Creative Rides in Johannesburg has called on all enthusiasts, experts, and even the general public to assist the auction house in finding the true origins of a barn find custom-design 1963 Corvette C2 that has all the hallmarks of being an “undiscovered American muscle collector unicorn,” said CEO Kevin Derrick.
The Corvette in question is claimed to be a Baldwin Motion car, which was the king of made-to-order Camaros, Chevelles, Corvettes, Novas, and Biscayne Street Racer Specials back in the heyday of American muscle, but there are still too many missing pieces of the puzzle to determine whether it is a true Baldwin Motion-built monster.
“Despite an exhaustive investigation, this car remains a bit of a head-scratcher. It’s the only mystery we haven’t been able to conclusively solve in the hundreds of cars we’ve appraised over the years,” said Derrick.
“That said, specialist opinion of the design modifications leans towards this ‘Vette being a Baldwin Motion custom build, which would make it one of the rarest and most collectable Chevys in the world.”
The mystery Corvette is going on auction in September alongside around 150 other rare and classic autos.
A barn-find mystery
The only conclusive facts that Creative Rides could establish thus far is that the 1963 ‘Vette was imported from New York to South Africa in 2015 wearing a luminous green colour and sporting a manual gearbox, disc brakes, and a Holley carburettor.
When it reached its new owner, they resprayed it metallic grey and replaced the stick shift with a four-speed automatic.
While the 2015 online advertisement for the Corvette specifically mentioned Baldwin Motion, it remains tough to establish whether it truly was a Baldwin-made model as each example the company produced was completely custom and built-to-order.
Every unit developed by Baldwin came complete with a dyno-proven engine, suspension, and drivetrain upgrades that worked on the street, drag strip, and even a road course; and boasted professionally-applied paint and body modifications, complemented by custom wheels.
“Since Baldwin Motion cars were custom, there are no uniform model specifications to reference now that will confirm provenance,” said Derrick.
“The shop didn’t mass produce, either, so one can’t compare thousands of features to precisely match design signatures.”
That said, experts who have been brought in to examine this particular C2 at the Creative Rides showroom identified a few key design differences between it and the production-model 1963 Corvette that could indicate that it is a Baldwin car.
These include:
- A 1967 Stingray 427-style hood
- Wide-set single-round headlights, instead of dual pop-up lights
- A spoiler-topped flat rear design replacing the classic tapered trunk, reminiscent of the Baldwin Motion Maco Shark Corvette
“Since the car was posted in Creative Rides’ web catalogue for this month’s auction, we’ve been inundated with requests from clients in America for information about whether it is indeed a Baldwin Motion custom build,” said Derrick.
The company has pulled out all the stops and conducted an exhaustive investigation, but has not yet found that final piece of evidence that will conclusively establish that this is a Baldwin Motion Corvette after all.
“We’re now hoping a Hail Mary appeal to the custom car community that was active on the US East Coast in the 1970s and 80s in Joel Rosen’s era, who can solve the mystery for us,” said Derrick.
If anyone has information on the origins of this car, they can get in contact with Creative Rides through email at [email protected] or via phone at (+27)76 099 9051.
1963 Corvette C2
Keyword: Found in a South African barn – Help solve this ultra-rare 1963 Corvette mystery