Early Corvette Blue Prints

[Nassau65]

A friend in Atlanta GA has a 1967 but like me loves spinners, so he took the originals off and replaced them with a 65/66 set with spinners. Always gets told he’s got the wrong wheels at shows.

 

[Nassau65]

A friend in Atlanta GA has a 1967 but like me loves spinners, so he took the originals off and replaced them with a 65/66 set with spinners. Always gets told he’s got the wrong wheels at shows.

Bit like the one in the film con air

 

[Nassau65]

Also the 67 repositions of the optional reversing lights to standard fixture above the licence plate, and parking brake ( handbrake) to the centre console were great improvements.

 

[Nassau65]

Mid years sure have a great looking arse.

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Took the '66 red coupe to a little show on Tuesday and that was said "great arse"

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Took the '66 red coupe to a little show on Tuesday and that was said "great arse"

Me or the car

 

[Nassau65]

Who doesn’t like a great ass.?

 

[split window coupe]

Take note of the costs new in the Lendrum & Hartman ad - £3537 for the 64 coupe. That was a costly ride back then .............. E Type Coupe £1910 Ferrari 250 GT SWB approx £4300 that year
Lendrum Workshops in 1970 ......... quite a place and fully packed out

 

[Nassau65]

Most of Lendrum’s work during the 60’s 70’s and into the 80’s came from the various foreign embassies in London. That business kept them very busy. By the late 80’s many embassies unfortunately switched to Mercedes vehicles.
When my dad bought his new 1970 impala from them I think it was about the same price as a XJ6. Lendrum fully loaded their cars, with Air conditioning being the only available option on the majority of their cars if you were prepared to wait on delivery. Their Cadillacs probably had it on.
Their lead salesman lived a couple of doors away and always bought home a GM product every day. Dad saw the impala and got a good deal on it. Fully loaded except for Air.

 

[Nassau65]

Found this illustration in one of my old corvette manuals, shows the P48 wheel assembly

 

[split window coupe]

Another facet of this very confusing wheel option story . Drawing not released until very late 62 for 63 Assembly Manual yet clearly showing a 2 bar spinner.
If I can copy similar info from an original early 63 Shop manual it shows a gear drive P48 with a 3 bar spinner !!!

 

[Nassau65]

The mystery will probably never be completely solved regarding these wheels, were any actually fitted to retail sales or not.
As many many many 63’s now have them on, it doesn’t really matter. It would probably be the first thing I would do to a 63 if it didn’t have them on , I’d put a set on, as they do indeed look so good.
Same with any mid year I got hold of that didn’t have them on.

 

[Nassau65]

I think most people will agree the KO aluminium wheel looks great on mid year corvettes 1963-67, but how about on C3’s?
Take a look

 

[Nassau65]

And of course the 1982 collector edition with its take on the 1967 bolt on.

 

[Mr. Cricket]

The mystery will probably never be completely solved regarding these wheels, were any actually fitted to retail sales or not.
As many many many 63’s now have them on, it doesn’t really matter. It would probably be the first thing I would do to a 63 if it didn’t have them on , I’d put a set on, as they do indeed look so good.
Same with any mid year I got hold of that didn’t have them on.

Agreed.

My '65 coupe on the Sloc mountain road in 2023 wearing the rally wheels and 'poverty covers' I installed KO's soon after.



I sold it last year to a NW lady member and offered to change it back to the Rallies but she declined. Good luck getting them off

 

[Nassau65]

Agreed.

My '65 coupe on the Sloc mountain road in 2023 wearing the rally wheels and 'poverty covers' I installed KO's soon after.

View attachment 32728

I sold it last year to a NW lady member and offered to change it back to the Rallies but she declined. Good luck getting them off

I often laugh when I think Chevrolet referred to them as “quick take off wheels” they can be a right pain to get off and on.

 

[Roscobbc]

'long term' component QC issues relating to degradation of materials used in auto manufacture was never an issue when the considered life of a vehicle was considered perhaps as being perhaps just a few years....or long enough for the vehicle to last until the customer bought a replacement vehicle, hopefully the same model/brand. Longevity of plastics, alloys etc just wasn't a consideration. Miraculous perhaps that GM's glass fibre bodywork was generally so good.

 

[Mr. Cricket]

Take note of the costs new in the Lendrum & Hartman ad - £3537 for the 64 coupe. That was a costly ride back then .............. E Type Coupe £1910 Ferrari 250 GT SWB approx £4300 that year
Lendrum Workshops in 1970 ......... quite a place and fully packed out

Shame to think that most if not all those cars are cat food tins now

Ferrari 250 GT SWB approx £4300 that year

There's that bugger hindsight again (disclaimer was I was only 6 yo in 1970) <-- that and few had £4,300 to spend on a fancy car..

swc, keep the info coming please

 

[split window coupe]

Earls Court London 1962 - The cost of the All new Corvette Sting Ray Coupe was beyond most at £3747
The all new Ford Cortina 1200 saloon £573

 

[split window coupe]

Ford Chief Stylist Roy Brown Jnr kneels alongside the Sting Ray at Earls Court in 62 - I have no doubt envious of its design. Roy Brown had earlier designed the Edsel which was a flop from the get go. Ford demoted him as a result and banished him to the UK. He went on to design the Ford Cortina - Ford GB's biggest selling car so I guess he had the last laugh !