Auctionwatch: 1963 Corvette Z06

RPO Z06

What's on your dream split-window Corvette checklist? Surely the RPO Z06 option would be at or near the top of the list. For starters, the option specified Chevy's 360 hp L84 327 ci fuel-injected V8 engine mated to a Muncie M20 four-speed manual transmission. The list of hot hardware continued with the Z06's G81 Positraction rear end, competition-type heavy duty suspension, and large power-assisted, finned drum brakes. The car you see here, which was delivered to Bud Gage Chevrolet in Indianapolis back in May of 1963, is one of only 199 Corvettes equipped with the package that year. Clearly, its first owner knew what to look for in a fast, track-ready 'Vette.

Big Tank

Initially, the Z06 package required the car also be fitted with the N03 36-gallon fuel tank, though the tank was later made optional. Enabling fewer fuel stops, the Big Tank option was meant for serious racers. Not all experts agree on how many Corvettes came with the tank, but the majority view is that only 63 Z06s left the factory so-equipped. Of that number, only 15 cars, of which this car is one, also received Kelsey-Hayes wheels. One of fifteen.

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Ancestry dot Car

After being bought new in Indiana, according to recent research by Auto Ancestry's Bill Gould, the Corvette migrated to St. Louis, Missouri, where it was sold to Don Johnson circa 1967, as part of a deal that included two other Corvettes. At the time, Johnson owned an auto dealership in the Chattanooga, Tennessee, area. He was also brother to Joe Lee Johnson—no relation to Junior or Jimmie Johnson—who was the owner the of Cleveland Speedway in Cleveland, Tennessee, and winner of the 1959 NASCAR Convertible Division championship. From there it appears the Corvette was sold to two subsequent owners living in or near Chattanooga, Tennessee—first to Ed Everhart, and then Paul Rogers.

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Kids and Cars

Reportedly it was Paul Rodgers' son Larry who drove the 'Vette for a couple of years, before selling it to the next owner. The Rodgers' almost didn't let the sale go through because the interested party, the son of a local business owner, was an 18-year-old male. Their misgivings weren't off-base, as the Corvette was damaged in a serious accident circa 1970, then sold in its unroadworthy condition. It was sold again in 1976 when it was transported to from Tennessee to its new owner James Montgomery of Gold Coast Corvette.

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Fine Print

Montgomery began restoring the Corvette but sadly passed away before the project was complete. Sometime in the early '80s the Corvette found its way to a Corvette restorer in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area who replaced the chassis and firewall, and installed a different engine. The new engine, originally casting number 3782870 and date A-16-3, was re-stamped with number 3115727 and date F0322RF.

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As it Sits

Auction house RM Sotheby's reports that the '63 is still fitted with all the original Z06-spec. components a Big Tank car would have had, including the fuel injection system, and large, finned brakes. The car also checks out as having the correct larger fuel-filler neck and behind-the-seats jack location, as well as containing what appear to be the original rivets and other hardware in the undamaged rear of the car.

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No Reserve

With so few '63 Big Tank Z06 cars made, and in light of the replacement engine, the gavel price on this particular Corvette would seem difficult to judge. RM Sotheby's estimates $160,000-$200,000 when it hits the stage in Monterey, California on August 25, 2018. One thing that seems certain, since it's being offered without a reserve, is that the car will have a new owner. Two things that also seem like safe bets are that an 18-year-old isn't going to climb behind the wheel straight off, and that big tank probably won't be filled in anger during road course pit stops. But one never knows.

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