First or Last, Which L-88 Corvette Would You Drive, and How? (They Are Sold Together)

'Warning: vehicle must operate on a fuel having a minimum of 103 research octane and 95 motor octane or engine damage may occur.’
'Warning: vehicle must operate on a fuel having a minimum of 103 research octane and 95 motor octane or engine damage may occur.’

The above two phrases are not an editing error but the most likely conundrum that the future owner of the first and last Corvette L88 ever assembled will face when it  will grab the wheel of either one. Both these historical icons are for sale, and they go hand in hand, as a single lot – provided a gearhead with bottomless pockets hits the highest bid in the following days at Kissimmee.

In 1967, only 20 L-88 Corvettes drove off to the streets; the production increased fourfold; by 1969, Chevrolet was on a spree, shooting over the ‘100th L-88 assembled’ mark during the model year, finally ending the count at 116. It was also the end of the famous road-legal racer after just three short years and 216 total units.

Although it was available to the general public, the Regular Production Order code L-88 package option was quietly snuck under the radar by the brass at Chevrolet because it wasn’t built with money-making goals in mind. Instead, the turbulent hurricane on wheels had other, more glorious aspirations: own the tracks – twisty or straight.

In 1957, When General Motors shook hands with the other Two Big of Detroit to stay away from the brickyards, the corporation didn’t consider several crucial aspects of this gentleman’s agreement. First, ‘Win on Sunday, sell on Monday’ wouldn’t work if winning wasn’t a thing. And there has never been a single documented case in the entire history of motorsport where a race was won by a team that didn’t take part in it.

Secondly – and most importantly – General Motors overlooked some big names within its own ivory tower: Zora Arkus-Duntov, the brilliant engineer who knew cars weren’t meant as transportation to the racetrack and back, was one of those names. Vitally, America’s sportscar couldn’t live up to its name if it were to suddenly accept life outside the sportiest piston demeanor of them all: racing.

‘Never anger an engineer’ should have been the mantra nailed over the heads of every decision-making suit living up on the high floors of the GM headquarters. With the official ban on racing, Duntov couldn’t simply build a factory car for a factory team to send to the speedways. So, he devised a genius workaround: sell said super-high-performance car to privateers.

The idea was coded L88 on the order forms and comprised several goodies that spelled ‘very high speed.’ The 427-cubic-inch V8 was the crown jewel, and heavy-duty everything accompanied it: the M22 close-ratio ‘Rock Crusher’ transmission, suspension, brakes, rear axles, everything was set up for go-fast purposes.

The best part of this? You could order it at literally any Chevrolet dealership in the United States – provided you had someone in the know to tell you about it. It was available to the public but wasn’t publicly advertised, precisely so private or dealer-backed racing teams could order it freely, but not the average Joe. The worst part? It could be bought anywhere but not fueled, as not all gas stations sold the required high-octane gasoline the L-88 mandated.

The first L88 was assembled on January 25, 1967, so it is a C2 Sting Ray, and the last rolled out of the factory gates on December 4, 1969. Though Chevrolet was prudent in stating the engine’s output, the GM Division had to write up a big enough number; otherwise, no one would have believed their high-performance claims. Still, the smart Alecs from Chevy didn't want to put the spotlight on the L-88 and swore their machine gun of a 'Vette was five horsepower down on the L-72.

By 1969, the word had gone out, and Chevy had to admit it. The brochure from that year fugitively mentions the nefariously hard-punching motor under the addendum ‘Off-Road Application Only.’ The L88 427 big-block was ranked at 430 hp. ‘We even have a special engine (L-88) that we don’t recommend for street use’ was the Corvette parlance for ‘I eat HEMIs, Bosses, and Judges for snacks.’

With the inherent rarity and exhilarating performance figures, it’s no surprise that an original L-88-equipped Corvette will go for seven-digit numbers any day of the week. Luckily, that day is next week, on Sunday, January 14, when these two brothers-in-pistons go under the hammer together as a single lot.

The ’67 is a multiple award winner (Bloomington Gold certification, several NCRS Top Flight wins, MCACN Triple Diamond, and the NCRS Heritage award in 2013). The ’69 also wears an NCRS Top Flight and plenty of documentation to attest to its authenticity and numbers-matching history.

The 427 cubic-inch V8 (7.0-liter) was said to put out 430 hp and 460 lb-ft (436 PS, 624 Nm) - with a 12.5:1 compression ratio, an 850 CFM four-barrel carburetor, solid lifters, 0.562/0.584-inch rocker arms, aluminum heads, and whatnot. Yeah, and they said the 1969 Camaro ZL1 was underrated... Legend has it the RPO L-88 V8 was spitting out close to 550 hp – claims of higher figures also circulate), making it one of the most powerful engines ever fitted in a regular production Corvette.

The duo of L-88 race machines is accompanied by a thick file documenting the provenance of each of the two icons. All we have to do is wait a couple of weeks to see what this Inceptor and Terminator of the legendary series will sell for at Kissimmee’s 25th-anniversary auction.