Ever since its inception in 1953, the Corvette has had a certain mystique for the car buff. For over fifty years, it has retained its two-seater, sports car form and that makes it unique in American auto lore and a dream car for many. Although Vic R. was not really in the market for one when his son found a ‘65 Vette roadster listed for sale in the paper in 1982, it did not take a lot to persuade him to check it out. He felt like walking away. It looked like the red paint had been applied with a brush and the interior door panels were pieces of vinyl-covered plywood. On the test drive, he found the fuel-injected engine was very tired and it needed brakes. Still, the price was reasonable and he saw its potential. And it was a Vette. So he bit.

After a frame-off (removing the body from the frame) restoration, it now runs and drives very well. The rebuild included going through the Muncie four-speed trans, rebuilding the 327 CID engine and adding a new stainless-steel brake system. The 3.08:1 rear end gives it long legs and good mileage for trips. Although he has not driven it any long distances, having put only 10,000 miles on it since the restoration, he and wife Mimi do enjoy taking it on runs with the Roamin Angels to places like Carmel. Although she refuses to drive it, she does like Vic’s Vette. After all, it’s the American Dream.

This ‘65 Vette had minor styling changes from 1964, but the biggest improvement was four-wheel disc brakes. Since the car was designed for the small block, the weight distribution always gave the small block the handling edge over the big block engines.

1965 was the end of an era, the last of the mechanically fuel-injected Corvette engines. Although this small block put out 375 HP, the high-torque, head-snapping big blocks supplanted them as the top-dogs in the Corvette line.

Story & photos by Ron C. © 2007