, I admit it. But I have had a few Chevelles in my 40+ years, so when I stumbled across a local 69 SS convert earlier this year I pulled the trigger and bought it. Now I wonder what you guys think it's worth.
I bought it as a SS vert and the closer I look at it the more I believe it is an actual SS, but alas, no paperwork and no original 396.
Trim tag codes it as a V-8 malibu convertible with bench seat and parchment interior. It has a 1969 thm400 in it (possibly original) and a 12 bolt non-posi rear end. Car shows 80k miles on it and the last owner said they were original but who knows. All 4 wheels are YA coded, has original (not repro) center caps, and it has a kick-down switch for the transmission located just above the accelerator pedal. The car is nice with no dash rust, clean floor pans but the rear quarters have had patch panels. The car seems to be a relatively low option car with just tinted windshield and an AM radio besides the SS stuff.
What do you think and what other clues can I look for to see if this baby is the real McCoy?
BTW how many 69 SS verts were made; 2100??
Thanks to you all!

Congrats on the 69 vert find.
And welcome to the site.
As for giving you a what its worth you are much better off posting some pictures of it.
Being a bench seat,automatic kinda kills the value some.
Auto or manual top?
350 or 325 HP?
Column shift or floor shift?
Does it have a tach?
We need more info on the car :yes:

I will guess $8K or $10K
I paid $10K for my 69 convertible in 2005 and I did a nut and bolt frame off on mine.

Can you post any pictures to give us a better idea?

You should be able to do a search here and find mucho info on '69 SS specific items. A couple that I can think of are bolted steering rag joint and bright trim rings around the parking lights. Some of the most telling are lack of patched lower trim trim holes from trim that Malibus had and SS's didn't.

Everyone, you're right about needing to see some photos. Here's a link to some;
http://public.fotki.com/jukeboxman/ss396/

Von, I checked your suggested clues. The parking lights do have bright trim, the steering rag joint is bolted and there are no patched (or unpatched) holes in the rockers where Malibu trim once was. Thanks for the tips, maybe it is real?

It does not have the original engine in it so I don't know the original HP. The previous owner said it was a 350HP car but who knows.
It has column shift, no tach and an automatic (power) convertible top. Obviously power disk brakes and power steering. Kind of neat side note, I checked the rear brakes over the weekend and it still has the original dated brake drum on one side!

The estimate of $8-10K blows me away though. I paid alot more than that for this car. I hope I did not take a bath!

Welcome and what a great looking car John! :thumbsup:

I would say at least 18-20K. With doc's, a lot more.

Mike

Nice looking car. Don't worry it's worth a LOT more than $8-10k. That won't even come near a decent Malibu convertible. The lower trim wasn't on the rockers of Malibus. It was just below the lower body crease about 6" above the rockers. Where was your car built?

the car sounds convincing as a real SS, however, all the stuff you mentioned could have been changed out over the last 40 years. the most convincing 'proof' on a car with no documents is a legit VIN stamp on the engine pad. and even with that, it's still in doubt, cars are restamped all the time.
your car is probably around $22-$25k i'd estimate. if you had proof of it being a SS car, that would go up $8-10k probably. it appears there's not too many documented '69 SS's though. that's why when i was looking for a '68-'69 SS convert i bought a '68. your production figures are very close to estimates i've heard before, no one knows the exact #, it has to be extrapolated from the production figures.

Nice looking car. I agree that 8-10 is way too low (Brad must have been sniffing some glue or something before he posted). I'd say closer to the $20-22k range. Not having the original motor definately hurts the value but ragtops seem hold their value pretty well. A 10k ragtop (no matter what year) would have to be pretty darn rough these days!

How correct are the underhood details? Correct intake, carb? etc., etc.? Maybe snap some photos of the underhood area.

I posted before the pictures were presented.
Different story after looking at the pictures of the car, definitely way more than what I originally said more like the 20K-28K range.
Most of the time everyone finds a car that needs to be restored and dont post any pictures so one would assume its in bad shape, yours is not the case. Very nice car and with some details and clean up will be sweet:yes:

btw: Dana I quit sniffing glue 35 years ago but I am sure it still affects me:yes::D

I looked at a 69 SS convert 7 years ago, about the same shape as yours and he wanted 24k. I though it was a bit much so i passed, but looking back now I should have grabbed it. So i guess what i'm saying is If you think you paided a bit too much, in a few years, you won't think that.
Have fun with it.
Nice looking ride:hurray::hurray:

btw: Dana I quit sniffing glue 35 years ago but I am sure it still affects me:yes::D

Then what was all that yellow gooey stuff hanging from your mustache while you were installing the weatherstrips?

It's a Kansas City built car, originally from Oklahoma if the seller was correct. Too bad I can't send off for title searches anymore. Back in the 1990's I had a midyear vette and was able to track it all the way down to the original dealership when sold new back in 1966 in NY state. That really helped when I sold it.
The engine compartment has been hot-rodded up, which is not my thing. It has a 454 now with chrome this and that. Too bad someone threw out the original cast pieces for the chromed aftermarket bling; now I have to track down the original stuff. PS Looking for original hood hinges, radiator cover, master cylinder, etc.. :)
Thanks for all the advice on price.
I actually bought it because I have only seen one other 69 SS vert in person in the past, and I knew they were kinda rare. I think I did okay, I probably paid about market price for it.

Maybe you can find a build sheet for it somewhere. Under the seat,top of gas tank,under insulation on the floor,inside doors,lots of places others have found them. Of course it is possible there was never a build sheet left in your car.

very beautiful SS vert:thumbsup:i wish my vert looked like that.one day one day

That's a beautiful car John and the family sure seems to enjoy it!

Von mentioned something about a "L" in the lower line of the trim tag for Kansas City built SS cars as potential verification. For what it's worth my car does have the L in the lower line. I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed, maybe I'll find a build sheet this winter while I do some minor fix ups. I'll keep asking Santa!