Australian Penthouse

Still Cruisin’

Sydney car enthusiast, Charlie Spiteri, unveils his immaculate 1963 Corvette Stingray
Story & Photo: Tony Rabbitte

At first glance, Charlie Spiteri is probably not the kind of bloke you’d expect to see driving around in a classic 1963 Corvette. While most people tend to associate Vettes with the corporate car enthusiast stereotype, the reality is that these iconic vehicles appeal to a very wide cross section of the automotive community.

As a long-term member of the NSW Unlimited Corvette Club and a motorcycle enthusiast from way back, Charlie has certainly earned his stripes on both two and four wheels.

Charlie first came into contact with his treasured ’63 Corvette in the early 1980s when he saw it sitting in his mate George’s garage. Back then, it was just a body and chassis, but Charlie took an instant shine to it. A kind of magnetic attraction, you might say.

“I watched George spend 10 years or more and a lot of money getting parts and repairing the body and chassis,” says Charlie. “Then one day, out of the blue, George went and sold it as an unfinished project to Bob Maynes.” Bob was responsible for advancing the project further, which included a new paint job.

Charlie heard on the grapevine that the car might be coming up for sale once again. “I went around to see Bob to see if there was any truth in the rumour,” he says. “It turned out that his wife didn’t really want him to sell it, but he said he’d think about it”. Charlie waited patiently for a week while Bob decided what he wanted to do. In the end, Charlie called Bob to get the final verdict, and to Charlie’s delight, he decided to sell the car.

Now that Charlie had the project of his dreams in his possession, the next step was to find a motor and gearbox. He sourced a 350 Chevy and a Muncie four-speed transmission, which served the purpose for about three years. When Charlie decided that an upgrade was due, he stumbled across an opportunity to buy the original 350ci supercharged motor that George May had planned to put into the car when he owned it. Funny how things work out!

Four years later, the supercharger spat the dummy. Charlie, a mechanic by trade, repaired the damaged unit, but about 800km later, the same thing happened. “By now, I was getting a bit tired of that bloody supercharger, but I didn’t want to downgrade from the power level it was putting out,” says Charlie. “I got talking to a mate and he was telling me about these LS7 ‘crate motors’ that you can buy now. They put out 505hp from the factory.” These motors are the standard factory issue for the new Z06 C6 Corvette, which has been billed as the fastest, most powerful car ever offered by Chevrolet and GM.

Not satisfied with 500-plus horsepower straight out of the box, Charlie just had to tweak it. The standard fuel-injection system has been replaced with a 90mm Holley Throttle Body and larger injection. The LS7 now runs a Comp Cams XER287HR camshaft, and custom-made JE forged pistons have been installed to cope with the extra grunt, while the engine is kept lubricated via a dry sump system. The spent gasses are sent out the sides, courtesy of stainless steel 2-inch headers and 3½-inch side pipes. In all, the LS7 now packs a hefty 640hp.

The extra power is delivered to the wheels via the Tremec six-speed transmission, LS7 clutch, heavy-duty drive shaft and Corvette 3.7:1 positive traction diff.

The front suspension consists of Pedders coil springs and Koni shock absorbers, while the rear end runs a composite mono-spring system, Koni shocks and a three-quarter inch anti-sway bar. To get that tough stance, the car has been lowered 2.5 inches and fitted with Nylo-thane bushes. Stopping power is provided by Corvette vented and drilled discs, and four-spot calipers.

Next page

Related articles

• Motoring: 1968 Ford Mustang
• Motoring: Red Devil
• Motoring… American Dream
• Motoring: Hyundai i45
• Motoring: FPV GT vs HSV GTS