The last time this 1962 Corvette hit the road, Jimmy Carter was president, Star Wars was arriving in theaters, disco was still filling dance floors, and this writer was reaching for his high school diploma.

That was 1977.

Nearly 50 years later, this long-dormant C1 has resurfaced on Bring a Trailer, where several commenters believe the “Banana Corvette” deserves another chance at life.

And while bringing it back certainly won’t be cheap, there appears to be enough here to make this more than just another basket-case restoration.

With six days remaining in the auction, bidding on the non-running 1962 Corvette 327/300 four-speed project had reached $25,000. If the price doesn’t climb too far, someone could have an intriguing starting point for putting one of the most desirable early Corvettes back on the road.

According to the selling dealer, the Corvette was last registered in 1977 and hasn’t been driven since. The current owner acquired it in 2016, and it is now being offered on dealer consignment in Texas.

The yellow paint is not original. The fiberglass body was previously finished in white before receiving its current banana-like hue sometime during prior ownership. A damaged white soft top remains attached to its functioning convertible frame, and the selling dealer says the bonding strips between the body panels are still present.

Under the hood, the car retains a 327/300 horsepower V8 with a single four-barrel carburetor backed by a four-speed manual transmission. The engine-pad stamping carries an RD suffix, consistent with the 300-horsepower 327 offered in a 1962 Corvette with a four-barrel and manual transmission.

The engine currently does not run, and the generator has been removed.

Inside, the black cabin is far from perfect but still retains some important pieces, including its Wonderbar AM radio. The door panels and shift knob are missing, while the three-spoke steering wheel sits in front of a 160-mph speedometer.

The five-digit odometer shows 35,000 miles, but service stickers in the door jamb indicate it has rolled over, so the Corvette’s actual mileage is unknown.

The car rides on 15-inch steel wheels wearing simulated knock-off spinner covers, and all four tires reportedly hold air.

It may sound like a daunting project, but the condition hasn’t discouraged the Bring a Trailer faithful.

“This ’62 Vette is definitely worth the investment of a restoration!” one commenter wrote.

Another noted that much of the car remains intact, calling that “a great starting point for a restoration” and pointing out several small period-correct details.

Perhaps the most appropriate assessment came from another commenter who wrote that the Corvette is “just crying ‘Please restore me,’” while also acknowledging that doing so will require plenty of time and money.

That may be the biggest question facing anyone tempted to click the Bid button. Buying the Corvette is only the price of admission. A full restoration could quickly make that purchase price look like the inexpensive part.

There is also the question of what color it should be when the job is finished.

It’s believed to have been Ermine White when it left the St. Louis factory, but unlike later Corvettes, the 1962 model didn’t have the familiar trim tag that can settle the original exterior-color question once and for all. One commenter suggested searching hidden or obscure areas of the body for traces of factory paint that escaped subsequent repaints.

And then there’s one detail that might raise more questions than anything under the hood: a trailer hitch.

“I love the trailer hitch,” one commenter wrote. “I wonder what was towed with it.”

We’d like to know that story, too.

What we do know is that beneath the tired yellow paint sits a final-year C1 Corvette with a 327, four-speed transmission and many of its important pieces still present.

It hasn’t traveled under its own power in nearly half a century.

Maybe it’s time the Banana Corvette hit the road again.

Source:
Bring a Trailer

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