News: Grand Sport No. 002 Going up for Auction

[67HEAVEN]

Oh, alright......... I'll have you know I love the snow; the cold; the bitter freakin' wind.

 

[Cruzen]

Thanks for the forward though it would not let me see much of the book. It is on my list to purchase and read. Just finished reading the book on Zora for the second time. I just missed interfacing with him at the proving grounds out here in the late 1980's.

I'm originally from Chicago so I know about cold, snow and cold. Still get back there three to four times per year but try to avoid January through March.

Been in Arizona 20 years now but remember that driving a Vette back in Chicago ( talking about my C2 series coupe and later a roadster ) wasn't much fun. Something always broke on the coldest or wettest day. Out here it makes more sense but it took me a while to get back into them.

The SS have always interested me because my 65 Coupe which I owned in 1969-70 had the oversize tank, side pipes and knock off's. Back then I did not know much about the different series cars. Maybe the previous owner had the SS in mind when he ordered the car.

If you're ever in the neighborhood give me a shout.

Denny

 

[twiget]

I am not at all familiar with the cars in these photo's so the questions I am asking migh be stupid to those who know about these cars.

Do they have the same tube type frames as the original SS?
Do they have the same type rear ends?
What steering system was employed?
Are the engines mounted set back in the same manner"
I don't suppose the bodies are the light weight versions?
How about the interiors etc?

I would think that the major cost of recreation would be the body and the frame. The rear windows in the SS were not the same size as the production cars and all but the front windshield were plexi glass. I have been told that the rear end was no where near a production unit but I don't know much else about it. I would assume that these cars have the plastic 33 gallon gas tank.

I'm just interested. Many years ago I saw one of the original SS coupes on display at either Watkins Glen or Road America. I have slept a few times since then and I don't remember which.

Thanks for the info,
Denny

The Mongoose Grand Sports are kit cars, so I'm betting that their accuracy varies greatly from car to car. The frame is based upon the '63 Grand Sport frame. The kits available from Mongoose come with C4 suspension and a variety of engine/transmission combination's.

Jason

 

[Cruzen]

The Mongoose Grand Sports are kit cars, so I'm betting that their accuracy varies greatly from car to car. The frame is based upon the '63 Grand Sport frame. The kits available from Mongoose come with C4 suspension and a variety of engine/transmission combination's.

Jason

Thanks guys for the input. I checked out the Mongoose web site and I now know what I am going to ask Santa for this year. I'll have to be very, very, good!!! Time to ask the boss for a raise and get busy selling off everything else I own on eBay to get one of those puppies but it might be worth it.

Hmmmmmmmm!!!
Denny

 

[67HEAVEN]

Denny,

Get in touch with JohnZ, here in the C2 section. He has built and sold a Grand Sport replica for himself.

*(JohnZ -- selected for induction into the Corvette Hall of Fame in the summer of 2009)

 

[Evolution1980]

If y'all had to made it to CruiseFest V in Cleveland, ya coulda visited Mongoose in person!

 

[67HEAVEN]

If y'all had to made it to CruiseFest V in Cleveland, ya coulda visited Mongoose in person!

Natter, natter, natter..............Hi mom. otfl

 

[JohnZ]

Do they have the same tube type frames as the original SS?
Do they have the same type rear ends?
What steering system was employed?
Are the engines mounted set back in the same manner"
I don't suppose the bodies are the light weight versions?
How about the interiors etc?

Denny

Yes, the tube frame is a close duplicate of the original, but modified to accept C4 suspension and brakes.

Rear end is from a C4 ("batwing" crossmember).

Steering is rack & pinion (originals used stock Corvette).

Engine location is the same as the originals.

Body shells (D&D and Mongoose) are molded in one piece, but are not "paper-thin" like the originals; those made by Mid-America Industries (Jeff Leach) are different - they use a donor production coupe body with the front and rear clips cut off and Jeff's GS-styled clips glued on.

Interiors for the D&D and Mongoose are similar to the originals (pull-strap windows, fixed vent windows, ribbed fiberglass door inner panels); the Mid-America cars use stock Corvette doors and windows.

 

[JohnZ]

I think if you look closely at the GS coupe with the hood up, it will carry VIN #DDGS039 on the plate on the driver's side hinge pillar - I built that one in 1996. I laid out the distinctive white stripe with red edges for my painter, and have never seen another GS with the same one; most have the stripe (without red edging) flared out at the front like the other coupe on the right.

That car has been sold several times since I sold it in 1998, and the wheels and tires have been changed at least twice (and all are incorrect) - I had duplicates of the original 15" Halibrands made from the original GS patterns when I built it.

Here's what it looked like when I sold it:

 

[twiget]

I think if you look closely at the GS coupe with the hood up, it will carry VIN #DDGS039 on the plate on the driver's side hinge pillar - I built that one in 1996. I laid out the distinctive white stripe with red edges for my painter, and have never seen another GS with the same one; most have the stripe (without red edging) flared out at the front like the other coupe on the right.

That car has been sold several times since I sold it in 1998, and the wheels and tires have been changed at least twice (and all are incorrect) - I had duplicates of the original 15" Halibrands made from the original GS patterns when I built it.

Here's what it looked like when I sold it:

:BOW

Jason

 

[Evolution1980]

I think if you look closely at the GS coupe with the hood up, it will carry VIN #DDGS039 on the plate on the driver's side hinge pillar - I built that one in 1996.

You built that car? Sweet! I wish I woulda known when I parked right next to it, I woulda given it a more admiring go-over!

 

[Eric]

Even if you did do this, how much is it really going to be worth? You're not making another one, you'd be making a clone...right?

You never really know. Some of the Mopar clones of old R/Ts and such have fetched some really big money at B-J the last several years. I guess the difference here is that the Mopar clones are usually painstakingly hand built after years of scouring swap meets and car shows for extremely rare parts rather than a shop-built race car clone.

Okay, so I may have just shot holes in my own theory with that last sentence but I still like the GS clones. I'd really like one built by the gentleman three posts up the page from here.

 

[twiget]

Grand Sport 002 went up for auction over the weekend (not at Barret Jackson, but at RM Auctions.). The high bid was $4.9 million. :W Apparently almost $5 million was not enough for the seller, as they did not accept the bid. It was by far the highest bid of the auction. The next closest was $4.5 million for a 1937 Bugatti.

Jason

 

[Tom Bryant]

I wonder what it would have taken to buy this car? I think he was just fishing to see what it would bring. It might have also been a a deal with R-M to try to upstage B-J with a more important headlining car with no intention of ever selling it.

At B-J the high dollar cars of the past few years were way down. Clone Mopars were not even bringing a good pecentage of build cost and real ones were down to clone price. Same for LS6 Chevelles. Wasn't it 2 years ago when that LS6 convertible drag car sold for close to 3 million. A very nice documented LS6 convertible brought $60,000. this year. There were also several others and I don't recall any going over 100k.

The good news was that Corvettes were strong with a new record for a '59 set again. The median cost cars (all marques) held their value if not increasing and many lower cost cars moved up the scale. I think that the hemi cars and such had peaked already even without the economy receeding. But that's just my opinion.

I think that anyone wanting to make big money on a valuable car thay have owned for a few years missed the boat and will have to wait maybe another decade to see prices up in that range again. I'm watching the Mecum auction in Kissimmee. There is a very important 1963 Z06 Gulf racer going up. It should bring near Grand Sport price but will it?

Tom

 

[JohnZ]

There is a very important 1963 Z06 Gulf racer going up. It should bring near Grand Sport price but will it?

Tom

Tom, it sold for $1,050,000.

 

[Tom Bryant]

Thanks John. Do you know where it went?

Tom

 

[Evolution1980]

Thanks John. Do you know where it went?

...To the winning bidder???

:L

 

[Tom Bryant]

Smart :booty :L

I hope it went to a collection or museum that will display it so I can see it in person some day.

Tom

 

[Tworacy]

Hmmm, a 1963 Grand Sport racer high bid to $4.9 mil, a 1963 ZO6 racer sold for $1.05 mil. Being the lucky owner of a real deal 1988 B9P Corvette Challenge racecar driven by Jeff Andretti, I think I like the direction of corvette race car prices! Of course the 88 & 89 Challenge cars will probably never reach the prices of the '63 cars (even though there are fewer B9Ps than ZO6s) but it's still pretty cool being able to own such a unique piece of corvette racing history while they are still relatively affordable. Anyone out there want to save $900,000? I'll let it go for $100,000!

The really fun part is just beginning as these cars are now eligible to race in the "historic" races.

Jeff Andretti Corvette Challenge Cars | 1988 Corvette Challenge | 1989 Corvette Challenge | 1990 R9G Corvettes

But if you have your heart set on a '63 Grand Sport replica, I also have a basketcase 63 Fuelie coupe that would make a great place to start...otfl

 

[sub006]

Sorry I couldn't figure out how to put a quote in this reply, but I have to comment on post number 4.

I doubt that any of the beautiful cars in those pics are original Grand Sports because they all appear to have rims much larger than 15" diameter.

Dick Guldstrand DID race an original GS roadster, in fact a picture of him in the car at speed used to be on Fram HP oil filter boxes. He may well have driven this replica at a show or vintage event and signed it. He's a very accommodating gentleman who has done excellent work on my cars over the last 30 years.