Steve Sanders’ 1961 Corvette he has owned since 1972
Steve bought the Corvette the summer after he graduated from High School and turned 18. He didn’t realize at the time, he bought a straight up and very used race car. Custom paint, roll cage, a 427 with a tunnel ram and two 660 Holleys. No wonder the price was reasonable, the ported heads had broken into the water jacket and filled the crankcase with water every time he started it. A large score on a cylinder wall meant a complete engine build. Engine Dynamics in Garden Grove, CA did all the honing and balancing of the engine components. The interior was gutted and even the chrome trim was deleted. Soon Steve found the engine was too hot for a 2800 pound car when the trans decided to tear off the companion flange for the rear end’s 4.88:1 ratio. The car was a weekend joy ride and he would hang out in a parking lot in Fullerton with Big Willy and his group of street racers talking about hot rods, racing and the like. After about 8 years of this, he decided to make it a bit more of a streetable car. So he found all the interior parts, the chrome trim pieces and replaced the engine with a 283. The roll cage was removed and his buddy Jack Gunnoe and Steve prepped and painted the car in many coats of one-year only “Jewel Blue” lacquer. The front end has been rebuilt, and power 4-wheel disc brakes were installed. A 12-bolt rear end with 3.73:1 gears make it a much better ride. The 40 year old paint is starting to show it’s wear, so a new coat will be applied soon in the same color scheme. The car is an original Fuelie, so he is locating a new unit to add to it.
