Name That Corvette – Round Five

Once a year, Carlisle, Pennsylvania attracts some of the world’s most wonderful and wacky Chevrolet Corvettes to its expansive fairgrounds. In honor of the Corvettes at Carlisle festival, we’ve decided to test your knowledge of GM’s plastic fantastic sports car.

Think you know what you’re looking at? Send us your best guesses, hypotheses, or shots in the dark via the comments section below. We’ll unveil the answer (along with a new puzzle) tomorrow evening.

Did You Name Yesterday’s Vette?

Congrats to those who identified yesterday’s Vette as a 1971 Corvette 454.

Although 1968 and 1969 C3 Corvettes offered the venerable 427-cubic-inch, big-block V-8 as an option, GM pushed the envelope even further in 1970 by offering the 454 cubic-inch monster instead.

In 1971, the 454 was offered in two specifications. The LS5-code engine, which ran buyers an extra $295, churned out a solid 365 horsepower, a nice increase over 270 horsepower offered by the stock 350 cubic-inch V-8. Power junkies could also opt for the LS6-spec 454, which was rated at 425 horsepower. The cost? A whopping $1221. Seeing as the cost of the LS6 alone was nearly a fifth of the base price of a Corvette coupe, we’re not surprised that only 188 buyers opted for the LS6 engine in 1971 (in comparison, 5097 cars were built with the LS5).

Fewer yet opted for the so-called Special Purpose ZR2 package, which paired the LS6 with a close-ratio heavy-duty four-speed manual transmission, heavy-duty power brakes, race-tuned suspension, and an upgraded aluminum radiator. The package, which added an incredible $1747 to the price tag, couldn’t be paired with options like power windows, rear window defroster, air conditioning, power steering, deluxe wheelcovers, an alarm system, or any form of a radio. Only 12 were built, and most spent their lives as (what else?) racecars.