Corvette Bodied Go-Cart

[Cruzen]

Does anyone know anything about some fiberglass, not plastic, but fiberglass bodied go carts that were given away by a Chicago based food firm in or around 1962-1964? These were Blue and White copies of a 1959 Vette roadster.

My parents were not affluent by any means but my father worked with a guy who won one of the above mentioned go-carts. They guy lived in the city and his kids could not drive the thing in the Chicago streets so my parents bought it and gave it my sister and me for Christmas. I drove that car for about three summers. I would actually drive it up to the gas station pumps and fill the small engine mounted gas tank. Engine and tank and drive were accessed by raising the “trunk” lid. I thought nothing of parking it on the streets in front of my grandparents home while I went in to visit. Of course the visits were kept short because there was a Vette to be driven.

I finally got caught while driving home one night after dusk. The local cops were not amused by me driving an unregistered vehicle without lights etc. on the streets after dusk. My parents afraid that this might be the start of more severe problems elected to sell my first Vette.

I am looking for information on these go-carts which are quite different from those being currently sold.

Appreciate any information,

Denny

 

[XLR8]

Cool story! Except sorry to hear it got sold.

Hope you can learn more about them. This is the right place for Corvette enthusiasts!!

And welcome to the !!

Jane Ann

 

[44todd]

corvette go cart

Hey Denny.
My buddy found a body a while back, and is now restoring it.
we don't know much about it, other than it was a promotional give away from a supermarket back in the day (we think). it is fiberglass and was blue and white about 72" long. we are looking for info about the cart, do you remember anything? brand or?? I'd love to talk with ya. my phone # is 218-966-7250 give me a call Ben

 

[Dr. Joel]

1961 Corvette Go Kart

I'm excited to finally find a post like this. I have one of these 1961 Corvette Go Karts which has been in our family since 1973. We've always been curious about where it came from and what it might be worth.

Does anyone know anything about some fiberglass, not plastic, but fiberglass bodied go carts that were given away by a Chicago based food firm in or around 1962-1964? These were Blue and White copies of a 1959 Vette roadster.

My parents were not affluent by any means but my father worked with a guy who won one of the above mentioned go-carts. They guy lived in the city and his kids could not drive the thing in the Chicago streets so my parents bought it and gave it my sister and me for Christmas. I drove that car for about three summers. I would actually drive it up to the gas station pumps and fill the small engine mounted gas tank. Engine and tank and drive were accessed by raising the “trunk” lid. I thought nothing of parking it on the streets in front of my grandparents home while I went in to visit. Of course the visits were kept short because there was a Vette to be driven.

I finally got caught while driving home one night after dusk. The local cops were not amused by me driving an unregistered vehicle without lights etc. on the streets after dusk. My parents afraid that this might be the start of more severe problems elected to sell my first Vette.

I am looking for information on these go-carts which are quite different from those being currently sold.

Appreciate any information,

Denny

 

[Cruzen]

I'm excited to finally find a post like this. I have one of these 1961 Corvette Go Karts which has been in our family since 1973. We've always been curious about where it came from and what it might be worth.

Good to hear from you. I have found several others who have the same car. Apparently they were sold in blue with white cove or Red and White. I was told all the bodies were laminated in St. Louis. One cart in rather rough condition was sold by an antique dealer for $990, another dealer sold just the body which was in good condition for $900 and I have heard that one perfectly restored, sold at a Barrett Jackson auction for near $5000 but that was when money was loose and the buyers had a bit too much bubbly. You car should be made of laminated fiberglass. The trunk opens to the engine. The body to frame mounting points were not strong and these fail causing the body to drop over the frame. The motor drive off the motor is a belt drive. The wheels were originally white but may have been painted. The frame is about 9 inches longer than a comparable Go-cart of the same time period due to the extended wheel base and the wheels and tires were bigger than used on Go-Carts.

Later versions of this car were sold and used in parades by the Shriners. They were a bit smaller. There were some with C4 bodies but the ones I have seen were plastic bodies.

Can you post a photo or email me a photo of the car you have??
Email to CWRailman@aol.com or post it here.

Thanks,
Denny

 

[XLR8]

Yep, please post photos - I've never seen one of them.

BTW - welcome to the Dr. Joel!

Jane Ann

 

[Dr. Joel]

Ah, that's excellent to know! Thank you.
My grandpa in fact bought the little car from the Shriners for me in 1973 and painted it silver to match my dad's Stingray. We've had it ever since. It's in storage right now, but I will get some pictures up very soon. It still has the original Corvette logo decals on the hood and trunk along with little license plate decals that say something to the effect of Classic Corvette 1961.

 

[DALTON]

Just Picked One Up Yesterday

Hey guys! First, I want to thank all of you for the info provided on this site about the Karts. I ran across one on Ebay recently while looking for a Go Kart for my son. Turns out it was an original condition 1978 Black Vette Cart. The price was right so after 12 hours worth of driving yesterday, it is now sitting in my garage. I will post pics soon. The boy is in heaven and I think I may now have some college money on four wheels sitting in the garage once he is done racing around the neighborhood in it. If anybody knows of a spot on the net that has any other info I can use to authenticate it I would greatly appreciate it. It is a black fiberglass body with the red carpeted interior. The license plate decals say it is from in manufacturer out of Ohio. I hope I got the real deal but if not, it is still a very cool item to have in the garage.