Category: Corvette News & Opinions

Scale Visions’ 60th Anniversary Salute to the 1954 (Corvette) Corvair

Published on by Scott

1954 Corvair Motorama Show Car 1/25 scale model benefits the “Chip Miller Charitable Foundation” at ’14 Corvettes At Carlisle

 1-Corvair-Nomad-ModelsBy guest columnist, Don Theune (Slide Show at bottom)

Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the 1954 Corvette,  “Scale Visions” has created two of the 1954 Motorama show cars – the Corvette-based “Corvair” and “Nomad.” One of which (1954 Corvette Corvair) shall be donated to raise funds & awareness for the “Chip Miller Charitable Foundation.” Scale Visions has been donating significant works of Automotive Art to the Corvettes at Carlisle charitable auctions since it began in 1996, and as help raise tens of $1,000’s for the various causes

The Corvette-based Corvair, Nomad & Corvette Hard Top were concept cars built by Chevrolet and introduced at the 1954 General Motors Motorama in New York City. The experimental concept 1954 Corvette Corvair (the name combined Corvette & BelAir into “Corvair”) Nomad, and Hard Top, unfortunately never made it into production.

2-Nomad-ModelScale Visions has been creating the “Perfect gift, for the person who has everything!” (Exact Model Replicas of Your Corvette) for more than 23 years. They have been an institution at Corvettes at Carlisle for many of those years. The “works of Automotive Art” are so realistic and life like, it is hard to discern the difference between photos of the original 1/1 Corvette and its 1/25 scale counterpart.

In May 2013 Don Theune was a guest on my radio program, Far Out Radio. Enjoy the program. – Scott Continue reading “Scale Visions’ 60th Anniversary Salute to the 1954 (Corvette) Corvair” →

A 50-Plus Year Golden Love Affair With A ‘54 Vette

Published on by Scott

John Loper CorvetteJohn Loeper’s 1954 Corvette Hot Rod – Subtitle: Dad’s advice was, “Buy American! It will last a lifetime!”

by K.Scott Teeters (as originally published in Vette Vues magazine)

Sometimes, the things our fathers tell us when we’re young, really stick. John Loeper was just 16 years old in 1959 when he discovered a car that he just had to have.

John worked all summer, mowing lawns, doing odd jobs and such, to scrape up the $800 for a ‘54 Corvette that was previously owned, many times over.

In fact, John was the 13th owner and as fate would have it, the last owner of the car.

Loeper grew up in the beautiful, ocean side resort town of  Ocean City, New Jersey and was a teenager in the ‘50s. I can’t think of a cooler place and time to be as a teenager.

John explains the car culture this way. “Back in ‘58 there really weren’t that many Corvettes on the road. Chevy had only made a little over 13,000 Corvettes by the end of ‘57 and they had a reputation as a rich kid’s car. Continue reading “A 50-Plus Year Golden Love Affair With A ‘54 Vette” →

Illustrated Corvette Series No. 193 – 2014 C7 Corvette Arrives!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 5.1.13

The 2014 C7 Corvette Arrives… FINALLY!

ICS-II-2014-C7-Corvette-TN

 After what was without a doubt the longest, most tortuous buildup for a new generation Corvette ever, Chevrolet finally unleashed the 2014 C7 Corvette at the Detroit Auto Show on January 13, 2013. It was exhausting and I thought that Tadge Juechter, Tom Peters, and Ed Welburn would never stop talking. Finally, in a “TA-DA!” style, the red C7 came up and over a ramp, making it look like the car leapt on stage. It turned out that the spy photos and computer generated illustrations were close… but not quite on the mark. No, what we saw was better. But, I expected this, as the same thing happened before the C6 arrived – only we weren’t all on the torture rack for months on end.

This was the fifth new generation Corvette arrival I have seen, and it’s never easy. The ‘68 C3 wasn’t “Mako Shark” enough for many. The ‘84 C4 seemed too straight-lined and slab-like. The ‘97 C5 was called “too round” by some. The ‘05 C6 seemed like a crisped up C5 and was deemed a “C5.5” by a few. When it comes to Corvettes, you just can’t make everyone happy. However, each new generation, except for the C3, dished up stacks of impressive mechanical improvements, each taking the new generation to a new and higher level of performance. Continue reading “Illustrated Corvette Series No. 193 – 2014 C7 Corvette Arrives!” →

Keith Cornett of CorvetteBlogger.com Blends Corvettes & Blogging

Published on by Scott

Scott talks with CorvetteBlogger.com and VetteFinders.com owner, Keith Cornett about how to create your own online magazine in the world of blogging.

Click HERE to Listen to Archived Show.

 CorvetteBlogger-FB-72Our guest is Keith Cornett, a modern Corvette guy. He has a deep appreciation for the car’s long and rich past and even owns his Dad’s tuxedo black 1966 Corvette 327 small-block Roadster. And he knows his way around modern Corvettes too and has blended his passion for Corvettes with his passion for the internet and the blogosphere.

Keith is the owner of one of the most successful Corvette blogs in the Corvette community. CorvetteBlogger.com is updated several times a day with varied, interesting, feature-filled posts that are always fun to check out. You never know what you’ll find when you go to CorvetteBlogger.com – videos, slide shows from car shows, interviews, sales stats for Corvettes, Chevrolet press releases, auction results, quirky Corvette items, unusual Corvettes on eBay, Vettes in the news, personality features, and on and on. Continue reading “Keith Cornett of CorvetteBlogger.com Blends Corvettes & Blogging” →

Corvette Restoration Expert Kevin Mackay’s Favorite Vettes

Published on by Scott

Corvette restoration master, Kevin Mackay talks about his FAVORITE restored Corvettes

To Listen to FREE Archived Kevin Mackay, CLICK HERE.

Kevin-Mackay-FB-B-72Hello Corvette Fans! Our guest on Far Out Radio is early generation Corvette restoration expert, Kevin Mackay. Kevin is the owner of CORVETTE REPAIR, in Valley Stream, New York (on Long Island), as well as an early model judge with NCRS – that’s the National Corvette Restoration Society.

Kevin and his team of specialists have had the honor of having brought back to life some of the most valuable, important Corvettes that ever existed – as well as the creation of some of the most unique automotive display pieces.

We talk to Kevin about his amazing career and creations – and to help this program come alive, Kevin and Scott  discuss many of the Great Corvette restoration projects listed on the post over at FarOutRadio.com Click Here  to link to the post. Continue reading “Corvette Restoration Expert Kevin Mackay’s Favorite Vettes” →

A Scale Visions Birthday Tribute to Zora Arkus Duntov

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 12.24.12

Master model builder Don Theune shares his touching encounter with Corvette maestro, Zora Arkus-Duntov 

Don-Theune-1Forward: Zora Arkus-Duntov was born on December 25, 1909 and would have been 103. Zora often joked that he had the birthday curse being born on Christmas Day.

When you are a kid and your birthday is on Christmas you tend to not get double gifts. But Duntov made up for any toy deficiency as a child after he took over the Corvette program. Arguably, no one had more fun playing with Corvettes inside Chevrolet than Duntov.

Not only did he design and develop the go-fast parts we all came to know and love, but he usually did his own track testing. What’a lucky guy! Here’s our Happy Birthday tribute to Zora Arkus-Duntov and a big THANKS to Don Theune. Continue reading “A Scale Visions Birthday Tribute to Zora Arkus Duntov” →

C7 Update: The Return of the LT!!!!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 10.24.12

How does 450-horsepower for the base C7 sound to you?

Image from GM and CorvetteActionCenter.com. Click the image to visit the site for full and delicious details.

I have been taking a blogging break so I could get some new art print layouts completed in time for the holidays.

Unless you’ve been under your car the last week of so, you could NOT have noticed LOTS of breaking news about the C7.

THIS JUST OUT!!! The C7 will be powered by a 450-horsepower LT1 engine.

This will be the third iteration of the LT1. MIGHTY SHWEET! Here are the details… Continue reading “C7 Update: The Return of the LT!!!!” →

C7 Update: Is This the Upcoming C7 or a Camaro Fastback?

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 9.28.12

If this is the C7 Corvette, is it revving you up, or stalling you out?

Be sure to take our informal survey at the end of this post.

What kind of car does this look like to you? The New C7 Corvette, or a possible next gen Camaro fastback?

We’re now about 3-1/2 months from FINALLY knowing what the next generation C7 Corvette will look like and what kinds of mechanical improvements Chevrolet has in store. I have no doubt that the new C7 will run like a bear, but don’t expect anything revolutionary, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the C6 platform is already pretty stout. I’m hoping that the base C7 uses the all-aluminum chassis design of the C6 Z06.

What’s got a lot of Corvette fans holding their breath is the car’s styling. In November ‘11 Jalopnik.com set the Corvette world on fire with their computer generated illustrations that were NOT well received by the Corvette community. GM cried “FOUL! That’s NOT the Corvette!” and Jalopnik said, “Yes, it is, STUFF IT!” Even before the Jalopnik flap there was a lot of jib-jab from GM people that the the next Vette would be a “world car” and designed for a “younger generation.” We also heard that the new Corvette would not be “your grandfather’s Vette.” (OUCH!)

What it comes down to is this. GM will do what it wants to do and we can love it or leave it. It’s no secret that Corvette sales have been dismal the last few years, but it’s not because the car is dismal! Quite the contrary. The Corvette product planners have done a spectacular job of availing to customers a truly “boutique” Corvette. Continue reading “C7 Update: Is This the Upcoming C7 or a Camaro Fastback?” →

The Owens Corning L88 Corvette Goes On the Block and It’s a NO SALE!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 8.17.12

Another famous Corvette race car makes THUNDER at RM Monterey!

SPECIAL NOTE – Check out the new Owens Corning Corvette Postage Stamp art print at the bottom of this post!

Well I hope that you were able to catch some auction action, live from Monterey, California. High-end auctions, such as the RM and Mecum events draw some of the finest and most interesting cars in the world. For car lovers, these auctions are the proverbial box of chocolates – you never know what you’re going to get.

Last year at the RM Monterey event there were five delightful Corvettes that went on the block – one stocker, a ‘60 Corvette with just 750 miles on the odometer and four Corvette race cars. For Corvette lovers, the star of last years show was the Greenwood Stars & Stripes 1969 427 ZL1 BF Goodrich racer that sold for $580,000.

This year the RM Monterey auction only had one Corvette and WOW, what’a beauty! Preauction estimates predicted that the car should sell for between $950,000 and $1,350,000! “Auctions” are arguably the ultimate expression of the economic free market. Sellers always have an idea as to how much they want for their cars, but when the gavel comes down, it’s the buyers that set the price. Granted, the economic downturn had depressed the prices of exotic cars over the last few years. Some would call it a price correction to rein in the wildly high prices of just a few years before the downturn.

One interesting factor for the Owens Corning Corvette, as compared to the Greenwood Corvette is the car’s pedigree. The Owens Corning Corvette is the winningest Corvette race car of all time with a staggering 22-straight wins! That’s like winning every race for over two years in today’s American Le Mans Series races. Could the Owens Corning record be broken? Sure, anything is possible. But it’s NOT likely.

When you watch the car auctions, there are two parts. First, the car is presented on stage with a detailed description of the car with images and sometimes video. Then the bidding action begins. Here’s how the auction action played out. Continue reading “The Owens Corning L88 Corvette Goes On the Block and It’s a NO SALE!” →

Y’all In A Heap Of TROUBLE, Boy!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 7.11.12

Subtitle: Omega Tool Corp Does Damage Control, ON US!

I was about to tell you all about a really awesome piece of Corvette racing history that’s going on the auction block, when I received an interesting email from the law firm of Schafer and Warner, PLL demanding that we remove the wrongfully and illegally posted image of a screen shot from a bootlegged video that was posted online that sure looks like the nose of the C7 Corvette. I discovered the images from my Google Alerts, which is setup to inform me of Corvette related stories in the news. The only image in the post showed the front bumper cover of what was speculated to be the nose of the C7 Corvette. The image was linked back to the source of the story, as per my Google Alert, and we included a text link to the source.

In followup emails from Google Alerts on Monday, Tuesday, and early Wednesday, it was obvious that the Corvette hungry community was all over this story like flies on stink. So I’m sure the legal eagles have been working hard to scour the net, racking up copious hours of billing time.

Well, I got on it right away, YES, SIR! Least we be the cause of any damages the the Omega Tool Corp might suffer as a result of their own problem. No, the only “suffering” they’ll incur is the butt chewing they probably already received from their big boss, plus the bill they’ll be getting from their attorneys for fix their screw up. It’s funny, because when I first read the story, I said out loud, “D’OGH! Someone’s in a HEAP OF TROUBLE!” The picture that came to my mind’s eye was that of sheriff Buford T. Justice, the cartoony character wonderfully played by Jackie Gleason in the “Smokey and the Bandit” movies. (next I’ll get a letter about the Gleason image) If you were able to see the illegal images in question, you might have wondered, “Is this REALLY the nose of the C7?” Now you know for sure, IT IS THE C7! Otherwise there wouldn’t be this Continue reading “Y’all In A Heap Of TROUBLE, Boy!” →

WHAT??? Chevy Volt Outsells Chevy Vette???

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 6.6.12

Good for the Chevy Volt, ah, not so good for GM’s halo Corvette

 

Apples & Oranges. Chevy’s baseball and apple pie Corvette vs the green Volt. Same badge, worlds apart.

When the Chevy Volt concept car came out at the North American International Auto Show in 2007 it was a genuine attention grabber. Even a died-in-wool Corvette fan like me said, “Hey, pretty cool!” Between the big diameter wheels, the chopped and channeled look, and the promise of 50-plus mpg, it looked like Detroit was serious about taking the lead away from the Toyota Prius.

We all thought THIS was going to be the Chevy Volt!

But when the production Volt came out, enthusiasts said, “Ahh… Excuse us, but what happened?” Of course, fans of the Prius “larva school of styling” cheered, but were not electrified buy the Volt. And why would they? At over $40,000, the car cost $12,00 to $10,000 more than the Prius. It looks like a Malibu variant. The Malibu is a nice car, but it’s just a “nice” car. Even the Motor Trend Car of the year didn’t help the Volt. But by October 2011, the Volt was getting many buyers charged up with sales, as only 3,895 Volts had been shipped. GM had projected 10,000 Volts for ‘11.

So the big “WHOO-WHOO” news for Volt lovers (and GM) is that by the end of May ‘12, Chevy had sold 7,057 cars. I’m certain that the major reason for the bump in Volt sales was the price reduction to just under $32,000. But for some reason, the media has chosen to compare the Volt’s sales with the Corvette’s sales – and it doesn’t look good for the Corvette. What’a dopy comparison! First of all, greeny Volt fans most likely wouldn’t be caught dead in a Corvette, and visa-versa. While Corvette sales are up somewhat from ‘11, they’re still WAY off the ‘07’s total of 40,561 Corvettes. Sorry guys, but it’s apples and oranges here. Continue reading “WHAT??? Chevy Volt Outsells Chevy Vette???” →

The Most Powerful Indy 500 Pace Car EVER – 2013 60th Anniversary ZR1 Corvette

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 5.11.12

Corvette paces the 2012 Indy 500 for the 11th time!

Every so often, a real bombshell goes off. Earlier this week, less than three weeks before the 2012 Indy 500 race, Chevrolet announced that a 2013 60th Anniversary ZR1 Corvette would pace the 96th Indy 500 race. This will the the 11th time a Corvette paces the Greatest Spectacle in Motorsports and the 23rd time a Chevrolet automobile has paced the Indy 500. No other manufacturer has paced Indy more times. And, if that’s not enough, 2012 marks the return of Chevrolet as an engine supplier for IZOD IndyCar Series.

C6 Corvettes have paced the Indy 500 in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008, but this is the first time the 638-horsepower ZR1 will do the job. The ZR1 is also the most powerful car to ever pace the Indy 500. And just like most of the previous Corvette Indy pace cars, the Corvete needed no performance enhancements – just the addition of various safety requirements.

Arguably, the only bummer part of the story is for Corvette collectors. There was no announcement of an optional Pace Car Special. The livery on the ZR1 Pace Car consists of the production 60th Anniversary decoration, with the addition of the 2012 Indy 500 logo, “Official Pace Car”, Indy 500 logo,  “CORVETTE” across the top of the windshield, and the safety strobe light bar on top of the B-pillar. The ZR1’s astonishing hardware aside, this is the tamest-looking Corvette Indy 500 pace car we’ve seen since 1986. But, we’re NOT complaining. Continue reading “The Most Powerful Indy 500 Pace Car EVER – 2013 60th Anniversary ZR1 Corvette” →