Month: May 2013

They say you can’t go home again, but don’t tell that to this unusual 1978 Corvette.

Back in 1981, Richard Sanson and his son, Ricky, bought the ice blue Corvette when it was just a pile of charred wreckage after it had caught fire on Interstate 77 near Charleston, S.C.

They decided to make the restoration into a father-son project but took an unusual angle by installing a diesel engine under the hood.

By mid-March 1982, the Sansons were ready for the car show circuit, including a prestigious show in Knoxville, Tennessee, where a dealer offered them $18,000 for their Corvette. No deal, though, and the family was really looking forward to a show that April in Key West, Florida, where they hoped to see how their creation would stack up against the very best competition.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck before they ever got to the show when on March 28, 1982, Ricky fell out of the door of a pickup truck and passed away after breaking his neck.

The Corvette remained in the family as a memorial to Ricky for decades until 2009 when his mom, Jean, was diagnosed with a terminal liver disease and given just two weeks to six months to live. They decided to part with the car and sold it to a man in North Carolina, but it was a decision Richard and Jean would soon regret as they missed the car terribly.

Then, just recently, they received a phone call from the sister of the man who had bought their 1978 Corvette four years ago. She told them he had died and she had inherited the car and wondered if they would like to buy it back.

It didn’t take long for Jean to call her back and say, “I want it.”

Now that they have it back, the Sansons have no interest in selling the rolling memorial to their son.

“I’ll drive it every day,” Jean said. “I drove wreckers for 30 years. I enjoy driving. I’ve driven tractor-trailers and big and small wreckers. I didn’t think I’d ever see that car again. It was the most wonderful feeling.”

Somehow, we get the feeling Ricky is smiling down on them.

Source:
DailyMail.com
Photo Credit: Tom Hindman

Related:
The Story Behind Rick Hendrick’s 1967 Corvette Convertible
Woman Trades a 99 Year Old Ford for a 2013 Corvette
A Look Back at Hot Rod Photographer Eric Rickman’s 1954 Corvette

Later this week, a 2013 Corvette Grand Sport Convertible with a rather unique history, despite its short-lived existence, could be in the hands of a new owner.

We first told you about this yellow Corvette late last year after it was seized by authorities with just a little more than 100 miles on the odometer!

The owner was arrested after a search warrant in Grayland, Washington yielded 8 pounds of marijuana and tens of thousands of dollars in cash at the residence of 57-year-old Wayne Dean Bisterfelt.

Now the car – which features the 3LT equipment package and black wheels – is being auctioned off on eBay, with the bid reaching $55,100 as of Monday Morning. The auction runs through May 12. The ad says that the car has just 108 miles after being driven from the car lot to the owner’s home.

Pacific County Sheriff Scott Johnson said the owner of the Corvette had traded in another late model Corvette and paid for the 2013 model in cash.

“We’re talking about a transaction of about $74,000 not including sales tax,” Johnson said. “Deputies believe that a third vehicle that belongs at the residence, a newer special edition SUV, was purchased with cash as well. It was not at the residence at the time the warrant was served.”

Ironically, the man who was arrested had no teeth but told authorities that he couldn’t afford dentures.

Deputies working in conjunction with the Pacific County Drug Task Force had originally entered the residence with a search warrant for a violation of a court order. Once inside the house, however, they found a large amount of marijuana and an impressive growing operation set up. No growing plants were found as the suspects were apparently between growing seasons, the sheriff said.

Source:
eBay

Related:
2013 Corvette with 108 Miles Seized in Washington Drug Bust
[ACCIDENT] New Hampshire Man Faces DUI Charges in C6 Corvette Crash
Police Seeking Clues After Thieves Strip Parts from a 1971 Corvette

It’s time for the 4th annual Race to Win Corvette sweepstakes and your chance to win the all-new 2014 Corvette Stingray as well as a VIP Corvette Racing experience to the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France.

Chevy has made is easier than ever to enter. In the past, there were a few questions to answer but now all you need to know is your email and mailing address and you’re all set. Chevy will even give you another opportunity to enter by tweeting the message:

The Grand Prize winner will receive the 2014 Corvette Stingray and the Corvette Racing Experience which includes tickets to the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France with round-trip airfare and hotel accommodations for two.

Click here to enter the Race to Win Corvette sweepstakes. The entry period runs through August 12, 2013.

The RacetoWinCorvette.com contest generated some buzz earlier this month when it was discovered that the Approximate Retail Value of the Stingray was listed at $71,860 in the official rules. As of this post, pricing still hasn’t been official released but the new Corvette Stingray is expected to start in the mid-fifties.

Source:
RaceToWinCorvette.com

Related:
The 2012 Race to Win Corvette Contest is Now Open
The Race To Win a New Corvette Contest is Now Open
GM’s Race To Win Corvette Sweepstakes is Now Live

“Fast Phil” Currin used his savvy brain to become one of the steadiest Corvette racers of the 1970s.

He paid just $1,900 for his red 1963 split-window some 47 years ago. Now 67, Currin and his Corvette – nicknamed “Giantkiller” when he made a habit of beating newer, flashier cars – made an appearance at the Hall of Fame’s 40th anniversary at Sebring in March.

While he was racing his beloved Corvette, Currin didn’t have big money coming in from sponsors, so he had to play it smart and finish the races to get prize money rather than risk blowing his engine.

He remembers a 12-hour race that he and Giantkiller ran at Sebring in 1973, when he finished 11th out of 72 cars and second out of 18 Corvettes, including 16 newer, more powerful models.

“There’s some good drivers out there, but they drive so hard and recklessly that they crash,” longtime friend Louis Galanos said of Currin. “Phil knows how to get the car to the finish. That’s why he’s had a number of top-10 finishes in his career with an under-powered, older car.”

His budget didn’t have room for pit crews, so friends from school volunteered to help him. He modified stock engines himself that he had bought from the Chevy dealer, and he sometimes used old and mismatched tires that had been discarded by other racers.

“Virtually, there was no team out there that had less money than me,” Currin said.

But don’t feel too sorry for Currin when it comes to his career stats. He raced his Corvette on 24 tracks and completed 2,677 professional race laps covering 6,132 miles. He won $9,000 in prize money, equal to about $40,000 today.

All these years later, some fans still remembered Currin and his Corvette at the recent Hall of Fame celebration.

“He had people who would show up and get his autograph, take his picture in the car; they remember Phil from back in the day,” Galanos said. “Of all the cars that were there this past Sebring at The Hall of Fame Gallery of Legends Building, Phil’s car was the only car that was still owned by the driver. That’s special.”

Source:
Gaineville.com

Related:
National Corvette Museum Announces 2013 Hall of Fame Inductees
[VIDEO] A Tribute to John Fitch
RIP “Marietta Bob” Johnson – “Everyman’s Corvette Racer”