Beautiful restoration with NOM small block V8. 4-speed, new interior, beautiful paint & chrome. Runs and drives extremely well, very quick but very docile. A wonderful C1 ‘Vette for the guy who loves to drive.
This 1959 Corvette is certainly the right color, Roman Red, which remarkably was only the third most-popular color in 1959. Very well restored perhaps 10 years ago, this Corvette was built to drive, not sit on a show field. The Snowcrest White side cove is the car’s signature styling cue and the combination is just intoxicating. Finish quality is extremely good and someone invested a great deal of time and money to get this Corvette into shape. You’ll note that the doors close evenly, the hood sits flush, and the deck lid snugs down between the bulging rear fenders without any drama. There is zero evidence that this car was ever wrecked or damaged and it’s quite likely that this car is in better shape today than the day it hit the dealer’s showroom floor in 1959. As a product of the 1950s, you should expect a lot of chrome, all of which has been fully restored and is in outstanding condition with no notable blemishes to note. The only notable demerit might be some discoloration around the exhaust openings on the rear bumper, but we also admit that we like the look of tailpipes cut flush rather than sticking out to prevent this particular issue. The car just looks right.
Everything inside this red roadster is new, from the seat covers to the beautifully bound carpets to the ornately detailed door panels with bright metallic inserts. The steering wheel is not cracked or broken and the gauge faces are bold and bright, surrounded by neat chrome bezels. They are all fully operational save for the fuel gauge. There’s an AM/FM/cassette stereo piping sound through the original speaker and the factory heater controls still keep it comfortable on cool evenings. Clutch take-up is smooth and the small block V8 has enough torque that shifting the 4-speed’s Hurst shifter is optional, although it works so well, you’ll do it just for the way it feels. The white convertible top is in good shape, showing some very minor wrinkles and discoloration, but the rear window is clear and the weather-stripping is in good order, so it seals up as well as can be expected. And remarkably, you get a good-sized trunk in your C1 Corvette, which has a matching red rubber mat with a full-sized spare stowed underneath.
We don’t know what happened to the original engine, but it was already gone when restoration started. The restorer took that as an opportunity to drop in a modern GM ZZ3 crate motor. With 350 cubic inches, it’s 67 cubes bigger than the original 283 and considerably more muscular. It’s friendly with whatever gas you can feed it, and there’s a big Holley 4-barrel on top, so it has the right sound and feel. It’s neatly dressed with finned valve covers, a chrome air cleaner, and a polished Edelbrock intake manifold, so opening the hood is a reward. It runs even better than it looks, lighting off easily thanks to an electronic ignition system and idling well even when it’s cold. For authenticity’s sake, there’s still a generator making the electricity and it includes the original tach drive. A big radiator up front means it never gets hot or fussy, and you already know the small block Chevy is just about the most reliable machine ever conceived by man. Just get in and drive, man!
It’s possible that the 4-speed manual transmission is original to the car, and it certainly feels right racking it through the gears. Thanks to the crate motor’s big, flat torque curve, it’s impossible to stall this car and it doesn’t take much revving to get it off the line. That makes it relaxing in traffic. But put your foot into it and the extra 100 or so horses make a significant difference in the way this ‘Vette plays, bolting away from slower traffic with ease in any gear. We believe there are 3.70 gears out back, which explains that punchy feel, although it never seems to be working very hard, even at modern highway speeds. The undercarriage isn’t detailed for show, but it’s clean and tidy with no signs of accident damage or neglect, and certainly no rust (obviously the floors and rockers are fiberglass). A reproduction exhaust system has a modest V8 burble but nothing annoying, which wouldn’t be right on a car like this, and ride quality is better than you’d expect. Factory steel wheels with spinner hubcaps carry BFGoodrich Silvertown wide whites.
Don’t say I didn’t warn you: driving this car will be addicting. With a bit more power on tap, it becomes a bit more of what it always was, and when you’re behind the wheel you will never think twice about buying this car. It’s right in so many ways that nothing else will matter. Call today!
For more details and photos, please visit www.HarwoodMotors.com
