My name is Mark and I finally bought my first Corvette two years ago, the realization of a long-held dream. I have had my share of performance cars through the years, but it was next to impossible justifying a two-seat sports car with my wife, since we have three daughters. I was able to justify several 1972 442s and a 1972 Trans Am, but never a Corvette! Still haven't figured that out.
While growing up, my dad always had at least one performance car in his stable. Some of my earliest memories were of his 1962 Impala Super Sport that was a 409 4-speed car in Anniversary Gold. Some of his other cars were a 1966 Ford Fairlane GTA and then a 1972 442. In my high school years in the mid- to late-70s, a close family friend kept his 1976 Corvette and matching jet boat in our garage, along with Dad's cars. He would occasionally let me take the Corvette out for a short cruise and I was hooked.
The search for my first Corvette started shortly after our youngest daughter left the nest. There was an empty stall in our garage and I was determined to fill it. My wife thought I was nuts and did not understand why a man in his early 50s wanted a Corvette. While at a family reunion, one of her cousin's husbands gave her a spot-on explanation. He said every boy dreams of owning a Corvette at some point in his life. When they are first able to drive one, they are in high school and can't afford one. After high school comes college and they still can't afford one. After college they start a career and family, and they definitely can't afford a Corvette. Then they’re paying for the kids’ college and that takes up any extra funds that would go towards a car. After the kids are out of school and have started their own careers and families, the time to buy a Corvette has arrived.
His explanation made so much sense and she finally understood my dream. My original search was for a mid- to late-70s C3, but I could not find anything that really interested me. Then one night while looking on the Internet, I found a 1995 LT1 coupe in Knoxville, TN that caught my eye. It was a low mileage, one-owner car with an unusual color combination: dark purple metallic with beige leather interior. Since we only live a couple of hours away, I drove over one day to look at it and take it out for a short test drive. I bought it on the spot and the rest is history. After I got it home and tucked into its new home in the garage, I did some research and found that there were only 1,049 Corvettes born in dark purple metallic in 1995, and most of them had gray interiors, so mine with the beige interior was a rare combo!
We have really enjoyed the car and have only added a little over 2000 miles in the last two years, most of these going to car shows and cruise-ins. It gets a lot of attention because of its color. Many people tell us that they have never seen one in purple before. I recently found the very same 1976 Corvette that sat in our garage those many years ago and I have been trying to convince the owner to sell it to me, so far with no success. It looks exactly as it did in 1976 and has been garage kept under a cover. I told him of my history with that very car and that I would love to add it to my collection. He said when he decides to sell, I will be the first person he calls. It is going to look so good sitting beside our C4 in the garage!