NoviStretch Presents Corvette of the Week: From American Dream to American Reality

The American Dream heavily contributes to the viability of American culture as an export. In the case of this Corvette and Xing, it’s passionate owner, the American Dream was exported to China where it eventually grew into Corvette ownership on American soil.

Ever since Xing was a little boy growing up in China, he was a fan of sports cars. Because of the allure of classic Camaros and Mustangs, that sports car passion progressed into an affinity for American muscle. But it took personal experience with a C5 to give Xing a Corvette itch that could only be scratched with eventual ownership.

Xing immigrated to the United States with his mother seven years ago just after she married an American guy who owned a C5 Corvette convertible. Xing instantly fell in love with his stepfather’s car, and began to pour through his step dad’s Corvette books as well as any Corvette-related magazine article.

After a bit of saving and a lot of dreaming, Xing bought the C5 you see here as a present to himself for his 25th birthday.

As a guy named Manuel who only drives manuals, I have to salute Xing for buying a C5 equipped with a manual transmission. I’m giving him a special salute here because he bought the car before knowing how to drive a stick. Shortly after the purchase, though, he had a friend teach him to row his own.

Eventually Xing will mod the car to the point where it’s sending 500 naturally aspirated horsepower through an upgraded clutch and transmission to the rear wheels. He’ll complement the increased straight-line performance with a coilover suspension setup. Upgraded brake pads and rotors will keep all that extra speed in check because with more power comes more responsibility in the form of greater stopping force.

Chime in with your thoughts on the forum. >>

images [ALVD Photography]