The Chevrolet Corvette is arguably one of the most popular American sports cars; a 'home-grown' product that's now enjoyed all over the world by car enthusiasts. It first appeared as a show car for the 1953 General Motors Motorama but has now been in regular production for almost 70 years - a lengthy production run that has seen the model name span 8 generations.
Today, the Corvette model name is proudly borne by one of the finest modern sports cars, the C8 Corvette. Well over 1.5 million Corvettes have been built from inception to date. That number includes a few really special examples, mostly classics, that rank among the most desirable American collector cars today; a fact that no doubt drives the value, up to several times the original purchase price.
10 1969 Corvette L88 Convertible - $577,500
The 1969 L88 Corvettes were only a step behind the rare '69 Corvette ZL1. However, they were still pretty special machines with loads of performance to offer. After all, these cars were basically street-legal race cars. 1969 was the final year for the L88 Corvettes and only 116 units were produced, making this a prized collectible today.
This particular L88 spent almost 35 years locked up in storage before it was handed over to a professional auto restorer for comprehensive restoration in 2012. The project took 5,100 hours and 19 months to complete, making the $577,500 value something of a bargain.
9 1953 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible - $660,000
The Corvette had its debut in 1953 and in that year, only 300 units rolled off the production line. This one carried VIN number 181 and was purchased from the original owner's estate back in 1972 for $5,000.
The 1953 Corvette was powered by a 3.9-litre 6-cylinder 'Blue Flame' engine that produced 150 bhp and 223 pound-feet of torque. This particular example was only sparingly used and still had its original tires and most of the factory paint at the time of its auction.
8 1969 Chevy Corvette ZL-1 - $1.4 Million
This souped up sports car was one of the rarest iterations of the third generation that were ever made. Only 3 units were reportedly produced by Chevrolet at the time. The ZL1 package meant that the C3 Corvette received an aluminum version of the formidable 427-cubic inch V8 engine that weighed at least 100 pounds less than the cast iron variant found in the L88 Corvette.
The real world power output was in excess of 500 hp and this Corvette could run the quarter-mile in an astonishing 11.2 seconds at 127 mph!
7 1963 Corvette 'Rondine' - $1.76 Million
In terms of rarity, this one is even more exclusive than the much-vaunted 1967 L88 Corvettes. According to reports, only 2 units were ever built and they featured slightly different profiles. The Rondine was designed by popular design house, Pininfarina and displayed at the 1963 Paris Auto Show.
The Rondine was powered by a 327-cubic inch V8 engine that cranked out an impressive 360 hp. After the auto show, the car remained at the Pininfarina museum for over 40 years until it was finally put up for auction in 2008.
6 1967 Chevy Corvette L88 Corvette Convertible - $1.8 Million
This L88 Corvette Convertible happened to be the only one that was finished in the Silver Pearl paint from the factory. It came up for sale at a 2017 event put together by Worldwide Auctioneers.
Interestingly, the final auction price was below estimates that reached as high as $2.6 million. One of the possible reasons for this 'low' value was the fact that while the car still had the original powertrain, the engine block had been replaced sometime in the car's history. It's the first 1967 L88 Corvette on this least but by no means the last.
5 1969 Chevy Corvette Rebel Convertible Race Car – $2.86 million
This one was a race car that enjoyed successful stints at several IMSA and SCCA racing competitions before it was sold off for a 'mere' $7,400 at the end of 1972. It largely dropped out of sight after that until car enthusiasts tracked it down to a scrapyard out in South California.
The car was restored to its 1972 Sebring race-winning trim and was subsequently showcased at several events before it was put up for auction in 2014 where a collector snagged it for a cool $2.86 million after fees.
4 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray C8 - $3 million
The eight iteration of the iconic Corvette created huge waves upon its debut and has gone on to earn heaps of praise for its supercar-levels of performance and reasonable price point.
The first production version with number VIN-001 also caused quite a stir when it was purchased by Rick Hendrick, a NASCAR team owner, for an eye-watering $3 million - several times more than the car's $60,000 entry level pricing. The car had not even been built at the time of the sale but Chevrolet stated that the finished product would be an all-black coupe fitted with the Z51 package.
3 1967 Chevy Corvette L88 Corvette Convertible - $3.2 Million
Only 20 units of the L88 were ever made and it should come as no surprise that they dominate the end of this list. The sleek car was an attempt by GM to convert the Corvette from just being America's darling sports car to a competitive high-performance machine that could duel with the best race car offerings from other countries.
The car was powered by a thundering V8 that was officially rated at 430 hp though this figure was a wild understatement by the carmaker as dyno tests, conducted much later, proved that the car actually put out over 500 hp!
2 1967 Chevy Corvette L88 Corvette Convertible - $3.4 Million
The classic Corvette set a record for the most expensive Corvette ever sold in September 2013 when it crossed the auction block at a price of $3.4 million. Unfortunately, the record lasted only a few months before being smashed by another L88 Corvette.
This Corvette was actually a drag racer that was completely destroyed at a point. However, it was fully restored by concerted efforts from several auto restoration professionals in accordance with the National Corvette Restorers Society’s specifications.
1 1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe - $3.85 million
In 2014, this elegant classic coupe stormed onto the record books when it became the most expensive Corvette ever sold, beating the previous record holder by over $400,000. It was during an auction conducted by the world famous Barrett Jackson.
According to the records, only 20 L88 Corvettes were ever produced, making it an exclusive rarity indeed. This particular one was even more special; being the only one out of the production run to have received several certification awards like the 98.4 National Top Flight award (2001) and the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS) 98.2 Regional Top Flight award.