I was a shop teacher in Sayreville, New Jersey, for 30 years. It was a great run. When I retired, I decided to do a project car. I looked around and found a real junker Corvette-a '77 "rat" of a car. I should have looked some more. Instead, I spent five grand and soon realized I made a huge error in judgment. It was pure junk. All I could really use were the body and the dashboard. I persevered, though, and the result is outstanding.
The project took a solid two years and hundreds of hours of hard labor to complete. The 0.030-over 350 engine was a gift from a shop-teacher buddy. It has Dart heads, a steel crank, I-beam rods, forged-aluminum pistons, Crane roller rockers, a 750 Holley, and a Comp cam. As a result, it has about 450 horsepower and is tons of fun to drive.
Last year, my Corvette took top honors in six of the ten shows I entered. Was it worth all the work? Well, let me put it this way: There's no way I'd do another!
The first change was the addition...
The first change was the addition of an '82 rear fascia with spoiler.
The Vette was then stripped...
The Vette was then stripped in preparation for body repair. This portion of the car alone took eight hours.
While the car was being stripped,...
While the car was being stripped, much of its original interior was removed.
The stock L42 was in poor...
The stock L42 was in poor shape and made a woeful 180 hp.
A new, performance-built 355...
A new, performance-built 355 is good for around 450 horses.
Partway through the sanding...
Partway through the sanding process, the Vette starts to look like a new car.
Priming and wet-sanding f...
Priming and wet-sanding followed.
Resplendent in a fresh coat...
Resplendent in a fresh coat of Corvette Red, the revitalized '77 pauses for a photo in the North Carolina mountains.
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