Month: February 2013

In our daily search of interesting Corvette news comes this classified ad we found on FreeTruckShopper.com. Now many will do anything to get a Corvette and often those transactions are made by trade or barter instead of cash. So if you’re in the Lexington, KY area and own a dump truck or a backhoe, then this clean 1985 Corvette could be yours.

Here’s the text of the ad:

I have a very nice 85 chevy corvette 350 auto very fast runs great low miles head turner call or text 502-301-9426

May trade for nice dump truck, dump trailer, backhoe, bobcat, or tractor with loader or?? send pics of any trades

1985 Corvettes aren’t really known for their collectability (yet) and with 39,729 produced during the C4′s second year of production, there’s a lot of supply out there without much demand.

Trading something that you are no longer using or don’t have a need for could be a great way to get into a Corvette. Especially when you may not have the cash necessary to buy one outright.

Have you ever traded for a Corvette? If so, we want to hear from you. Leave us a comment or use the form at the very bottom of the page and tell us what you traded, what you received, and most important, if it was worth it.

Source:
freetruckshopper.com

Related:
Corvettes on Craigslist: 1978 4×4 Corvette
Corvettes on Craigslist: 1980 Duntov Turbo Convertible
Corvettes on eBay: 1958 Corvette SVRA Vintage Racecar

 

Just days after Ken Lingenfelter of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering said the new C7 may not be capable of producing much more than 700-hp, Hennessey Performance Engineering has announced it plans to offer two very powerful engine performance upgrades for the 2014 Corvette Stingray later this year.

Lingenfelter expressed reservations last week about the upper limits of the new LT1 engine being much lower than the current LS1 engine.

But Hennessey seems to have no such qualms. On their website, they say they’ll be offering supercharged systems up to 700-hp and twin turbo systems from 800 to 1000-hp for the coupe and convertible versions of the C7.

Hennessey already offers similar systems for the 2013 SRT Viper that offers the same range of horsepower promised for the Stingray.

Besides the supercharged and twin turbo systems for the C7, Hennessey says it will also offer cold air induction systems, cat-back exhaust systems, stainless steel long-tube headers, Brembo brake systems, wheel and tire upgrades, suspension systems, and much more.

The Hennessey website doesn’t say when the new systems will be available, but we’d assume it would be shortly after the Stingray goes on sale in the third quarter this year.

For more information about the new C7 systems, you can call Hennessey at (979) 885-1300 or send an e-mail to Sales@HennesseyPerformance.com.

Source:
HennesseyPerformance.com

Related:
Lingenfelter: Corvette’s New LT1 Engine Will Challenge Tuners
[VIDEO] Corvette ZR1 Hennessey vs 1200 hp Twin Turbo Jeep SRT-8
[VIDEO] The Stig Sets New Top Gear USA Lap Record in Hennessey-tuned Corvette ZR1

 

The press continues to be overwhelmingly positive for the seventh-generation Corvette, including a story this week in the Nashville Ledger.

“It looks part Ferrari, part Batmobile. But can this superhero save GM?” the story opens, with a front-page photo showing the menacing looking rear of the C7 beneath a headline, “Can this car save GM?”

While we think a company that has posted billions in profits since the dark days of bankruptcy less than four years ago is already well on its way to being saved, there is no doubt that the 2014 Corvette Stingray could go a long way toward showing the world that GM has made great strides since its cookie-cutter days of the 1970s and ’80s. Can you say Cimarron?

The story points out that production hasn’t even begun, but preparation for the new vehicle has already translated into more jobs at the Bowling Green assembly plant as well as a GM plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, where the front and rear bumpers will be made.

The Ledger quotes The New York Times, which recently editorialized that “The ‘Vette, that most aspirational dream car for heartland buyers, may be a bellwether for America’s recovering car industry and economy: when middle-class strivers feel flush enough to splurge on Corvettes again, the good times may be about to roll.”

If that is indeed to be the case, then Chevy must entice more young buyers to the showroom to replace the current market share that is growing grayer every day.

Lipscomb University business professor Andy Borchers, a graduate of General Motors Institute, tells The Ledger that’ll be an uphill battle.

“A lot of young people these days look at environmental sustainability. Some are living without cars and using public transit,” Borchers says. “It’s a different era. Being Grandpa’s performance vehicle is very much the concern. They would obviously like to have a younger customer base. This car is not going to do that unless they can reimage that.”

Assembly Plant Manager Dave Tatman believes the car has the makings of a huge hit.

“I anticipate that we’re gonna hit the ground running pretty hard, for sure,” he says. “There’s an excitement for the Corvette Stingray that we haven’t seen.”

At least one major newspaper agrees, according to The Ledger story.

“This autumn, the Corvette ditches its mullet, aviator glasses, and Thursday night bowling league image forever,” the New York Daily News recently wrote. “It’s all grown up now.”

Check out the rest of this story at this link.

Source:
NashvilleLedger.com

Related:
Spring Hill to Produce Body Parts for 2014 Corvette Stingray
Corvette Assembly Plant to Add 170 Temp Workers for C7 Corvette Launch
CSP Expands Plant and Adds 50 Jobs to Make Body Panels for the 2015 Corvette