BACKFIRE

’VETTE RESCUE

I really enjoyed the Corvette Special Section in the January issue ( HMM #197). In 1972, I bought a ’66 Corvette from a guy in Reno for $900. It was only six years old, but thoroughly abused. The last owner had started to make it into a dragster, but never finished anything. It was a 300-hp 327 that he had gotten as far as fitting with a 750 Holley, headers, and transmission scatter-shield. He’d also stripped out unnecessary wiring. The rattle-can hot rod gray primer paint job gave kind of a high-performance vibe.

Being on a typical 20-something’s tight budget, I did a low-buck restoration. The hardtop had somehow caught fire and there was a 12-inch hole in it. I patched it with a Pep Boys kit and had it vinyl covered. It came out pretty well. Then Earl Scheib applied one of its Deluxe resprays for $300, which also was not bad. But the ’Vette never did really drive right because, just as you’d expect with a 3.08 gear “dragster,” the clutch was smoked. And a clutch job on a modified C2 is no small matter.

All Corvettes are cool and this one was a lot of fun, but the early ’70s gas shortages put an end to my road trips. I sold it for a nice profit at $2,400. Then as now, my advice to Corvette buyers remains: Don’t take projects. Buy the best one you can