Bjorn Harms’ Remote-Controlled Corvette Is a Childhood Dream Come True

November is autoevolution’s Chevrolet Month, so we’re covering all things old and new related to the carmaker. That is to say, it’s the perfect moment to remember the remote-controlled Corvette and honor the guy who made everyone’s childhood dreams reality.

That guy’s name is Bjorn Harms, a computer technician and engineer from Urmond, Netherlands. He came up with the idea for the RC Corvette back when he was still a kid and was watching, like every other kid of his generation, Back to the Future. He promised himself that, when he’d grow up, he would build himself one such remote-controlled car.

In 2016, Harms bought himself a 2006 Corvette C6, and he was finally able to start working toward making that dream come true. From the get-go, he set very high goals for himself, with the number two being that he wanted his build to be different from the other RC full-size cars he’d seen and he wanted to be able to continue using it as his daily driver. Both meant he would have to modify the car in such a way as to keep everything out of sight, so as to not affect its road legality.

“I haven’t seen anyone who has done this sort of thing before,” Harms was saying in a 2018 interview with Barcroft, which you can find at the bottom of the page. “Other 1:1 remote-controlled cars you see online come with large motors and actuators installed in the interior. So it’s not a daily driver.”

Devising the mechanism that he would later apply to the Corvette took him a full year. Developing the first prototype was another three months, and then Harms spent another three months modifying the Corvette. It was all well worth it, though: the result is a car that seems stock on the inside and out, but can be operated remotely with extreme ease.

Harms can control the brakes, the gear shifter, the wheel and the throttle on his remote. The receiver is hidden in the dashboard and it connects to different motors that move the different components. This allows Harms to control the car either from outside, or from the passenger seat – as long as the ‘Vette remains within range.

Should it go out of range, it won’t be wreaking havoc: Harms incorporated several fail-safes, one of which disengages the throttle and activates the brakes, he explains. Safety is always top priority, he says.

Under the hood, the ‘Vette is stock as well. Powered by a 6-liter V8 engine with 404 horsepower, it’s able to hit top speeds of 186 mph (300 kph). To those wondering whether Harms can operate it at this speed with his remote control, he says: he could, but he won’t. “Technically, it could go that fast remotely too, but that’s highly unwise,” he says.

Harms’ first ride in the car was, as per his own words, terrifying. It wasn’t just the thought that he could wreck his new car that scared him but also the potential danger of taking a full-size car out for a drive with a remote control.

He’s come a long way since then. As you can see in any of the three videos below, Harms is now able to do donuts and burnouts with the RC ‘Vette and he says anyone could theoretically master the art of it, with lots of practice and some patience. Given the size of the car, you have to adapt your movements to the new context, since it’s not like your actually driving it or, for that matter, playing with a toy car.

The RC ‘Vette also paved the way for other projects for Harms. He also did an RC DeLorean, fitted as a replica of the Back to the Future DeLorean, and an RC Pontiac Trans Am made into a Knight Rider replica.