Chevrolet Corvette Coupé, 1957, by Ghia Aigle. Designed by Giovanni Michellotti a one-off built on a ‘54 Corvette chassis by Carozzeria Ghia in Switzerland. The Ghia Corvette was powered by a Blue Flame 6 in-line engine with a 4-speed manual gearbox
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Non GM Special Models
When the crankshaft broke on Gary Laughlin’s Ferrari Monza he had had enough. Being the owner of several Chevrolet dealers, he turned to Peter Coltrin to have a few rebodied. Fortunately, they pursued Sergio Scaglietti who made three fastback coupes on the Corvette chassis.
This one-off 1961 Vignale Corvette was built for the 1961 Salon de l'Automobile in Paris, France. It was based on a 1960 Corvette chassis and built by Italian coachmaker Carrozzeria Vignale. The body was designed by Gordon Kelly.
Bill Thomas had one goal in mind when he designed and produced the Cheetah: beat the Ford Cobra. 25 examples were produced until sadly, the factory burnt down. After the blaze, chevrolet pulled out of the project. The power to weight ratio was phenomenal (it was almost 500lbs lighter than the cobra!). The V8 was pushed back as far as possible leaving the engine almost in the center of the car. Some examples were tuned as high as 520HP.
Various upgrade packages were offered by Motion Industries, for the Chevrolet models included within the Baldwin Corvette partnership. The most prominent of these packages included the SS (425 HP) and Phase III (500+ HP) offerings. These cars not only came with a performance promise, but a guarantee to back it up. All Phase III cars came with a personal guarantee.
When one of his cars was severely damaged in 1972, John Greenwood converted his 1969 L88 Convertible into a formidable race car. Included as the formidable ZL1 engine with 750 bhp on tap. Other modifications included a rear spoiler, quick replacement radiator and camber adjusters. At Le Mans, this car set the GT-class record for top speed down the Le Mans straight with 215 mph.
Greenwood didn’t just build Corvettes for the track, constructing a variety of different street car kits over the years. The story goes that the original ’wagon concept was commisioned by a drummer who wanted a Vette with enough cargo space to haul his drums to various gigs. Since the demise of the Corvette trunk, easily accessible cargo areas were definitely on the wish list for many enthusiasts. Chuck Miller designed and built this first Shark-era Sportwagon.
The Duntov Turbo was built as a partnership between American Custom Industries (ACI), a company known for building replacement Corvette body panels, and Zora Arkus-Duntov. It was developed as a highly-stylized convertible sports car based on the production model Corvette. Each of the special Duntov Turbo's also came with a turbocharged V8.
The major differences between the 1980 and 1982 Daytona and the 1981 GTO are the hood, the tops of the rear fenders, and the rear spoiler/bumper cover. The Daytona had an elaborate, short vertical fin on top of the rear fender that turned several turns “in and back,” flowing to the wide, long, table-like rear spoiler. The GTO’s rear fenders pontoons are the same as.
What you see before you is a 1982 Chevrolet Corvette that has been fitted with a rare Greenwood Daytona body kit. The most extreme of the Greenwood brothers' kits, the Daytona body kit is a highly sought-after modification that was developed by race-winning specialists Burt and John Greenwood.
In 1983, Bertone began to explore the possibility of approaching the US market with the Ramarro, an exercise in applied technology around mass-produced mechanics. The Ramarro, which means "green lizard" in Italian, was created on the chassis of the well-known Chevrolet Corvette, and the underlying concept aimed to modify the layout of the mechanical components.
When Dick Guldstrand introduced the GS80 series in 1986, the car was targeted specifically at Pro-Solo and autocross enthusiasts. He knew all about the needs of these groups, as he was a longtime provider of performance upgrades for the C3 and a direct supporter of a small team of racers from the Western Council of Corvette Clubs. Up to this point, Dick had basically been a tuner. With the intro of the GS80 he was venturing into the realm of small-volume manufacturing.
Offered from 1987 to 1991, the RPO-B2K upgrade was available from any Chevrolet dealer and also Callaway’s first major Corvette tuning program. Together, GM and Callaway made the upgrade package a Regular Production Order (RPO) which was the first time GM had outsourced such an option to a specialist manufacturer. It even had a factory back warranty. As the C4 updated, so did Callway’s program and by 1988, the B2K was pushing 382 bhp and 562 ft. lbs. of torque.
This Sledgehammer reached 254.76 mph at the Transportation Research Center (TRC) in Ohio and became the world’s fastest street-legal car for some time. It was built up by Reeves Callaway in Connecticut as an example of what was possible with the new ZR1 and and turbocharging its LT5 engine. The result was a 898 bhp coupe that still retained luxuries such as air conditioning and a radio. It got this power by using a NASCAR-spec block with Mahle pistons and a massive turbo.
In 1989 Callaway introduced a Speedster which was the culmination of their styling, engineering and trimming talents. Their first example was a bright green ZR1, which had a severely chopped windscreen, no side mirrors, eighteen inch wheels and a vibrant blue leather interior stitched purposefully from Germany. Nothing about Callaway’s Speedster was reserved, and this is especially true when investigating the specification. The car had 450 horsepower.
The Nivola may be considered Bertone’s homage to the most fascinating American sports car: the Chevrolet Corvette. The sophisticated mechanical unit of the ZR-1 was interpreted by Bertone in a European key. Bertone designed a special chassis to make a sporty "boat" with a mid engine. This mechanical layout made it possible to exploit all the power of the engine when accelerating and warrant perfect roadholding on bends.
The offspring of collaboration between Corvette performance guru Reeves Callaway and designer Paul Deutschman, the Super Speedster LM is an astonishing step up on the original Speedster, taking full advantage of the ZR1’s Lotus-engineered, all-aluminum DOHC engine and 6-speed manual transmission. One of only three twin turbocharged and intercooled LT5 engines built by Callaway, it delivers a pavement-shredding 766 HP.
For the fourth generation Corvette, legendary Corvette racer John Greenwood developed the G4R. It was essentially a radical bodykit that usually followed a high level of performance upgrades. Included was a ground effects package that had integrated lights on the front valance. Furthermore the a new engine scoop and rear wing were fitted.
Chevrolet's introduction of the LT1 in 1992 as the base engine in the Corvette phased out the L98 based Callaway Twin Turbo. Previously, Callaway Corvettes made their increased power through positive manifold pressure; now they made it through increased displacement and finesse. Initially called the CL1 or CR1, they designated the chassis they were built upon. They were based on the pushrod LT1 cars (CL1) or the 32 valve DOHC LT5 ZR-1 cars (CR1).
When Chevrolet changed gears to the LT1 engine, Callaway revealed their new SuperNatural line and the CR1 based on the ZR1’s LT5. Options for the CR1 included the radical Aerobody, German upholstery and special wheels, brakes and exhausts. The CR1 used a larger displacement to produce either 475 or 490 bhp.
Reeves Callaway has always had a dream of competing a Corvette of his own at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, France. The idea begin with the body work for a street version, but one thing led to another, and a full race version was completed as well. The street version is almost identical to the race version because the hood, tail, rocker panels, and lower door halves, are all made of carbon fiber, just like the race version.
As the story goes, when the Corvette ZR-1 came out in 1990, Dick Guldstrand saw an opportunity to create his vision of the perfect Grand Sport ride, instead of his name just getting slapped onto another Chevrolet product. He asked GM for fifteen ZR-1’s and some money. He got one car and permission to do whatever he wanted to do with it. And that’s exactly what he did. Called the "GS90", Dick's car would prove to be the most elaborate and expensive specialty Corvette ever built.
To understand why the Guldstrand GS-90 coupe and convertible differ so much, keep in mind that during the course of the C4 development cycle, no ZR-1 convertibles were planned, so the base C4 convertible had to be used in building a GS-90 Nassau Roadster, as it was called. The coupe, however, had the advantage of using the ZR-1 platform right from the get-go.
Callaway has built a firm reputation for producing some of the most sophisticated and advanced Corvette-based automobiles. Introduced in 1998, Callaway’s C12 continued this proud legacy. Designed, developed and constructed by two top German engineering and development companies, Callaway and IVM, the C12 was intended as a bespoke, high-performance car that offered its occupants a civilized interior and relaxed ride. One of the most respected Corvette super-cars ever.
The Callaway C7 was a completely new, purpose-built car designed to embody the company’s motto: “Powerfully Engineered Automobiles”, carrying on the visual tradition of design by Paul Deutschman and offered in a limited production series. The C7 was the first complete, bespoke Callaway Automobile. This sportscar was equipped with a carbon chassis, front mid engine/rear transaxle design, 650 horsepower SuperNatural engine.
Not too dissimilar from this fourth generation Greenwood Corvette was this G5R. Again it was a performance resin bodykit that usually came along with a host of performance upgrades. Included was a front splitter, high rise hood, rear tunnel, rear wing, and windshield fairing. Greenwood has always been the leader in high performance aerodynamics and we are proud to offer the finest and most effective designs for your C5 Corvette.
In 2003 Dick produced his version of a 50th Anniversary Corvette. Dick’s 50th Anniversary Corvette was bright gold with blue accents. And of course a “special” Corvette should be the toughest available version, which in 2003 was the Z06. And to top it all off, the Z06’s LS6 was opened up to the magical “426 CID.” The GS80 came out in 1986 that was more or less a Showroom Stock-prepared black beauty with very trendy lace wheels.
The Moray project, presented for the first time at the Geneva Motor Show on March 4, 2003, embodies the homage that Giorgetto and Fabrizio Giugiaro wish to pay to the fifty-year era of the Chevrolet Corvette, the supreme symbol of the American sports car. Touched by drifting tides with long and slender front lights, bringing immediately to mind the Moray, the English term for the eel-type fish, muraena helena, found in Mediterranean waters.
The Callaway C16 was Callaway’s 16th major automotive project. It was a limited production, bespoke automobile, built to order, by what the Press called “the best specialist engineers in the business”. These cars are seriously fast, beautiful, and exclusive. The C16 was a direct competitor for the Porsche GT3, the Lamborghini Murcielago, the Ferrari 599 GTB. It was both faster and more capable than its competitors, at less cost.
The 2005-2013 Callaway Corvette was a specialist version of the C6 Corvette, built by Callaway Cars expert craftsmen and sold through selected Callaway/Chevrolet dealers. The 17th “C-Project” undertaken by Callaway first produced naturally-aspirated SuperNatural™ 450, 461, 490 (6.0L) and 550 (6.8L & 7.0L) horsepower Callaway Corvettes. In February 2006, Callaway returned to its positive manifold pressure roots, introducing Callaway “SuperCharged” Corvettes.
