Photo Credits: Chris Chessnoe

While reflecting on the timeline for the 2010 Grand Sport Corvette which became the Test & Development car for Callaway Cars in 2009, it’s hard to believe that car was launched 17-years ago. It seems like just yesterday when the Corvette Team pulled back the cover in the Skydome at the National Corvette Museum (NCM) at the annual NCM Bash Event April 24, 2009.

The excitement was high, and I remember thinking, this car is going to be huge! At the time, I was working as Program Manager for Callaway Cars and had a bright red 2008 Callaway SC580 coupe for a demonstrator. When I saw the bright red GS in the NCM I thought, that’s our next car.

From the event, calling back to Old Lyme, CT, Callaway’s Managing Director, Mike Zoner who was my boss, asked for what kind of return we’d get on such of an investment, as the powertrain was largely like the car I had… The 2008 SC580 was, as Reeves Callaway would say, “yesterday’s snow”. It no longer had new sales relevance to what I believed our customers would demand. Zoner asked for a business plan, which I provided, and then ordered a new Grand Sport from one of Callaway’s Authorized Dealers, Purifoy Chevrolet. Jay Gross, their Corvette Manager, helped get the car ordered on day #1 of ordering. The specification: Crystal Red Metallic Paint with Ebony Leather, Manual transmission, 3LT coupe, 6-disc changer, and that’s about it. Callaway would take care of the rest…

The car built the first day of production was VIN 00059. It was a very early car and may even be the first one delivered as a retail order. With the car arriving in Old Lyme in early July 2009, the team had a month to fit the SC606 supercharger package to the vehicle. As with any model-year changes, design differences were to be expected. But with the new Dry Sump LS3, there were several mechanical changes to work through. The car debuted at Corvettes at Carlisle at the end of August, and the following week it went to the NCM for the Labor Day event. For both of those events, the car was trailered, as the car wasn’t ready for the road just yet. The car had around 000016 miles now.

I wouldn’t be driving it anytime soon, anyway, as Zoner said the 2008 Callaway had to be sold before the keys to the new car were handed over. My recollection is the 2008 had around 94,000 miles around that time. Part of the business plan was to showcase the new car turning 100,000 miles, something to show the reliability of the Callaway supercharger package, and that it could be driven everywhere, every day, if someone wanted.

The second week of September was a milestone week for Callaway, as the company was able to deliver new Corvettes through the NCM R8C program, converted to their specifications. It was a first for the NCM and Callaway alike. Steve and Nancy Bronner were on the schedule to receive their black convertible GS with the Callaway SC606 Package that week, and Zoner and I would drive the new Callaway SC606 (VIN 00059) to the NCM to present their keys. Everything went smoothly and at the conclusion, I drove Zoner to the airport and he handed over the keys to VIN 00059 for demonstrator duties. The odometer was now around 001000 miles, and it was off to the Mid America Motorworks Funfest with the car. It would be the only one there, outside of those which GM brought.

Over the course of the year, the car went to many shows, dealer visits, and was driven on a near daily basis. At the Corvettes at Carlisle show in 2010, after one-year of use, VIN 00059 showed 60,000 miles. The car hit the dragstrip many times, road courses across America, participated in autocross events, and saw a lot of highways. By 2011, back at Carlisle, the car turned 100,000 miles in that two-year period. With Carlisle Events co-owner, Lance Miller riding shotgun, we turned the 100,000th mile in front of a crowd at the grandstands, doing a burnout. From time to time, I still hear the stories.

Stories are what this car is all about. Stories from going coast to coast over the past 300,000 miles in a vehicle which never let us down. Stories about the rising sun, somewhere West of Laramie as I headed back East. Or perhaps it was the time I left out of Las Vegas with the sun setting, heading on I-40, only to encounter snow and having to drop south to Tucson, then into New Mexico, up I-25, just to avoid Flagstaff and the weather. And speaking of weather, the car saw not only a fair share of snow, but also rain, and sleet or ice, and did a good job when driven judiciously. VIN 00059 also saw plenty of sunshine which allowed for that crystal red metallic paint to really pop.

Car washes were frequent. By the numbers, the car was washed over 700 times. Brakes were changed a half-dozen times, and with low dust pads which fit into the factory calipers. Three sets of windshield wiper blades were changed after the initial set. Over time, the original seats became less than supportive and were swapped for a pair of 2012 seats, and then to a pair of Callaway fixed shell sport seats. The Callaway sport seats retained power controls, but while giving up some adjustment in recline, were tremendously supportive, especially on the track.

Some other numbers of significance include more than two-dozen sets of tires. Of the three models of zero pressure tires I personally used, my favorites were the Michelin Pilot Sport ZP tires. Original equipment in 2010 were Goodyear F1 Supercar tires and while a revised Goodyear tire came into production, the confidence which the Michelin tires inspired was noticeable in all conditions. The car also was fit with Hoosier R6 tires for road courses and is presently fit with a set of non-runflat tires, which the current owner prefers.

Oil changes were performed as the driver information center advised, which worked out to more than 50 over the course of 300,000 miles and always with Mobil1 fully synthetic oil. Callaway Cars began using Mobil1 oil when validating the engines which became part of Chevrolet Regular Production Option (RPO) B2K for the 1987 (to 1991) Callaway Twin Turbo Corvette package. It was the only oil which met the standards during engine development in the mid-1980s, and Callaway continues to use this proven essential fluid in their vehicles 40-years later.

Shortly after the 100k mark, development began on the 25th Anniversary Callaway Corvette. Prior to the 2012 B2K pilot car arriving, the suspension on VIN 00059 was changed to a specific configuration which included a Callaway/Bilstien damper, amongst other components. The car cornered like it was on rails and planted on hard launches from a standstill. Around 118,000 miles, Zoner and I went to the dragstrip in New Jersey where after driving the car from CT in rush hour traffic, we let it cool. Then Zoner made two passes before being told he needed a roll cage. The car delivered a 10.8 @ 128 elapsed time. The car was driven home afterwards.

Racking-up miles was the easy part and the justification continued, it was more cost effective than multiple weekly flights and rental cars for business. By 2013, VIN 00059 had over 150,000 miles, and the company began to shift its focus to the new C7 Stingray. VIN 00059 could have easily been sold, as we picked up a Night Race Blue C7 as our next demonstrator.

But saying goodbye to an old friend isn’t easy, and I wasn’t ready. The decision was made, with 150,000 miles on VIN 00059, let’s get to 200k and then decide and thus we did. Calling up our friends at the NCM Motorsports Park, we decided to turn the 200k milestone on their track. Further telephone calls to retired Corvette Quality Engineer, Art Spong, to drive the car, and Corvette Historian, Walt Thurn, to document the event, we now had a plan. We drove to Bowling Green Kentucky and found ourselves about 100 miles shy of 200k. We’d have to accumulate some miles and found no better place than laps on the NCM track.

With Art Spong behind the wheel, the car turned 200,000 miles as it crossed the finish line at the track. It was a great opportunity to share how the car had been flawless and still presented very well. Walt Thurn had chronicled much of the story over time and as we collectively remarked how it proved that a well-engineered package could truly go the distance. What began as a 100,000-mile exercise was now twice that distance, and we joked about a quarter-million miles. Sure, why not…

As the miles continued with VIN 00059, that 2014 C7 Stingray came and went over the course of a year, then a C7 Z06, and another, and another. The last demonstrator I ordered was a 2018 Callaway Tahoe RST with SC560 package, but VIN 00059 remained in the background. Miles were not accumulating as quickly, and in December 2018, while in Oklahoma, I got called to a meeting in Florida.

That trip, due to the meeting in Florida turned out to be the last time I would drive VIN 00059. The Florida meeting was to present the Callaway Corvette SC757 AeroWagen™ to a panel – and the only problem was that car was in Temecula, California, at Callaway Cars West. I left VIN 00059 in the airport parking lot in Oklahoma City and caught a flight to San Diego. That was on a Friday, and my meeting was Monday morning, 2,500 miles away. Arriving in The Golden State Friday evening, I got the car, got a motel room in San Diego, and departed the next morning after breakfast. Picking up Mike Zoner in Florida Sunday evening for the Monday meeting, we still had plenty of time to review our notes. While Zoner presumably flew coach to Florida, I was in first-class all the way for my drive in the SC757 AeroWagen™.

With VIN 00059 in the airport lot racking-up fees, I called on a good friend, asking him if he’d pick up the car if I mailed him the key. The car had 273,000 miles on it at this point, and he said it was no problem, even though I wasn’t sure when I’d be back to Oklahoma to retrieve the Corvette.

I never did get back to pick-up the car. Throughout 2019, my friend kept the tires round by driving it. In January 2020, the car had accumulated several thousand more miles. It now showed around 278,000 miles. It was around that time, when I left my position at Callaway Cars, Zoner asked me to sell the car. VIN 00059 needed to find a new home. Calling my friend, I asked him how the car was doing. I asked him if he was interested in buying the vehicle.

VIN 00059 was still running strong, as he had a leakdown test done on the engine which revealed one cylinder around 6% and the rest between 4% and 5%. It was a very healthy car, even with all those miles. Keep in mind, the car was still on its original clutch, and the supercharger was still delivering! He bought the car, and over the past 6 years, added 22,000 miles to get the car beyond 300,000 miles.

Toyota, for example, issues a badge of merit for 300,000 miles. I wonder what can be done for this car from GM and Callaway to further celebrate the milestone.

In the meantime, given the excitement surrounding the new 2027 Grand Sport Corvette and the venerable Grand Sport X model, the GSX with the new LS6 and all-wheel drive might be ideal platform for Callaway’s next demonstrator. It checks the right boxes, carrying on the legacy which began with VIN 00059. Make mine Red Mist Metallic with Ebony leather…

Chris Chessnoe

Watch the Odometer Rollover

The current owner of VIN 00059 shared the moment we see the 300,000-mile odometer rollover in this YouTube video.

Source:
Words and Photos by Chris Chessnoe

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[VIDEO] Callaway’s SC606 Corvette Grand Sport Surpasses 250,000 Miles
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