1963 Chevrolet Corvette - Auction - Scottsdale, AZ - Vehicle to be offered for Auction sale WITHOUT RESERVE and SOLD to the highest bidder, January 18th – 22nd, 2012 at Russo and Steele's 12th Annual Scottsdale Arizona Auction. Please contact us for more information.
This tasteful and highly custom 1963 Corvette roadster was rescued from a garage in Ohio in 2004. 2 years and $156k later, the vision for the car: to make a one-of-a-kind custom roadster that retains the classic elements of the original car, yet combining modern roadster elements from such cars as a C5 Corvette, Cadillac XLR, and Audi TT, while finally adding a touch of pure hot rod, was completed. It resulted in (2) wins in the “Open Sports” division of the Portland Roadster show in the ONLY two times it was competitively shown. There has only been 394 miles driven in the car since it’s completion in 2007, as it has remained garaged in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Notable chassis and drivetrain upgrades include: a COMPLETE disassembly of the car, frame straightening and painting of frame to match exterior, new aftermarket Vette Brakes adjustable suspension, new cross-drilled Wilwood disc brakes, new front and rear electrical harnesses, new gas tank and fuel lines, new Engine Factory 383 stroker engine w/ 480hp and 465lbs of torque, a Keisler 5 speed transmission w/ overdrive, a new clutch, scattershield, driveline, half-shafts, and Griffen Radiator w/ custom fabricated shroud, and meticulously designed headers and custom side exhaust that contain the mufflers without any visible seams.
Exterior wise, the body was removed off the car and completely media blasted. Jerry’s Customs of Portland, Oregon, who also is the owner of Corvette Specialties - the largest maker of replacement fiberglass body parts for Corvettes, did a painstaking effort of custom fiberglass body work where the door handles, windshield wipers, emblems, side mirrors, antenna, and emblems were removed, while also widening the rear quarter panels almost 2” on each side while still retaining the original body lines! A modern Corvette C5 decklid was then molded into the existing decklid, custom roll bars were added, and a flush “pop-up” gas lid was added. The hood was modified to receive a Corvette C3 understructure which would allow truly functional, custom designed mesh hood grilles, and a matching custom mesh front grille was fabricated and installed. Remote control electric solenoids were added for the doors and the car was then shot in 2003 Ford Electric Green in BASF Glasurit paint and clear coat. Finally, the bumpers were custom modified, and the exterior of the car was finished with rare Billet Specialties “Fuelie” 17” front and 18” rear wheels and Toyo Proxis tires.
The interior was completed remodeled with a custom dashboard shape, modern Corvette C5 seats and waterfall were added, and all accent leather was custom dyed to match the exterior paint. Classic Instruments was chosen to craft custom gauges that were even painted using the car’s exterior paint. The car received a Billet Specialties steering wheel to match the “Fuelie” wheels, and a Flaming River tilt steering wheel and aftermarket power steering kit completed the interior. An fuel pump ignition “kill switch” was hidden and the ignition switch was hidden below the dashboard to keep things clean and for theft protection since the car has no roof. In all of the build, the car received all new glass, new hardware, new weatherstripping, new trim, and all items were re-chromed as necessary.
A complete documentation of the restoration and build including progress pictures, vendors used, invoices, and a spreadsheet chronicling the costs involved will all be available to the buyer.
