By the time the 1963 Corvette Sting Ray was ready for launch, engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov had already spent a fair amount of time laying the groundwork for what would come to be known as the Z06 package, which created track-ready weapons with a factory pedigree. Duntov made sure the first batch of six cars went directly into the hands of racers, guys with names like Bondurant, Grant, Hooper, MacDonald, Thompson, and, in the case of car number six pictured here, Paul Reinhart.
Reinhart previously had campaigned a 1957 Corvette, taking back-to-back division championships in the SCCA's Pacific Coast B-Production class, putting him at the top of Duntov's list when it came time to select potential candidates for the first group of Z06 Vettes. Of the lucky recipients, Reinhart was the only one to campaign his car as a driver/owner.
Fitted with an L84 327-cubic-inch, 360-hp fuel-injected engine and a four-speed manual transmission that could also be ordered on the production Corvette, Z06-only items included stiffer springs, special shock absorbers, beefier anti-roll bars, and power brakes with finned drums and sintered metallic linings. The fiberglass 36-gallon fuel tank—which inspired the cars' "Tanker" nickname—and aluminum knockoff wheels would both migrate to series-production cars. Only 199 Z06 models were produced for the 1963 model year, their production spread out over six "batches" or groups. Part of this particular Z06's appeal can be attributed to its well-documented and intriguing backstory.
Although Reinhart placed his order on the first day of availability in 1962, his car wasn't ready in time to compete in an endurance race at Riverside, California, so he chose to watch the race with Duntov. Doug Hooper drove a new Corvette Sting Ray Z06 to the checkers that day at Riverside, but it was clear to all in attendance that Carroll Shelby's Cobra cars were a force to be reckoned with. According to Mecum Auctions, the auction house presenting this Z06 for sale in California next week, Duntov quietly commented to Reinhart at the end of the Riverside race, "The writing is on the wall." A week later, Reinhart received his Z06 and began prepping it by removing the front and rear bumpers, balancing and blueprinting the engine, installing an Isky racing cam, and replacing the stock exhaust. At Sebring in 1963, a Cobra ran away from the field; later that year, Chevrolet retracted its support of Corvette racers. Reinhart sold his Z06 at the end of the 1964 season.
- From the C/D Archives: Our Original 1963 Corvette Sting Ray Review!
- The Struggle Over the Sting Ray: The Story of Zora and Bill Mitchell's Battle
- Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Research: Prices, Photos, Reviews, Specs, Reviews, and More
Some 20 years later, Reinhart began looking for a Corvette to run in vintage events and stumbled upon his car in original but worn condition. After restoring it and then racing it for nearly two decades in historic events, the car became well-enough known on the collector-car circuit that people began referring to it as the "Paul Reinhart car." He sold it in 2000 to Susan Armstrong; it was later acquired by the current owner, who performed a meticulous restoration. Auction estimates have the bidding pegged in the $1.5- to $1.7-million range. There will surely be plenty of bidders, and it wouldn't surprise us if it brought even more.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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