BLUBOI has always been an autocross car, but in his stock state, we could never get enough tire under him to be competitive. So, after a lot of thought and discussion, we decided to add 2 inches on either side (both front and rear) in order to fit him with 10" wheels. Don was head designer -- his major operating parameter from me was "make him look stock."
In October 1995, he was sent to Bill White's Glassworks and the project started. By April, 1996, he was declared "good enough" and returned home in a primer coat. Our painter, Tony Williams Jr. wanted to do a "couple more weeks" on the body lines (as they were still a bit wavy). In late August, 2006, after gallons of bondo on, with most of it sanded off, he was ready for paint. Tony first applied a really good primer, which over the past 10 years has proven to provide excellent chip-resistance.
We used Diamont paint in Marina Blue (his stock color), then added a wide white stripe with a narrow red stripe finishing the edges. Then a couple of weeks to put everything back together; all of those boxes of screws, bolts etc, were tossed and we made numerous trips to Corvette Clinic to buy pristine new ones (ouch, often 25 cents each for the screws). We finished putting it together the day before Corvette Spectacular, then frantically cleaned. He made his debut and was a hit, earning a perfect 100 points and Best in Show.
Date(s): July 16, 2006. Album by Cathy Gordon. 1 - 46 of 46 Total. 13370 Visits.
Gee, I don't know much about cars, but what a spectacular vehicle!!!! Have you ever visited the Covette factory and musuem in Bowling Green, Kentucky? I had the good fortune of being on a committee with the then manager a few years ago and got a tour - of course I didn't know what I was seening!!!! This one is just too groovy -------- I like your word verification. - Norma Adams, Sun, 1 Oct 2006 11:15AM
Very nice!! - Don Berger, Wed, 19 Jul 2006 10:01AM
1 BLUBOI after his changes posing in Alviso in 1996.
2 Stock car. His paint was SO bad that a brief sanding removed it.
3 Bill White widening the stock fenders by two inches, both front and rear. The hardest part was bringing back the belt line.
4 You an see the 8" wheel and the additional room being created. Bill White at work.
5 Gallons and gallons of bondo....
6
7
8
9 Notice how the belt line has a curve in it and isn't straight. Lots of work bringing this back....
10 What a mess!
11 Sanded and getting ready for primer.
12
13 Note the small block hood. Bill worked it beautifully so that all of the gaps were perfect. That year for Christmas, I got Don's high rise manifold and this hood was replaced with a 1966 big block hood. The fit was HORRIBLE and Bill had to make a lot of changes.
14 Urban Assault Vehicle....
15 Primered.
16 Belt line still needs work.
17 Inspecting. I think it is now March 1996, but we don't have the new hood on yet, so it may be earlier.
18 Back home in our garage in Cupertino. Tony Williams (our painter) told us before he could paint, the car needed a couple of weeks of finishing. He worked on it from March through August. Many, many gallons of bondo put on and sanded off.
19 More work. Notice we now have the big block hood.
20 Finally! Getting ready for paint! First a high quality primer was put on and it has been extremely effective in helping the paint resist rock chips.
21 In the paint shop.
22 Painting.
23 Home and being put back together. The stock bumpers were shaved on the inside to fit the wider fenders, then re-chromed. The new wheels are on. We had to shave the steering knuckle as it was rubbing.
24 Front. The hood was extremely difficult to paint as the tape for the red stripes kept lifting and then there was paint bleed. We got the hood the day before Corvette Spectacular.
25 Headlight rebuild.
26 The front grill was stored in the corner of the garage. I took it out to clean and polish. I was working away and noticed a spider web. Turned it over and YIKES -- that is a black widow (right next to the bracket).
27 Calendar shot by Ron Kimball (2006 Corvette calendar--December pin-up!).
28 Stock fenders -- note left side and then compare to next photo.
29 Flares. Don's design is so superb -- subtle but exactly what we wanted to accomplish. People look at the car and know something is different, but it takes them a while to figure it out.
30 David Featherstone taking photos of the engine as part of his shoot for a magazine article. Took forever for it to be published and by that time, we had replaced the motor, redone the interior, etc.
31 Top down shot taken at the Hearst Castle run.
32
33 16" x 10" Halibrand wheels in the GT40 pattern. Made by PS Engineering, one of the few places (at that time) where you could get your exact backspacing, as well as the room for the brake calipers.
34 Corvette Grand Sport....
35 Our sign showing some of the many people who worked on the car.
36 Taking the new motor to the dyno shop.
37
38 Hooked up to the dyno machine.
39 Carefully being lowered into the engine compartment.
