Here is first full episode of the season-long Corvette Racing video series offering viewers an inside look at the team’s competitive nature and how they prepare to take to the track. With a little over a week until the ALMS season-opener at the 12 hours of Sebring, key members from Corvette Racing recap last year’s finish and share what awaits them in 2010.

Bondurant School of High Performance Driving
Source:
Chevrolet's YouTube Channel
Related:
[VIDEO] Corvette Racing Launches 2010 Season Video Series
Gavin Narrates a Hot Lap of Sebring in the GT Corvette C6.R
[PICS] Official Photos of the Corvette Racing C6.Rs at Sebring Test
As we gear up for the 12 hours of Sebring, we've been hearing a lot from the folks at Corvette Racing about the benefits that racing brings to the production Corvettes. Chevy brings this prominent theme of track-to-street technology transfer a full circle with the announcement of a special Z06 that is born from the lessons learned in racing. Meet the 2011 Corvette Z06 Carbon Limited Edition.

Bondurant School of High Performance Driving
Source:
ALMS Offical Videos on YouTube
Related:
Corvette Racing: Doug Fehan Q & A
This poor guy was trying to save his C4 Corvette from a flooded barn. In the process of "yahooing the Corvette through the lake" he hydro-locked the engine. Comments from the camera lady range from "You got sooo close" to "Mike, are those your work shoes?"
Source:
Tampa Sports Car Examiner
Related:
[VIDEO] This Corvette Is NOT a Highly Maneuverable Ship
Automotive News reported that 10 GM studios across the globe have submitted designs for the next generation Corvette. GM's VP of Global Design Ed Welburn says of the designs submitted, some "were absolutely phenomenal". Welburn suggests the global initiative is part of an effort by GM to create a C7 that appeals to both buyers in Europe, where Corvette sales has gotten little traction, and to a younger US buyers, who tend to favor imports.
Thousands of people each year come to the Chevrolet Corvette Plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky & the nearby Corvette National Museum to get an inside look at the great American sports car.
Corvette owners can actually watch their vehicle in the process of being built and document its progress as it moves along the line. In many cases, the new owner can actually be the very first person to start it up!
Corvettes = Pride. From the company to the assembly workers to the owners taking delivery. This is where quality starts.
Source:
Chevrolet's YouTube Channel
Related:
[VIDEO] Corvette Racing Launches 2010 Season Video Series
[VIDEO] Corvette Engine Building Video Shows Owner/Builder Interaction
Is beauty skin deep or is it what's inside that counts? K. Scott Teeters plays Corvette Oddball with renowned Corvette restorer Kevin Mackay of Corvette Repair. In addition to his award-winning classic Corvette restorations, Mackay has a fleet of special display cars including a drivable 1967 Corvette chassis.
- Spring Corvette Event at Watkins Glen
Specially guided tours, pace laps and a world record attempt for most Corvettes on a race track. April 24-25, 2010.
- How a Corvette C6.R comes to life: Autoblog Tours Pratt & Miller
- Virtual Corvette Racing Through the Years
Friend and frequent commentor Chris Draper has been spending quite a bit of time on Forza 3. Check out his homage to Corvette racers throughout the years on Bad Boy Vettes.
In our final installment of our analysis of the 2009 Corvette market, we present an overview of the Corvette values by generation as documented by our Corvette pricing guru Bob Kroupa of VETTE-N-VESTMENTS.
The Mobil One 12 Hours of Sebring is huge in the world of sport car racing and GM has used the event in recent years to leverage the media and enthusiasts gathered in Central Florida to showcase new products. Just last year we witnessed the public debuts of both the 2009 ALMS GT1 Championship and Competition Sport Editions.
With the successful launch of the Grand Sports for the 2010 model year, I figured there was no way Chevy would be doing a Special Edition Corvette this spring, let alone bringing one to Sebring. But then I received an email from Chevy public relations inviting me to Sebring to witness the following:
Tadge Juechter, Corvette Chief Engineer, and Harlan Charles, Corvette Product Manager, will unveil a new limited edition Z06 variant in the Corvette Corral on Friday, March 19.
As Corvette Racing gears up for the start of the 2010 American Le Mans Series, the team is releasing additional details regarding the changes needed for competing in the now unified GT class. The most notable change for the GT Corvettes is the new LS5.5R V8 engine. Built alongside its LS9, LS7 and LS3 dry-sump brethrens at the Performance Build Center in Wixom, this new LS7 based engine is slimmed down to 5.5 liters and delivers 485 horsepower at 5800 rpms.
In previous years, we were able to break up our annual market analysis into two top 10 lists of Corvettes that were appreciating and those that were depreciating. But 2009 wasn't kind to Corvette values and the days of double-digit growth appear to have gone by the wayside for the foreseeable future. Our Corvette Values expert Bob Kroupa of VETTE-N-VESTMENTS takes us through the numbers, so grab a tissue and gird your loins before clicking the "more" button because it ain't pretty.
I got an email today from Corvette Racing announcing they are starting a video series to document the team through the 2010 American Le Mans Series and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The preview video as you will see is very well-done and now I am even more fired up for the first race of the season later this month at Sebring.
Members of Corvette Racing share their passion for racing and what it means to represent Corvette in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS). Featured in the video are Mark Kent, manager, GM Racing, Gary Pratt, chief engineer and co-founder of Pratt & Miller engineering, and Doug Fehan, program manager, Corvette Racing. This is a preview of what to expect from the Corvette Racing Team as they document the ALMS season in their upcoming video series.

Bondurant School of High Performance Driving
Source:
Chevrolet's YouTube Channel
Related:
Gavin Narrates a Hot Lap of Sebring in the GT Corvette C6.R
[PICS] Official Photos of the Corvette Racing C6.Rs at Sebring Test
Talking with many longtime Corvette collectors and dealers, there is one thing we can finally all agree on: This market sucks for Corvette values. Like the banking, housing and automotive sectors, the effects of this stagnant economy have finally permeated down to the collector car market which includes Corvettes. But for buyers (and we know you are out there) there couldn't be a better time to make that purchase than right now. But you need tools and research to make an informed buying decision and so we are pleased to announce the availability of the 2010 Corvette Pricing Guide.
Corvette sales hit a new low last month with just 624 Corvettes delivered during February 2010. That's a decline of -39% from February 2009's 1,027 sales figure and -26.9% off of January 2010's 854 deliveries. A shortened selling period of 24 days combined with several winter storms that blanketed much of the country is to blame for the decline.
So what does the Chevrolet Corvette and movie star Marilyn Monroe have in common? Seductive, voluptuous, hot, fast and sexy is how Paul Niedermeyer from The Truth About Cars describes both of these American icons. There are other comparisons as well including how both started from humble beginnings and then went on to capture the hearts of Americans and world. You owe it to yourself to check out this great read, however, keep in mind that some of the images are Not Safe For Work (NSFW)!
From the comments section comes one of the best quotes about Corvettes I have read in along time:
Every man should own a ‘Vette during his lifetime, however briefly. It will then become the benchmark for comparison for every other car he drives for the rest of his life...
The Truth About Cars: Curbside Classic: 1962 Corvette – The Marilyn Monroe Of Cars
Related:
1962 Custom Corvette Named Street Machine of the Year
Tanner Faust, host of SPEED's Supercars Exposed, heads to Pepple Beach where he has the unique opportunity to drive both the very first Porsche and the very first Corvette ever built. The Motorama Corvette, dubbed EX-122 by GM Engineering, features an upgraded 283 V8 which the car received when it was being used as a test mule.
Here is a video of the new 5.5L GT Corvette C6.R running a hot lap around Sebring International Raceway during the teams recent practice session. Our friends at Bad Boy Vettes hooked up with driver Oliver Gavin to give us an inside look at what the driver is seeing and doing as he makes his way around the historic and very bumpy 3.7 mile 17-turn road course. OG makes it sound easy but try doing this for 12 hours with a full field of competitors. At least the drivers have something to look forward to as they round Turn 10!

Bondurant School of High Performance Driving
Source:
Bad Boy Vettes
Related:
My Hot Lap Around Sebring in a 2009 Competition Sport Corvette
Retired 4-Star US Army General Richard Cody, former commander of the 101st Airborne and Army Vice Chief of Staff, recently toured the Bowling Green Assembly Plant where the Corvette is assembled. Cody was in town to pick up his new 2010 Grand Sport Convertible and took delivery of the Torch Red sports car at the National Corvette Museum across the street. The visit allowed the General to meet and greet the people responsible for building the new Corvette, many of whom are veterans themselves.
Related: NASCAR's Hendricks Team Perk: Corvette ZR1s for Everyone!
Texas legend Delmo Johnson is one of the pioneers of Corvette road racing with a career that goes back to the early days. His lengthy list of significant Corvette racers he has piloted include Grand Sports #003 and #004 and C1 and C2 Corvettes raced under the Gulf Oil banner. In the early 1990's, after many years in retirement, some friends encouraged him to come out and race one more time and this 1968/74 Corvette was his ride.
The Corvette Racing team was recently in Central Florida for a private test at Sebring International Raceway. During the session, these official photos were taken. My favorite of the set is the one I posted above with Johnny O'Connell behind the wheel of a Jetstream Blue ZR1 flanked by the two Corvette C6.Rs. We also get a chance to see new driver Manu Collard wearing the Crossed Flags for the first time too!
Last week we brought you the news about the 36-car Corvette collection belonging to artist Peter Max being moved out of a former Daily News printing plant in Brooklyn. But where did the Vettes go? Luckily, a DigitalCorvettes.com member was in the right place in the right time and another member was able to get these pictures showing what appears to be another "several year stop" for the collection.

Evolutionary instead of revolutionary. Comments?
Source:
BadBoyVettes.com
Related:
Collard Joins Corvette Racing as Endurance Driver in the #4 C6.R
Corvette Racing Receives GT2 Invites to the 24 Hours of Le Mans




































