If someone has never been without a Corvette in his garage since his late teens, he would not only qualify as a “Vette guy,” but a “Vette fanatic.” Such is the case with Bart R. Bart is one of those rare few who have been awarded “Friend of the Angels” status for his contribution to the club’s scholarship and youth programs as well as recently sponsoring the club at the NASCAR race in Roseville. But Bart qualifies for regular membership as well, due to the ‘67 Vette roadster he owns. And what a Vette it is, equipped with the fire-breathing L71 427 CID, 435 HP engine mated to a Muncie M21 close-ratio four-speed trans. The low 3.90:1 rear end sends plenty of torque to the ground, rumbling through the factory side pipes. This Vette Bart bought about a year ago, bidding by phone at the Mecum auction in Bloomington, IL. He did it because it has the rare combination of the L71 engine with power steering, brakes and windows. While this type of bidding is not recommended for the faint-of-heart or the amateur Corvette buyer, Bart is neither. He remembers when his neighbor’s boyfriend drove up in a new ‘63 Vette. He almost had to be pulled off the car. He was in ninth grade. During high school, he and his friends would swap cars and he drove some Vettes then. After high school, he bought his first Vette and has never tried to kick the fiberglass habit since. The ones he remembers owning are a ‘60, a ‘64, a ‘65 with a 396, a 69 with a 427CID/427HP that he bought new and only recently sold, an ‘84 once owned by Chuck Yeager, an ‘05 and an ‘06 Z06. There may be more, but he knows he always had at least one of America’s Sports Cars. He currently owns this ‘67 as well as an ‘86 Pace Car on loan to the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, KY, and an “08 Z06. Yes, Bart is the Vette guy’s Vette guy. And he drives them all. Why Vettes rather than Porsches or some other import? He finds that he fits better in them than most other comparable performance sports cars and they are more comfortable to drive. Plus he feels that Vettes have the best performance, best handling and best resale value of cars in their category. Sure, you could get a faster Ferrari, but what would you pay for it? 250-300 thou? For Bart, there is no real debate. And that makes him a real Vette guy.

BTW The writer of this article agrees with Bart completely.

This ‘67 is in original Nassau blue with a blue interior. The turbine- type wheels were an option. This was the last year for the model known as Mid-year or C-2 (second Corvette body style).

The triangle air cleaner on top signifies the legendary big-block tri-power engine below.

Everything is stock, down to the optional AM/FM radio. Bart says the radio isn’t that great, sound-wise. However, in a big-block roadster with side pipes, it can’t be heard anyway.

Ron Cherry © 2010