Looks right: ’71 Chevrolet Corvette LT-1 28,000-miles!
Here’s a Corvette C-3 recap – The Corvette C3 was patterned after the Larry Shinoda’s Mako Shark Concept Car. It was a mid-engine design that excited everyone who saw it. But concept cars are supposed to be pre-cursors of the future. In this case it was, but the mid-engine was ditched in favor of the existing Sting Ray’s layout. Shinoda’s car was sent to Chevrolet Styling, where Harry Haga’s studio adopted it for production. The C3 also adopted the “sugar scoop” roof treatment with vertical back window from a Duntov design. The C3 was accidentally introduced to the motoring public not at some big hoopla reveal at the Detroit Motor Show like this year’s new Sting Ray. Mattel’s Hot Wheels was given permission to release an authorized model of the C3 called the Custom Corvette. Seems they didn’t get the memo on the release date. Today’s featured Corvette isn’t a 427 but a more manageable 350/330hp car with limited-slip and a 4-speed close-ratio transmission. It was purchased new at Yenko Chevrolet known for their special editions that are worth as much as some small houses. It has had 4 careful owners that preserved the car’s originality so the 28,000-mile claim may be correct. The photos of the interior strongly suggest the mileage is right. We have some frequent Mint readers that deride the C3 body but we absolutely disagree. It is a brawny, bull of a sports car. Park this next to a ’71 Porsche 911 and you can clearly see the distinct philosophy differences between Stuttgart and Detroit. Sometimes Detroit wins. Click here for the eBay Auction.