The wedge-shaped, fourth-generation Chevrolet Corvette, in production from between model years 1984 and ’96, was the then-new Corvette that many in my generation grew up dreaming of owning one day. The C4’s run actually ended a few years after I had graduated high school, with production overlapping with most of my grade school years. This was the iteration that many of us thought of when Prince’s “Little Red Corvette” would play on our portable radios or Sony Walkmans. I spotted this example in front of one of my former health clubs, and it triggered some memories.
One of the things I remember vividly about the 1980s was a new focus on health and fitness that seemed to be prevalent everywhere. My family had granola bars and Fruit Roll-Ups in our pantry cupboard. No pop. No “sugar” cereals. There was Hi-C or Sunny Delight in the fridge only on occasion, if we were lucky. I also remember viewing the brief, five-minute episodes of “ABC Funfit” between my Saturday morning cartoons, and watching kids do jumping jacks along with that program’s hostess, Olympic gymnast and gold medalist Mary Lou Retton.
I also remember mandatory participation in the nationwide “Ronald Reagan Physical Fitness Program” and its accompanying tests at my elementary school. I was not at all an athletic kid, and I loathed doing push-ups, rope-climbs, or any of that other stuff that didn’t involve dodging or kicking a giant, red, rubber ball, or running and playing “tag” with friends in the giant field behind our school. At the time, that President Reagan-initiated program seemed like a pointless exercise (pun intended) in reinforcing for the class bullies who their easiest targets were, in full view of the entire class.
Fast-forward some thirty-odd years, I have made peace with exercise and (wait for it…) actually, really enjoy it. When the C4 came out in 1983 for model year ’84, I remember thinking it looked like a much leaner, more athletic C3 – almost like it had lost its baby fat in adolescence and had gotten a weight bench for Christmas. Today, I might prefer the dramatic curves of a C3 (even a later edition), but when the fourth-generation cars were new, to me they looked very lithe, smooth and impressive. More importantly, the ’84 Corvette just seemed like a natural-born winner, an association that a slightly awkward kid like me could totally appreciate.
Your author, c. 1985. Flint, Michigan.
As I beheld the newest Corvette at that age, I was suitably blown away by what looked like the perfect new look for the high-tech ’80s. Judging by its wheels, this example looks to be an ’88 or ’89 model. Seeing it in front of the former World Gym made me smile as I thought about how great it is to be an adult, to be of good health and fitness… and also how I’ll never have to do a Reagan program-style chin-up ever, ever again.
Uptown, Chicago, Illinois.
Sunday, April 28, 2013.
Worthwhile reading (and watching) from:
- Tom Halter: CC TV: 1984 Chevrolet Corvette – You’ve Never Seen Anything Like This Before;
- Yohai71: Vintage Road Test: Chevrolet Corvette; and
- Paul Niedermeyer: Curbside Classic: 1990 Chevrolet Corvette – GM’s Deadly Sin #9 – Loss Of Soul.
While I like these Corvettes, and agree totally with the write-up (except for Prince’s inspiration) I always thought these Corvettes fit in too well with all the other boxy products GM was producing in the 80s. But at least the detailing looked like it had more than a moment’s thought given to it’s placement and/or dimensions.
Unfortunately, I’ve read a few magazine articles that implied the assembly quality on these Corvettes was comparable to the typical GM product of the 80s.
You put your finger on the problems I had with the C4. Frankly, I just never liked anything that came out of the Irv Rybicki design era at GM. Even at its best, there was a cool and soulless aspect to them, which the C4 really embodied. GM seemed to be convinced that their perceived superiority was best manifested in cars that exuded superior technology, regardless if it was true or not (all too often not, in the 80s).
But too much of that effort went into initial or superficial impressions. When one looked closer, the lack of attention to so many details was shocking, especially in comparison to the Japanese, whose absolute obsession with quality could be seen throughout.
The C4 is the poster boy of that GM thinking of the time. They were absolutely obsessed with it being able to achieve G1 on a skid pad, as if that was the holy grail. And the result was that in its first year or so, the ride was absolutely punishing. This was the exact opposite approach companies like Porsche had always espoused, making their cars truly compatible with all types of conditions, weather, and driving styles. Try to imagine a C4 crossing the Alps on a snowy day and on a rough old mountain pass road.
And as soon as one looked inside at the dash and interior, the Corvette’s obsession on superficiality was instantly obvious, without ever driving it.
So yes, I suppose the C4 is the poster boy of the 80s, a decade which really ushered in a rampant attraction to superficiality and fads. Like your family’s granola and Fruit Roll Ups; if anyone had really looked at the ingredients, they’ have know it was often largely junk food disguised as something else. The 80s indeed!!
” Frankly, I just never liked anything that came out of the Irv Rybicki design era at GM. Even at its best, there was a cool and soulless aspect to them….”
I’ve always felt this too. Glad I’m not the only one.
Wow. I do remember your pictures from the DS article and seeing how sloppily the interior pieces (dashboard) fit together, even if your example was looking a little beat. Maybe it would kill the fantasy a little for me to sit inside or drive one of these, but somehow I think I’d still be somewhat in awe, having grown up revering these.
It’s funny you should mention the Fruit Roll Ups. I seem to remember my grandma asking, “Why don’t you just eat an apple?” or something to that effect. :). In the sixth grade, our class actually had to make sheets of dried fruit for a class camping trip, and I remember thinking that our homemade fruit roll-up didn’t taste that much like the “store-bought” kind.
I’m also not a fan of the Rybicki era, but I still think the original C4 was a decent effort.
My least favorite Rybicki car is the “Cor-etta” or Corsica/Baretta.
Mainly was sick of seeing them unchanged for 10 years and all over rental lots. Then, as ‘program cars’ clogging GM dealer used car stores.
Glad to see many have been scrapped by now, 😉
I love the clever way you connected the C4 to the Reagan era’s health and fitness. I too remember all of those exercises and the pandemic that swept our schools at the time. It was also the age of DARE and the self-esteem movement, for better or worse.
I saw the C4 as more bloated than the svelte and long, lean C3. Nonetheless, I thought it was a cool car. I had several C4 toys, and my uncle had the real thing before it was taken from him in a carjacking in LA (how scary!) I was disappointed to later learn that it was not such a hot car, performance-wise. These vettes are largely overlooked today and often ridiculed. I wonder if they’ll ever be considered classics again in the future.
Scott, I also had a toy C4 – a silver, larger-scale, “remote control” model with cord connecting the control with the car. (Remember those? 🙂 ) It also had working lights and a removable targa top that could be stored in the hatch, if I remember correctly.
It wasn’t super-fast, and it wasn’t radio-controlled (it used to take half the fun out of owning a remote control car if you had to walk right behind it), but it was undeniably cool. I used to get down on the ground next to it, activate its lights, and pretend I was going on a road trip somewhere.
Love the C4’s and have been looking for one for a personal ride on and off for the past five years. With two exceptions (both giving indications of some serious deferred maintenance, and a few other questionable matters), everything I find for sale is an automatic. Which, for me, is an absolute no go.
I’ve come to the conclusion that manual Corvette owners are the serious owners, keeping their cars bloody well forever. While automatic Corvette owners are usually just picking up another toy to keep for a couple of years and then pass on.
I am a bit (he said in a subtle bit of understatement) older than Joe and my reaction to these cars when new was similar. By the time the C3 was done, I was really over it and just ready for it to go away. Finally, Chevrolet had come up with a fresh, new, modern Corvette. It was so hip, so now, so 80s.
Today I would take a C3 over a C4 all day every day. But back then, even though I was not a “Corvette guy”, I thought the car really nicely done.
One delightful little detail of this generation of Corvette is the way the pop-up headlamps do a little spin before turning on. I remember that being featured in early ads, and it was pretty cool to witness in person.
Of course I then had to look that up on YouTube… very, very cool! Another thing I learned today. Thanks, Mike.
Who could have ever thought that pop up headlights would someday seem so old fashioned.
I know. I loved them on my ’94 Ford Probe. Hidden headlights used to be synonymous with “sporty”.
Well hidden “pop up” headlights were, I don’t think the hidden headlights on a Lincoln Mark VI made it sportier to anyone lol
I agree though, I grew up during the transition, where in elementary school the cool car was the Ferrari 355, and by high school it was the Ferrari 360/430. The older pop up headlights still look more sporty to me. I hated when the C6 abandoned them.
Yes, in contrast the Fiero’s popped up, then extended themselves upward to the height required by US lighting laws. One of the car magazines of the time likened them to “E.T.”
The upside of the Corvette’s flip-over design was aerodynamics; otherwise, the leading edge of the headlamp doors would create a slight amount of drag. At that time, such incremental aerodynamic tricks were all the rage, and flat surfaced wheels and wheelcovers were commonly seen – even the fake wire ones seemed to get flatter!
I guess I was never really a Corvette guy, and really, it all came down to the fact that there was a Barbie version, in Pink, staring us down in the toy aisle every time one went shopping at the local K-Mart when I was younger. C3, C4, it didn’t really matter when Mattel clearly told us that this was a car for a girl, and a materialistic one at that. This model came out right as college ended for me, so my younger self was used to the C3 version, even if it was long in the tooth during my high school years (class of 80!). The C4 was new, so it looked different, but in a very familiar way. It made the C3 obsolete, at least as a fashion accessory (and at that point, with no real performance, it was just a fashion accessory). Perfect for the girl on the go, not so much for the guy who wanted something a bit more macho. I guess that is why pickups and Japanese cars picked up so many male fans from that time. Oddly, one of my cars now is a Miata, so the whole “Chick Car” label is a moot point to me now.
The “Barbie Corvette”… This almost made me laugh out my lunch as I read it again. I hit my share of thrift stores and Salvation Army stores, and as one winds around the aisles, there is usually at least one, pink, plastic C4 Barbie Corvette strewn among the other toys.
I prefer to look at these through the “techy 1980s” filter Brendan Saur spoke of. It would be great to roll up to an ’80s-themed party in one of these with the targa roof off… (yes, as an accessory 🙂 ), but such a great one that’s such a symbol of its time.
Great parts car for my ’57 Chevy Handyman project!
Other then the 1980-1982 Corvette, I have never been a real fan of the C3 Corvette.
I have always liked the C4 Vette though. I was 7 years old in 1984 and the C4 production followed me from elementary school to my first full year in collage(1996) I guess I grew up with this generation.
I still love the C4 Corvettes, mostly for their looks and very 1980s-techy persona. Even though it’s the C5 I associate mostly with my childhood (it came out when I was 4), the C4 is by far my favorite Corvette. I’ll take mine with red leather, 6-speed, and those “CD”-looking wheels from the ad!
“1980s-techy persona” is *the* perfect description, and the reason I like these!
Issues aside, I still love the looks of these. Clean and modern while still unmistakably Corvette. Very tastefully done. So much better than what’s on the road today.
I’m a bit bipolar on this Corvette. As JPC notes, by the early 1980s, you could “put a fork” in the C3 it was so “done.” So seeing an all-new Corvette was exciting for a bunch of us high schoolers, and we were all over learning all about it.
But then we learned about it…
First year cars were slammed for their terrible ride. The instrument panel was an overwrought video game. The refinement and fit and finish badly trailed the imports. Nothing new or noteworthy about the powertrain either–it was pretty old-school for the time. Nor was the C4 a breakthrough style leader like C3 had been when it was introduced. It was clean and modern looking (for the 1980s), but so were a lot of other sports coupes of that vintage, like the new-for-1984 Nissan 300ZX.
The C3 Corvette went from being the ride of choice for cool young professionals (think Apollo astronauts, many of whom drove one) to a lounge lizard poseur car by the late ’70s. Sadly, the C4 did nothing to change that trajectory, as the young hip types continued flocking to the imports, while the middle aged gold chain crowd gravitated to the new ‘Vette.
Still, when I see Joe’s pictures, I find the car very appealing. If only it had been finished to world class standards right out of the gate, but that was entirely out of GM’s grasp during the Roger Smith era.
Keep in mind Astronauts had been given new Corvette’s for sometime before the Apollo missions. Most of them took the cars, because they were hot-shot pilots who thought they were hot-shot drivers and need a car to match. I do recall that John Glen refused a Vette though and happily drove his NSU Prinz.
That said, while the C3 definitely (d)evolved the Corvette into a lounge lizard by the late 1970’s, the C4 was the first step in making it a world class sports car. The problem is, once it got the bad rep, it takes a long time to earn back a respectable one. I also think the trend to import cars in the 1980’s was bigger than the Vette and would have happened even if the C4 was better executed.
While the C4 doesn’t get much love here, it at least was the first major re-engineering since 1963. While it comes off as bland and boring today, I do think the Corvette team of that era was doing there best to come up with a world class cars within the limitations of GM of the era. I mean what recent performance car experience did the Corvette team have in the late 70’s early 80s?
The suspension, brakes, chassis, aerodynamics, use of lightweight materials, fuel economy were all far beyond the C3. Sure the 1984 cars had overly stiff suspension and the Cross-fire injection was terrible, but that was one year of twelve years this car was made 1985 saw improved suspension, and TPI (multi-point injection). The car was continually improved through the generations, better engines, 6-speed manual transmissions, structure and quality improvements.
While the C4 was not a high quality car, was rough around the edges, it performed very well for the era, looked cool at the time, and sold very well. And while all those Japanenese sports cars were more refined and better quality, how many made it past the 1990’s when everyone flocked away from sports cars?
The C4 was not perfect by a long shot. Did GM have the ability to make a better car. Sure, but considering the other stuff GM was pumping out at that time, considering this was Roger Smith’s GM, I think we are lucky to have got a C4 as good as we did. It could have been worse. The C4 was the generation that got the Corvette back on track to becoming a real sports car again, and was an essential step to get it to where it is today – one of the worlds best sports cars.
It’s discourse like comments from both of you (and from others) that have helped me learn and broaden my perspective on many different cars I’ve read and written about on Paul’s site. Thank you, and please keep doing what you’re doing.
The C4 in convertible form had an almost Ferrari Daytona Spyder like profile it, those are the C4s I like. The coupe, no. I have never reconciled with the bubble rear window, to me that ruined the design of the C3 in 1978 and it overstayed it’s welcome for three subsequent generations (C4/5/6). Never liked it and never will, I hate that for most of my lifetime that became so necessary for the so called Corvette legacy. Thank god for the C7, that was the first Corvette introduced in my lifetime that caught my attention.
There were aspects of the C4 I liked, I think the concave rear styling and uncluttered big round taillights was among of the best in Corvette history, topping even the pre crash bumper C3s. The bulged out restyle and squared off taillights on the ZR1 and late C4s ruined it unfortunately, and was carried through the boring C5 generation(sorry but, LS1 power aside, that whole generation looks like a melted regurgitated 1996 C4 without the charm). On the other end the big clamshell hood was probably the coolest thing I had ever seen on a car when I first saw a C4 with the hood up as a kid, especially seeing the headlights inside. That was just enough flashy gimmick to let you know it was an American creation, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Lastly, the seats were excellent, even if the rest of the interior was a bit unimaginative and of questionable quality(I still think it was better than the later GM fisher price interiors to come), the seats looked cool, were very supportive, have tons of adjustability and are simultaneously comfortable, at least for my frame,
The C2 had a bubble wraparound rear window too. Like it or not it *is* part of the Corvette’s legacy for most of its run.
Love all your pop culture references Joseph. In Canada, in the 80s and 90s, we had Body Break with Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod. One and a half minute segments that ran at all hours of the day on public and private TV. Not surprising, they eventually married.
Daniel, this is *outstanding*. The video screens on the rowing machines! This put a smile on my face after what has been a very challenging day. 🙂
I always look forward to your very enjoyable articles and pics Joseph. You’re a great additional to Paul’s talented group of writers and photographers.
I forgot just how long 80s fashion trends lingered into the 90s. 🙂
Oh yes, the old Body Break segments on TV. Thanks for bringing back the memories. 😐
You do realize the Prince song is not actually about a car. It just uses some automotive references as metaphor.
Of course. Few of us fourth graders knew or cared back then. 🙂 We just liked Corvettes.
Great Post Joe! Kind of hit home for me, growing up in the same era and having a similar experience with the “fitness programs” of the era. In Canada we had the Canada Fitness Award program. And like you, when I had to do it in school I hated it. But since adulthood, I have come to enjoy and partake in a regular fitness regime.
I remember the Canada Fitness Awards. We had them every year in grade school in the late 70s, usually as the school year was ending. It was popular to sew the patches to your jean jacket.
I’ve never driven a Corvette and have only ridden in one once (C5 at an autox event), but I do remember what a HUGE deal the C4 was when introduced for 1984. I was in the Industrial Design program at Georgia Tech at the time, and a group of us went to see one on the South side of Atlanta (“Take your Stewart Avenue exit, take a right and there it is on the left – that’d be Nalley!”).
The dealer wouldn’t even let you test drive one without putting money down on the car, and bragged of the ten-second 0-60-0 mph times it could pull down.
Somewhere in a box in the attic I have a brochure for the ’84 along with a poster they were giving out at the dealer.
Heady stuff back in the day.
The ’86 Indy Corvette concept car also got us pretty excited…
I like the C4 Corvettes, I am a fan of the design, although I certainly am not going to act like they were perfect and definitely understand where the negative feelings towards these come from. But, I personally think these designs have held up well and they remain the only post C3 generation I like other than the C7
Although, I will admit, my age has something to do with it. Being born in 96, the first year that the C5 came bursting onto the scene, the C5 and later C6 were the Corvettes that seemed to personify the “Corvette driven by a typical Corvette owner” stereotype. My mother certainly felt that any newer Corvettes were for sad old men trying to aimlessly recapture their youth, and I will admit, that sort of thinking rubbed off on me too. Now, I don’t hold those views so negatively, by opinions towards the C5 and C6 haven’t gotten positive. The C5 has the same problem too me as the FD RX-7, it looks like they took the previous generation and left it in the microwave for two long, and the end result makes it look like something out of Dali’s Persistence of Memory painting. The C6 meanwhile, just looks generic, say what you will about Corvettes, but usually they elicit very strong emotions in people, for better and worse. Much like the Ford Thunderbird, the worst thing a Corvette could look is boring. And that’s what the C6 looks like, it’s a generic sports car, no better and no more distinct than any other sports car.
The C4 not only managed to get away from the negative perceptions I had, by virtue of me being too young to be exposed to them, but also had, what I feel at least, was a much better and more striking design. There is a reason these are often the only Corvettes you can find for under ten grand, and I won’t pretend those reasons aren’t valid, and I will admit, I would not take a base model C4 and would rather have a ZR-1 edition. But, much like the third gen Camaro and Firebird that were around the same time period, the C4 Corvette, purely from a design perspective, speaks to me in a way that I feel is memorable and well designed, and much like the Camaro and Firebird, their successors missed the mark on that front, even if they improved the glaring flaws that were present beforehand.
Joe, you’ve got so much good stuff packed in here.
The C4 is a car I’ve always been indifferent about. It looks okay but just didn’t generated any degree of excitement for me. At the time a Mustang GT would have been my preference. Maybe it’s my Ford bias. In retrospect the C4 just seems so shoulder pads and parachute pants.
Joe I’m shocked to hear you exercise. Seriously what I e found to be most entertaining is the athletic high school classmates who have gotten porky and gray headed. While no poster child for fitness, I’ve been fairly consistent since high school.
“Shoulder pads and parachute pants” – hilarious! Don’t forget the Kangaroos shoes with pockets and Velcro.
I probably should have clarified that part of my GM-bias is due to where I grew up (birthplace of GM), where it seemed that every 4 out of 5 cars was a GM make.
RE: exercise, I have theories about why fitness levels can flip-flop between those who were fit when young and those who are fit when older. Those of us formerly scrawny just place a higher premium on fitness, while former athletes may look at it as, “Been there, done that”. Also, those who play(ed) contact sports earlier may have aches and things. Joints do not play.
After too many years of watching the C3 bulk-up and lose power, the C4 was a breath of fresh air. Though growing up with European cars and classic round analog gauges, I always hated the electronic dash displays.
I still indulge myself with a very occasional granola bar. But as much as I loved to indulge my sweet-tooth back in the bad-old-days, those Fruit Roll-Ups had so much sugar, for me they were inedible!
Happy Motoring, Mark
That’s my generation of Corvette as I also grew up in the ’80s. Even as a kid, when the C4 Vettes were plastered on all of my friend’s bedroom walls since they were the one of the first video-game-era hot cars and it was a big deal when they came out, I was never, ever a Corvette fan. I have nothing against them for any specific reason other than I just don’t like sports cars; I prefer loud obnoxious musclecars and stylish, comfortable big car cruisers.
Anyway, what would normally be a 14 year old boy’s dream, my Mom bought a new white 1987 Corvette after she landed a good government job, and I think it had the Z52 package. Since I was the youngest of 3 boys and nearing driving age, we didn’t need a big family car anymore so she gave her 1982 Delta 88 to my older brother when he joined the Navy and got the Vette, leaving my Dad’s 1983 Riviera as the ‘family’ car, which at that point was really just me and my folks since both of my older brothers were driving their own cars. So as a teenager, while I was mostly unfazed by the car itself, I thought it was cool that my Mom had a Corvette while other Moms were driving Taurus’ and minivans but I really would have preferred that she had kept the Delta 88 for me to have as my first car, or had at least bought the black Monte Carlo SS with T-Tops or the black K5 Blazer that were also on the lot, but it was a Corvette that she always wanted and I just had to put up with it, haha. At least I was able to successfully sneak it out of the garage a time or two so that I could try and impress my high school girlfriends with my (lack of) driving prowess.
She wound up keeping that Corvette for about 10 years and it had its share of typical GM problems including the electronic dash where they had to replace some module that kept breaking and blacking it out, it was fraught with creaks and rattles, plus it was very uncomfortable and low to the ground; my Dad and my brothers and I are all pretty big guys and they are not big guy-friendly cars. It was replaced by subsequent C5 and C6 cars (she is now in her 70s and drives a loaded Impala) but the ’87 was the one she always loved the most.
Great account, Dan! I would have been one of the jealous kids at your school, watching as your mom rolled up to pick you up in the Corvette, while I waited for my mom to show up in our wheezy, red ’84 Ford Tempo. I’m glad your mom has enjoyed her Corvettes – that put a smile on my face.
One of my buddies here in Chicago had a Delta 88 from the early ’80s while in high school. Reportedly, the car ran on fewer than its 8 cylinders and could barely get up to 60. I can’t even do that story justice – Brian has to tell it.
About the Monte SS, that was another cool car that really spoke to me back then. I spotted one not far from my house this past summer and shot a bunch of frames of it, but really couldn’t come up with an interesting angle on it. Maybe at a later time.
Angelyne drove a pink version of this gen Corvette all over LA for many years. One could see it everywhere, especially along Sunset and in West Hollywood.
The C-4 never came to mind when I heard “Little Red Corvette”. I saw either the “Rt 66” Corvette or the Sting Ray era version.
These never impressed. Looked too much like the less expensive Firebird in too many ways. Another GM problem during that era
FWIW, the song “Physical” by Olivia Newton-John came out in ’81 and was a big Pop music hit. But, by 1988 it was hardly on pop radio anymore, and “totally out” [of style]. 😉
But, I get your connection of the 80’s being when fitness was promoted more.
I would consider a C4 if only because of the tilt front clip. What a great idea.
In restoration and detail work at my shop I did a lot of Corvettes of all ages. The C-3 was usually showing the build seams after a few years, and most needed body and paint work, Also the lack of trunk after ’62 had many people adding rear racks which needed to be removed every time it was detailed. I welcomed the C-4 with the opening rear window (and access though the convertible hatch on those) Nearly as soon as the C-4 came out I started offering a super detail and quiet package. My cousin bought a red with black interior C-4 and complained about the squeaks and rattles, some from the rough suspension shaking everything loose. We pulled every panel and trim piece, using dense foam rubber we made it all silent by the end of the day. It went from sounding like an escapee from a wrecking yard to a quiet, expensive feeling car. Amazing the different perception from before to after. The Chevy dealer had me do every Corvette that went through his dealership. There were Corvettes coming from out of town, I’m in Chico California, and had two Corvettes from Texas, one from Montana, and from Colorado and Arizona
I had an unusual one when a doctor brought in a Ferrari Daytona conversion on a C4, he also handed me a key to his garage and his REAL Daytona Spyder. He wanted me to get the conversion to feel as much like his real car as possible. He said drive the real one as much as needed to get the feel,and do what I could for the conversion. The replica was a very good build, done in black, super slick, It also had the interior conversion dash, seats redone., side panels, but that all squeaked as much as the original Corvette. I went through everything and driving it after it felt like a much more expensive car, changed the shocks to Koni, the tires, experimented with tire pressure until the Vette felt very similar in a slide including the sharp little hook motion the Daytona did straitening out. The exhaust was changed, it wasn’t 12 cylinders, but had the European bark to it. Had the seats rebuilt more like the real thing. They were remarkably similar in actual performance. The Ferrari had 10+ mph on top speed, with the Vette winning 0-60. When I gave it back to him, he loved it. He didn’t want to drive the real item to the office, but wanted to FEEL like he was getting the experience with the replica, and also the replica looked good enough, most did mistake it for his real one. At the time he paid $790,000 for the real one and $12,000 for the replica before we “tuned” it. I would like a Ferrari Replica, but the 250 California “Ferris Bueller” style, Or possibly a 246GTS Dino replica, I drove Doc’s real 1974 GTS for quite awhile. Some people say a replica is never the real thing, of course not, but to have the authentic shape at 350,000 less money, I can look at a replica. Including a pic of the real 246.