I bought an old corvette and its 1 of 16

[Michael_]

This exact car:

504-Mile 1990 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1

Bid for the chance to own a 504-Mile 1990 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #194,277.

bringatrailer.com

1 of 16 with Turquoise Metallic Paint
1 of 3 with Turquoise Metallic Paint + Saddle Interior

Some of you know that i was toying with the idea of getting a 90 zr-1 for quiet some time now. (10 years total, 5 pretty seriously)
When i finally found this one AFTER the BAT auction with reserve not met it was thankfully still for sale at the dealer in pennsylvania and i ended up buying it. (This was by far the cheapest corvette at this dealership)

Yesterday the car arrived at my mechanics shop here in germany and today i saw it for the very first time. It looks GORGEOUS!
My mechanics also already took it on the lift and yeah its in great shape all the way around.

It has a few electrical issues like the radio not working and passenger seat tilting does not work but i will address these later.
For now it needs to pass german inspection (TÜV & Historical Plates worthiness judgement) so that i can start DRIVING it ASAP.
(Previous owner was nice enough to only put 504 miles on it so its basically still a brand new car. ^^)

0-60 in 4.5 Seconds
About 180mph Top Speed
7k Redline
6 Speed Manual Transmission
502 Nm / 370 lb-ft of torque (With a Linear Power Delivery Curve)

Yeah i guess from this point forward i wont have to make room for many cars on the autobahn anymore...
(This actually is on par with a Ferrari Testarossa, Lamborghini Countach, Porsche 959 etc. which where the way more $$$ alternatives back in the day.)

Here two additional picture that i took today...

 

[SlingLow]

Congrats @Michael_ , nice score! How long did it take to hit the dock in Germany after purchase?

 

[Chargerjase]

For now it needs to pass german inspection (TÜV & Historical Plates worthiness judgement)

Congratulations on your purchase Michael. I had to literally laugh out loud when I read this line as it is so German and I am very familiar. Today I sent my baby back to Texas from Germany so the opposite of what you are doing. Enjoy your car.

 

[JackR]

This exact car:

http://[URL]https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1990-chevrolet-corvette-zr-1-145/

[/URL]

1 of 16 with Turquoise Metallic Paint
1 of 3 with Turquoise Metallic Paint + Saddle Interior

Some of you know that i was toying with the idea of getting a 90 zr-1 for quiet some time now. (10 years total, 5 pretty seriously)
When i finally found this one AFTER the BAT auction with reserve not met it was thankfully still for sale at the dealer in pennsylvania and i ended up buying it. (This was by far the cheapest corvette at this dealership)

Yesterday the car arrived at my mechanics shop here in germany and today i saw it for the very first time. It looks GORGEOUS!
My mechanics also already took it on the lift and yeah its in great shape all the way around.

It has a few electrical issues like the radio not working and passenger seat tilting does not work but i will address these later.
For now it needs to pass german inspection (TÜV & Historical Plates worthiness judgement) so that i can start DRIVING it ASAP.
(Previous owner was nice enough to only put 504 miles on it so its basically still a brand new car. ^^)

0-60 in 4.5 Seconds
About 180mph Top Speed
7k Redline
6 Speed Manual Transmission
502 Nm / 370 lb-ft of torque (With a Linear Power Delivery Curve)

Yeah i guess from this point forward i wont have to make room for many cars on the autobahn anymore...
(This actually is on par with a Ferrari Testarossa, Lamborghini Countach, Porsche 959 etc. which where the way more $$$ alternatives back in the day.)

Here two additional picture that i took today...

View attachment 1981647

View attachment 1981648

Nice. I also have a thing for the special corvettes. Had a 66 roadster then got the 2007 Z06

 

[Moms68]

This exact car:

http://[URL]https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1990-chevrolet-corvette-zr-1-145/

[/URL]

1 of 16 with Turquoise Metallic Paint
1 of 3 with Turquoise Metallic Paint + Saddle Interior

Some of you know that i was toying with the idea of getting a 90 zr-1 for quiet some time now. (10 years total, 5 pretty seriously)
When i finally found this one AFTER the BAT auction with reserve not met it was thankfully still for sale at the dealer in pennsylvania and i ended up buying it. (This was by far the cheapest corvette at this dealership)

Yesterday the car arrived at my mechanics shop here in germany and today i saw it for the very first time. It looks GORGEOUS!
My mechanics also already took it on the lift and yeah its in great shape all the way around.

It has a few electrical issues like the radio not working and passenger seat tilting does not work but i will address these later.
For now it needs to pass german inspection (TÜV & Historical Plates worthiness judgement) so that i can start DRIVING it ASAP.
(Previous owner was nice enough to only put 504 miles on it so its basically still a brand new car. ^^)

0-60 in 4.5 Seconds
About 180mph Top Speed
7k Redline
6 Speed Manual Transmission
502 Nm / 370 lb-ft of torque (With a Linear Power Delivery Curve)

Yeah i guess from this point forward i wont have to make room for many cars on the autobahn anymore...
(This actually is on par with a Ferrari Testarossa, Lamborghini Countach, Porsche 959 etc. which where the way more $$$ alternatives back in the day.)

Here two additional picture that i took today...

View attachment 1981647

View attachment 1981648

Nice car!! Same color as the Callway conversions I've seen. Enjoy and don't forget the Corvette wave!

 

[Michael_]

How long did it take to hit the dock in Germany after purchase?

Not all that long. Only 3 months from purchase to today more or less.

 

[r4sedan]

Very nice car. I love the color. Congratulations.

 

[chargervert]

Nice find! I bought a 72 Corvette 454 last year. A C3 Corvette was always a bucket list car for me.

 

[sam dupont]

An engineer I know bought one in 1990. If I remember correctly, the sticker price was $50,000, which was a lot at that time. A Stealth R/T was $32,000.

So when they inspect it, I assume they're expecting you to take it on the autobahn. Does it get a different inspection than a Volkswagen Rabbit would?

 

[DeltaV]

Congratulations on your green ZR-1. Weather permitting, maybe you can post a picture or two of it with your Charger.

 

[Michael_]

So when they inspect it, I assume they're expecting you to take it on the autobahn. Does it get a different inspection than a Volkswagen Rabbit would?

Well i'm sure they expect me to take it on the autobahn but i'm not sure if they expect me to go anywhere near 180mph in a 36 year old vehicle.

The inspection is different for classic cars but AFAIK it doesn't make a difference if its a ZR-1 like mine or a MK1 Rabbit.
The advantage of older cars like my 69 charger is you have WAY looser emission standards on these and also no warning lights for ABS, Airbag, Check Engine etc. (If you have them and they light up you wont pass inspection)

All that being said i wouldn't try to pass the inspection on my own without a shop.
Because these inspectors have A TON of wiggle room and without connections / the right inspector they will make you hate life...

Edit:
While in germany it's completely legal to go that fast on certain stretches of the autobahn IF you drive that fast and get into an accident (and have enough bad luck to survive) it's NOT legal anymore and you're in a lot of trouble.

Weather permitting, maybe you can post a picture or two of it with your Charger.

Yeah i know i said in the original post that i'm looking to drive it ASAP but what i really meant was ASAP after there is no salt on the roads anymore.
So i will definitely do this but probably not in the next couple of weeks.

Good thing is that the ZR-1 fits in my garage and i managed to get indoor storage for the charger in the meanwhile.

 

[6PKRTSE]

Nice vette. Rare color for sure. Nothing like the 90's colors. My brother had a 93 Mustang LX 5.0 in that color and my Bro-in-law had a S-10 pick up in that color. Seems like almost all ZR1's back then were red.

 

[Cranky]

Well i'm sure they expect me to take it on the autobahn but i'm not sure if they expect me to go anywhere near 180mph in a 36 year old vehicle.

It's a 'new' 36 year old vehicle.....I sure wouldn't be afraid to drop the hammer with it!

 

[sam dupont]

It's a 'new' 36 year old vehicle.....I sure wouldn't be afraid to drop the hammer with it!

today's tires are probably safer to go fast

 

[Michael_]

today's tires are probably safer to go fast

Well the fastest car i owned prior to this corvette is a 1989 Mercedes Benz 560 SEC which i can tell you from experience tops out at about 150mph.
I did those 150mph multiple times with "Economy" branded tires and the suspension has 150k miles on it. Still feels reasonably safe.

Edit: Nontheless even those "Eco" Tires are rated for these kinds of speeds.

 

[Dennis H]

Nice one!

 

[Cranky]

today's tires are probably safer to go fast

Had tires on my car doing 130 in 72.....on the Autobahn and was getting passed up by many others going a LOT faster. And I hope tires are better these days. When radials showed up on our shores, they were junk.

 

[sam dupont]

Edit:
While in germany it's completely legal to go that fast on certain stretches of the autobahn IF you drive that fast and get into an accident (and have enough bad luck to survive) it's NOT legal anymore and you're in a lot of trouble.

meanwhile.

For a short time in the 90s, US states could set speed limits. State Police couldn't adequately enforce speed limits on the "Montanabahn" so the courts rescinded the standard of "reasonable and prudent". I lived an hour from Montana, but didn't have anything worthy of the racer's rodeo, so I never participated.

 

[Michael_]

What would be definitely less "safe" is taking a nascar hemi superbird on the autobahn and attempting a 200mph run.

I think this would top the guy going 260mph in his bugatti and they were even talking about suspending his license... (For reckless driving)

 

[DeltaV]

Those kinds of speeds are best left to winged aircraft.