Photo: Mecum Auctions
Born Marion Lee, “Mickey” Thompson is remembered as more than the founder of a tire brand that's currently owned by the Cooper Tire & Rubber Company. A hot rodder since his youth, this guy also used to race all things with four wheels and internal combustion, including the 1963 Chevrolet Corvette we’ll cover in this story.
Conceived by legendary engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, regular production option Z06 was first offered for the 1963 model year with motorsport-inspired goodies such as a thicker anti-roll bar, stiffer suspension, and a vacuum brake booster. Previously known as the Sears/Allstate Tire Test Car, the Corvette before your eyes is also fitted with the NO3 large fuel tank with a capacity of 36 gallons, translating to 136 liters in European money.
One of merely 199 units produced in 1963 with the Z06 package, this split-window 'Vette is also equipped with a numbers-matching L84 engine. The 327/360 small-block V8 rocks Rochester mechanical fuel injection rather than a good ol’ carburetor, a Muncie M20 four-speed stick shift, a hot camshaft, as well as a low-restriction exhaust system.
One of 63 units specified with the large fuel tank, the vehicle is heading to Kissimmee 2021 as the main attraction of the auction. Restored to perfection in Ermine White over a Black interior, the Z06/N03 has been researched and documented by Corvette expert David Burroughs.
Manufactured on January 14th of 1963 and delivered new by Don Steves Chevrolet in California, the old-school racecar has seen a lot of high-speed action in 1964 at the Bonneville Speed Trials. Discovered in the 1980s by Mike Pillsbury in Southern California, the vehicle “appeared in over a dozen feature magazine articles,” according to Mecum Auctions.
Barrett-Jackson sold this very Z06/N03 for $247,000 three years ago at the Scottsdale 2017 auction, but valuation has undeniably gone up since then. Estimates are all over the place depending on condition and provenance, but knowing American car collectors, I’m willing to bet that Mickey’s ride will hammer for half a million dollars at the very least.
One of merely 199 units produced in 1963 with the Z06 package, this split-window 'Vette is also equipped with a numbers-matching L84 engine. The 327/360 small-block V8 rocks Rochester mechanical fuel injection rather than a good ol’ carburetor, a Muncie M20 four-speed stick shift, a hot camshaft, as well as a low-restriction exhaust system.
One of 63 units specified with the large fuel tank, the vehicle is heading to Kissimmee 2021 as the main attraction of the auction. Restored to perfection in Ermine White over a Black interior, the Z06/N03 has been researched and documented by Corvette expert David Burroughs.
Manufactured on January 14th of 1963 and delivered new by Don Steves Chevrolet in California, the old-school racecar has seen a lot of high-speed action in 1964 at the Bonneville Speed Trials. Discovered in the 1980s by Mike Pillsbury in Southern California, the vehicle “appeared in over a dozen feature magazine articles,” according to Mecum Auctions.
Barrett-Jackson sold this very Z06/N03 for $247,000 three years ago at the Scottsdale 2017 auction, but valuation has undeniably gone up since then. Estimates are all over the place depending on condition and provenance, but knowing American car collectors, I’m willing to bet that Mickey’s ride will hammer for half a million dollars at the very least.
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