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C5 Corvette Buggy Boasts Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Bumper, Chevy Camaro Z/28 Muffler

Rather recently, we’ve covered the C5 Corvette as a rental trucklet in Switzerland and as whatever that shorty thing is meant to be. But this time around, the fifth generation of America’s sports car presents itself as a no-nonsense buggy.
C5 Corvette Buggy "Vette Buggy" off-road conversion 19 photos
Photo: Bring a Trailer
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Listed on Bring a Trailer with two days to go and a highest bid of $15,000 at the time of writing, the Frankenstein off-roader in the photo gallery features the front bumper and fog lights from a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, the exhaust muffler from a Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, and C5 Corvette Z06 wheels without center caps.

Up front, you won’t find a big-block V8 or a Procharged supercharger. The owner decided that the LS1 is more than adequate for the ‘Vette Buggy at 345 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque (350 PS and 475 Nm), driving the rear wheels with the held of a rigid torque tube and a six-speed manual transaxle.

The 5.7-liter V8 motor also boasts a performance camshaft, Kooks headers, high-flow cats, a beefier clutch, and a disconnect switch for the relocated battery. Curiously enough, the speedometer goes up to a rater optimistic 200 miles per hour (322 kph) while the tachometer stops at 7k revolutions per minute.

As per the listing on Bring a Trailer, “the seller notes that the larger tires cause incorrect speedometer readings” and the digital odometer shows 118k miles since the car rolled off the assembly line in Bowling Green, Kentucky. A few hundred miles were put on the ‘Vette Buggy since the completion of the outlandish project.

The exo-cage is made from DOM tubing, and elsewhere on the car, the owner used sheet aluminum for the likes of the engine cover, splash shields, and rear panels. Hella headlamps, LED taillights, and Firestone Destination MT2 rubber boots are also featured. The tires measure 265 by 70 and 285 by 70.

Although we’re not exactly sure about the woven cloth on the leather seats, the heater and air conditioning are still functional. On the downside, the radio works but you won’t hear a thing because the speakers have been removed.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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