This is my first Vette. In school, a magazine had the ad for the maroon '67 big block called "Deuces Wild". I knew I would have a '67 big block. I got one, but it was not quite the same. This one was originally silver, 427, close ratio 4 speed, 3.70 rear, F41, AC, PS, PW, and sidepipes.
By the time I got it, 7 owners had passed it along in as many years. The silver paint was gone. But it was still fast.
It had a one-piece front end on it. At the time, I remember that I liked that they had gone to the complete front end rather than just 'glassing in the headlights like many did back then. I remember seeing many with the cheap K-Mart fiberglass cloth that would show through the paint a year or so later.
All four fenders had what were called mild flares as they basically opened the top of the fender for larger tires. Of course, what Sting Ray would be worthy without six taillights? A small custom spoiler had been added, too.
Under the hood, changes had been made. The 427 was long gone. I can only assume that one of the previous seven owners had blown it up. After all, why would anyone buy a 427 Corvette, to drive slowly to the grocery store on Saturday and church on Sunday? Of course not, it was to see who you could beat from stoplight to stoplight!
So a 396 lived there now, with a single Holley on top. The air compressor was there, but it is off in this picture. After all, AC didn't make you go faster. The original hood was cracked in the front frame, and I made my first toddling steps in fiberglass work. I have to admit, it was a terrible patch. The M21 close ratio was still there, but it ground in second and third. I bought an M20 wide ratio from Dan Garner in Godfrey and put it in to solve that problem. Honestly, I can't remember what happened to that original M21.
The rear end was toast when I got it. I'm sure that is why it was for sale. Twenty days after getting it, the rear split into on my way to church. Really. I could go in reverse, but not forward, so I backed the car three blocks home and into the garage. Of course, now I was faced with the dilemma of not being able to get it out of the garage.
After surveying the rear suspension many times, and encouraged by the cost the local Chevy dealer was guesstimating they would have to charge, my dad convinced me we could change it if I could get one. That Sunday, Ray Williams in St. Louis had a 3.55 advertised in the Post Dispatch. This was the days of Ray running his Corvette parts business in his basement, and if you have even seen that, you know what an amazing sight that was. So the original very broken 3.70 came out and a 3.55 from a '73 or '74 went in. It helped anyway, as the 3.70 made the highway commute to work a bit less than comfortable.
I sold it in June 1976 to a guy who supposedly lived in St. Louis although when I tried to find him a couple of months later, there was no trace of him at the address he left.
Unbelievable! I found it on eBay on 3/2/07 and it is in St. Charles, MO. As you can see, it has changed!
Naturally, it has been restored. The idea of a real '67 big block 427 coupe that wasn't restored is beyond belief, since they seem to have many of the 327s growing up to be 427s today.
I couldn't figure out why anyone would pay for power windows, power steering, side pipes, air conditioning, radio, and such, but not pay for power brakes. Obviously, whoever restored it felt the same way, because it has power brakes today. It also has a tri-power. Well, I never saw the tank sticker, so it very well could be an original 400 hp. I am amazed that they were able to find that original engine from so long ago.
Six taillights are gone, and the reverse lamps are back. Well, not quite like "Deadman's Curve", but it is the way the factory made it.
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