Chevrolet Chevelle: A Quick Review of The Legend

  

Chevrolet Chevelle the Legend

The Chevelle was one of the few muscle cars that Chevrolet put into production between 1964 and 1973. Outside of the '73 Chevelle, the muscle car enjoyed some great success through its strong run and still continues to be celebrated by all kinds of car enthusiasts. From drag strips to car shows and car auctions, you'd be hard-pressed to go to any car event and not see a few awesome-looking examples.    

Most Chevelles hold their value very well, mostly because they look great stock and when customized. Read on to learn a little more about the Chevelle and what it offered to the muscle car era. 

1964 - 1967 Chevelle

In 1963, when the Chevelle made its way into production for the first time as a '64, there were a couple different motors to choose from. The largest and the most powerful of them all was a 300 horsepower 327 cubic inch small block. This really didn't hit the nail on the head for consumers for it was a little underpowered for the power-to-weight ratio. 

In 1965, Chevelle upped the ante with a 396 cubic-inch motor that produced the type of power that the public was waiting for. The new Z16, 396 V8 produced 375 horsepower and could go 0-60 mph in 6.0 seconds and drop a quarter-mile time of 14.66 @ 99.8mph. 

The 1966 Chevelle would see some body modification and although the power rating stayed the same the times at the track would be cut from a 14.66 down to a 14.40 quarter-mile time. This was due to a solid lifter cam and bigger values given to the 396 cubic inch motor. 

In 1967, Chevrolet would stick with the same body style for the muscle car but would make some major changes. Front-wheel disc brakes were factory installed to help stop the wider tires and new 14-inch rims. A new reworked bumper and blacked-out rear panel were also part of the new features the '67 had to offer. Unfortunately, because of GM curb weight standards, it would experience less power and slower times at the track. The biggest engine offered was the L34 396, which only produces 350 horsepower and did 0-60 mph in 6.5 seconds with a quarter-mile time of 15.3 @ 94mph.

1968-1969 Chevelle

For 1968, Chevrolet would try something new with the Chevelle. A new body style would make its way off the production lines. This new look brought about a shorter wheelbase, a longer front end, and a shorten rear-deck lid giving it a fastback look. Although the 1968 Chevelle got a new look, it received the same power sources as the previous year. 

The Chevelle's suspension would still be a sore spot with lots of body roll, and slowly shifting from the Muncie four-speed left a lot of complaints from consumers. But the one thing that did change was the rear end. The axle ratios ranged from 2.73:1 to a dealer-installed 4.88:1 drag Cogs gear ratio.

With consumers still having complaints about power, Chevrolet would up the ante again for the '69 Chevelle. Although the badges and the build sheets would say the Chevelle was built with a 396 cubic-inch motor that produced 375 horsepower, it was well known that the motors were bored out to 402 cubic inches. The deceit was mainly to meet emissions standards and to gain a horsepower edge. This plan really paved the way for what was to come in 1970.

1970 Chevelle 

In 1970, Chevelle would see the most sufficient changes toward being a major contender in the muscle car world. Cosmetic changes included the first functioning cowl induction hood with racing hood pins. A newly styled front-end would be implicated along with some new style rally five-spoke wheels. 

But the biggest change came in the size of the motor. General Motors lifted the band against producing any motors over 400 cubic inches, giving Chevrolet the green light to build and produce a Chevelle with what would become one of the most popular motors ever made, the LS6 454. Along with the functioning cowl induction hood, the huge motor also came with much better-performing engine components that helped produce 450 horsepower and left plenty of room for upgrades.

1971-1972 Chevelle 

Unfortunately, for 1971-72, the Chevelle would see some extremely harsh decreases in power. In response to GM's new rules that all engines must run on unleaded fuel and meet every EPA restrictive emission standard, the muscle car era was starting to become a thing of the past. There was one good thing about the years of '71-'72. Although the big 454 motor's power was lowered due to EPA emissions standards, you still could order them, and if you knew what you were doing, you could take that motor and fix it up to get the power out of it that it once had in 1970.

For the last year of the Chevelle's existence, it got a completely new body style and the motors had even less power. These cars would be the least liked among the 9-year production run, and even to this day are not a big hit at drag strips, car shows, or auctions.

1969 COPO Chevelle 

In 1969, Chevrolet offered one of the rarest Chevelles to date, the '69 COPO. The COPO was designed pacifically for the drag strip. It came with a 427 cubic-inch motor powerplant that produced 425 horsepower and was capable of producing numbers like 0-60 mph in 5.1 seconds and a quarter-mile time of 13.3 @ 108mph. The COPO Chevelle was undoubtedly the fastest production Chevelle that Chevrolet ever produced. This muscle car wasn't only the fastest Chevelle produced, but with only 323 made for sale, it still holds today as one of the rarest.

The Reasons for Chevelle's Popularity 

What makes the Chevelle so popular among consumers and muscle car fans? The price, the size, the style, and the power. As a mid-size car, you could put your whole family in one and head to the grocery store, go shopping, come home, drop the family and the grocery off, and then head to the drag strip for some race time. You can do all this, for what at the time, was a very reasonable price.

Saying Good-Bye to the Chevelle and Many Other Muscle Cars

Although the Chevelle was canceled after 1973, it was not the only muscle car that got the ax. The GTO, Oldsmobile 422, the Plymouth Roadrunner, and many other muscle cars would see the same fate right around the same era due to the pursuit to find more fuel-efficient and economy-friendly cars. But the Chevelle and all of its muscle car brothers and sisters still to this day are extremely popular among car enthusiasts.

NHRA Pro Stock Turbo: Buddy Ingersoll's Buick V6 Pro Stock

It was back in 1986 when Buick started to master the turbocharger game. Turbochargers have been around for quite a while before the first 1984 and '85 Buick Grand National and T-Type turbos came out. The '84 and '85 Buick turbos lacked the power that the 1986 and '87 Buick turbos did due to a lack of an intercooler and other things. But even with the success of the two-sedan being faster than all of the American sports cars at the time, no one expected to see one compete in a professional Pro Stock class. 

Read all about the '86 and '87 Grand National success here. 

700+ cu.-in. Pro Stock Engines Racing Against A 286 cu.-in. Buick Engine

Buddy Ingersoll's Buick V6 Pro Stock

This was when the drag racing world started realizing that it is not always all about big blocks and displacement. This race was from 1986, but later the Buick setup would be deemed illegal in the Pro Stock classes. Of course, the reasons for the outlaw were a bunch of smokescreen excuses to hide the absolute truth - old-timers didn't understand it and didn't want to believe a V6 could beat a V8. 

To me, it sounds much like when Nitrous Oxide exploded on the drag racing scene - if you didn't understand it or you couldn't figure it out, it was easier to just say using NOS was cheating. 

Early '90s GS Nationals in Kentucky 

It was in the early '90s when I attended my first Buick GS Nationals at Beech Bend Raceway for a week (a week off school - a week at the drag strip)! That's when I saw the first single turbocharged Grand National break into the sevens (1/4-mile), and when I saw a T-Type in stock trim ride its bumper halfway down the track while still turning in a time of 10: something. That was when my cousin and I, best friends, knew we were watching something the drag racing world wasn't ready for yet. 

Slowly but surely, the drag racing world caught up, and now you'd be hard-pressed to see a drag car that isn't racing in a highly regulated class that doesn't have at least one turbo under the hood or another kind of power adder.  

The lineup to get into the GS Nationals—all Buicks—and the track entrance is quite a ways away. 

 

2001 Corvette Z06: The First Modern Day Z06

  

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know about the extremely potent 2023 Corvette Z06 that is on its way to the market sometime in late 2022. If you want to read about that, just look up any automotive website on the web and you can find out everything you know or you can go to this ride-along video/article with top engineers on the project, written by me for Muscle Cars & Trucks (C8 Corvette Z06 Engineers Share Untold Details On New Supercar: Video.

1963 Corvette Z06

Since we all should know everything about the new Corvette Z06, I decided that we should take a look back at the birth of the first modern Corvette Z06. But first, let's take a short look at the birth of the very first Z06. 

The first Z06 became available in 1963 and there were only 199 produced and sold. These Corvette Z06's sole purpose was to be sold for road course racing. They came with a 327 cu.in. (5.4-liter) engine, four-speed transmission, a beefed-up suspension, a massive brake system upgrade that included dual master cylinders, and an optional 36.5 US gal (138 l; 30 imp gal) tank.

The thing about these C2 Corvette Z06s was you didn't just go to the dealership and buy one, you had to know someone who knew what boxes to check in the order form if you wanted one of these race-ready (RPO Z06) Corvettes, and just like the 2001 Corvette Z06, you didn't get many luxuries with the car, it was truly for going fast. 

2021 Corvette Z06

This Corvette was built to surprise and dominate the market. The Z06 was designed for the track and pushed the boundaries of what was really possible from a production car that could drive to the track, make better times than its competition, and drive back home with the air conditioning kicking and the radio blasting. 

Basic Spec:

• 5.7-liter LS6 V8

• 6-speed manual

• 385 horsepower and 385 lb-ft of torque

• New FE4 Suspension (four-wheel independent suspension)

• Bose speaker system

• Leather bucket seats

• 17" front and 18” rear rims wrapped in Goodyear Eagle F1 SC tires

• Hardtop only

• Brake coolers

• Curb weight: 3,118 lbs.

• Gas Mileage: 17 city / 26 highway

Engine And Transmission

The LS6 is essentially a more powerful version of Corvette's LS1 V8. The LS6 engine upgrades start with a redesigned intake manifold with better flowing internal passageways. Reengineered cylinder heads create more flow through the intake and exhaust valves, and the combustion chambers were redesigned to reduce valve shrouding.

All these upgrades led to a higher compression ratio which then led to a redesigned thin-walled cast-iron exhaust manifold system to provide a smoother exit for the combustion escape.

Of course, all this extra flow wouldn’t be worth much without a redesigned camshaft. So a beefier cam was installed by Corvette engineers with more valve overlap and greater valve lift. Chrome-vanadium-steel valve springs and stronger pistons cast from a more durable alloy were implicated in the engine’s design for toughness. And finally, the LS6 was engineered with windows cast into the internal crankcase walls to help air retreat from the underside of the burning hot pistons.

This new engine setup gave the New Corvette Z06 385 horsepower at 6,000 RPMs and 385 lb-ft of torque at 4,800 RPMs, and a redline RPM of 6,500. In between all the power and the rear wheels was a beefed-up clutch (with lighter pedal effort), a larger-diameter driveshaft, and a revised six-speed manual transaxle. This new M12 gearbox was introduced with shooter 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gears to better utilize the new higher-revving LS6. All gears were 10-16 percent shorter except for the 4th gear which remained the same.

2001 Corvette Z06 Suspension

More power always means more changes all around. To accommodate the power of the LS6, Corvette went with a new FE4 suspension that included revised shock calibrations, a stiffer rear transverse leaf spring setup, and stiffer anti-roll bars for the front and rear.

To add ground support, each corner of the Vette receives 1-inch wider tires, bringing them up to 9.5-inch wide in the front and 10.5-inch wide in the back. New custom light-weight 10-spoke wheels were wrapped in Goodyear F1 Eagle tires: 265/40ZR-17s in the front and 295/35ZR-18s rears. The F1 Eagle SC tires were designed with more flexible sidewalls achieved by doing away with the famous run-flat tire design. This permitted a half-degree more negative camber to keep the tread flatter during hard cornering for track use.

To prove the Corvette was built for business, engineers found places around the car where they could shave pounds off the curb weight. Helping save weight was the deletion of the run-flat tire design, mufflers were made from Titanium, and the windshield and rear glass were all lightened to help bring the Corvette’s curb weight down to 3,118 pounds, that's 38 pounds lighter than its original form. A lot of weight was saved in the Titanium mufflers alone, but the weight of the new suspension offset the weight-saving by a lot.  

Step Aside Cobra R

The Cobra R was making some big waves at the track. Performance numbers were pretty impressive, and the Corvette Z06 was Chevrolet's answer to those performance numbers.

The Cobra R and the Z06 were pretty close in performance numbers at the time (numbers for Z06 below). The Cobra R turned numbers out of its 5.4-liter that looked a little like this: 385 horsepower and 385 lb.-ft. of torque (the same as the Z06), 0-60 mph in 4.7 seconds, a quarter-mile time of 13.2 (Ford tested) and 12.9 (Motor Trend tested) with a top speed of 170-mph, and stops from 60-0 in 127-feet.

Although the numbers were somewhat close, the Corvette beat out the Cobra R in other places. The Cobra R lacked air conditioning, an audio system, rear seats, sound dampening, and cruise control. The Corvette also lacked a back seat, but that's because it was never meant to have one, it wasn't a compromise. Also, because of the limited number of Cobra Rs that were built, the sticker price showed $55,5ish, but you couldn't buy one for under $75,000. The Corvette Z06 stuck pretty close to its price tag of just under $50,000 without a lot of limited edition inflation.

Let's Go Over Some 2001 Corvette Z06 Numbers 

The 2001 Corvette Z06's proof of superiority is in the numbers. A 0-60-mph time is recorded at 4.3 seconds, and a 70-mph to 0 stop takes only 152-feet. In a quarter-mile sprint, the Corvette can cover it in 12.7 seconds at 113-mph. Hitting a 150-mph will only take you 28 seconds total, while a top speed of 170-mph is easily manageable. Although the top speed does suffer a little bit as the C5 Vettes will hit 175-mph, but that's because of the Z06 closer transmission clutch gear ratios. 

Hitting corners is another place where the Corvette Z06 shows no mercy to its competitors. Pulling .98 Gs in and out of corners is just what this sports car does, and that actually beats out all other sports cars out of there including the Viper GTS and the Ferrari 360 Modena, which are above the Corvette Z06s price bracket by a lot. 

Z06 Performance Built

Making sure everything was performance built was what this Corvette was all about, even both the dual mesh grilles in the front and the rear brake coolers in front of the rear wheel wells are completely functional. 

The 2001 Corvette Z06 is just like the new Z06s, although classified as a sports car, they perform like a supercar compared to their competition.

Modern Muscle Car: 94-96 Chevrolet Impala SS

  

These beautiful 94-96 Chevrolet Impala SS sport sedans were not in production long, but they did make a big impact in the Chevy lineup for a couple of years. What made this Caprice in disguise such a success was a Corvette 5.7-liter LT1 V8 engine added in with a few other upgrades.

• 260 Horsepower and 330 lb.-ft. of Torque
• 4l60e Automatic Transmission
• 3.08 Tall Rear Gear with a Limited Slip Differential
• Lowered Heavy Duty Suspension from the Caprice Police Car Package
• Performance-Oriented Shocks w/Semi-Stiff Anti-Roll Bars
• 12-Inch Vented Disc Brakes
• 0-60 in 7.0 Seconds and 15.0 Second 1/4 Mile Time @ 92-MPH Give or Take  

Now, of course, that doesn't sound like much today, with V6 SUVs outperforming the big-bodied vehicle. But this 4,220-pound beast was considered pretty fast for its size 26 years ago. 

The funny thing is the decision to go with the Caprice LT1 Impala combo came about because the original Caprice 4.6-liter engine was having a hard time making emission standards. The LT1 engine that was placed in the Corvette, Camaro, and Pontiac sports cars were doing fine passing emissions and smog regulations, and that's why it got the duties of lugging the Impala SS around.  

Potential For More Power 

Dropping the 4.6-liter and moving to the LT1 made the Impala SS even more like a muscle car. Since there was not a lot you could do in terms of upgrades to the 4.6-liter, the dud you got in the 93 and older Caprice, was the dud you got. The LT1 on the other hand offered plenty of room for upgrades. If you could get the upgrade for a Corvette, Camaro, Firebird, or Trans Am, chances are you could get it for the Impala. This opened up the door for easy upgrades from cold air induction and computer programmers to cam, heads, and nitrous. I'd go over all the upgrade options, but I figure you could use your imagination here.

Four-Door Competition

It was definitely faster than its American four-door competitors i.e. the Ford Taurus SHO and the Pontiac Bonneville SSEi. Moreover, it was $65,800+ cheaper than the Mercedes-Benz S500 and could accelerate faster, handle better, and match the Benz in braking abilities, all while sounding like true American Muscle. 

What The Impala SS Had Its Sports Car Companions Didn't 

That's easy, front bucket seats that made you feel like you were sitting on a sofa, a back seat where people even 6-feet tall and hefty could sit in comfortably, and a trunk you could neatly place a dead body in. 

The Impala's colors were limited. In 1994, you were only able to get one in Black, but '95 and 96-year models brought about a dark Cherry Red and a dark Green color. 

                        

There were also a few other differences about the 1994 Impala SS. There was a digital dashboard with no tachometer and a column shifter. When Chevrolet noticed the consumer's want for this vehicle in the muscle car capacity, they added in an analog dashboard with a tach and a floor shifter to add to the muscle car feel. 

For all three years, the exterior sported special 17-inch 5-spoke rims wrapped up in large 255/50R-17 tires, a nice-sounding dual exhaust system was added with a rear spoiler, and deleted Caprice chrome. The stance, the sound, the power, and the name of it alone, Impala SS, made this disguised Caprice no longer a car you would expect a 90-year-old church-going lady to drive.  

Taking One For A Ride

I've taken a few for a ride here and there working at a dealership. They're not that fast, but one thing they are is a little surprising. You just don't think a 94-96 Caprice with special SS Impala badges is going to offer you so much.

The Impala gives you more than enough throttle response to get the big, long sedan in the passing zone and go. It also gives you plenty of comforts, from the leg and headroom to the soft suspension that performs well but still gives you a ride that reminds you of your grandpa's unmolested Lincoln. 

And no, there is no media center, cell phone connectivity, or sophisticated driver assist safety functions that allows you to disregard paying attention to the road. These Impala SS big-bodies are true cruising cars. A car that you can shine up, hit the road, listen to the muffles humm, and get a few looks of envy from drivers in their cookie-cutter trucks and crossovers. 

Purchasing A 94-96 Impala SS   

With 69,758 Impala SS sports sedans produced between 94-96, they are not the rarest cars in the world. But a lot of them are stored away in garages as their value goes up. If you're looking to purchase one of these modern Impala SS muscle cars, your best option is to look out for one that has low miles and has little to no upgrades. Some of these cars have been heavily modified, and some have been around the block a time or two. 

Look for rust in the usual places, signs of years of abuse, aftermarket hacked stereo systems and suspension components, and beat-up interiors. Some of these cars may still have potential, but it would depend on how much money you want to put into them. There are still plenty of good ones out there that have been well-taken care of and can offer you a fun and cool multi-purpose Hot Rod!  

   

1969 Corvette "AstroVette" Stingray Apollo-Themed

 

This Corvette you're looking at was built specifically for the Astronaut Alan L. Bean. There were only two others made just like this for two other Astronauts, Richard Gordan Jr. and Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. All three men were shipped into orbit on the Apollo 12 Mission in the second Lunar Module to land on the Moon.

NASA and General Motors

In the '60s and early '70s, NASA astronauts were like rock stars in America. Reaching the Moon before Russia was something America did that helped bring a divided country together after the controversial Vietnam War.

GM president, Ed Cole, saw the potential of linking the NASA program to the GM brand for product growth. GM already gave astronaut Alan Shepard, the very first man to break his way into space, a new white 1962 Corvette with a custom space-age interior—and had also done business with astronaut legends like Niel Armstrong and high-performance enthusiast, Gus Grissom.

Of course, it's hard to imagine GM giving away Corvettes, but Cole's decision to do so, according to his widow, Dollie (Chairman of the National Corvette Museum and Vice Chairman of the National Air & Space Museum), made sense to Cole. "The astronauts were incredibly visible," she says. "And good publicity is good publicity." But putting astronauts in Corvettes wasn't just for publicity. "Who more worthy than guys who represent our country?" says Dollie. "They were literally risking their lives. Space travel today isn't 'ho hum', but people perceive it that way. There were so many unknowns then. The cars were a way of saying 'Thank you.'"

Executive GM Lease Program For NASA 

Eventually, GM would see big benefits from being affiliated with NASA, so they went ahead and started an executive lease program for NASA employees. If you qualified for the lease program, you could lease a GM vehicle for $1 for one year. According to astronaut Alan Bean, most qualifying employees chose Corvettes, making it an interesting sight to see when you drove past the Space Center and looked in the parking lot. 

Those Who Fly Together, Drive Together

All three astronauts that boarded the Lunar Module for the Apollo 12 Mission were very close, and all were car guys in their own respect. They became good friends with Jim Rathman, a Chevrolet and Cadillac dealership owner who was also known for winning the 1960 Indy 500. 

Jim's dealership was located in Melbourne, FL, and its close proximity to the Space Center is what made the friendship between the three astronauts and others in NASA like Niel Armstrong possible. With "Pete" Conrad Jr., Gordan Jr., and Bean successfully completing the Apollo 12 mission, they all decided they should get matching Corvettes with some special visual upgrades to distinctively separate them from the rest of the Corvette owners and lessees.

Rare Riverside Gold Corvette Color

It just so happened, in 1969, Corvette was offering a one-time-only Riverside gold exterior color for the Stingray. The three astronauts joined forces with friend and dealership owner, Jim Rathman, who helped aid in getting all three gold Corvettes to his dealership.

No one really knows where the black "Wings" were painted on the Riverside gold base paint, but it wasn't at the factory or at Ratham's dealership. As the story goes, the three astronauts took a lot of time to decide on what design they wanted to go with before settling on the black "Wings." 

Ratham decided to get his friend involved, Alex Tremulis. Tremulis was an industrial designer who held automotive design positions at Cord Automobile, Duesenberg, General Motors, Tucker Car Corporation, and Ford Motor Company before later establishing a consulting firm.

Tremulis and Ratham both did have a hands-on part in the design. Ratham placed the white stripe that separates the black and the gold colors, and Tremulis designed and painted the special red, white, and blue logos on the fender. 

The Special Red, White, and Blue Emblems and The Meaning

The red, white, and blue emblem represent what you would think - America, the American flag, and NASA. Each emblem had a different set of initials drawn out on a certain color of the emblem representing the Corvette owner's rank during the Apollo 12 Mission. Bean’s LMP initials were placed on the blue tag signifying him as the Lunar Module Pilot. Pete’s initials of CDR were on the red tag of the emblem, which stood for Commander, and Dick’s initials of CMP, for Command Module Pilot were drawn on the white tag of the emblem. 

The colors the initials were painted on also represented the color each astronaut used to label their belongings during the Apollo 12 Mission.

Corvette "AstroVette" Spec.

• 427 CU.-IN. Big Block L36 

• 4-Speed Manual Transmission

• 490 Horsepower - 460 lb.-ft. of Torque

• Four-Barrel Rochester Carbrator

• Hydraulic Four-Wheel Disc Brakes

• Fully Independent Suspension

• Optional Side Exhaust Selected But Not Installed

• Performance: 0-60 mph 6.0 Seconds; Quarter-Mile 14.3 at 93 MPH

• One-Year-Only Riverside Gold

• Special Steel Wheel Covers

• Curb Weight: 3450 lbs.

Where Are The Iconic "AstroVette" Stingrays Now?

Out of the three 1969 Stingray "AstroVette" Corvettes that were delivered to the Ratham dealership for the crew of the Appollo 12 Mission, only one is known to exist. 

Alan Bean's Corvette is the last AstroVette that is known to exist. It was turned in after the $1, 1-year lease was up. In 1971, it showed up in Austin, TX on a GMAC car lot. It went up for auction, where a space enthusiast by the name of Danny Reed put his bid in. He initially lost the auction, but the original winner could not come up with the money, and Danny eventually won the "AstroVette."

Making the "AstroVette" Perfect

The Stingray "AstroVette" was put on track to be restored to its original state to save its integrity, which meant no full restoration. Danny Reed worked with many Corvette experts throughout the process to get it back to its original look - the way it would have looked when it came right off the assembly line with overspray in the correct spots and everything. 

The National Corvette Restoration Society (NCRS) has given it many awards at some of the most prestigious Corvette car shows in the world. 

It has been on display at NASA events, the National Corvette Museum, the Kansas Cosmosphere, Flordia Space Center, Johnson Space Center, Houston Space Center, in Washinton, and many other worthy places. 

Alan Bean has since been reunited many times with his now-famous "AstroVette." Bean has become a painter since his days of walking on the Moon. A lot of his painting work has to do with space and his moonwalking, as he writes, “Our time on the Moon ended much too quickly and, in the years since then, I have created paintings to try to capture the feeling of our Apollo 12 mission, as well as all the other Apollo missions, too. It’s my hope that these paintings will help other people share in the great adventure." 

How to Tell If You Found One of The Lost "AstroVette" Stingrays?

Just like all rare cars, there are some imposters out there, but there is a way to tell if you found a real "AstroVette." Only these three Corvettes in the lease program were special ordered and registered in the lessee's name. This featured Corvette has a tank sticker that says, “Courtesy car delivered to Alan L. Bean.” If found, the other two would have a similar tank sticker with the corresponding astronaut's name - Richard Gordan Jr or Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. All other Corvettes for the NASA executive lease program were put in the military's name.

There is nothing like a little Corvette and NASA history! The $1, 1-year executive lease program for the astronauts ended in 1971. Whether or not it was because the Space Program became less popular and the executive lease program was less worth it from an advertising standpoint, I'm not sure. But there was a time there for a while when being an astronaut was better than being a Hollywood star or a pro-athlete.