Ric Ferrera has a collection of exotic sports cars and hot rods, but he’s long had a soft spot for Corvettes, an affinity he traces back to when his favorite junior-high-school teacher sported around in a ’59 and a ’60. That teacher tragically passed away at an early age, and Ferrera decided to have a Corvette built as a tribute to his mentor. “I also had two other Corvettes that I loved,” he says, “a 1966 and a 1968 427.”
After an exhaustive Internet search, Ferrera selected Carr Campbell at Carr’s Corvettes and Customs (CCC) to build a restomod for him. “I wanted it to look as original as we could, but with modern running gear,” he says. “I found Carr by searching online for modified Corvettes and called him up. I had no doubt he was the guy to do the car.”
The distance between Ferrera in Kirkland, Washington, and Campbell in Plano, Texas, wasn’t a problem. “We didn’t even meet face to face until last year,” relates Ferrera. “Then it was like we were long-lost brothers.”
A dressed-up LS376 crate engine generates around 500 hp, while 18-inch rolling stock and a customized nine-inch rear end help deliver it to the ground.
But the one thing he didn’t want to change was the car’s Crown Sapphire paint. “I loved that color, and was intending to paint whatever car we found in [it]. When we discovered that the Corvette that Carr found was originally that color, I knew I was intended to have it.”
Ferrera wanted a fast, but drivable, C1, so the chassis was replaced with an Art Morrison GT Sports Chassis mounting C6 front suspension and a triangulated, four-bar Strange/Ford 9-inch rear axle. The chassis was set up for street use, with 350-pound front springs and 170-pound rears installed in Strange coil-over shock units. Wilwood Dynalite C6 14-inch front brakes team up with 12.19-inch rear rotors by the same company, while an ABS Power Brake master cylinder and booster provide a modern pedal feel. Finally, the primitive C1 steering system was swapped out for a Detroit Speed and Engineering power rack-and-pinion setup.
A dressed-up LS376 crate engine generates around 500 hp, while 18-inch rolling stock and a customized nine-inch rear end help deliver it to the ground.
Under the hood sits a Chevrolet Performance Parts LS376 crate motor packing a dyno-verified 417 rear-wheel horsepower (just under 500 at the crank). Features of this LS3-based, 376-cube engine include a six-bolt aluminum block with a nodular crank, high-performance rods and 10.7:1-compression pistons. It also sports a much more aggressive cam than the standard LS3 crate engine, which delivers some 50 fewer horses. Although the extra power is there when you need it, it doesn’t hurt the motor’s flexibility at street speeds. GM even made the electronic accelerator assembly that allows the fuel injection to work in aftermarket applications. (CCC did modify it to match the Lokar brake and clutch pedals.)
This thoroughly modern engine boasts a suitably retro look, thanks to CCC’s classic Corvette-style valve covers concealing the coils and wiring. A Street & Performance chrome serpentine system also helps clean up the underhood area, while a DeWitts conversion aluminum radiator and SPAL 16-inch, aluminum-shrouded electric fan keep the hard-charging LS cool in any driving environment. A Tremec TKO-600 five-speed supplied by Silver Sport Transmissions is charged with gear selection.
A dressed-up LS376 crate engine generates around 500 hp, while 18-inch rolling stock and a customized nine-inch rear end help deliver it to the ground.
The interior had to be as stunning as the outside, so CCC installed turquoise leather upholstery from Al Knoch Interiors. Knoch also supplied a set of its perforated-leather AOK seats, which are designed to retain the feel of the original buckets while providing more seating area and a greater recline angle. The rest of the cabin was upholstered by CCC using repro ’59 turquoise leather, also from Knoch, while the matching molded carpet was sourced from Auto Custom Carpets. The trunk “finish out” is a custom treatment unique to the car.
The original C1 instrument cluster was retained but restored, and the tach and oil-pressure gauges were upgraded to electric operation. Other deceptively retro-look additions include a Classic Auto Air HVAC system, an Ididit steering column and a Gabe’s CON2R wheel. The latter is a bolton item that preserves the classic C1 styling, but in a smaller diameter that improves ingress/egress as well as maneuverability. The finishing touch is a Retro Sound radio whose OEM pushbutton looks hide inputs for modern electronics. “I doubt I will ever turn it on,” admits Ferrera. “The engine just sounds too good!”
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
One look at the car in “as discovered” form and it’s clear that this was no typical restomod project. Jettisoning the rusty stock frame for an Art Morrison setup provided a suitably modern foundation, to which builder Carr Campbell bolted a tweaked LS3, a five-speed trans and manhole-sized Wilwood brakes. A high-sheen take on the original Crown Sapphire paint keeps the look firmly anchored in the ’50s, even if the car’s performance is more in line wih that of a C7.
