- Pristine condition and with low mileage
- The engine has never been taken apart
- Corvette Preservation Excellence
Ask about the corvette
It was a old Chicago day—about twelve degrees below zero—the day our owner went out to look at a used set of “Corvette Knock-Off Wheels” from a newspaper ad. The seller had his garage open and the four wheels were sitting there ready to sell. The same garage had a Cragar-wheel equipped ’65 Corvette parked in it, making it obvious where these “for sale” wheels originated.
The the knock-offs were actually for his brother-in-law, who was looking for a set for his ’63 Corvette ZO6, yes, a real Z06! Once it was discovered that these wheels were not of the “two-bar” 1963 design but rather later model (‘64/’65) “three-bar” items, He politely said “thanks” and was ready to go.
But before he could drive away, his wife suggested he ask about the corvette that was inside the garage: was it for sale? He did inquire and got the standard, open-ended answer: “for the right price.”
The car had 37,000 miles on it and was in great condition, all original, save for the aftermarket rolling stock. The car was purchased for $3,200.00 (1974)dollars, and that included the wheels, which prompted the trip to the guy’s house in the first place!
Milano Maroon painted coupe was factory fitted with;
- K66 Transistor Ignition,
- L79 (350 hp) 327-cid engine,
- 4-speed transmission,
- factory air conditioning,
- leather seats,
- AM-FM radio,
- power steering,
- power brakes,
- 3.08 posi rear end
- P48 aluminum knock-offs
A “For Sale” sign on it
Life has been good for this car, and in 1998 when the decision was made to sell it, he took it out to Pavilions and with a “For Sale” sign on it, the classic couple caught the eye of a local resident, who always had a soft spot for vintage 1960s Corvettes since he was a kid growing up in rural Iowa.
A deal was made where he bought the car, and once again, it went to a new owner that was committed to taking great care of it and protecting it from the elements. The new owner is a member of the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS) and once he got the immaculate ’65 Corvette home, he started the investigation on the car, verifying casting numbers, date codes and noting the information on the cowl tag.
The cowl tag verified the paint color was the original 900MM and the trim code confirmed the factory Saddle Tan leather interior.
The engine block, heads, transmission, carburetor, distributor, A/C compressor, starter, alternator, fuel pump, and radiator all checked out with build dates between early and mid- 1965. The intake manifold was not verified, because, in order to read the casting date of the Winters aluminum intake, it would need to be removed. With an engine that has never been taken apart, since it was built by General Motors all those years ago, it would be a shame to disassemble it for this purpose.
The owner enjoys showing and sharing information on his pristine 1965 L79 car. The NCRS people acknowledge just how “correct” this un-restored car is.
The owner takes the vintage ‘Vette out for regular short trips, and it still sees action at places like Pavilions where he found it in the first place. When interviewing the original owner for this article, he stated how glad he was that the new owner was the guy that purchased his coveted Corvette, as it landed in such good hands and remains in the fantastic condition as when he owned it.
