For Sale: 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport in Irvine, California

Corvette Grand Sport CGS0033

During the 1950s and 1960s, the 24 hours of Le Mans was the crucible of competition that manufacturers used to turn wins on the track into sales in the showroom. In late 1962, Chevrolet chief engineer Zora Arkus Duntov decided to build a production run of 125 purpose-built Corvette race cars with the ultimate goal of winning the GT class at Le Mans. Duntov dubbed the project the "Lightweight"; Chevrolet marketing later christened the cars "Grand Sports." After a pilot run of five cars, GM management cancelled the project and ordered the cars destroyed.

Zora hid the first two cars and sent serial numbers 003, 004 and 005 to Texan John Mecom. He sold those race cars to fellow Texans Alan Sevadjian, Delmo Johnson and Jim Hall. In the last International race of his career, Johnson drove Grand Sport #003 at Sebring in 1965; Duntov provided the team the first racing big block engine to leave the factory for that race.

You can own an authentic continuation version of the spectacular Grand Sport race car, authorized and approved by General Motors. Superformance CGS0033 is painted Monza Red and is an outstanding blend of Grand Sport and C2 Corvette. The car has been professionally paint corrected and ceramic coated. A 1963 Corvette emblem is included on the hood.

In a great blending of heritage Corvette design with modern powertrain technology, power comes from a GM Performance Hot Cam LS3 putting out 525HP and 486TQ mated to a Tremec T56 6 Speed Manual Transmission. This car has the Rear Cutouts and Fender Slots deleted as well as the rear Differential Cooler to give it a bit sleeker and cleaner look that the standard racy Grand Sport. Aggressive 17" front and 18" rear Halibrand Style Wheels are wrapped in new Nitto NT555 tires and help this beast keep a grip on the road.

Standard equipment on Superformance Corvette Grand Sports includes fully independent front and rear suspension, 4-wheel vented disc brakes, and rack-and-pinion power steering. CGS0033 includes the Touring Interior done in black leather and carpets, along with air conditioning, power windows, power steering, and Autometer gauges. Vented Wilwood power disc brakes provide loads of stopping power.

CGS0033 is a one-owner car registered in Texas as a 2019 ASVE. With just under 9,500 miles, it is available for $284,950.