A Monthly Publication of The Indian River Corvette Club July, 2010 Vol. 10 No. 7 FROM THE PREZ GM launches Corvette ads on television, first in 5 years CARNAL CARMA By RUPAL PAREKH, ADVERTISING AGE Has the entire WITH VIDEO -- The first work from Goodby, Silverstein & Partners' new client, world devolved to General Motors' Chevrolet, is out, and it's a testosterone-filled, 45-second TV the basest level? spot for the 2011 Corvette. Lindsay, Mel, Casey, Titled "Still Building Rockets," the commercial shows footage of rocket ABCCBSCNNMX scientists juxtaposed with snapshots of GM plant workers building a Corvette. NBC ETC,.ETC, all A voice-over says: "While time has marched on and priorities have changed, keep proving it has. it's nice to know America still builds rockets," right before cutting to a white There is no escape. Television, Corvette whipping through country roads. Sirius, Newsweek, the web and all the other media fill our heads with The ad closes by saying, "The 2011 Corvette, only from Chevrolet" (in line with crap. the automaker's new rule about how to refer to the brand, although viewers are directed to visit Chevy.com). But CARMA offers relief. Ignore all this detrimental mental trash and get "There's been a love affair with the your information in a form that will Corvette that goes back to the '50s, fortify you and save time. Read and we want to regenerate that and bumper stickers and you will find all reconnect people with the handmade you need to know is there. Do not nature of the car," Jeff Goodby, co- think, just read and we will save chairman of San Francisco-based postage, paper, bits, bites and Goodby told Advertising Age, an thought. So, as you drive around affiliate of AutoWeek. At the same time, read, read, read. the agency wanted to highlight the In fact to prove this theory read the car's "terrifically powerful" engine. "We make such things here in America, and following spotted on a car in our town: that's great." THE WAGES OF SIN ARE The release of the spot was timed with the launch of a program that lets buyers UNREPORTED. of a 2011 Corvette Z06 or ZR1 opt to build the engine of their car at GM's Performance Build Center in Michigan, and then watch as their vehicle is built Been to Jersey, and seen the and rolls off the assembly line in Bowling Green, Ky. boardwalk. Glad to be home and hope to see you at the Mystery "That's in keeping with the way sports cars in Europe treat their customers, that Dinner Ride. you can get that intimate with the car," Goodby said. Grand Sportingly yours, Watch the Corvette commerical: ,ZoRo Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJW9Up0nJT4&feature=player_embedded ps. If you look like your passport picture, you definitely need the trip. MEMBER BIRTHDAYS Elections Coming - Birthdays for July Officers Needed! David Ancil July 16 Harry Fallon July 26 We are a club that runs itself. But, we Jim Gallagher July 26 do need officers to blame things on or Dr. Allan Erde July 30 spread rumors about. We have four Jim Hunt July 30 elected officers; President, Vice Eva Sandlin July 31 President, Treasurer, and Secretary, Cheryl Casano July 31 plus four appointed officers, Activities Birthdays for August Director(s), Newsletter Editor, Web Ann Peabody August 6 Is our source for club Master, and Historian. The out-going Rich Steinbach August 13 embroidering. You can choose President serves as the Officer-at- Susan Steinbach August 26 Diane Marlett August 27 from 3 different club logos. See Large to make up the 9 member Andy or Heidi at their showroom Board of Directors. Please consider Greg Butcher August 27 Happy Birthday to everyone! 790 15th Place, off U.S. #1, or call running for or volunteering for an office. 567-8337. Page 2 July, 2010 Vol. 10 No. 7 JUNE DINNER CRUISE Louie and Cyn Seo were the hosts for the dinner cruise which took us to Mr. Manatee's. The restaurant is known for its casual dining on the river's inlet COMING IN July edge. Plenty of Corvette style NO General Membership Meeting parking is available. Always a great Due to low attendance in the summer regular membership meeting at C.J. Cannon's feature for all our gorgeous cars. will be suspended for June, July and August. They had specials for the evening Mystery Dinner Cruises and Shout Outs will still go on. and ordering off the regular menu 27 - Tuesday - Mystery Dinner Cruise was available. When served we Our Host Bob & Barb watched plate after plate of great 30 - Saturday - CLINT'S OFF TO IRAQ Party food coming to the tables. Louie and We are going to have a party for Clint before he goes off to Iraq Cyn came with prizes, the hit of the PLEASE RSVP by Tuesday, July 20th. night turned out to be the dryer balls, which by the way really do speed up COMING IN August the dryer time. Auto cleaning NO General Membership Meeting Due to low attendance in the summer materials were also a hit. Why is it we regular membership meeting at C.J. Cannon's wash our cars so much? will be suspended for June, July and August. Mystery Dinner Cruises and Shout Outs will still go on. We didn't travel far, but we certainly 31 - Tuesday - Mystery Dinner Cruise had a great fun filled evening Our Host Bob & Nan thanks to Louie and Cyn. Check the WEB Calendar for details Page 3 July, 2010 Vol. 10 No. 7 Chevy offers Corvette Panoz launches newest sports car, the Abruzzi buyers the ultimate with By BOB GRITZINGER AutoWeek 6/08/10 the ENGINE BUILD The spirit of Le Mans--along with the spirit of the out-of-production Panoz EXPERIENCE Esperante--lives on in Panoz Auto Development's latest creation, the Abruzzi. By JAKE LINGEMAN, AUTOWEEK Named for the people from the south-central Abruzzo region of Italy, the Chevrolet Corvette buyers can Abruzzi draws its inspiration from the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where the car is already take delivery of their car at making its world debut on Tuesday, and its styling from the 1935 Delahaye the National Corvette Museum, get Type 135 tear-drop coupe. professional driver training and watch their cars being built. Now, General "It is about the true spirit of Le Mans, a Motors will let them build the engine. car you can drive from home to the GM is offering buyers of the 2011 racetrack, race it, and then drive home Corvette ZR1 and Z06 models the again," Panoz chairman and American chance to build the engines for their Le Mans Series owner Don Panoz cars. For a suggested retail price of said. $5,800, plus the cost of getting to Detroit, a Corvette buyer is welcome A three-year production run for the to GM's Performance Build Center in Abruzzi "Spirit of Le Mans" road car Wixom, Mich., where engines for the begins late this summer, and Panoz ZR1 and the Z06 are built by hand. said his company will build just 81--equal to the number of 24-hour races run at The Engine Build Experience Le Mans since 1923. Each will carry cues from an individual Le Mans race package includes a concierge year. service that will set up most of the arrangements. Panoz will homologate the car for Europe, and it will be sold in European countries only, priced at 400,000 euros ($480,000). Panoz refused to comment about whether he plans a U.S. version. The Abruzzi is powered by a front-mounted, supercharged Corvette racing engine, a 6.2-liter V8 producing 640 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque. Power runs to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transaxle. A key technical improvement over the Esperante is a unique "Trifecta" cooling system, with rear-mounted radiators in addition to cooling systems that reduce temperatures of coolant as it flows in and out of the radiator. Panoz said that re-locating the radiators to the rear of the car improves top speed by cutting down on aerodynamic drag. The car's body panels are formed from REAMS, short for Recyclable Buyers who select the option will Energy Absorbing Matrix System, a work side-by-side with professionals composite-like material that is lighter, at the Performance Build Center. more durable and easier to repair than Together they will build up an engine, carbon fiber. starting with a bare block and moving through a series of assembly An Abruzzi GT2 race car likely will run stations. Virtually all of the work is its first event at Petit Le Mans at Road done by hand, with minimal Atlanta in October, followed by a automated assistance. complete American Le Mans Series At the end of the line, the engine is campaign in 2011 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June. test run on a dynamometer and the builder adds a personalized nameplate. Then the engine is sent GM Offers Rebate on 2009, 2010 Corvette Zr1s the Corvette assembly plant in by Keith Cornett on July 18, 2010 Bowling Green, Ky., for installation in the car. The rebates for the Corvette ZR1 run through September 7th. You can get The most important part? Whether either a $3,000 rebate on the purchase of the 2010 Corvette ZR1 or 0% APR built by you or by the professional for up to 60 months. A $5,000 rebate is being offered on 2009 Corvette ZR1s, technician, the engine from the but we see there are only 11 09' Corvette ZR1s available. Performance Build Center is covered by a five-year/100,000-mile When the Corvette ZR1 first became available, we saw dealers applying warranty. “Market Adjustments” to the tune of $50,000+ over MSRP. It looks like those days are gone. Pre-owned Corvette ZR1s are now hitting the market with Link to video: Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvoYs prices in low to mid $90,000s so buyers do have choices now that the market XpcELw&feature=player_embedded for the Supercharged ZR1 has cooled. Page 4 July, 2010 Vol. 10 No. 7 CORVETTE FANS TICKLED PINK Pink sports car a highlight at National Corvette Homecoming By: ROBYN L. MINOR, The Daily News(Bowling Green), 7/18/10 Tim Thompson, of Todd County, sort of brags that he can cut a car apart and put it back together without having it show. He didn't quite go that far with his wife's '98 Corvette convertible, but he did take it apart and painstakingly paint whatever he could the color pink and replaced some of the interior's soft parts with pink ones. Thompson, who runs a saw mill, considers his self a serious car hobbyist with a nearly professional grade shop. “I cried when he finished it,” Tina Thompson said. “It truly was a labor of love. It is just beautiful.” Tina Thompson said she wanted a pink car in honor of two aunts who are breast cancer survivors. With a Driving for the Cure plate, the Thompsons often appear at Relay for Life events around the area to draw attention to the need to raise more money for breast cancer research. The Thompsons were just one of the hundreds of mostly couples who showed off their prized Corvettes at the National Corvette Homecoming at Sloan Convention Center on Saturday. The event continues today with a car show for all cars. “I thought I was a fan, but these people are real fans,” said Robert Parcell, plant manager of the General Motors Bowling Green Assembly Plant. “This is my first homecoming and I think it's fantastic,” Parcell said as he eyed the pink pearlescent Corvette. Parcell, a celebrity judge, said the pink really drew in him and his wife, Jean, who just happened to be wearing a pink shirt. Another celebrity judge, Barb Deeb of WKYU-TV, was trying to decide if she should award the car with her choice. “I just told a story the other day that as a little girl I dreamed of owning a pearlescent pink Corvette,” she said. “Do you think that would be too obvious?” It's not clear if Deeb was the one who did it, but one celebrity judge tied his or her winning balloon to the car. Tim Thompson said the car has been a photo magnet all day. “Most people say they really love it,” he said. “Even the guys come up and say they really love the color.” But it's the little girls, who may have a pink Corvette for their Barbies, who marvel at the car, Tina Thompson said. “But we will be back,”Tina said. “There really is a lot more here than we were expecting in terms of vendors and music.” Jim Van Dorn, one of the event's organizers, said the fees will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.

CORVETTE BEACH BUGGY - 1969 Chevrolet Corvette - Ocean City Beach Rescue Dewey Powell's 4WD, Hemi-Powered C3 Kicks Up Plenty Of Sand From the July, 2010 issue of Vette By K. Scott Teeters Photography by K. Scott Teeters When you live close to the shore, like I do, it's not uncommon to see four-wheel-drive vehicles with surf-fishing racks on the front bumper. The formula is this: fishing racks + beach = 4WD vehicle, usually a truck. That's what threw me when I first saw Dewey Powell's menacingly cool-looking '81-bodied Corvette at the Strictly Corvettes Show in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The first thing I noticed was the stylized fishing-pole rack and the way it was angled back from the middle to match the car's pointed nose. Then the tall tires and L88 wheel flares got me. "Wow," I thought, "What's this?" And that was before I looked under the hood and saw a dual-quad 392 Hemi. Powell was completely relaxed in a lawn chair, wearing jeans, black cowboy boots, a black T-shirt, and wrap-around shades. "That yours?" I asked. "Yeah, that's right," he answered, "and I drove it here today. You should have seen it yesterday. It was covered with sand." I had just met Ocean City's local legend, Dewey Powell. Powell's uncle owned one of the most famous dirt tracks in South Jersey. Over the decades the track was named Powell Speedway, then Pleasantville Speedway, and finally, Atlantic City Speedway. Today, the old racetrack is long gone, but Powell is still powering around in one of several of his hand-made machines. Powell's 4WD Corvette comes from that kind of "garage engineering." The basic structure of the car is a '69 Corvette. When Powell bought the car in 1976, it had been set up for drag racing with a turbocharged LS6 454. Life can be hard for cars that reside along the shore, as the salt air eats them alive. The original body was completely shot, but it just happened that a friend had a body from an '81 Corvette for the right price. Being a career mechanic and having access to lots of parts, Powell started another of his car projects.