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According to the Corvette Black Book, Chevy produced only two ZL-1 Corvettes in 1969 at an additional cost of $4,718.35 only a few bucks below the base price of $4,781.
One of these ZL-1s was purchased for $300,000 at a government auction by Roger Judski of Roger’s Corvette Center back in 1991, and he still owns the car, described as the only documented ZL-1 still in existence. Another 1969 Corvette Convertible with a date-coded replacement ZL-1 block sold for $3.14 Million earlier this year at RM Sothebys.
But now someone is offering on eBay what he claims to be the second ZL-1, and the car has already attracted 27 bids, with the highest climbing to $151,100.
The skeptics are already circling this car like buzzards, however, with many finding it hard to believe such a rare vehicle doesn’t have the history to back up its alleged heritage.
To get our readers up to speed, if they don’t know what a ZL-1 is, it packs an all-aluminum 427/430 horsepower Turbo-Jet V8 engine, along with four other “required” options – K66 transistor ignition, F41 special front and rear suspension, J56 heavy-duty brakes, and G81 posi-traction rear.
The 1969 ZL-1 marked the culmination of a dream of Zora Arkus-Duntov, who had long wanted an engine made with aluminum block, heads, and intake manifold. Similar aluminum engines would go on to earn lots of wins for Corvettes and Chevy-powered race cars.
Corvette expert Scott Teeters has written there were only two “official” assembly line produced ZL-1s in ’69 but notes there’s a third that’s “questionable” and “maybe” 10 or so others built for magazine tests and evaluation. Could this car being auctioned on eBay be one of them? We’ll leave that up to the enthusiasts willing to shell out that kind of money for an unverified car.
Here’s what we do know, according to the listing. The Can-Am White paint is “mostly original” on a “no-hit” body with a “rust-free” frame and the “original” Soft-Ray glass.
He says the car was built on Dec. 13, 1968 and sold by “famed performance dealer” Washburn Chevrolet in Santa Barbara, California. It had been parked for years, he says, when he purchased it four years ago. He has replaced the fuel tank, gone through the brakes, and installed new tires, seat covers, and carpet, and the car now “runs and drives great.” In case you’re wondering, the original tank sticker was intact with the tank “but has since been lost” though he did post a photo of the barely legible and tattered tank sticker that seems to verify the 427 engine, posi-traction, and transistor ignition.
He claims the original 052 ZL-1 block with the “correct MG Suffix code, dated 11/10/68,” is still in place, along with 074 aluminum heads and TH400 automatic transmission.
We’d feel much more comfortable paying this kind of money for a car being offered through one of the big auction houses, where it has been studied by experts who might be able to confirm its authenticity. As the old saying goes, let the buyer beware.
One of these ZL-1s was purchased for $300,000 at a government auction by Roger Judski of Roger’s Corvette Center back in 1991, and he still owns the car, described as the only documented ZL-1 still in existence. Another 1969 Corvette Convertible with a date-coded replacement ZL-1 block sold for $3.14 Million earlier this year at RM Sothebys.
But now someone is offering on eBay what he claims to be the second ZL-1, and the car has already attracted 27 bids, with the highest climbing to $151,100.
The skeptics are already circling this car like buzzards, however, with many finding it hard to believe such a rare vehicle doesn’t have the history to back up its alleged heritage.
To get our readers up to speed, if they don’t know what a ZL-1 is, it packs an all-aluminum 427/430 horsepower Turbo-Jet V8 engine, along with four other “required” options – K66 transistor ignition, F41 special front and rear suspension, J56 heavy-duty brakes, and G81 posi-traction rear.
The 1969 ZL-1 marked the culmination of a dream of Zora Arkus-Duntov, who had long wanted an engine made with aluminum block, heads, and intake manifold. Similar aluminum engines would go on to earn lots of wins for Corvettes and Chevy-powered race cars.
Corvette expert Scott Teeters has written there were only two “official” assembly line produced ZL-1s in ’69 but notes there’s a third that’s “questionable” and “maybe” 10 or so others built for magazine tests and evaluation. Could this car being auctioned on eBay be one of them? We’ll leave that up to the enthusiasts willing to shell out that kind of money for an unverified car.
Here’s what we do know, according to the listing. The Can-Am White paint is “mostly original” on a “no-hit” body with a “rust-free” frame and the “original” Soft-Ray glass.
He says the car was built on Dec. 13, 1968 and sold by “famed performance dealer” Washburn Chevrolet in Santa Barbara, California. It had been parked for years, he says, when he purchased it four years ago. He has replaced the fuel tank, gone through the brakes, and installed new tires, seat covers, and carpet, and the car now “runs and drives great.” In case you’re wondering, the original tank sticker was intact with the tank “but has since been lost” though he did post a photo of the barely legible and tattered tank sticker that seems to verify the 427 engine, posi-traction, and transistor ignition.
He claims the original 052 ZL-1 block with the “correct MG Suffix code, dated 11/10/68,” is still in place, along with 074 aluminum heads and TH400 automatic transmission.
We’d feel much more comfortable paying this kind of money for a car being offered through one of the big auction houses, where it has been studied by experts who might be able to confirm its authenticity. As the old saying goes, let the buyer beware.
