Last weekend I was helping a friend reshingle the roof on his garage. While we were on the roof I heard a tough-sounding V8 fire-up out at the road. It had a pretty lumpy cam in it; the driver kept stabbing the gas to keep the engine running until it warmed-up enough to idle. Then he backed it out of the garage and parked it on the street.
It was the neighbour Gil across the street and his 1978 Corvette Silver Anniversary edition. Naturally, I went to take a closer look next time we took a break.
1978 was the year that the Corvette exchanged its notchback rear for the large glassback window. This relatively inexpensive make-over really changed the look of the car.
Gil’s example is fairly rare with the 4-speed stick. Out of total production of 46,776 in 1978, there were 8162 Corvettes with 4-speed manual transmissions, or 17.4% of the total. If that ratio holds true, then out of a total of 15,283 Silver Anniversary ‘Vettes, this is one of about 2667 with the stick.
Gil has owned his ‘Vette for about 20 years. It’s been thoroughly restored. Gil says he did most of the work himself, including repainting the car in his garage. He says he installed a Crane cam in the 350, but he can’t remember the exact grind.
He briefly mentioned how these cars have gone up in value, but readily conceded the point that it still wouldn’t make sense as an investment if a price was put on his time. “This car is my toy.”
We had a job to do, so I didn’t pester Gil to open the hood, though I’m sure he would have been happy to if I had asked. If he’s kept the stock appearance, it would have looked like this.
While we were over, Gil donated some spare roofing materials that he had lying around in his garage. At 65 years old, he said he’s done his last roof, so he won’t be needing them.
Pretty car. Every neighborhood is made all the better if one of the homeowners has a classic Corvette sitting in the garage. For many, many years I never could take to the rear fastback glass on the Corvette, but it was a smart move for Chevy as it kept the car selling well during this time frame for a car that had already made it’s first appearance in 1968. It was a styling feature that survived on the Corvette from 78 to 2013. Not bad.
Not sure, but I imagine the budget did not allow both the bubbleback glass AND a lift back hatch. 1982, the last year of the fabled Mako Shark design, did feature this practical component.
This Corvette appears to have the L82 V8, which is basically a somewhat close brother to the famous LT-1 engine, minus, the solid lifter cam and a slightly lower compression ratio to burn lower octane unleaded. One of GM’s all time greatest engines.
I wonder if Gil installed true dual exhaust with dual catalytic convertors, to better “free up” the breathing of that beautiful car. Great find!
That hatch thing was one of the more ironic parts of the 78 redo. GM was flush with cash-as successful as it ever was-but it didn’t have enough cash to make the glass into a hatch. Doesn’t sound right. More likely, they just didn’t care.
Also, I’m noticing the very basic parts-bin interior door trim (door handle, etc.) with parts obviously shared with the Chevette, Monza and Camaro.
I would also not accept an excuse from 1970s GM that the budget wouldn’t allow for a hatch. The bubble window screams out for a lift-up! If the General was too cheap to make it standard equipment it should at least have been available as an option right from its year of introduction. The Corvette was selling huge numbers at that time, with 1979 being the best year ever.
A couple of years ago I was unseriously toying with the idea of a Disco ‘Vette of this era off Craigslist, which had a couple that were actually in my price range (i.e. disaster-areas with one foot in the grave). I looked into how feasible a project it would be to make a 1978-81 rear window open and close like the too-little-too-late 1982; and ALL the enthusiast sites agreed that, “Unless you want to spend absolutely stupid money, like several thousands, converting that thing to a usable, non-leaking hatch is just not doable, so just forget it and learn to live with the fixed glass.”
But then, these were the same nickel-and-diming killjoys at The World’s Biggest Corporation [TM] who a few years prior had stopped making the rear window on the flying-buttress C3 removable; a pointlessly sadistic decision that took some of the fun out of the car (with T-tops off and the back glass out, even the coupes were virtually convertibles) so the accountants could claim to have saved the company, what, maybe a couple of lousy dollars per vehicle in little plastic clamps? That is not cost-reduction, that is contempt for the customer.
Even worse, the air conditioning controls are out of a Chevette. A Chevette!
I know there are a lot of folks who dislike the disco-era Vettes, but about a decade ago I bought a ’79 with L82 engine and glass t-tops. After I upgraded to a 4-speed auto, better cylinder heads (self-installed!) and some other miscellaneous upgrades, it was an awesome car! The only problem with owning this car was the perception amongst a few late-model Corvette owners that I was somehow driving a second-class vehicle. That’s part of the reason I ended up selling it. Folks who think that owning “status symbols” somehow gives them social status are a wee bit confused, methinks…
I wouldn’t care what the late model Corvette owners thought. I get really tired of seeing late-model Vettes at cruise nights and car shows. I’m there to see old cars, not stuff still available in showrooms.
Thankfully, most car shows, like the one I attended today, separate the late model cars with separate classes, even Top 25. With the revival of the Camaro and Challenger, plus the other various performance cars, they don’t compete with the older cars. Yes I don’t want to see current stock vehicles at car shows, but the ones that I saw today had all been modified which made them interesting to look at.
Love this car. Would love to have one in red.
I remember these cars well. My Dad worked at the local Chev-Olds emporium in ’78 and I had a summer job helping out in the shop. The dealership was big enough that they probably moved 6 or 7 ‘Vettes a year in normal times. I’ll bet they sold a dozen that year including a number of L-82 4 speed units. Every single one of them with the special 2 tone silver/charcoal paint came straight off the car carrier and into the body shop for a warranty paint job. I don’t remember why, but the painter was a master and the cars looked spectacular when they were done. I’ve never heard anything about this practice elsewhere so I’m not sure if it was widespread.
I still have most of the ’78 Corvette dealer promotional material including some brochures that I grabbed when the ’79s came out and they cleaned out the showroom.
Now I’ll have to see if I can find that stuff…..
Loved this car…Was a senior in high school when this came out. The Corvette was still fast. With the L82, it put out 225 hp and according to Road & Track did 0-60 in 6,8 seconds…the same as Porsche 911.
In addition to the bubble back, the corvette got new gauges…no longer in pods.
Loved the 2 tone paint also
The closest one to me is several blocks away in white we hear it fire from my bros place though not a 78 its a 70s Stingray in that awesome shape I must shoot it for the cohort though I genera;;y avoid late US cars I mean its not like you guys dont see plenty anyway. but yeah I’d take one.
Ok slightly different, the store my dad ran sold Chevys Bedfords and Vauxhalls mainly other GM stuff by order. To celebrate the silver anniversary of Vauxhalls GM NZ gave every dealership a thin blue book 50 years of Vauxhall 1 copy each I have Rodney Motors copy and the accompanying letter from the general manager appologising for being unable to obtain more copies. The was no special silver painted EIP Vauxhall Velox or Wyvern that year though it did gain an aligator bonnet and 23 rated horsepower for the Velox 2.2 litre. (Ok Paul a scanner I know.)
I will probably get some hate for this, but if I am going to get a C3 Vette, at least one made after 1974, I would get a 1982 model. I WANT the CFI injection, the one year only overdrive transmission, electric cooling fan, the Daytona style front and rear ends, the hatch, the fiberglass transverse leaf spring, lock up torque converter, and of course the 1982s were all built in Bowling Green. All Bowling Green cars used base/clear paint with a selection of two tones available. I do like the Collectors but they are too pricey to drive regular.
http://corvette.mymanycousins.com/
No hate mail, nothing wrong with knowing what you like and driving it. I happen to like the C4 the best even though they are looked down on by Vette fans.
But late C3 Vettes are not too expensive to drive, they are among the cheapest ones to buy, even the anniversary editions. You can find them all day long in the teens, still in excellent condition.
I miss the classic wheels. Too many sports cars today have some variation of the 5-spoke or 7-spoke.
No hate here. Although Corvette purists would certainly send me straight to hell if they knew the swap I’ve concocted in my head: out goes the mouse, in goes a Miami V8 + TR6060, in a C3.
+1 on the C4.
And for the record, I am a Corvette fan.
Nice ‘Vette. I like the rear glass on those, and as you said, it completely changed the look of the car. Every series of Corvette has something unique about it, and I’ve always found something to like about all of them. My favorite is still the ’63 split window, and I see a silver one around our neighborhood once in a while. My brother-in-law is currently restoring an ’84, complete with a new frame…and I’m getting a ride by hook or by crook once it’s back on the road.
I like these cars better than I did years ago. It is always great when you stumble upon an unexpected old hobby car.
Had a 75 ragtop, 350, 4 spd. It was burnt orange. Loved it but the kid quit fitting behind the seats in the luggage hole. I know I’d get locked up and have the key thrown away if I did that today but that was a common thing in the eighties and a pretty comfortable fit. He didn’t get too old before he outgrew the Vette (4?) and we joined the legions of folks who drove an Olds Cutlass. 82 model IIRC.
We should never have bought that vette but I did like it a lot. I never ran across much that was faster.