Article Surfing Archive

It was made a legend in songs and performance. The Chevrolet Corvette was lovingly known just as the "Vette". The Vette was and still is a high speed performance car. It started out a a little sports car and now is grown up to a relatively large sports car. The earlier ones were made out of fiberglass. Come to think of it, the light weight would help save gas today. Unfortunately, the fiberglass didn't offer much protection and you could easily punch a hole in it. The 1967 Stingray was born were an engine that taught you what it was like to pull G's while still on the ground.

Factory Hot Rods became real in October of 1963, when the GTO was born. At this time, the Corvette began to grow in size and weight. It was truly becoming an American hot rod/sports car with looks to kill and performance to match. The Vette came in the 409 engine and then later move up to large horsepower engines. These powerhouses package included a 400-horsepower V8 with dual exhausts, a Carter AFB four-barrel carburetor, a mild hydraulic camshaft, and the kind of whip lashing neck pain street-grabbing torque that left a smile on your face. Other standard features included a manual three-speed transmission with a Hurst shifter (in those days the Hurst shifter was not only very good but also very cool), a heavy-duty clutch (very much needed), heavy-duty suspension, US Royal red-line tires, a 3.23:1 rear axle ratio, and the famous Corvette emblem. The Vette emblem itself was just as famous as the car and was easily recognized.

What Made The Chevy Vette So Coveted? Some things you never forget such as my 1967 Stingray and Jan & Dean Dead Man's Curve. It was a good thing it had a windshield because I would have had bugs stuck to my teeth from grinning so much. The thrill of standing still, shifting into first gear, revving up that sweet engine and letting out the clutch and being plastered to the back of the seat was pure adrenaline pumping. That was my first experience of "pulling G's". Last time I felt that type of adrenaline rush was during chopper auto-rotations in Nam. That was 40 years ago and I still love my Vette. Maybe it is the legend. Maybe we have gotten the legend mixed up with reality. All I know is I can't help but smile when I remember my little Vette.

It is hard to explain to my children why it was so special. I owned a 1955 Ford though it was pretty it just didn't have the appeal of the legendary Corvette. The royal blue was my favorite. I have a friend whose color was plum. Can you remember vinyl seats? I can! They were cool looking and very hot functionally. I remember leaving my skin on the seat many times getting out that car. Getting in the summer meant either cooking your legs or trying to keep a towel in the car to sit on. Once you started up that 409, you were transported to another world. The purr of that engine, the feel of the Hurst shifter and watching the gas needle drop was worth all the pain of sitting on a hot seat. What hot seat? Oh yeah, 4 mpg! It was a good thing gasoline was only 15 cents a gallon back then.