The only ZL-1 Corvette Convertible ever built is about to go up for sale
Published on Dec 23, 2022 at 2:51 PM (UTC+4)
by Adam Gray
Last updated on Jan 27, 2023 at 1:17 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
For the first time ever, a ZL-1 Corvette Convertible is being offered publicly for sale.
The auction is an unrepeatable, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get your hands on one of only two factory aluminum 427 ZL-1 Corvettes.
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Your pockets will have to be pretty deep, though, as a car as rare as this ZL-1 Corvette Convertible is bound to fetch a significant amount at auction.
More on the estimated sale price later, but first let’s talk about the unicorn in question.
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The legendary ZL-1
The 1969 ZL-1 Corvette enjoys a mythical status among production Corvettes, and selecting the RPO ZL-1 option more than doubled the price of a new Corvette.
For that amount, the buyer received a 560-horsepower derivative of the all-aluminum CanAm racing engine delivered in a street-legal, factory-built production.
See the thing is, according to GM documents, only two so-equipped cars were produced at the St. Louis assembly plant and delivered through their dealer network.
The 1969 RPO ZL-1 was strictly developed as an FIA/NHRA homologation experiment and, in practice, never truly intended for sale to the public.
And yet, in December 1968, John W. Maher of Leechburg, Pennsylvania walked into Harold Breman’s West Penn Garage and completed the purchase paperwork for chassis 194679S710209.
And the rest is history as they say.
Fast forward to today and what we’re looking at is the keystone of the ultimate Corvette collection.
It wears an accurate, award-winning restoration from the most highly-regarded restorer of historically significant Corvettes, Kevin Mackay of Corvette Repair, Inc.
It’s also exhaustively chronicled by a trove of authentic GM documentation.
This is further accompanied by documents from the original owner, including its original tank sticker, sales invoice, and historic imagery.
ZL-1 Corvette Convertible price
It’s estimated that this ZL-1 Corvette Convertible will achieve between $2,600,000 and $3,000,000 when it goes under the hammer.
Keep your eyes peeled for this gem when it appears at RM Sotheby’s Arizona auction on January 26.
Update: The ZL-1 Corvette Convertible actually sold for more than the predicted selling price and went for $3,140,000.
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Adam Gray is an experienced freelance motoring journalist and content creator based in the United Kingdom. Using his media accreditation with manufacturers’ press offices, Adam test drives the latest cars and attends new vehicle press launches, producing written reviews and news pieces for a variety of lifestyle and business publications. Here at Supercar Blondie, Adam applies his journalistic skills penning social-first content around current news and trends. When he’s not behind the wheel of the latest car or writing up another viral story, Adam can be found at his local rink playing ice hockey or at the Riverside Stadium supporting his beloved Middlesbrough FC.
