Your Opinion

[Roy B.]

In NCRS and Bloomington a person can achieve top honors and awards and that's great to know a Corvette can, but then what? Do you think you'll ever see it on the road again , may be ? Or once or twice a year at some meet. I'm not complaining or getting down on those's owners.
But once any Corvette gets Bloomington, Duntov and all the other awards that can be gotten , I then conceder them destroyed junk yard Corvettes never to be seen again , lost because investors or museums put them away and are rarely seen.
The future of ever seeing a C1 or C2 are the mods that are being done and the few people that will still drive them as original. I've see to many Corvettes being trailed to meets , all you need to do is count the trailers in the parking lot to know how many are being judges . When is the last time any one saw a "original" Corvette driving down a road or know of one?
I cant blame the owners that spent Maga bucks to a achieve that status and most feel sad when they do saying they wise they could now drive it but would lose their investment if they did.
So that counts those Corvettes as lost in my opinion , as tho they burned up making what is left even more valuable bring the prices up.
SACC is the last stand for the C1 Corvette because those people will and do drive their Corvette.
How do you feel ? I'm just asking and interested about this whole hobby.
And the weather sucks right now and I find my self thinking of the future of older Corvettes.

[D S.]

Re: Your Opinion

I clearly understand what Roy is saying. The few NCRS events I have attended here in Texas the majority of Corvettes are trailered to and from the events because so much money and time was spent on over-restoring them. Some owners own them for the love of them not because they love them. I rarely ever see C-1s on the roads anymore. About twice a year I might see a C-2 on the highways. Now the early C-3s are getting more scarce being seen driving around. I reside in the Dallas-Fort Worth area where there should be plently of them on the roads and we have nice, warm weather most of the year. For C-1s to C-3s one has to go to a vintage car showroom or a Corvette show. C-4s through C-6s are what is seen the majority of the time on the roads. Those are what represents Corvettes around here.

[D S.]

Re: Your Opinion

I clearly understand what Roy is saying. The few NCRS events I have attended here in Texas the majority of Corvettes are trailered to and from the events because so much money and time was spent on over-restoring them. Some owners own them for the love of them not because they love them. I rarely ever see C-1s on the roads anymore. About twice a year I might see a C-2 on the highways. Now the early C-3s are getting more scarce being seen driving around. I reside in the Dallas-Fort Worth area where there should be plently of them on the roads and we have nice, warm weather most of the year. For C-1s to C-3s one has to go to a vintage car showroom or a Corvette show. C-4s through C-6s are what is seen the majority of the time on the roads. Those are what represents Corvettes around here.

[Michael G.]

Re: Your Opinion

Hey Roy,

Weather is pretty sucky here too so I will give you my opinion. It's true, spotting a C1 or C2 on the road would be like spotting Santa on my roof.
I have spotted a nice condition C3 driving in my town, but thats it. I must admit that since I began the resto of my "driver" 71 I have started to get that protective feeling as the labor goes in and the money goes out. I will never stop driving the car since thats the fun of owning one but now find myself selecting particular routes and odd times of day to do so to minimize encoutering other motorists or road hazzards. I guess this practice will eventually make me a rare sight on the road too. You are right about how many of the really nice oldies are now in the hands of those who have created a trophy item or an investment that will only produce if preserved. You must always remember Roy, there a lot of idiot drivers out there and it only takes one good hit to change everything. You can be the best driver in the world, but you can't control what that new young kid or old-timer is doing next to you.

Mike

[Michael G.]

Re: Your Opinion

Hey Roy,

Weather is pretty sucky here too so I will give you my opinion. It's true, spotting a C1 or C2 on the road would be like spotting Santa on my roof.
I have spotted a nice condition C3 driving in my town, but thats it. I must admit that since I began the resto of my "driver" 71 I have started to get that protective feeling as the labor goes in and the money goes out. I will never stop driving the car since thats the fun of owning one but now find myself selecting particular routes and odd times of day to do so to minimize encoutering other motorists or road hazzards. I guess this practice will eventually make me a rare sight on the road too. You are right about how many of the really nice oldies are now in the hands of those who have created a trophy item or an investment that will only produce if preserved. You must always remember Roy, there a lot of idiot drivers out there and it only takes one good hit to change everything. You can be the best driver in the world, but you can't control what that new young kid or old-timer is doing next to you.

Mike

[John S.]

Re: Your Opinion

Come on down to Ft Lauderdale some friday and see our car cruise in at the Tower Shops shopping center..u will se a few C-1 cars my 60 and my brother in laws 61 plus a few more and several c2 cars The show gets about 300 or more cars every Friday it does not rain...Prety much every type u can think about John

[John S.]

Re: Your Opinion

Come on down to Ft Lauderdale some friday and see our car cruise in at the Tower Shops shopping center..u will se a few C-1 cars my 60 and my brother in laws 61 plus a few more and several c2 cars The show gets about 300 or more cars every Friday it does not rain...Prety much every type u can think about John

[Mark A.]

Re: Your Opinion

Roy:

As I said to a few collectors when I got my 55 last fall, I decided to resist the urge to tear the car down right away. Rather, I wanted to drive it for a while (maybe even a couple of years) even with the older paint, interior, and all of the car's cosmetic warts. I decided to hold off based on my past experience having done a 54 frame off restoration years ago. Once you decide to tear a car down and do a full restoration, it will be quite a while (maybe years) before it sees pavement again. Then you won't want to drive it for fear of undercarraige dirt, wear, etc. So there it sits till it's time to show or sell. Not the best scenario for enjoying a sunny afternoon drive.

I have driven my 55 as much as three days a week since last fall doing just small errands around town such as my kid's ball games, school stuff, etc. I might even be in this year's town parade. My insurance just says not more than 2400 miles per year....so hey, that's 200 miles a month (enough for me to enjoy).

Yes, I get plenty of looks, high fives, and comments. I even get that occasional "your nuts to drive it" comment. My only fear has been drivers following too close while talking on their cell phones with only one hand on their steering wheel. Drives me nuts. So I just pull over and let them go on their way.

BTW, the sun just peaked out over here on the coast so maybe I'll get to drive it today afterall.

For those who are doing a full restoration now, I'll be joining you someday, but how soon I'm not sure.

[Mark A.]

Re: Your Opinion

Roy:

As I said to a few collectors when I got my 55 last fall, I decided to resist the urge to tear the car down right away. Rather, I wanted to drive it for a while (maybe even a couple of years) even with the older paint, interior, and all of the car's cosmetic warts. I decided to hold off based on my past experience having done a 54 frame off restoration years ago. Once you decide to tear a car down and do a full restoration, it will be quite a while (maybe years) before it sees pavement again. Then you won't want to drive it for fear of undercarraige dirt, wear, etc. So there it sits till it's time to show or sell. Not the best scenario for enjoying a sunny afternoon drive.

I have driven my 55 as much as three days a week since last fall doing just small errands around town such as my kid's ball games, school stuff, etc. I might even be in this year's town parade. My insurance just says not more than 2400 miles per year....so hey, that's 200 miles a month (enough for me to enjoy).

Yes, I get plenty of looks, high fives, and comments. I even get that occasional "your nuts to drive it" comment. My only fear has been drivers following too close while talking on their cell phones with only one hand on their steering wheel. Drives me nuts. So I just pull over and let them go on their way.

BTW, the sun just peaked out over here on the coast so maybe I'll get to drive it today afterall.

For those who are doing a full restoration now, I'll be joining you someday, but how soon I'm not sure.

[D S.]

Re: Your Opinion

I believe what Roy was talking about is vintage Corvettes being routinely driven on paved roads and highways other than cruises, cars shows, Corvette shows, NCRS events, B-J auctions. For example, on any given nice day I will drive my '70 convertible for the pure joy of driving it. The most rewarding "awards" I get are children whose eyes widen and point and tap their parents on the shoulder to get them to look, the younger generation who drive up next to me on freeways who gives the car a thumbs up, my generation who look at the car with vintage Corvette admiration. It's about getting those classic Corvettes out of storage and trailers so the public can once again reconnect with the Corvette past.

[D S.]

Re: Your Opinion

I believe what Roy was talking about is vintage Corvettes being routinely driven on paved roads and highways other than cruises, cars shows, Corvette shows, NCRS events, B-J auctions. For example, on any given nice day I will drive my '70 convertible for the pure joy of driving it. The most rewarding "awards" I get are children whose eyes widen and point and tap their parents on the shoulder to get them to look, the younger generation who drive up next to me on freeways who gives the car a thumbs up, my generation who look at the car with vintage Corvette admiration. It's about getting those classic Corvettes out of storage and trailers so the public can once again reconnect with the Corvette past.

[Roy B.]

Re: Your Opinion=my opinion

Believe me I know the feeling of driving my 55 , destiny so be it, I drive my new C6 thinking the same, but like life it self enjoy what you have nothing last for ever . If I lose the 55 hopefully in some minor action so be it. I get the biggest satisfaction driving it and having people ask about it then what ever money it's worth. That's what keeps me driving my 55 , nothing else !!!!

[Roy B.]

Re: Your Opinion=my opinion

Believe me I know the feeling of driving my 55 , destiny so be it, I drive my new C6 thinking the same, but like life it self enjoy what you have nothing last for ever . If I lose the 55 hopefully in some minor action so be it. I get the biggest satisfaction driving it and having people ask about it then what ever money it's worth. That's what keeps me driving my 55 , nothing else !!!!

[William L.]

Re: Your Opinion

Roy
This car is orig except for two repaints and we have doc's back to the selling dealer. Because it's a 435 with 4:11 gears we we don't drive it on long trip's. But it can be seen driven around St.Louis area to a lot of the cruse night's. The most fun I have with it is when the weather is nice and we get to drive it. Hope to see a lot of you guys at the National's in St Charles.
Bill

[William L.]

Re: Your Opinion

Roy
This car is orig except for two repaints and we have doc's back to the selling dealer. Because it's a 435 with 4:11 gears we we don't drive it on long trip's. But it can be seen driven around St.Louis area to a lot of the cruse night's. The most fun I have with it is when the weather is nice and we get to drive it. Hope to see a lot of you guys at the National's in St Charles.
Bill