I'm self limited to one. Had the same one actually since the year after I graduated from college. Came across this beauty in a picture post back in 1993. Made a deal for it that I could live with and have had it my entire adult life.
In 23 years, I put about 5,000 miles on the car (67,000). Super straight and clean and quite a head turner. Looked good and sounded good. Not a racer, just a cruiser. 289 4v. Loved it.
But... never drove it. Never showed it. Was kinda skittish about milling it up and parking in places, so just mainly washed it and drove it to town a few times a year.
3 years ago my wife's dad died and as part of his modest estate, he left her a 1977 corvette he had bought and put some work into. That's about all I knew about it. It had been in storage since early 2013 up near Grand Lake.
We left it there, not really having room in the garage for two toys, always meaning to go get it and bring it home with one caveat - I decided to sell the Mustang.
My logic was pretty simple - the Mustang was more valuable, but less drivable. No power steering, no AC, low miles and free of door dings. The Corvette seemed like something we at least could get out and go on date nights in and not be as concerned about it's condition, being a relative low-desirability mid-70's year.
I felt great about my decision until I saw the trailer with my Mustang on it begin to pull away and realized it was the last time I would ever see it. Kinda freaked out a little. Felt like I had sold a friend for dirty filthy money.
Logically though, the Mustang represented an investment that was worth nearly 4 times what I paid for it 23 years ago, and would help us continue to grow our business and remain debt free, so over the last year, I had listed it and talked to several interested buyers before finally agreeing to sell it last week. Well, that left a spot that needed to be filled, so this last weekend my dad and I rented an auto transport and made the trip to see what kind of shape the corvette was in and try to haul it back if it would even run well enough to get on the trailer.
Well...
Turns out, it is an L82 4 speed with a close ratio shifter box, so actually kind of rare and tricked out with every performance option you could get in 77. The problem with performance cars at that time was low compression and strangling emissions equipment.
Evidently my father in law had shopped around the country till he had found exactly what he wanted in this car and had it shipped to Grand Lake. He put new heads on it to improve flow and compression and a new cam, along with a custom exhaust that sounds like the angry fist of God when you get on it. The car is show quality and also low mileage for it's age (80k). Absolutely perfect mechanically, the oil looks like fresh honey. Absolutely blew my mind. I knew it was nice, but we never had any idea it was in such great shape.
Also in talking to my brother in law, it became very clear that my father in law's plan was to get this car fixed up, enjoy it for a few years and give it to my wife, and he had stated this plan to her brother. So, it makes the car extremely special to us - as it would have to be to replace the Mustang.
It's the new garage queen, and it's helped me feel a lot better about letting the Mustang go. I think it needed to go somewhere where someone could take it to the next level, and I was just ready for something different I think. So, this is the new studio mascot and man is it fun.
So when doing it's first photoshoot, I took it to a pasture on my family property to get some shots. There is a guy that is renting the pasture space to keep some horses. A very strange assortment of horses, all of whom were curious as to what we were doing. One is a miniature horse who minded his own business for the most part. One is a quarter horse who kept trying to eat my hat during the shoot, and one... well... it only dawned on me as she walked up to the corvette, struck a pose and looked at the car, that it was an actual mustang.
Sometimes God has an interesting sense of humor I think.
In 23 years, I put about 5,000 miles on the car (67,000). Super straight and clean and quite a head turner. Looked good and sounded good. Not a racer, just a cruiser. 289 4v. Loved it.
But... never drove it. Never showed it. Was kinda skittish about milling it up and parking in places, so just mainly washed it and drove it to town a few times a year.
3 years ago my wife's dad died and as part of his modest estate, he left her a 1977 corvette he had bought and put some work into. That's about all I knew about it. It had been in storage since early 2013 up near Grand Lake.
We left it there, not really having room in the garage for two toys, always meaning to go get it and bring it home with one caveat - I decided to sell the Mustang.
My logic was pretty simple - the Mustang was more valuable, but less drivable. No power steering, no AC, low miles and free of door dings. The Corvette seemed like something we at least could get out and go on date nights in and not be as concerned about it's condition, being a relative low-desirability mid-70's year.
I felt great about my decision until I saw the trailer with my Mustang on it begin to pull away and realized it was the last time I would ever see it. Kinda freaked out a little. Felt like I had sold a friend for dirty filthy money.
Logically though, the Mustang represented an investment that was worth nearly 4 times what I paid for it 23 years ago, and would help us continue to grow our business and remain debt free, so over the last year, I had listed it and talked to several interested buyers before finally agreeing to sell it last week. Well, that left a spot that needed to be filled, so this last weekend my dad and I rented an auto transport and made the trip to see what kind of shape the corvette was in and try to haul it back if it would even run well enough to get on the trailer.
Well...
Turns out, it is an L82 4 speed with a close ratio shifter box, so actually kind of rare and tricked out with every performance option you could get in 77. The problem with performance cars at that time was low compression and strangling emissions equipment.
Evidently my father in law had shopped around the country till he had found exactly what he wanted in this car and had it shipped to Grand Lake. He put new heads on it to improve flow and compression and a new cam, along with a custom exhaust that sounds like the angry fist of God when you get on it. The car is show quality and also low mileage for it's age (80k). Absolutely perfect mechanically, the oil looks like fresh honey. Absolutely blew my mind. I knew it was nice, but we never had any idea it was in such great shape.
Also in talking to my brother in law, it became very clear that my father in law's plan was to get this car fixed up, enjoy it for a few years and give it to my wife, and he had stated this plan to her brother. So, it makes the car extremely special to us - as it would have to be to replace the Mustang.
It's the new garage queen, and it's helped me feel a lot better about letting the Mustang go. I think it needed to go somewhere where someone could take it to the next level, and I was just ready for something different I think. So, this is the new studio mascot and man is it fun.
So when doing it's first photoshoot, I took it to a pasture on my family property to get some shots. There is a guy that is renting the pasture space to keep some horses. A very strange assortment of horses, all of whom were curious as to what we were doing. One is a miniature horse who minded his own business for the most part. One is a quarter horse who kept trying to eat my hat during the shoot, and one... well... it only dawned on me as she walked up to the corvette, struck a pose and looked at the car, that it was an actual mustang.
Sometimes God has an interesting sense of humor I think.
