Record $3.85 Million Corvette Is Only Worth $2.6 Million Now
Its best days may be far behind it. A one-of-a-kind Chevrolet Corvette that set an auction record for the nameplate in 2014 with a $3.85 million sale just can’t seem to attract anywhere near that value anymore.
The 1967 Corvette L88 is one of just 28 that were built that year and the only one painted Rally Red.
The L88 option was factory racing package that included a 427-cubic-inch V8, upgraded brakes, a track-tuned suspension, a Muncie four-speed manual transmission and a Positraction rear end.
The engine was formally rated at 430 hp, but cranked out 500 hp in independent tests. That made it the world’s most powerful production car of the day. Chevy offered the L88 option through 1969 and a total of 2016 were sold, but the 1967 cars are the rarest.
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The Rally Red car was modified and used for drag racing, but has since been restored to its original condition. One thing missing is its factory engine, but the one it is equipped in is the correct type.
The car was offered at the Mecum Auctions Kissimmee event in January 2024 and received a high bid of $2.7 million, which didn’t meet its undisclosed reserve price, so it went unsold. That was followed by a $2.5 million high bid at this year’s Kissimmee auction and another $2.7 million bid at Mecum’s Indianapolis auction in May, both still under the reserves.
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The car has now crossed the block yet again, this time at the Mecum Auctions event in Monterey, where the bidding reached $2.6 million and no more.
The year 2014 was a big year for 1960s and 1970s American sports cars and muscle car auctions that also saw a record $3.5 million paid for a 1971 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda Convertible. The Plymouth has appreciated since then, however, and was bid up to $4.8 million at the Mecum Auctions Indianapolis event in 2021, but that was below what must have been an astonishing undisclosed reserve.