Mrs. Harley J. Earl’s 1963 Corvette to be Offered at Mecum Kissimmee

Most Corvette enthusiasts are probably aware of the 1963 Corvette built for GM’s design boss Harley Earl. The blue roadster has traded hands a couple of times in recent years most recently selling for $1.5 million in October 2013. But did you know that GM also built a special car at the same time for his wife, Sue? The pink 1963 coupe hasn’t been seen in nearly 40 years, and it’s being sold at Mecum Kissimmee sale later this month.

For years the car was known to have been built, but it avoided the public eye – until now. The modifications to Sue’s 1963 327/300 coupe were performed under Shop Order 10324 which is right after Harley’s roadster which was constructed under Shop Order 10323. The 10324 Shop Order number was found on the paper vapor barrier behind the driver’s door panel.

The car spent its early life in Florida where the Earls retired. The pink hue was intended to coordinate with their home there. They owned the car until 1965 when it was sold to the 2nd owners. In 1970 the car changed hands again and stayed with the 3rd owners until 1976. In October of that year Joe Cifarelli noticed the car at the then current owner’s home. He decided to stop to check out the car and speak with its owner. Less than 10 minutes later he owned it. Cifarelli drove the car a couple of times and then parked it – for 37 years. Recently, the car was spruced up by Mike and Martin Denapole to prepare it for sale.

Today the odometer reads just 27,457 miles since new. Like most special order GM cars the pink 1963 has a number of unique styling features including an Impala rear view mirror, a dual circuit master cylinder, and 4-wheel disc brakes. In addition, the famous split window was replaced with a later style one piece rear window. In 1964, the car received a several 1965 model year add-ons including knock-off wheels, hood, front fenders, grille, gauges, clock, radio, and center console. The list of styling features goes on and on and features 1964 B-pillar vents, a “Stingray” badge on the rear deck, pink leather and interior bits, a white plastic steering wheel as well as many other specialized items. “Normal” 1963 items on the car include the 327/300 motor, automatic transmission, power windows, steering and brakes as well as air conditioning.

Today the car is documented with complete owner history and the bill of sale showing that it once belonged to the Chevrolet Motor Division Engineering Center.

Cars like these are very unique in their own way. Each styling car tells its own story and we’ll see what Sue Earl’s pink 1963 Corvette sells for in just a couple of weeks. Mecum estimates it’ll go for $500,000 – $750,000. Back in 2010 Florence Knudsen’s 1964 pink coupe hammered for $280,000. Based on that we think that if this car sells it will be closer to $500k than $750k, but the market has improved vastly in the last 3 years. Lot S153 will cross the Mecum auction block around 3:15pm on Saturday, January 25th in Kissimmee, Florida.

Source:
Mecum Auctions

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Harley Earl’s Personal Corvette – Another World’s Record in the Making?
[VIDEO] The 1963 Harley J. Earl Corvette Sells for $1.5 Million at Mecum Chicago
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