1974 Chevrolet Corvette for Sale

Coupes, convertibles and production

With the chrome rear bumper of 1973 replaced by a urethane cover, the 1974 was the first Corvette with body-color bumpers at both ends.

• Coupe: 32,028 built. Coupes gained combined lap and shoulder belts this year.
• Convertible: 5,474 built, with 2,612 ordered with the auxiliary hardtop (RPO C07). The convertible lasted one more year, to 1975.

Air conditioning (RPO C60) was in 29,397 cars.

Engines and transmissions

Three engines were offered, all rated in net horsepower and all still running on leaded fuel.

• L48 350, 195 hp: the base engine, in the remaining 27,300 or so cars.
• L82 350, 250 hp: 6,690 built.
• LS4 454, 270 hp: 3,494 built. No big-block was offered after 1974.

Turbo Hydra-Matic (M40) went into 25,146 cars, 67 percent of production. The close-ratio M21 four-speed was fitted to 3,494. Two chassis options matter to collectors: the Z07 suspension and brake package, built just 47 times and limited to four-speed L82 and LS4 cars, and the FE7 Gymkhana suspension, on 1,905 cars. Background on the engines is in the factory record on the 427 and 454.

Is it a real 454 or L82?

The VIN answers that directly. It begins 1Z37 for a coupe or 1Z67 for a convertible, and the fifth character is the engine: J for the L48, T for the L82 and Z for the LS4 454. The sixth character is 4 for 1974, the seventh is S for St. Louis, and the sequence runs from 400001 to 437502. Read the plate on the driver's windshield pillar from outside the car.

A J-code car with a 454 has had an engine swap, whatever the hood emblems say. On a Z-code car, confirm the original block is still there: the pad on the front passenger side of the engine carries a plant letter (T for the Tonawanda big-block plant, V for Flint small-blocks), the assembly date, a suffix and a partial VIN that should match the car. The trim tag above the driver's upper door hinge adds the body build date, paint code and interior code, but no options.

What to inspect before you buy

• Bumper covers: the urethane skins break down in sunlight, and replacing and color-matching them is labor-heavy. A 1974 with a seamless rear cover is wearing a later replacement.
• Frame: look at the kick-ups ahead of the rear wheels, where the trailing arms attach and dirt holds moisture.
• Birdcage: the steel frame around the windshield and doors rusts out of sight. Start at the base of the windshield posts.
• Headlamps: they are raised by vacuum. Leaking hoses and actuators leave one or both lamps slow or stuck.
• Body: stress cracks at the wheel lips and panel cut-outs, and gaps that do not match side to side.
• Suspension and brakes: worn trailing-arm bushings and leaking four-piston calipers are known weak points.

Related listings

• 1974 Corvette Stingray for sale: cars listed under the Stingray name.
• 1973 and 1975 Corvette for sale, or every C3 Corvette, 1968 to 1982.
• The last chrome-bumper year: 1972 Corvette for sale.
• Which year to choose: best year C3 Corvette to buy.
• 454 values: what a big-block C3 is worth.
• From the magazine: C3 big-block vs small-block and C3 horsepower in the emissions era.