Mecum to Auction 1957 Smokey Yunick Corvette Racer at Indy Spring Classic

If you’re looking for something to do with your Mega Millions winnings, we recommend heading to Mecum’s Spring Classic Auction coming up in May. There they will be offering this 1957 racer which was the first car to use Rochester Fuel injection backed by a 4-speed transmission.

Racing history of the car includes duty at Daytona, Nassau, and Sebring. But more notable than that are all of the ?firsts? that appear this particular car. The Rochester Fuelie unit is serial number 1005 which is the oldest known functional unit. Racing legend Smokey Yunick was tasked with testing the new technology which was also used as backup for other factory racers. The FI unit also appears on the cover of the original 1957 Chevrolet Fuel Injection service manual. Other development uses for the car include work with the airbox cold-air induction system seen on a very limited number of production cars.

Other notable items include the first:

• Heavy duty brake system with finned drums, air cooling ducts, and vented backing plates among other items.
• Anti-lock brakes with a driver controlled setup. A feature not standard on Corvettes until 30 years later.
• Borg-Warner 4-speed. “Numbers” guys will like the October 1956 date code.
• Heavy duty suspension featuring heavy duty front and rear springs and shocks as well as a front sway bar and quick steering adapter. This setup would later become RPO 684.

Some of the standard-issue racing features include a voluminous 37 gallon gas tank, roll bar, seat belts, and aircraft lights for night time use.

After its retirement from active duty it was restored to its Sebring livery by Tim and Carol Partridge after 21 years of ownership. Since being completed the car has been displayed at the National Corvette Museum and participated in the Road America Corvette World Tribute where it won the Peoples and Judges Choice awards.

Offered as Lot #272, the Smokey Yunick racer will cross the auction block on Saturday, May 19th. Given the recent lofty bids on other significant racers like the 1960 Race Rat and 1961 SCCA National Champ, we can expect big bucks to be offered up for this highly desirable piece of Corvette history.

Mecum’s 25th annual Spring Classic Auction takes place May 15th to the 20th at the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis.

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