The Callaway Project Sledgehammer was one of the most ambitious project cars of the 1980s. A 1988 Chevrolet Corvette was selected by Callaway Engineering in Connecticut to form the basis of the Sledgehammer to produce a car that could break the production car speed record, while retaining the streetcar amenities. When the car arrived at the Transportation Research Center’s 7.5-mile oval track Ohio following twin-turbo and other modifications, the Sledgehammer attained a record-breaking speed of 254.76 mph driven by John Lingenfelter. That very car is now up for auction via Bring a Trailer, and it is already over the $400k mark at the time of writing.

The Sledgehammer Corvette Is Adorned In Metallic Silver

The Sledgehammer Corvette is finished in a Silver Metallic livery, and there are various aerodynamic elements designed by Paul Deutschman. These elements include a revised nose with a unique front grille treatment and a rear spoiler that has been incorporated into a revised rear fascia. Some of these overall design elements eventually found their way into production as the AeroBody on C4 Corvettes that were built by Callaway, the front fascia that the Sledgehammer had being replaced with a full production Aero body example.

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The Corvette Still Has All Its Amenities

1988 Chevrolet Corvette Sledgehammer
via Bring A Trailer

As mentioned at the start of this piece, the interior of the car retains virtually all of its street amenities. The seats are power adjusted and upholstered in black leather, and the climate control, Delco Bose cassette stereo, and power locks and windows are still present and not stripped out.

A Callaway boost gauge replaces one of the center dash vents, one of the few things on the inside that indicates this is not an ordinary Corvette. More modifications are present though such as the five-point safety harness and the leather padded roll-hoop.

Turbonetic Turbochargers Boost The V8s Power Output

1988 Chevrolet Corvette Sledgehammer
via Bring A Trailer

As mentioned earlier, the engine in the Sledgehammer has received twin-turbo modifications. The 5.7-liter Chevrolet “Bow Tie” V8 was upgraded with two Turbonetics T04B turbochargers that themselves were paired with twin intercoolers. The power output on this car is immense. Callaway rated the power at 880 hp, with 772 lb-ft of torque produced by the engine.

The car has spent much of the last thirty years stored in a museum environment and was refreshed in 2018 by Callaway Cars. As of right now, only 2k miles are shown on the clock. The whole project showed just how far the Corvette had come in its lifetime, and it's one of the most iconic, singular examples of one of America's greatest sports cars.

Source: Bring A Trailer

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