Start'em Young '78 Silver AnniversaryJoe Guerriero of Libertyville, Illinois, was 16 when he first fell in love with Corvettes. Twenty-five years later, he finally hooked up with his dream machine, a '78 Silver Anniversary with Oyster Leather interior and an L82. The best thing is that this find had only 38,000 miles on it. "If I had this car 20 years ago, I might have used it to cruise for girls, but now with four kids and a wife, my fun with it is often driving kids around." Hey, Joe isn't complaining, he loves doing it. Plus, he loves the fact that his kids get a kick out of it too. Joe added, "I feel like it's an obligation to get these kids hooked on a great car." To this end, Joe has started them off collecting Corvette T-shirts, toy cars and models that he picks up at local Corvette shows. While kids don't usually send in pictures to "The Vette Files" on a regular basis (what amI saying, "usually?" How 'bout "Never!" I can see it now...
"Hi, my name is Timmy, I'm 6 years old, and I just shelled out $58,000 for a real trick '67 427/435...), Joe helped us out by sending in a few photos of the kids with the beginnings of their collection. While it's true the kids are cute, the real reason why we're running the photo is the shameless attempt to flatter us by having his daughter wear a VETTE Magazine T-shirt-and in this book, flattery will get you everywhere!
Chance Find '77 L82This is a story of the one that almost got away. One day in 1996, Dean Deibert of Warsaw, North Carolina, was on his way to the airport and had a little time to spare, so he stopped off to check out one of the local car lots. Sitting among the Fairmonts, Grand Ams, and Sentras was a '77 L82 Corvette that was virtually untouched, with only 24,000 miles on the odometer. Having always wanted a Corvette to call his very own, Dean made an offer, only to find out that someone had already made one. Disappointed, Dean went on his trip. A few days later, he received a phone call saying that if he still wanted the car, to come and get it. Being 1,500 miles away, Dean's wife Theresa closed the deal for him. Since the Vette was a clean car to begin with, Dean and Theresa plan to repaint the fading bumpers, upgrade the factory stereo, and hit the Corvette shows. We're sure they're going to enjoy this jewel.