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The Corvette is a sports car and for 80 years a proper sports car involved a manual transmission on the floor. Mostly but not always.
Corvettes sold with automatic transmissions were ordered with base or lower HP motors and were owed by women or girly-men. Mostly but not always.
Many Corvettes with automatics were also equipped with air conditioning which is a much coveted option on a C2 and brings up the value significantly, automatic notwithstanding. Funny, when I was a kid, ANY car we had, muscle car or otherwise, Corvettes, you name it, the A/C was sawed out and chucked in the can to "save weight." Mostly and always.
Mopar muscle cars were often equipped with automatics, the 727 being the best mixer made and many believed it could outshift a manual so it does not hurt. Same is true with some others, a Buick GS with a THM400 comes to mind, no one would throw one of them out of bed.
But a Corvette with an automatic? "Say, your wife has a nice car...hey your sister or girlfriend was sweet to loan you her car.....never learned to drive stick?" Mostly but not always.
Lastly, The C2 received the new 396 in April of 65 but not the new THM400 which was too big and in too short supply for use in a Corvette. The Powerglide was a 2 speed with a tall first gear that made for leisurely takeoffs. It was an excellent transmission, among the toughest ever devised and extensively used in racing because it shifted only once.
But...in a C2 Corvette the combination of girlliness and lower HP engines/performance dampens value, mostly but not always.
Dan
I totally agree about the Powerglide, which is why I did not mind my car having one, although I did at first. I drove a 4-speed w/AC car (not a good one, but besides the point). Since I intend to drive around town, I enjoyed the test drive: first gear, second gear, stop light, first gear, second gear, stop light (we spent millions of taxpayer money to put in a computer system to "fix" the lights in my town; now they change to red at every intersection as soon as you approach. Good if you own a gas station, I guess).
First gear, second gear, someone pulls out in front of you--(South Florida), slam on the brakes, first gear, second gear, THIRD GEAR, stoplight. WOW!
Sorry, if I wanted to show the car, get points, outrace everyone with a 425/427--hard to control around town at 30 MPH with the front weight and all those horses I would WANT to use--I might have looked for one. Instead, I found the ONLY car I could afford with my requirements--convertible with factory A/C. If the p/s, p/b, p/w and a/c 327/300 make it a "girly car" so be it. I am not conflicted about my hetrosexuality, so whatever makes a person feel better, have at it. I promise you the 455 Buicks I drove for the last 40 years with 510 lb ft of torque would pretty much eat the 1000lb lighter Corvette, as would the GN or GNX. Been there, done that.
I want a DRIVER to enjoy, and all that big stuff is fine if you want it. I don't, and that's that. I promise you that you will see me around town every day I go out (except to pick up pool chemicals as they are too big to fit) enjoying the car. Hardtop, soft top, no top--I can go any way I like any time I like and enjoy the drive. Would I have bought the car if it had a 4-speed? I don't know. The other car I looked at had a TH 350 transplant, which is relatively easy to do, I understand. Right now, I am enjoying the car I have and look forward to the 100-degree+ days we have all summer down here and think about the A/C blowing cold (it is 100% brand new last week) while I listen to the music AND the car and watch the citizens stare at the beauty of a C2.
Finally, in today's super cars, you can't even GET a standard shift in many of the multi-million dollar modern cars--durn computers shift MUCH better than you or I ever will when it counts--and so be it.
I bought a 67 Camaro for my wife. It had a 327/275 with a PG. I couldn’t stand it. Tore it out, cut a hole in the floor and put a Muncie 4 speed in. The difference was unreal.
In hindsight, I should have put a tremec in it as she hates it.
A lot sluggish in my opinion. New automatics are a different story.
A Power-Glide behind some power is not so bad. Most people remember Power-Glides in Impalas with 283s. Those were sluggish. An engine set to ramp up on the Powerglides cogs can make that old tranny feel like a Turbo 350, especially being sure to keep that low band adjusted.
I bought a 67 Camaro for my wife. It had a 327/275 with a PG. I couldn’t stand it. Tore it out, cut a hole in the floor and put a Muncie 4 speed in. The difference was unreal.
In hindsight, I should have put a tremec in it as she hates it.
Oh well.
Ed
As a novice, I'm curious why you think your wife would have liked the tremec over the Muncie. Is it because of the overdrive gear in the tremec?
Hey, for those of you in the know, are automatics a little sluggish or a lotsluggish?
A TH 350 or TH 400 with a 2,75:1 or 2:48:1 first gear ratio is not sluggish. But a Powerglide has a 1.76 first gear. Sluggish. Simply removing a PG and installing a TH350 will make the car feel like you added 100 HP. Seriously. Huge difference. I've driven all of GM's muscle cars with 2 speed autos and 3 and 4 speed manuals, and the 2 speed cars are so much slower it isn't even funny. My TH400 equipped '67 GTO is just as quick/fast as a comparable car with a 4 speed. A '65 GTO I used to own with a 2-speed as MUCH slower than the 4 speed '65 GTO I replaced it with. Totally different animal.
I'm sure the color has something to do with it. Personally, I would never buy any car that was painted butternut yellow or whatever that color is! [no offense intended to the owner]
I'm sure the color has something to do with it. Personally, I would never buy any car that was painted butternut yellow or whatever that color is! [no offense intended to the owner]
Yeah, I know. It's certainly not my favorite either. In fact, Sunfire Yellow (or whatever it is) is one of the least desirable colors for me.
I just can't believe that an automatic transmission and yellow paint make this car so unattractive that nobody has bought it up. It's touted as being only 16,000 miles. Where on earth can you get a 16,000 mile, highly original, decently optioned C2 coupe for $70,000?
One way to look at this vehicle is the yellow and the automatic (plus the fact that it's decently optioned) make this a 1 of <some low #> car, and subsequentially a nice investment. And another person might say, "Well, just because it's a 1 of <some low #> car doesn't mean it would be enjoyable to drive and/or own."
If I liked yellow a LOT more than I currently do I think I would have gone to take a look to take a look at this car - for all the reasons I've posted above (except the yellow paint).
Ok guys, here is another automatic car that blows me away that it hasn't sold yet. The options (pasted below) on this car are impressively nice and very uncommon. So, is the auto transmission such a downer to so many prospective buyers that it's keeping this car from being sold too?
"Rare optioned California 1966 Corvette with hard and soft tops. One year only, Mosport Green, paint. Matching numbers 327 300 hp automatic with Holley 4 bbl carb and factory AC, power steering, Kelsey Hayes knock off wheels, factory side pipes, head rests, shoulder harnesses, am/fm radio w/ power antenna, brand new BF Goodrich Goldline radial tires with 4 wheel disc brakes. New battery. Runs strong, sounds awesome. Miles read 76k."
03-14-2019, 08:41 PM
