At first glance, $62,900 sounds like an awfully ambitious asking price for a 2011 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport.
Then you pop the hood.
Currently offered for sale on Corvette Forum near Shreveport, Louisiana, this Velocity Yellow Grand Sport convertible has fewer than 18,000 miles, a six-speed manual transmission and 4LT equipment. But none of those things explains the price.
The explanation is the 7.0-liter 427 underneath the hood.
And this isn’t an undocumented engine swap of questionable origin.
According to the seller, Lingenfelter Performance Engineering completed the 427 conversion in July 2012, when the Corvette had just 5,190 miles. The seller says the car comes with extensive documentation, including a VIN-matched Lingenfelter Certificate of Authenticity, the original build proposal, final work order, engine specifications and dyno reports.
The naturally aspirated 427 was rated at 610 horsepower and 550 lb-ft of torque, while a Mustang dyno reportedly recorded 541 horsepower and 489 lb-ft at the rear wheels.
That’s a substantial jump from the 430-hp 6.2-liter LS3 that originally powered the Grand Sport.
The Lingenfelter work wasn’t cheap, either. According to the documentation described by the seller, the 7.0-liter conversion package alone was listed at $25,795, before additional options and extras.
Along with the 427 came a ZR1 twin-disc clutch, upgraded intake, ATI underdrive pulley, aluminum coil covers, Lingenfelter calibration and dyno tuning.
And then there’s the Corvette surrounding that engine.
Finished in Velocity Yellow Tintcoat over Ebony leather, it’s a 4LT convertible equipped with the Grand Sport Heritage Package, Magnetic Selective Ride Control, head-up display, power top, heated power seats, memory seating and Bose audio.
Most importantly for a certain breed of Corvette buyer, it’s a six-speed manual.
That combination makes this one particularly interesting. The factory C6 Grand Sport already paired the wide-body look of the Z06 with the usability of the standard Corvette. Drop a professionally built naturally aspirated 427 into it and you essentially get a different take on the formula: open-air Grand Sport cruising with big-cube, 600-plus-horsepower V8 power—and three pedals.
The seller is asking $62,900 or best offer.
Is that a lot for a 2011 Grand Sport? Absolutely.
But valuing a car like this based on ordinary C6 Grand Sport comps misses the point. Modifications normally don’t return anything close to their original cost at resale, but there’s a meaningful distinction between an undocumented modified Corvette and a low-mileage car with a period Lingenfelter conversion backed by paperwork.
The question is how much that distinction is worth to the next owner.
Source:
CorvetteForum.com
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The regular non Lingenfelter 427 convertibles sell in the mid 60s all the time around here.