Keeping a dream alive is often more serious than most people realize. It’s dreams that eventually lead to gold medals and historic monuments and this is the kind of dream that race car enthusiasts are well informed to take notice of. In the world of replicas, these cars aren’t always given a fair shake but the 1963 Corvette Grand Sport Replicas certainly deserve a bit more attention tha people might give. These cars incorporate details taken directly from the originals and the history behind the Grand Sport should tell you that this is nothing to shake a stick at.
In the early 1960's Carroll Shelby's Cobras were the dominant American sports car but it was the Corvette that was just starting to impress everyone in racing. At the time, the Cobra was a lot lighter than the Corvette and consistently beat it but a particular Vette was being developed that promised to soon end Shelby's dominance. This is what actually became the legendary ’63 Corvette.
That year, Chevrolet launched a plan of building 125 Grand Sport Cars which did eventually qualify as a GT production car under international racing rules. GM, however, officially stopped the program on the 125 cars so that only five of them had been completed. Sometimes the difference between dream and reality is only a few car lengths and this was the case for the ’63 Vette. These five cars became priceless race cars etched into the history of racecar enthusiast’s dreams.
Although Le Mans 1963 was supposed to be the Grand Sport's debut in Europe, the cancellation of those requisite 125 cars had left Chevrolet without the glory but the reality and the guts had still been placed squarely under the hood of those five remaining cars. It is difficult to access their value, but it is believed they are insured for more than $5,000,000 each.
Now, thanks to Mongoose Motorsports and Grand Sport Vettes, a dreamer can own a beautiful recreation of this piece of Corvette history and know that it’s as close to the real thing as anything else on the planet. As you cruise down the boulevard in one of these spectacular dream cars, others can only wish at what might have been but you will know the reality that exists for you.
