Meet Zora Arkus-Duntov, the “Godfather of Corvette.” From engineering breakthroughs to performance innovation, uncover how his vision transformed the Corvette into a high-performance icon.
By the time the ‘95 Corvette Indy Pace Car arrived, it was obvious that management let the designers have at it. These cars have to be seen in the daylight to be appreciated. The dark purple metallic paint on the upper portion looks like a lollipop. I don’t know the designer that came up with this design, but BRAVO! Since ‘95 Corvette Indy 500 Pace Cars have been, shall we say, brash, with the exception of the silver & black ‘08 Indy 500 Corvette Pace Car, which was a salute to the first 1978 Indy 500 Corvette Pace Car.
When the new 1984 Corvette was shown to the automotive press in the Summer of ‘83, there was a wave of euphoria. “FINALLY!!! A New Corvette!” As there should have been. After all, the Shark had been with us since 1968 and the steel parameter frame and suspension since 1963. The chassis was designed somewhere around 1960! So you could say the car was a little over due for an update.
In retrospect the C4 was an extraordinary generation. It came with 205-horsepower, went out with the 330-horsepower LT4, and maxed out with the 405-horsepower LT5. Here are the highlights:
