Those in attendance at Russo and Steele’s upcoming Scottsdale 2020 auction will have the rare opportunity to buy one of the more famous examples of the C2 Corvette – Bill Mitchell’s 1967 COPO Corvette Convertible.
This car actually crossed the auction block at RM Sotheby’s Auburn 2019 sale earlier this year, but it seems it didn’t find a new owner, with Russo and Steele now featuring it at its upcoming Scottsdale event as well.
As we reported back then, this car was originally ordered by celebrated General Motors Bill Mitchell, who later gave the car to his wife. He utilized the Central Office Production Order system (or COPO) to appoint it with luxury features like a telescoping steering column and power steering and brakes, along with the optional Big Block Tri-Power 427 cu. in. V8 engine.
Once the car was built, Mitchell had it shipped to the GM Technical Center in Warren, Michigan and applied the red accents and pin-striping over the Ermine White body. His wife Marianne Mitchell drove the car for two years before the couple sold it to their neighbour. It has traded hands a number of times over the years and is currently owned by a private collector. The car is being offered for sale in mint condition, though it’s not clear how many miles it has racked up since its last major overhaul. The winning bidder will also receive a notebook signed by famed Corvette engineer Zora Arkus Duntov, furthering its appeal to the Corvette faithful.
RM Sotheby’s expected this one of a kind C2 Corvette would fetch between $650,000 and $850,000 at its Auburn auction, but it didn’t sell, so perhaps the owner has adjusted their expectations for the upcoming Russo and Steele auction. Either way, this is one of the most well-known and unique examples of the C2 Corvette ever built, so it will assuredly sell for a small fortune whenever it actually does manage to trade hands.
Check out the listing at this link for some additional information and photos and be sure to let us know what you think the car is truly worth in the comments down below.
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Source: Russo and Steele
Comments
I’ve been reading about and researching the origins of the C2 and more broadly about Bill Mitchell himself. The story goes that GM was ready to pull the plug on Corvette until Mitchell came up with such a stunning design for a Gen 2 car that GM brass had a change of heart. In that sense it could be argued that Mitchell (no disrespect to Zora) saved the Corvette. The more I learn about those years, the more impressed by Mitchell I become. He was a character for sure but his reign (1958 to 1977) corresponds to GM’s most creative and most successful period. It can be argued that GM’s great decline begins with his retirement. He believed passionately in the power of design and he fought for what he believed in. The last cars designed on his watch launched in 1980 and as I see it, the level of design excellence dramatically drops off after that. Some of the subsequent five GM design bosses may have also been talented (Welburn comes immediately to mind) and may have lead a few minor design renaissances, but none seems to have been willing to fight their employer and risk it all for great design the way Mitchell did.
While the new C8 may be a technical achievement for Tadge Juechter and his team, there is no doubt Bill Mitchell would’ve penned a far more stunning body in which to house it. Peter Brock, who worked for GM while the C2 was being developed, retells of the young designers working on Corvette sketches only to be told by Mitchell to not flatter themselves because “I do the Corvette” and do the Corvette he did….masterfully. His two Corvettes, the C2 and C3, are stunning designs even 50 years after their launch. They couldn’t be more different but each is a masterpiece in my eyes.
I’d love to own any Corvette that Mitchell owned. I hope this one finds an owner who will appreciate it for all that it represents.
I’m not sure that level of stunning is a helpful possibility today. Lots of effort clearly went into the C8’s design. You think Mitchell would be a big critic? What do you think he’d say about separating the Corvette brand, and what’s your personal opinion? Just curious.
AG,
Mitchell was on record with what he thought about the cars that came out of GM immediately after he retired. He hated them. He was interviewed by the Henry Ford Museum in the early 1980s and said that although he still had the privilege of going over to the Tech Center and seeing what they are working on, he didn’t like to go because it made him sick. If I recall correctly he made reference to what they were doing to one of his favorite cars; the Buick Riviera. He was particularly unhappy about the design. He would have had to be talking about the forthcoming 1986 model which ultimately proved to be a disaster for GM with sales declining 70 percent from ’85 (a Mitchell car) to ’86 (the Irv Rybicki-designed replacement).
As far as the Corvette is concerned, I don’t think he liked the C4 replacement for his C3 either. He felt the design was too timid and was essentially a watered-down version of his 1968 to 1982 C3. I’ve often thought that although there is a dramatic design difference between the C1 and C2 and an equally dramatic difference between C2 and C3, everything since then has been evolutionary. GM has adopted Mitchell’s ’68 design as the template for the ‘Corvette look’ and merely acted as Porsche does with the 911 and evolved it without changing the formula. There really hasn’t been a strikingly new Corvette since he left. I think if Mitchell were still at GM, that never would’ve happened and most certainly a mid-engined C8 would’ve had a stunning look much more beautiful than what we see on the C8. Although Motor Trend magazine named C8 their Car of the Year, they called the design “too busy, cluttered, and naïve”. I certainly agree with that assessment. Visually I’d take a ’63 or ’68 any day over the overwrought modern car.
As far as the Corvette brand, I think it should remain a Chevrolet. There is far too much history there to ever remove the association with Chevrolet but I personally thought it should become a bit of a sub-brand with two models: the Front/Rear Corvette Stingray (C7) staying in the lineup but supplemented by the Mid/Rear Corvette Zora (C8).
Thank you.
I remember a Welborn interview question about a design regret. He said the W-body Cutlass Supreme. He said it was disliked by clinics also. I don’t think long overhang or fwd helps design. Maybe Mitchell looked at the ’86 Riv as a weak derivative of his last one? I view some of this similar to music; bands evolve and fans’ tastes shift.
I think designers are very boxed in between shapes for aerodynamics and utility. Manufacturers likely want to avoid emergency re-bodies for a flop.
I don’t know if designers have been inspired by prototype or F1 race cars, but ‘Busy’ is the Current trend.
I’m not too critical of the C8. The way many people see things, they are too wanting of acclaim. This works double against Caddy when a magazine or website dumps on them. GM can’t tell when it’s pointed in a good direction. And watch potential Caddy buyers miss out on V-blackwing cars that rip.
Right now, I wouldn’t mind seeing the Corvette spun off into a Caddy & Vette dealer body. And no more Vette hp hierarchy. GM could use a power play with its strong pieces forward. Chevy & GMC should get a new off-road enthusiast halo model. GM does seem afraid of the dealerships. This is just a peanut gallery view though.