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Here's the story:
Illustrated Corvette Series - No. 88 1991 Corvette - "'60s Performance,
'90s Style"
Here's
a shocker for you. While the ZR-1 was getting all of the attention,
Dave McClellan and his team of engineers were quietly raising the
performance bar. The stock 1991 Corvette could rip off a 0-to-60 time
of just 5.3-seconds. That's quicker that a '69 427/435 big-block
Corvette!
The country was in the doldrums in 1991. Recession, inflation, and
federal deficits had a damper on the economy. SUVs hadn't arrived yet
and very few people were interested in performance cars. Despite the
bad mood of the economy, the Corvette was running better than ever.
Corvettes usually only make incremental improvements and 1991 was no
exception.
The most obvious change for '91 was the first facelift since the C4
arrived in '84. The front and rear bumper covers were restyled, there
were new front fender vents, and new turbine-styled wheels. The
formerly black horizontal body molding was now body colored and the
rear bumper cover was styled after the ZR-1.
Other minor details included the placement of the third brake light at
the top of the rear bumper cover. The list price for the '91 coupe was
$32,455, up only $476 from the '90 model. The roadster started at
$38,770. Total production was only 20,639, down 3,007 units from the
'90 model.
Interesting were happening under the hood for '91. Although the power
rating hadn't changed, new low-pressure mufflers improved performance
and made the car slightly quieter. There was a new finned power
steering cooler and a "low oil" sensor pickup was added to the oil pan.
The famous Z51 performance suspension option was replaced with the new
Z07 option. The new option offered all of the Z51 suspension parts,
plus the old FX3 adjustable suspension option. However, the suspension
settings were "firm-to-very firm," and it wasn't cheap. The Z07 cost
$2,155. Only 773 cars were ordered with this option.
1991 was also the last year for the official Callaway conversion
Corvettes. Callaway also built the 500th Callaway Corvette on September
26, 1991. The ZR-1 market was cooling off as well. Only 2,044 of the
$67,000 beasts were built in '91. That down from the 3,049 made in 1990.
The '91 Corvette had come a long way from the dog-days of 1981.
Corvettes were winning races, there were two exotic Corvettes offered,
and performance was better than ever. And just over the horizon, a
famous old gun was about to return, the LT-1.
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