The Corvette Sting Ray of the 1960s had something of a dual personality. With its adept handling, it was easy to drive fast and was manageable for everyday use, in keeping with the MG-beater it had once intended to be. Yet, as the available V-8s grew ever larger and the options list grew ever hotter, with more and more go-fast goodies available, the Corvette also began to take on an element of musclecar. By the mid-1960s, there were few American production cars that could take on the Bow Ties best on road or track, establishing a proud heritage of streetable high performance that the Corvette carries forward proudly to this day.

The annual Car & Driver magazine Readers’ Choice Awards had awarded the 1965 Corvette the "Best Value for the Money" recognition. This was looked at as being one of their most prestigious awards. It was due to being perceived as the best automotive acquisition for the money, regardless of its price. This meant the beautifully designed and engineered grand touring car beat out many universal favorites such as the Mustang, GTO, Porsche 911 and 912 and Volkswagen 1300. This is certainly more than adequate testimony to the over one decade, steady development by Chevrolet of the Sting Ray. Car & Driver considered the 1965 Corvette to the status of “now ranks as one of the world’s great automobiles, and the best may be yet to come.”

Possibly the writers of the Car & Driver awards were looking into their crystal ball and in their vision saw a modernized 1965 Corvette, such as the car on offer, as the model for their best is yet to come commentary.

This restomod is a combination of original and modern components that set it apart with over a reported $150,000 invested in the build; $30,000 of this applied to the Candy Brandy Wine paint alone. The Corvette was originally presented in Milano Maroon. It’s interior is richly shown with white bucket seats, headliner and door panels, plus black dash and carpet. A white stinger on a 1967 big-block hood and intricate pinstripes are also unique to the presentation of this Corvette.

The power is derived from a Motown 427-cid big-block V-8 engine that puts out a very impressive 554-hp and 528-ft/lbs of torque. This powerful unit features aluminum heads, high-rise intake, custom aluminum headers and MSD ignition, and it is attached to a Muncie “rock crusher” four-speed manual transmission with a Gear Vendor electronic overdrive unit. Custom alloy wheels and factory side pipes are just a glimpse of the blending of modern and original with this exciting Corvette.

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