Mecum to auction ‘Gulf One’ Corvette

Mecum Auctions will include a Corvette with a famous racing heritage in its Jan. 22-24 auction in Kissimmee, Fla.

The historic 1963 Z06, driven by Dr. Dick Thompson of “Flying Dentist” fame and known simply as “Gulf One,” competed in the 1963 Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) National Championship. During its career, it was the most widely campaigned of all the works cars and the only one to campaign at the national level, racing in more venues than any other. It remains the most highly original of all the racing Z06 Sting Rays.

“This Gulf Oil Z06 is the last of the factory Corvette racers available and is the very car that led to the development of the Grand Sports prototype back in 1963,” said Dana Mecum, president of Mecum Auctions. “An amazing 45 years after its race debut, Mecum Auction is pleased to bring collectors the opportunity to own one of the most important cars in the history of production Corvette performance development.”

Restored to its original specifications, the Gulf One Z06 appears exactly as it did at the front of the starting grid of the 1963 Sebring race, including the unique rear fender flares required by the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) to cover its extra-wide Firestone racing tires.

Of the 21,513 production Corvettes in 1963, the Gulf One (Serial Number 2227) was:

* One of only nine regular production Corvette Serial Numbers assigned specifically for competition;
* The first of two regular production Corvette Serial Numbers assigned to Yenko Chevrolet specifically for competition;
* Delivered from Yenko Chevrolet directly to Grady Davis, executive VP of Gulf Oil Research and Development;
* The first car prepared with advanced race technology developed specifically for the Z06 and later adapted for use on the non-production prototype Corvette Grand Sports, whose name differentiated them from factory production Sting Rays.

Additional specifications of the original 1963 Corvette Regular Production Option (RPO) Z06 include:

* Fuel-injected 327/360-bhp V-8
* Four-speed transmission
* Positraction rear axle
* Vacuum-powered dual-circuit master cylinder
* Heavy duty brake drums with cooling fins and forward-operating adjusters
* Special metallic brake linings
* Removable front brake air scoops
* Vented brake backing plates
* Heavy duty stabilizer bar
* Heavy duty shock absorbers
* Heavy duty springs
* Fiberglas 36.5-gallon fuel tank
* Five cast-aluminum finned wheels

The Mecum Kissimmee Auction will be held at the Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee. Gulf One will be sold Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, as Lot # S110. For more information, visit www.Mecum.com.

The Kissimmee Auction will be broadcast live on Mecum’s Discovery Company cable series, “Mecum Auto Auction: Muscle Cars & More.”