Feature Car of the Week - My Dad's 1969 Chevrolet Corvette

This week's feature car is the 1969 Corvette, this one belonging to my father. My dad purchased the car from the original owner in 1975 when I took these photos. The car was originally equipped with the 350cid small block rated at 350hp, 380lb/ft of torque, but the first owner rebuilt it with ported "turbo" casting (the hot ticket, pre-Bow Tie) heads and a really lumpy solid roller cam resulting in 525hp and low 11-second quarter-mile times. I was with Dad on several occassions when he beat a 427 Vette, a 383 Charger, and a Porsche Turbo, to name a few, in "light to light" races. That motor has since been replaced by a relatively tame 440hp 350 we built some years back using most of the original parts like the crank, block, and heads. It's still plenty quick - ask the pin-head in the BMW M5 I smoked the last time I drove it!

Other goodies include a Holley 650cfm, mechanical secondary (double-pumper) carb on the original (but ported) Z-28 (Winters casting) dual-plane hi-rise manifold; Hooker headers; the Muncie M-22 "rock crusher" 4-speed transmission; Posi-traction rear end with 4.11:1 gears; and 4 wheel disc brakes with the hot (for the day) suspension option, all (except the carb and headers) factory ordered. The car only has an AM radio and heat, with no power brakes or steering. Dad still has the car and drives it regularly on weekends and such.