My next Corvesport project will be a series of six stories highlighting interesting Corvettes from the C2 1965-1967 L79 327/350 4-speed Corvettes to the C6 2008-2013 Z51 Corvettes. In 2024 it is easy to spend over $100,000 for a new C8. But you don’t have to break the bank for a cool performance Corvette that might not be a stump-puller, low E.T., top speed machine, but will be a fun street machine.
Before the ZR-1 headlines and LT1 performance gains, Chevrolet proved the C4 Corvette’s capability on the track with the Corvette Challenge Series. Dan Binks’ 1989 factory-built race car is a perfect example of how close these machines were to showroom stock—and how dominant they became in SCCA competition. With minimal modifications and factory backing, these Corvettes blurred the line between street car and race car, giving enthusiasts a rare look at what a competition-ready C4 really looked like.
Lake Placid is also home to two of the rarest special edition Corvettes, a 1996 Grand Sport Coupe and Convertible. And here’s the kicker – they both reside within two blocks of one another! Ron Ellerman is the original owner of the 1996 Grand Sport Corvette Coupe and John Meyerhoff is the owner of the 1996 Grand Sport Convertible.
This story, “Zora Looks Back” offers some interesting insights into Duntov’s tenure at GM, as well as the “Lightweight Grand Sport Corvette” experience. For instance, Duntov said, “It was a quick and dirty sledgehammer project that we put together in a couple of months. There were so many compromises and constraints that we made something of which I am not particularly proud.” Interesting. Well, we sure love them!
Late in 1989 Corvette Quarterly (formerly “Corvette News”) arranged a special event. Grand Sport #002 was brought together at Sebring International Raceway for a side-by-side comparison test with the then “state-of-the-art” tube chassis Trans-Am C4 Corvette. Twenty-six-years separate the two cars, they are both tube-frame cars with replica bodies, and powered by Chevrolet engines. But that’s where the similarity ends, and the difference is startling.
Sebring, Florida resident Rick Weigand swaps out his tired old ’63 Split-Window Coupe for a modernized C1 classic! Dateline: 11.13.20 This story was first published...
Learn how Dave McLellan guided Corvette engineering through decades of evolution — from performance priorities to design breakthroughs — and left a lasting mark on America’s sports car.
Dean Kaliakmanis of Burlington, Illinois is a 16-year old sophomore at the Burlington Central High School. Dean got the car bug from his Dad, Dean Kaliakmanis. Dean Sr. is a group health insurance professional but has been a car guy since he was a teenager. Along the way, Dean’s dad has owned five Corvettes, including; a 1969 Stingray, a 1977 Corvette, a 1985 Corvette, a 1987 Corvette, and a 1993 Callaway Corvette. The 1987 Corvette and the 1993 Callaway, plus a 1971 Z-28 Camaro are Dean Sr.’s current rides. Obviously, Dean the younger has been around Corvettes all his young life, so it’s no surprise that he would want to follow in his Dad’s footsteps.
