Corvette loyalty starts early
As a young boy, Tony Varco would walk by a particular neighbor's house every day on his way to school. And every day the Arlington Heights resident would have the same four-wheeled fantasy about the owner's red 1962 Corvette.
“I kept having these visions of him handing off the keys to me,” Varco said. “It was the coolest car I had ever seen.”
Understandably so, the neighbor never did turn loose his rolling classic. However, seeing that vehicle sparked Varco's passion for 'Vettes. After an exhaustive four-year search, he located the car of his dreams in August 2013.
Varco opted for a 1954 example.
“What appealed to me most was the classic lines and distinct style,” he said. “It's mechanical simplicity — a car you can work on and understand yourself.”
Varco's new acquisition was built in Chevrolet's St. Louis assembly plant and didn't venture far after rolling out. Its first owner lived in Michigan. He didn't let it go until 2003. The two-seater then spent a very brief stint in Canada before heading to the owner who sold it to Varco.
In 2007 the car was given a body-on restoration, which Varco deemed a “C+.” After taking over ownership, Varco went to school hoping to drastically increase that GPA. A nearly two-year overhaul commenced, helmed by Joe Seputis of Veteran Automotive in Crystal Lake.
“The vision wasn't for a show car,” said Varco. “I wanted something to drive, not just look at.”
The coupe's frame was surprisingly intact, leaving most of the man-hours being spent on correcting and massaging the fiberglass bodywork. The Corvette was stripped and gutted and the body was repainted in factory correct Sportsman Red paint.
Only 100 vehicles were painted that color in 1954 out of the total production run of 3,640 Corvettes.
Underhood is the Blue Flame inline six-cylinder engine, rated at 150 horsepower. The transmission is a two-speed automatic.
During the overhaul, Varco retained the drum brakes and manual steering. “Out on the road it's a real workout,” Varco said. “An hour of driving is better to the same time at a fitness club.”
In spite of all the effort, driving the Corvette is the guttural experience Varco was looking for.
“It's all about motoring in its purest sense. It's simply exhilarating.”
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