Now that looks Sweet - RHD 94 ZR-1

[teamzr1]

I know little about this deal but what I read
Remember, the 1994 LT5 was upp'ed to 405 HP.
I ran my '94 to over 180 MPH with just my own tuning and downforce parts at both ends, and that engine loved to run at 7,200 RPMs all day long in racing.

A 1994 ZR-1 that GM converted to RHD, and then it just sat for the last 27 years at a dealer is up for sale
Being I owned and raced 2 C4 ZR-1s I'd almost move to the U.K. just to be able to drive it

This black-on-black 1994 Corvette ZR-1 was converted when new to right-hand drive, but instead of being exported to its intended market of Australia, it has remained in a Corvette collection for the past 27 years.

Now, with just 3,800 miles on the odometer, this ZR-1 is being offered on Craigslist for $48,000 US by a Michigan dealer, which claims it’s currently the only one for sale in the world.

That’s still less than half the original cost of the car, which had an initial MSRP of $68,093 not counting more than $30,000 for the RHD conversion.

As you might expect from such low mileage, the car “rides and drives like a new car in every way,” the seller says, pointing out its “virtually flawless” interior and exterior, with “no repainting or damage ever.”

This Corvette has been stored in a climate-controlled environment since new and represents “a unique opportunity” for the serious collector, the dealer says.

 

[Roscobbc]

Thing is......no true American car (or Vette enthusiast) would consider buying a RHD converted Corvette. Yes, perhaps someone new to American cars in the UK may be concerned about driving a LHD car for the first time.......but with such a low mileage car any change form the OEM specification would be a negative factor. A 'real' enthusiast would go LHD all the time. Perhaps different in Australia - and will certainly be different for the 'proper' RHD C8 Corvettes.

 

[teamzr1]

You would think if the conversion was done by GM and being very rare that someone who is used to RHD and how rare an almost new LT5 engine
would want a Corvette like this

Be very odd for us in the USA to be shifting left-handed
Is the gear shift pattern the same for RHD where 1st gear is upper left corner, or is that also changed for RHD ?

 

[James Vette]

I prefer LHD anyway.

 

[richie500]

Lovely car, great price, not so great when you add shipping, duty and vat

 

[teamzr1]

Richie500, what is that overhead costs like, and what is VAT ?

 

[richie500]

Richie500, what is that overhead costs like, and what is VAT ?

That overall cost to us in UK is around $70,000 total, VAT in uk is value added tax which is added to the cost of car and shipping etc and this is 20% which is why I keep harping on about a trade deal. If you buy let's say a C3 and older you don't pay Vat on the car and only 5% duty not 10% providing the car is fairly standard. Shame as we would probably buy more C6 and C7 if we were not getting so stung by our government

 

[Roscobbc]

You would think if the conversion was done by GM and being very rare that someone who is used to RHD and how rare an almost new LT5 engine
would want a Corvette like this

Be very odd for us in the USA to be shifting left-handed
Is the gear shift pattern the same for RHD where 1st gear is upper left corner, or is that also changed for RHD ?

Shift pattern would be exactly the same. A high number of people would be very, very concerned about how a ZR1 engine had be used snd stored since new with such a low mileage. Ultra low mileage on an engine if only done in short mileage increments can be far worse than high mileage. The manufacturers service internals and fluid and consumable items schedule is really the only sure-fire way of safeguarding engine and transmission etc (even if there is no mileage done in between services) I recall some years back when Rolls Royce had their own body shop and service depot in North West London (before BMW got their hands on them) probably 80% of the cars never did any miles in between services for years if picked-up and delivered by trailer or covered transport. 50, 60 year old cars with just a few thousand miles recorded were quite common......and the cars would be perfect.

 

[teamzr1]

The LT5 was a well-designed engine and had no real issues over 1990-95 model years so would not worry about it's age
Not uncommon that C4 ZR-1s were bought and then rarely driven and then finally sold and new owner raced them with no issues

If you do not have the GM engineering design specs for a 1968 Corvette, here is a 140-page PDF from GM archives
and a nice 12-page GM glossy for 1967 PDF

 

[Roscobbc]

I'm sure you are right but I'm guessing for many Brits the difficulty of finding someone in the UK who knows anything about this engine and has the skills (if something went wrong) after 30 years might make them think carefully about investing in one...........if an 'ordinary' small block goes badly wrong the cost of a re-build or crate engine is minimal compared with that of a LT5. I know at least one person who shipped an engibe back to Marc Haibeck in the 'States for work due to the difficulty finding someone knowledgeable in the UK or Europe. We have a few owners here in the CCCUK - perhaps one of them can answer?