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This car is a real Time Machine and will be sold on Bring A Trailer on Friday.
From Corvette Mike Vietro:
How this rare 1967 427/400 AC Auto AIR Corvette Convertible was found….
I wanted to share with you the story of how I acquired this very rare and unique Corvette. It all started around 1985. . .
My sales manager at the time was Mike C. On another sunny and perfect day in Orange County, CA, he received a call from a tipsy man claiming he had a yellow ’67 Corvette convertible (Sunfire) with a black leather interior. and a 400 hp 427.
Wait, it gets better. Imagine a 400 with AC, automatic and AIR (smog pump), a convertible with full power options, headrests and a vinyl hardtop missing, as well as the center caps on what appeared to be original Kelsey Hayes aluminum wheels. Pinch me, am I dreaming?
Missing? Yes, he claimed the hardtop was missing because some abandoned people stole it from the car while it was in his outdoor carport two weeks earlier. You can’t make this nonsense up.
It was also around that time, as I recall, that some thugs came to my store and sold what looked like the exact hardtop of this car. Of course I couldn’t prove it, and I didn’t mention it because we had made an appointment to come see this rare and incredible car – if it really existed!!
When I arrived in Santa Ana, a stone’s throw from my shop, I finally met the owner, George G. – a large man with urban sensibilities and a cook at the local hotel, who explained that he drank beer all the time. That made sense, because there were empty beer cans rattling everywhere in the rear compartment. George had purchased the convertible upon returning from Vietnam from Cormier Chevrolet in Long Beach, California. In this showroom he had the choice between this yellow 427 fire-breathing dragon or a beautiful Marina Blue 350 hp air conditioning coupe. Can you even imagine those days and those choices?
George, given his tendency to drink, was afraid that he would be stopped and the car would be impounded by the police. And worse, he would get a DUI. The hardtop was recently stolen and he was sure the whole car would be next.
The tri-carb hydraulic lifter 427 was smoking, a sure sign of neglect and high mileage.
Considering that 435s were trading for around $6,000 in the early ’80s, I picked up $5,000 in cash and put it on the fender. I said, ‘George, you pick it up, or I will.’
Of course he picked it up. Needless to say, he needed and wanted the money; no doubt visions of brewing beer burned a hole in his brain. And keep in mind that this car required a complete frame-off restoration.
I quickly got the signed pink slip and rushed to Orange, California, to park my new found treasure in the showroom among her other stablemates.
Weeks later . . . A group of guys from Texas came to visit and stopped by on one of their trips to California to look for cars to restore. This group included Mike Pillsbury, Gary Nabers and Ken Nabers, known for their excellent C2 Corvette restorations. After a lengthy inspection and discussion, Pillsbury said, “We’ll give you sixteen thousand, and you keep the bolt-on wheels.” They also gave me the first snacks after the resto, which I insisted on.
A few years later we all met in June 1987 at the Bloomington Gold Corvette show where they said their prize would be $42,000. So I bought it back. Completely restored to perfection by Nabers Bros.
We had to fix a number of minor items before we could judge in the parking lot of Dale Smith’s OEM glass company in Bloomington, Illinois. Those were the good old days when we would barbecue, hang out and get the cars ready for the judges on Sundays.
We all miss those days, at least those of us who are still alive. The yellow Sunfire, rarer than chicken teeth, had achieved its Bloomington Gold certification and was now back in a truck headed to Orange County, California. I still have that gold certificate.
Back on the streets of OC the transmission developed a problem. Once repaired and the car now costing $55,000, a fellow Bostonian named John R. visited, took a long look at it and bought it with cash, plus he bought my 1964 Tripower AC GTO convertible 4-speed.
Can you believe those early days of finding cars like this on dealer lots in rust-free California?
John eventually sold it years later. The car circulated among a few other owners before ending up in New Jersey with another customer of mine, George. I think it was George who then sold it in Kissimmee January 2020. The car fetched a good price and the highest bidder was none other than the same JOHN from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Again, you can’t make this up!!
John has completed a number of minor, scrappy restoration items in preparation for its return to Bloomington Gold in 2021, where it would once again be reunited on the show field with other 427 Corvettes from the same era. John obtained his gold certificate and was a proud peacock.
John battled cancer and died in the fall of ’23. His widow and I had many conversations about the collection of cars John had amassed over the past five years to take his mind off his illness. I wanted to be reunited with this amazing 1967 Corvette after purchasing it from the original owner. So a deal was struck and all four cars headed west to my showroom in Southern California. Viper, Ford GT, Demon and my old screama!
And I can proudly say that some 39 years later, around 2024, it will look beautiful in my showroom.
I make it a point to stay in touch with all my clients, who have become my friends over the years. I take great pride in representing these cherished Corvettes, the in-depth story of which I have known since I bought so many from their original owners back in the good old days.
Sincerely, and fondly remembered, Corvette Mike Vietro
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