The Corvette has been produced for over 60 years, with dozens of variations and special editions in that time. While some rare models never saw the light of day, others were available in limited quantities and instantly became highly sought after collectibles. Below are ten of the rarest and most coveted Corvettes ever produced – all representing the best of America’s sports car in its many forms.
1) 1963 Corvette Grand Sport
The 1963 Corvette Grand Sport is one of the rarest and most covetied Corvettes ever built. The only time a Grand Sport has been auctioned off, it sold for $2.8 million dollars in August 1987. The car was originally painted red, but now it is all white with black stripes to represent American racing colors. It has a 327 cubic inch engine that can achieve up to 400 horsepower.
2) 1967 Corvette L88
The 1967 Corvette L88 was released in limited numbers to only a few dealerships. The L88 was powered by a 427 cu. in. engine, which produced an impressive 425 horsepower at 5800 rpm, along with 490 lb-ft of torque at 4200 rpm. It’s speculated that there are less than 10 surviving examples of this rare classic car.
3) 1970 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
On December 19th, 2010, a 1970 Corvette ZR1 was sold for $825,000.00 at Barrett-Jackson’s annual Scottsdale Auction. It is the most expensive Corvette ever to be sold at auction. This car has a 427 cubic inch engine that can produce 600 horsepower, making it one of the fastest production cars in history.
It also features four-wheel disc brakes and chrome billet wheels.
The only other ZR1 known to exist is one on display at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
4) 1972 Corvette LT-1 Convertible
1972 Corvette LT-1 Convertible. This stunning example is a true survivor, with just 27,000 original miles. It’s in excellent condition from top to bottom and it runs as strong as it looks. Finished in bright red over black leather, with power steering, power brakes, automatic transmission, tilt/telescopic steering column, AM/FM stereo radio with 8-track player and rear speaker louvers.
5) 1973 Corvette Stingray
1973 Corvette Stingray
The 1973 Corvette Stingray is one of the most coveted corvettes ever built. With a black exterior paint job, blue racing stripes, and an interior with red leather seats, this car is truly a work of art. The 1973 Corvette Stingray has only been produced for two years, making it one of the rarest cars in existence. In order to purchase this car you would have to shell out $22,000-$35,000 USD on average.
6) 1978 Corvette Pace Car
The 1978 Corvette Pace Car is one of the rarest cars ever produced. This Corvette was a pace car for the Indianapolis 500 in 1978. The car only has 2,000 miles on it and has never been driven by anyone other than General Motors test drivers. This is an original paint car which retains its original window sticker price.
7) 1967 Corvette L89
The 1967 Corvette L89 was not a regular production model. To date, only three are known to exist in the world, making it one of the rarest Corvettes ever built. The L89 was part of a secret group that Chevrolet created for racing purposes. This group consisted solely of ZL1 Camaros, Super Sports (SS) 427s, and L89s.
8) 1971 Corvette ZR2
The 1971 Corvette ZR2 option was a one-year-plus production that has become increasingly rare and expensive with time. The Z in the designation is for Zora, which is a nickname for Chevrolet engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, who had designed the 1963 Grand Sport Corvette. The R stands for Road racing, while the 2 signifies a higher performance level.
9) 1969 Corvette ZL1
The 1969 Corvette ZL1 was a special edition model that was equipped with a 454 cubic inch V8 engine. The car had an estimated top speed of 165 mph. It is considered to be one of the rarest and most coveted corvettes ever built.
10) 1983 Chevrolet Corvette C4
This is one of the rarest Corvette ever built, with only 4,650 models produced. The 1983 Corvette C4 was designed to be fuel efficient, so it featured a fuel-injected engine that also offered better performance than previous models. The sleek design was meant to give off a more aggressive look, while maintaining its classic American sports car appeal. It also features a removable roof panel in case you want to enjoy some sunshine on those long drives.
