Classic Cars Chevrolet

When you’re at your Lumberton-area Corvette dealer, you can’t help but feel a little bit nostalgic. The Corvette has been the quintessential American sports car for more than half a century. Still, you may not know about those early days, about how the Corvette began.

The Corvette cam about largely because of Harley Earl. Earl was able to convince General Motors that a two-seat sports car was exactly what America needed at the time. The first Corvette was revealed at the 1953 Motorama car show. The vehicle took its name from a small fighting frigate called the “corvette.”

The early Corvettes were built mostly by hand at the Customer Delivery Center that Chevrolet ran in Flint, Michigan. The outer body of the Corvette was made of fiberglass, which was a relatively new material at the time. Since those days, every Corvette has had a fiberglass outer skin.

The Corvette almost was shelved in 1955. If it hadn’t been for the introduction of the V8 Chevrolet engine, we may never have had the Corvette we know and love today. An engineer named Zora Arkus-Duntov conbined a 4.6 liter version of Chevrolet’s new V8 and combined it with a four speed manual transmission. This gave the Corvette what it needed to compete with other sports cars like the Thunderbird.

With all of the talk of global expansion, General Motors is celebrating the opening of its first plant in Russia. The plant, which is located in St. Petersburg, opened November 11, 2008, with the St. Petersburg governor and Carl Peter Forster, the president of General Motors Europe, there for the occasion.

The Russian-made Chevrolet/General Motors plant has been in the works for quite some time and will represent a big boost in the European markets for the company. The plant is worth $300 million U.S. and is known as a “flexible assembly plant” in many circles because of its ability to construct a wide variety of vehicles with efficiency and speed.

The plant has 70,000 units of capacity, which is an impressive sum for the region and will help boost European production from Chevrolet/General Motors considerably. Other joint ventures and partnerships are said to be expected in the region, with the possibility of more Russian plants right around the corner.

While the American political world may not be friendly with Russia at this point and time, there is certainly nothing stopping Chevrolet/General Motors from opening the doors of commerce and exposing themselves to new markets ripe with potential. Business is business and these companies know how to play by the rules in order to benefit from economic situations.

Production of Chevy cars and trucks at plants like these help boost the international profile and, in turn, help local economies and dealers. Everybody wins.

The Chevrolet Corvette has long been a vehicle of legendary proportions. People have lined up for miles to drive one, they make extraordinary sacrifices to own one, and they’re willing to drive their cars to top speeds normally unheard of behind the wheel of one.

There have been some classic Corvettes in the past, with many an iconic model filling the showrooms of previous years. The one question that any car company worth its salt asks in light of such an extravagant history is: how do we top it now? And Chevrolet has certainly asked that question time and time again, with each incarnation of the Corvette looking to build on top of what many consider to be perfection.

Enter the 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1. Is it perfect? Maybe. The ZR1 has a story, a soul, and a spirit. It also has a tremendous 638 horsepower and 604 pound-feet of torque from its 6.2-liter LS9, OHV 16-valve, supercharged, intercooled V8 engine with sequential fuel injection. Sound good so far? Power junkies will absolutely love this car, no question about it.

When Rick Wagoner came to Chevrolet car makers with a dream of making a Corvette with top-notch performance to follow up the 2001-proposed Z06 Corvette and said that he wanted an even higher budget and even more power, the 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 was the result.

For more information on the ZR1 or any other Chevy cars, drop by your local dealer today.

The 2008 Chevrolet Malibu is a wonderful choice of vehicle for you to take your family on a road trip.

Maybe you want to take a trip to a theme park in another state. Maybe you want to drive through the desert. Maybe you just want to have a day at the beach. No matter where you’re going, though, there are some preparations you should make ahead of time to insure that you get to your destination safely and happily.

Basic Maintenance

Some of the most basic things you can do to prepare your 2008 Chevrolet Malibu for your road trip are the basic sorts of maintenance tasks you normally do anyway. Making sure that your oil is changed, that your tires are inflated properly, and that your coolant system is working as it should are all part of preparing your Malibu for that road trip.

Your Route Matters

In addition, your choice of destination and route also determine the kinds of preparations you should make. For example, if you’re going to go to the beach, you’ll want to wash your Malibu and wax it with a protective wax. Clean your car’s inside with a UV protector to help keep your vinyl and your plastic surfaces safe from the rays of the sun. These measures help protect your car from the salty air of the sea, as well as the sun itself.

Desert driving has its own unique preparations, as well. When getting ready to drive through the desert, check your coolant system. Make sure your serpentine belt isn’t cracked. Test your Air Conditioning, or even have it professionally tested. Check your tire treads, and replace them if necessary.

When you drive your Chevy Malibu through the mountains, there are some different things you should do to prepare. You can check your brakes, and make sure you replace worn pads. Have your drive train checked, to make sure that it is functioning correctly. Inspect your wiper blades, and check your battery for corrosion.

For many, the C3R Chevrolet Stingray Corvette project was just that, a project. It was the stuff of legends, the type of “project car” that would only exist in the realm of concept cars and other fantasy vehicles that many would only drive through their clouded dreams.

But all of that is about to change, as Chevrolet is really, truly getting ready to release the C3R Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.

For the most part, renderings of the C3R Chevrolet Corvette Stingray were all that existed. It looked somewhat like the 1969 Corvette Stingray and functioned like an homage to the vehicle. Computer generated mock-ups certainly turned heads, but few believed that a Corvette was going to be based on one. But now such a mock-up IS going to be used for a Stingray and that Stingray IS going to face a public release.

Enthusiasts of Chevy cars from around the world are excited beyond words at the idea of a Chevrolet Corvette Stingray built on the foundation of the 69 version. The sleekness of the design, the sex appeal, the power, and the grit is almost too much for today’s modern drivers to handle. And yet Chevrolet is actually doing it, proving that they have the willingness to still be a gutsy, tough car company after all these years.

While you can’t walk into your Berlin-area Corvette dealer and expect to drive away with a $10 car, there may be a way for you to get your Vette for that little.

The National Corvette Museum runs a number of raffle fundraisers each year, in which winners can receive a Corvette for as little as $10. The raffle fundraisers are an integral part of the Museum’s operating funds.

The first raffle running at the National Corvette Museum is a “Build Your Own” Z06 raffle. The winner can select a current year Z06 Vette and choose the options that they prefer. Tickets cost $500, and there will only be 500 tickets sold.

The Museum also is raffling off a 2009 Victory Red Corvette Coupe. The Coupe comes equipped with the 3LT package, ebony interior, glass top, NPP exhaust, polished wheels and automatic transmission. The tickets are just $10, and an unlimited number will be sold.

You can also have a chance at a 2009 Jetstream Blue Metallic Corvette Coupe. This one has two-tone seats, polished wheels, 3LT package, automatic transmission and performance axle. Tickets for this one are $250, with a maximum of 500 tickets to be sold.

In addition to Corvette raffles, the Museum also features vacation package raffles from time to time.

Why take a chance on a raffle? Come test drive your new Corvette today.

There have been all sorts of rumors floating around about Chevrolet’s brand new Corvette. Many have stated that the next-generation C7 Chevy Corvette will include a dual-clutch version, for instance, or that it will be able to fly through the air. Okay, so maybe that last one doesn’t have much of a basis in reality.

But I digress.

One of the rumors floating around about the C7 Chevy Corvette that is gaining some steam is that its release will be delayed because of current economic problems and because of a little something known as the CAFE regulations. The upcoming CAFE regulations are in regards to fuel economy standards. The regulations were passed by the United States House of Representatives and will serve to be part of a long-range energy bill that could threaten the production of vehicles that have less than desirable fuel economy standards.

Many are suggesting that the new Corvette might struggle in this area. The economic woes of Chevrolet and General Motors are perhaps also to blame for the rumors of delayed release.

There is more to this story than just rumors, sadly. A report from AutoWeek magazine has stated that Chevrolet has put production of the new C7 Corvette on “indefinite hold.” What that will mean for the car company and for other Chevy cars remains to be seen, but we will keep our eyes on the story and bring you all of the updates.

We’ve been reporting lately on the attention that various car companies have been giving to Brazil. With the GPiX concept car, Chevrolet is granting the South American nation some attention as well.

One of the reasons that Chevrolet might have selected Brazil as the debut point for their GPiX concept car is that the rules in the automobile industry are different. The country’s high taxes on imports have played a significant role in local manufacturing, as more car companies are turning to local production facilities as opposed to challenging the shrinking import/export field. More cars in Brazil are homegrown, which has been good news for investors looking to spring up a factory or two. Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have all seen benefits in this fashion.

So it really was only a matter of time before Chevrolet got in on the deal as well.

Brazil is actually the world’s seventh largest automobile market, a fact that may surprise many. But Chevrolet, with the release of its GPiX concept car, are angling for more of that market share than ever before. The car company is tapping into a market that is hungry for crossover vehicles, which fits the bill for GM and Chevrolet quite nicely.

General Motors will clearly be dedicating more time to debuting other Chevy cars in Brazil in the near future.

The Chevrolet 2008 Malibu Hybrid gives you everything you’re looking for in a car, and more. It features unique styling outside and in, a comfortable ride, a quiet cabin and an excellent fit. If you’re looking for a new car to shore up your wallet at the gas pump, you want the Chevrolet 2008 Malibu Hybrid.

This midsize sedan can compete with the best of the midsize hybrids in its class. The Malibu Hybrid is also one of the least expensive hybrids in its class, although the smooth ride gives you a luxury feel that belies its price.

An electric motor gives a boost to the gas engine in the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid, and will power the vehicle when the vehicle is under very light acceleration. It saves fuel during stopping situations, for example, and at traffic lights.

While the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu doesn’t hit the same fuel efficiency numbers that the Toyota Prius does, it offers a solution to those customers who want to balance the need for fuel efficiency for the need with style and value.