1969 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible
On our showroom floor here at the Classic Auto Mall is this garage kept "golden nugget", a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette convertible. Beautiful lines topped off with excellent chrome for this year, the real racing form was taking shape. This purported 3 owner car was purchased by our consignor in 2004 and before that was used as a drag car at the fabled Maple Grove Raceway for many years before life got in the way of the second owner and the car sat in a garage. Some restoration over the years with a new fuel tank, new water pump, headlight boxes replaced and the numbers matching 350hp engine under the hood and we have a winner few sure.
Exterior
Clean and nicely preserved fiberglass is bathed in Riverside Gold paint covering the entirety of the shark-like body on this skate. A few flaws, inclusions and evidence of prior repair are noted in the finish, but one must look hard to find them. The Stingray moniker is back but now all one word. Emulating the graceful fish of its namesake, we have a long and low hood with vented sharklike front quarters and a low stance sculpted body line. Hidden headlights push downward towards the front V shaped bumper and chrome surrounded intake vents below. On the back are dual winglike bumpers that frame dual duals for tail lights. The highlight of course is the chrome trimmed half ring cut outs in the lower valance for the dual exhaust which cannot be overlooked. 15-inch deep dish rally wheels are all around and are wrapped by deeply treaded Uniroyal radials in 245/60R15 form. A shout out to the black canvas convertible top which is clean and pristine with a clear rear window. Noted, this car also comes with an additional hard top which is finished in body matching Riverside Gold.
Interior
The buckets and console setup are in this car and the seats and interior coverings such as the door panels appear to be the factory originals. The door panels are a faux leather molded into various swooping panels, a padded cloth carbon fiber-esque horizontal panel and very clean and shiny door handles, window cranks, and turn knob locks are seen as well. The high back buckets appear sculpted from the wind with their all black vinyl coverings and ergonomic head rests which just peer over the top of the rear deck. A like new black center console races through these seats and rises to house the Corvette AM/FM/Cassette radio and a quintuplet of gauges and wiper switch on top. Looking into the deep circular inset gauges in front of the steering wheel, these are very clean and have near perfect bezels. The like new original steering wheel fronts the dash, and below is lightly faded but very clean black carpet with a rubber insert on the driver's side for further weatherproofing of the carpet.
Drivetrain
Lifting the forward hinged hood reveals the numbers matching 350ci L46 V8 crowding the engine bay. This mill shows with some light patina and corrosion, but can easily be cleaned up with a thorough detailing. Helping to create the potent 350hp this mill generates is a non-original Holley 4-barrel carburetor lurking under an open element chrome lidded air cleaner assembly. There is a Muncie M20 4-speed manual transmission on back which is not numbers matching as it is from 1970. An AM coded 3.36 posi-traction rear axle is on the very back.
Undercarriage
Underneath is looking very good with slight surface rust, a newer fuel tank and clean floor pans. The suspension and steering parts look like new, and a rear fully Independent rear suspension with a frame-anchored differential unit is on board with the position of each wheel established by three links: tubular axle drive shafts, transverse strut rods, and torque control arms. Vertical suspension loads taken by transverse leaf springs as well. Up front is a traditional independent coil spring arrangement. Power disc brakes are all around and a clean dual exhaust is on as well. While the frame remains solid, we note a bend in the left front frame rail area behind the front tire. This area appears to have be semi-repaired but we can note different lower control arm angles from the left to right side. Also, there is a heavy coating of brake fluid on the inside of the driver's rear tire and wheel, indicating a leak.
Drive-Ability
This car is very nicely preserved, and the interior is great. A twist of the key and it fired right up, and we were off to the test track but not without a test of the brakes. Thankfully we always perform this test first, and for this shark we noted the brake pedal went to the floor, most likely caused by the noted leak in the drivetrain section. We also noted the rear brakes feel somewhat stuck and impede pushing the car. That aside, all functions were working as they should and the little bit we drove the car, albeit at low speeds, allowed us to feel a tight chassis. The sound of the 350hp V8 was music to our ears as well.
A nice survivor if you will with a wonderfully preserved patina engine bay, what appears to be the original interior, and very nice exterior Riverside Gold paint. You've gotta love the classic Stingray lines, especially on a convertible with a hardtop included. When the shark bites...
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just 1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888) 227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come see the vehicle in person.
