Admit it. This is the C3 you'd build, if you had the chance.

The Show
The past, present, and future of Bonneville Salt Flats racing will all come to life at the 2014 Grand National Roadster Show. The event will be held at the Fairplex in Pomona, CA, on January 24-26, 2014.

Say "'54 Corvette," and what mental image comes to mind? Perhaps it's a Top Flight NCRS show car, or a new-to-the-public National Corvette Museum exhibit, or maybe even a six-figure auction dream find.

Of all the 7,121 Corvette convertibles that rolled out of St. Louis Assembly during the 1971 model year, Jack DiMaggio's has to be among the most original of the bunch.

If you love Corvette styling, you know that the marque's signature bumps and curves started when Chevrolet introduced the '63 model. It had exaggerated body lines that offered a futuristic look (for the era), so it certainly garnered lots of attention. Although several changes took place before the '64 Corvette hit the showroom, the car retained the classic lines that made the previous year's edition so popular. From then on, folks tried their best to modify the body panels of the midyear Corvette, but only rarely were they able to improve upon the original design.

For Corvette devotees who make the pilgrimage to Carlisle each year, the phrase "Small world, isn't it?" can take on special meaning. As it did with Alan Arthur last year, resulting in this Callaway C16 gracing his Corvette collection.

Corvette lovers, mark your calendars for mid-January 2013. Thats when SPEED will wish you a happy new year with its latest car-guy (and -gal) show, called Vetted, A Corvette Series. The 13-episode, half-hour series celebrates the Corvette culture from its inception more than 60 years ago, through its classic muscle-car years, into its current incarnation as a world-class sports car, and beyond.

In the six decades that the Corvette has been in production, several of its major generational makeovers have coincided with anniversary years. The C2 debuted 10 years after the first Vettes rolled off the Flint assembly line in 1953; the shark era started on the Vette’s 15th birthday; and production of the C4 began in 1983, a launch that took place on the Corvette’s 30th birthday even though those cars were marketed as ’84 models.

Before Bob Bondurant piloted racing Cobras to record-setting wins, he cut his competition teeth on solid-axle Corvettes. That he did so well on the track, with such comparatively primitive equipment (at least by todays standards), is a testament to his driving skills and competitive spirit.

Remember when the C4 Corvette ZR-1 was introduced back in 1990? To many Vette lovers, it represented the ultimate evolution of the marque.

Reviewing Stand

Thanks to the work of Dave Hill and his team, the C5 was nearly perfect when it hit the road. Nevertheless, it only took two years for Team Corvette to decide that a new platform was needed. So in 1999, Chief Stylist Tom Peters started penning the C6.

The love for “America’s Only True Sports Car” isn’t confined to the U.S.A. Case in point: This ’71 Stingray, which now cruises the roads of New South Wales.

Gold-Winning Red Vettes

Mid America Motorworks Seals Corvette Time Capsule
Mid America Motorworks recently sealed a time capsule celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Corvette. The capsule, which was filled with marque memorabilia donated by enthusiasts from around the world, will be opened in September 2053 to celebrate the car’s centennial.

Dramatic Flares
Can you tell me where Bill Boussum got the fender flares on his split-window? (“Rescue Mission,” Dec. ’12). I have the same ones on my ’64 (they were already installed when I bought it), and I would like to know where they came from.

In last month’s column, I gazed into the VETTE editorial crystal ball to forecast a few of the features of the next-generation Chevy small-block. Since the official specs on the motor are literally being released as I type this, I’ve decided to circle back and take a look at some of the highlights. We’ll have a full rundown of the new SBC in an upcoming issue, but for now, here’s what you really need to know:

Put On and Reall Take Off

Restorations of famous old race cars have become hot commodities. The Corvette world was rocked in August 2008 when the Grady Davis Gulf One ’62 race car sold for a staggering $1,485,000. Six months later, Davis’ ’63 Z06 Gulf One sold for $1,050,000. So it was surprising that the Owens-Corning ’68 L88 Corvette was a no-sale when bidding stopped at $730,000 at the RM Monterey auction last August. The car had an astonishing record, and the driving team of Tony DeLorenzo and Jerry Thompson was equally impressive.

By the time this issue finds its way into your hands, the details of the C7 Corvette’s “Gen V” small-block engine should be well known, having been unveiled to the press at a special viewing in Detroit planned for late October. While I’d like very much to address the specifics of the new engine here, the reality is that I’m writing this in late September, meaning that anything I might say would fall squarely within the realm of conjecture.

Sarge’s Commanding C6

Greenwood Speaks

Spec Sheet
’63 coupe
	Owner	Joseph Bongiorno; Bayshore, NY
	Block	GM Performance Parts LS9 aluminum
	Displacement	376 ci
	Heads	LS9 aluminum
	Valves	2.160 titanium (intake), 1.590 sodium-filled (exhaust)
	Camshaft	LS9 hydraulic roller
	Crankshaft	Forged steel
	Pistons	Forged aluminum
	Rods	Forged titanium
	Compression Ratio	9.1:1
	Power Adder	LS9 TVS2300 supercharger with air-to-coolant intercooler
	Fuel Injection	Stock
	Ignition	Stock coil-on-plug, modified by Street & Performance
	Exhaust	Street & Performance headers and custom pipes
	Transmission	Tremec T56 six-speed manual, fully polished
	Clutch	Centerforce
	Driveshaft	Custom
	RearEnd	Dana 44 with 3.73 gears
	Suspension	Chromed C5 with RideTech air springs (front); chromed C4 with RideTech air springs (rear)
	Brakes	Stock C6 ZR1 four-wheel disc with carbon-ceramic 15.5-in rotors
	Wheels	Stock C6 ZR1; 19x10 in front, 20x12 in rear
	Tires	Michelin Pilot Sport; 285/30ZR19 front, 335/25ZR20 rear
	Current Mileage	500 (since completion)

Just as each generation of “America’s Only True Sports Car” has been a tribute to those who designed, engineered, and otherwise made it happen, this C6 is also a tribute. Not only to the Corvette team that created it, but to the mother of one Brooklyn-born Corvette enthusiast.

Is it a ’57 Corvette, or a ’61?