Category: C5 Corvettes

Engine History Made! 100,000,000 Small-Block Chevy Engines, and Counting!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.19.11
Chevrolet announces the 100-millionth Small-Block Chevy engine to be built and installed in a ’12 Corvette in Fall 2011

Former chief of Chevrolet engineering and president of General Motors, Ed Cole.

This week Chevrolet announced that the 100-millionth Small-block Chevy engine will be built sometime in Fall 2011 and will most likely be installed in a 2012 Corvette! So three cheers to Chevrolet.

Hip, hip, HOORAY!
Hip, hip, HOORAY!
Hip, hip, HOORAY!

Although the small-block Chevy engine was designed to be an efficient passenger car engine, the design’s simplicity and durability has been providing Chevy fans with some of the fiercest engines ever. SBCs have powered just about every kind of race car from Indy and Le Mans, to drag strips and dirt tracks all over America.

Which SBC will be the magic 100 millionth engine has not yet been announced. It could be the mighty 430-horsepower LS3 engine used as the base engine for the Corvette, or possibly the most powerful production engine ever built in Detroit history, the 638-horsepower supercharged LS9 that powers the C6 ZR1 Corvette rocket ship. I’m sure that Chevrolet will make a BIG media splash about this car.

Enjoy our Small-Block Chevy engine gallery.

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The man credited with designing and developing the SBC was former General Motors president, Ed Cole. As a youngster Cole liked to tinker with radio sets and was briefly a field rep for a tractor manufacturer before enrolling in the General Motors Institute where he got his degree in engineering. In 1949, along with GM’s Harry Barr, Cole developed the acclaimed 1949 Cadillac OHV V8 engine. By 1952 Cole was promoted to chief of engineering for Chevrolet. His first major project was the design and development of the replacement for Chevrolet’s tired, old, Stovebolt-Six engine. The finished engine was essentially a simplified, smaller version of the Cadillac OHV engine he’s helped design in ‘49.

When nested between the front fenders of the new ‘55 Chevy, the 265-cubic-inch, 162-horsepower engine looked, well, tiny. It probably only took a few weeks for hot rodders to realize that there was a ton of red meat in the little lightweight engine. The new small-block Chevy quickly developed the nick name “Mouse Motor.” Within a few years, the new SBC completely changed hot rodding and racing. It was, “good-bye Flathead Ford” and “Hello Small-Block Chevy.” Continue reading “Engine History Made! 100,000,000 Small-Block Chevy Engines, and Counting!” →

Vette Videos: Experience the C5-R Corvette at Le Mans!!!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.13.11
Come on! Let’s take a HOT LAP around Le Mans in a C5-R Corvette!

After decades of “why can’t we have a factory Corvette racing team?” Chevrolet and GM finally got behind a racing Corvette in ‘97, the way they did with NASCAR Chevrolets. With the vastly superior C5 platform, Chevrolet and Pratt & Miller engineers took their time developing all aspects of the C5-R. The results were SPECTACULAR!

The C5-Rs raced for 5-1/2 seasons, with the half season being ‘99 with only 5 races entered and one 2nd place finish. For the 2000 season the team entered eight races, taking one 1st place win at the Texas Motor Speedway. But it was 2001 that the Corvette Racing team hit their stride. In the 10 races for the season, the two-car team took eight 1st place wins and six 2nd place wins, PLUS, they won their class at Le Mans. In international sports car racing, the saying is that if you win at Daytona, a lot of people will notice. But if you win at Le Mans, EVERYONE will know!

Continue reading “Vette Videos: Experience the C5-R Corvette at Le Mans!!!” →

Vette Videos: 1997 C5 Corvette TV Commercial “WHAT IS IT?!?”

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.11.11
No, it’s NOT a preview for a new Tom Clancy movie, it’s the NEW 1997 Vette!

The C5 Corvette was supposed to be out years before, but financial troubles at GM kept pushing back the release date. While this was frustrating for Corvette fans, the positive part was that it gave the Corvette team the time to make the car as good as they could. The basic design of the C5 platform was started by Corvette chief engineer Dave McLellan. When mcLellan retired in 1992, former Cadillac engineer, Dave Hill was made the third Chief Engineer for the Corvette. The C5 was so well designed that by ‘99 engineers determined that they had done nearly as much to the car’s platform as they could, without designing a new platform. This naturally paved the way for the C6 Corvette.

1997 Corvette print ad.

Off the C5 platform we got the Z06 Corvette and the C5-R Corvette race. The Corvette Racing Team won Le Mans in ‘01 and dominated the 2002 ALMS  series with 10, 1st place wins and 8, 2nd place wins in 11 races with the two-car C5-R team. An interesting factoid about the C5 Corvette platform is that the car had over 1,200 FEWER parts than the C4 platform!

Someone must have been a Tom Clancy fan when they were designing this TV ad. Fun dialog from the commercial…
“Satellite just located another test site.”
“We don’t KNOW what it is!” Continue reading “Vette Videos: 1997 C5 Corvette TV Commercial “WHAT IS IT?!?”” →

Vette Videos: Track to Street – Corvette Racing Series – The FULL Series

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.9.11
Here’s the latest episode of “Track to Street: Corvette Racing Series.” PLUS!!! All 11 previous episodes. Time to catch up!

According to Chronology of Chevrolet Corvette website, it was sometime in 1997 that the Corvette Racing Team began developing the C5-R race car, based on a production C5 Corvette. C5-R chassis testing began in November ‘97 with the first completed C5-R race car ready in early ‘98. After nearly a year of testing and development, the C5-R’s first competition was at Daytona International Speedway on January 10, 1999. After 24 hours of competition, the C5-Rs came in 2nd and 12th in the GT2 class. Not too shabby for an all-new race car and team.

1999 was a tough year with the C5-R always contenders but not taking a first place win. The best finishes were 2nd place at the Daytona 24 hours race in January and the Laguna Seca 2 hour and 45-minute race in October. The team scooped up their first 1st place win on September 2, 2000 at Texas Motor Speedway in the ALMS series GTS class. Later that month, the team scored their second 1st place win at the 10 hours at Road Atlanta.

In the world of sports car racing, if you win at Daytona, a lot of people will notice. But if you win at Le Mans, EVERYONE sees and remembers! 2001 was the C5-R team’s break out year. Not only did they take 1st place in 8 out of 10 races, but they won 1st AND second place at Le Mans. Since 2001 the C5-R and C6.R Corvette teams have won 1st place in their class at Le Mans seven times and 2nd place at Le Mans seven times.

While that’s not “domination” (something you really DON’T want, because the sanctioning body will put heavy restrictions on your car) it does mean that Corvettes are ALWAYS a force to be reckoned with. The old days of Corvettes being considered as just unsophisticated “fast trucks” are OVER! But how did we get here? It’s the result of a factory-backed, long range R&D group team effort. This is what Chevrolet and GM should have done from the beginning, instead of cow tailing to the 1957 AMA ban on American auto manufacturer’s participation in auto racing.

So, what’s it like inside the C6.R Corvette Racing team? The series “Track to Street: Corvette Racing Series” regularly serves up short, tasty video dishes of behind the scenes action in the C6.R Corvette camp. The latest, “Episode 12” is at the top of this post. If you missed the previous 11 episodes, we’ve included 1 through 11 below for your enjoyment. Continue reading “Vette Videos: Track to Street – Corvette Racing Series – The FULL Series” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: August 2004 – Motor Trend Magazine Splashes the Beautiful 2004 Commemorative Edition Corvette

Published on by Scott
Click the image to see the big version.

Dateline: 8.3.11
A Corvette Beauty and a Beast
It seems that in the last few years, the Corvette market is so hungry for cool new special editions that Chevrolet launches their latest special Vettes sooner and sooner. But it wasn’t long ago when that wasn’t the standard. Car companies traditionally previewed their new cars to the press in the Summer so that by the time Fall came around, the magazines would hit the news stands just before the new cars arrive in dealer’s showrooms. That allowed for some salivation time for fans.

When the September issue of Motor Trend arrived in early August ‘03, Corvette fans had a tasty treat! Could MT have made a bigger splash for the new 2004 Commemorative Edition Corvette? Yes, but no much more so. The driver’s side front fender was cropped slightly to better fill the cover and the Saleen S7 and Mosler MT900S got postage stamp-sized pictures in the lower left. For Corvette fans, this was a “gotta have and save issue.” I sure did!

The three-page spread spelled it all out. The ‘04 Commemorative Edition was a salute to the back-to-back class victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A “Le Mans win” is like nothing else in the world of sports car racing. Someone once remarked, “You can win Daytona and only a few will remember. Win at Le Mans, and everyone remembers!” The Commemorative Edition was an option on all three Corvette models; the Coupe, Convertible, and the Z06. The package consisted of unique paint  and stripes, special emblems, and embroidery on the seat backs. Price for the coupe and convertible option was $3,700 and $4,335 for the Z06.

Click the image to see the big version

Why $635 extra for the Z06, you wonder? Since the Z06 was the performance version of the C5, packing the 405-horsepower LS6 engine, Corvette planners thought it was only right to help the Z06 along a little by replaced the 31.3-pound stock fiberglass hood with a 20.5-pound carbon fiber hood. Was a 10.6-pound weight saving worth $635? Well… when you consider that the Z06 package put the C5 closer to a race car in terms of suspension enhancements, plus an extra 55-horsepower over the base LS1 engine… ah it depended on how deep you pocket were. The Z06 option was already $7,850 over the base coupe, plus the $4,335 for the Commemorative Edition option. So a buyer was looking at a $12,185 OVER the price of a base ‘04 Coupe for the Commemorative Edition Z06.

And in an almost typical Chevrolet understated way, the only visual difference on the Z06’s carbon fiber hood was the space between the red and white stripe where the carbon fiber is covered in clear. Yes, subtle, but there it was for Corvette lovers to hunt for. Today, carbon fiber is its own “look” and typically flaunted. Continue reading “Corvette Timeline Tales: August 2004 – Motor Trend Magazine Splashes the Beautiful 2004 Commemorative Edition Corvette” →

The Art of the C4 ZR-1 LT-5 Corvette Engine

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.23.11
Corvette Engines as Art Objects


Too bad this wasn’t a 283 Fuelie!

Everything has a beginning, right. For me, it goes back to 1965 when my Dad bought me “The Visible V8” model kit. What a wonderful way for young boys to understand the basic operational principals of an internal combustion engine. If you carefully put the parts together and didn’t get glue in places you shouldn’t and wired everything right, your got to see the pistons go up and down, rocker arms actuate, the fan spin, the camshaft rotate, AND the red grain-of-wheat lightbulb spark plugs light up at top-dead-center. Of course, it sounded all “WHEEEEEE” Because the battery-opperated starter motor was driving everything. “Sorry kids! No VROOM! VROOM!”


LT-5 art prints available HERE.

But, it was a lot of fun and started my lifelong passion for engines. But engines didn’t become “art” for my until I got into drag racing and those wonderful supercharged hemi engines. And the first Corvette engine that wowed me was the 1967 L71 427/435 big-block. While 3-deuces Continue reading “The Art of the C4 ZR-1 LT-5 Corvette Engine” →

Corvette Wheels Pt 3 of 3 – 1997 to 2009

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.19.11
A Historic Look Back at the Wheels that Vettes Ride On!

After much anticipation, the all-new C5 Corvette was released as a 1997 model. The new design was truly a “modern” Corvette. However, many of the basic components can be traced all the way back to the ‘57 “Q-Corvette” proposal. Yes, forty years before, Zora Arkus-Duntov was thinking about advanced hardware that included and all-aluminum, fuel-injected engine, an aluminum-case transaxle, inboard-mounted rear drum brakes to reduce unsprung mass, a lightweight pan chassis similar to the 356 Porsche, and four-wheel independent suspension. Fast forward forty years and you have the C5 Corvette. Lightweight alloy wheels eliminated the need for the inboard-mounted rear brakes and the new hydroformed frame rails replaced the pan body structure. Other than those details, body styling, and a lot of computerized components, the new C5 Corvette was the realization of the ‘57 Q-Corvette proposal.


1997 – 1999 Wheel

As tire and wheel size grew to handle increased horsepower, it was now essential that the wheels be as light as possible for a production car. Additional unsprung mass from larger wheels and tires is the kiss of death for improved handling. The new C5 was riding on 17” x 8.5” front wheels and 18” x 9.5” rear wheels. In comparison, the ‘96 C4 Corvette Continue reading “Corvette Wheels Pt 3 of 3 – 1997 to 2009” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: Car Window Sticker Requirement Passed into Law, July 7, 1958

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.8.11

Happy Birthday to an Essential Part of Your Corvette’s History!

To see the larger version of this classic 1958 Corvette MSRP window sticker, click the image.

Fifty three years ago, on July 7, 1958 a federal law was passed requiring car makers to put window stickers on all new cars. New car window stickers have been around for so long, I thought that they’d been around since the beginning. Actually, I never really thought, “Gee, I wonder when window stickers began?”

Of course, back in ‘58 no one probably ever thought that the factory window sticker would one day be an important part of the documentation of cars. Of course, it’s a pretty good guess that Continue reading “Corvette Timeline Tales: Car Window Sticker Requirement Passed into Law, July 7, 1958” →

Dude! Where’s the Rest of My C5 2000 Corvette?!?!?

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.8.11:
 Here’s What’s Under All the Pretty Fiberglass of a Typical 1997 – 2004 C5 Corvette

Click the images to see a larger version.

Now here’s something you don’t see every day. While researching my next Illustrated Corvette Series story for VETTE Magazine about the 1996 LT4 Corvette engine, I happened upon this interesting item for sale on eBay by F•Parts. The listing is not an auction, it’s a Buy Now or Make Offer offer.

If you’re looking for a complete engine, drivetrain, suspension, chassis, wheels, brakes, and tires for some kind of street rod project, for just $5,999.00 or better, you can be off to a good start. Continue reading “Dude! Where’s the Rest of My C5 2000 Corvette?!?!?” →

C5 Corvette vs Toyota Prius in a Fuel Mileage Shootout!

Published on by Scott

This is NOT your grandfather’s 12-MPG Vette

“High performance” can be measures in many ways. While a “Corvette vs Prius” match up is truly apples and oranges for many obvious reasons rather silly, this competition is strictly a fuel efficiency contest.

(BOTH hands on the steering wheel, Prius “driver!”)

The video presents no background info on the two cars, so we don’t know the age of the Prius and since we never see anything other than the very front and rear of the C5, it could be anywhere from a 7-to-15-year old Corvette. After traveling 42.7 miles, the Corvette used just 1.402 gallons of gasoline, netting out 30.4 mph. The Prius drank only 1.083 gallons, netting out an impressive 39.4 mpg. Continue reading “C5 Corvette vs Toyota Prius in a Fuel Mileage Shootout!” →

Reeves Callaway’s C12 Corvette

Published on by Scott

“Build To Standard, Rather Than A Cost”

“Specialty cars” have been with us for almost 100 years. As long as there have been those with deep pockets, there have been craftsmen who said, “I can build you a special machine – for a price.” By the end of the ‘60s, a few small shops and car dealerships began offering personalized performance cars. Names such as Shelby, Dana, Nickey, and Baldwin-Motion became legends. Although the performance party was over after ‘70, the passion never went away.

In the mid-’70s, Reeves Callaway was a young foreign car enthusiast fascinated with turbocharging. Turbos had been used on the ‘60 Corvair and Olds Jetfire V8, but it was the 1,000-HP ‘73 917/30 Porsche racer that captured the imaginations of speed freaks everywhere. Continue reading “Reeves Callaway’s C12 Corvette” →

2004 Commemorative Edition Corvette – The “Best” C5 Corvette?

Published on by Scott

It all goes back to one man’s passion for racing. Zora Arkus-Duntov was the only executive at GM that ever raced a car at Le Mans, let alone have class wins in ‘54 and ’55. Duntov took his passion and experience and poured it into Chevrolet’s little beauty queen, the Corvette, taking the car to legendary status.

Duntov had the kind of expertise that only comes from seat of the parts experience of putting it all on the line in a four-wheel drift. With each new development in the Corvette, he always had racing on his mind. Bill Mitchell called this quality, “having gasoline in your veins.” No sooner had Duntov stuffed the new 265 small-block into the ‘55 Vette, he started secretly working on his first Le Mans intended racer, the Corvette SS. Continue reading “2004 Commemorative Edition Corvette – The “Best” C5 Corvette?” →