At $24,000, Would You Be King (Or Queen) Of The Hill In This 1994 Chevy Corvette ZR1?

With a DOHC engine designed by Lotus and built by Mercury Marine, today's Nice Price or No Dice Corvette ZR1 has a mélange of makers behind its creation. Let's see if it's priced to have us wanting to get our grubby mitts on it.

When I was a kid, my brother had a buddy—oddly enough, actually named Buddy—whose family lived in a house with a den that had a pool table stored in the ceiling. It could be lowered via four cables and an electric motor, with the legs snapping into place as it descended. The family also owned a Vietnam-era DUKW amphibious duck boat, which dominated the circular driveway in front of their house and, as one might expect, drew unfavorable comments from the neighbors.

Owning any sort of large military vehicle in the civilian sector, especially in suburbia, is an unwieldy affair. As a case in point, the 1970 American General M816 military wrecker we looked at on Wednesday raised not only the question of what one would do with such a beast, but also where enough space could be found to store it when not in use. When the truck's $49,500 price tag was added to the equation, things got even more dicey. Eventually, that ended up in an overwhelming 82% 'No Dice' loss, proving the question to be moot.

I think it's safe to say that pretty much any one of us could think of quite a few things to do with today's 1994 Chevy Corvette ZR1, and since it's a two-seat sports car, it could easily fit anywhere.

The ZR1 is the ultimate expression of the C4 platform, which General Motors engineers dubbed "King of the Hill" during its development. Everything about the car, from its motor to the suspension, brakes, and even bodywork, was rethought and improved in the engineers' quest to build the fastest production car on the planet. To do so, the Corvette team enlisted the help of Lotus, which GM had recently acquired, to develop a brand-new all-alloy engine. While sharing bore spacing and overall displacement with the 5.7-liter pushrod motor in the lesser cars, the Lotus-designed mill offered more of everything: more cams, more valves (32 in total), more intake runners, and more fuel injectors. 

Put all together by aluminum engine specialists, Mercury Marine, the resulting motor topped 405 horsepower this model year. To make use of that power, the Corvette team uprated the brakes, stiffened the suspension, and gave the car massive rear tires to put the ponies to the pavement. That last upgrade required the ZR1 to have a bigger butt to accommodate those meats, leading to the now-iconic rear view with its squircle tail lamps.

While the C4 wasn't the first Corvette to carry the ZR1 badge, it's probably the best-known and most iconic. This arrest-me-red over a red-and-black leather cabin is one of just 448 ZR1s built for the 1994 model year, and it comes with a clean title and just 109,000 miles on the ticker. It also comes with two sets of factory wheels. The ones on the car are painted black and wear brand-new fat Toyo tires. The other set is painted red and comes wrapped in older Goodyear Gatorbacks. I think we can all agree that the black is a better choice than the red. Of course, the factory silver would be the best choice of all, so maybe there's a backyard strip-and-repaint project on the horizon for the new owner.

Craigslist

The rest of the exterior looks to be in excellent condition and is topped with the optional smoked-glass Targa roof panel, a desirable addition. Under the clamshell hood with its creepy rolled-over eyes, the LT5 engine resides in all its glory. Based on a cursory inspection, this car appears to have its original Bilstein shocks and looks to be appropriately un-monkeyed-with. According to the seller, the engine runs great and the ZF six-speed manual shifts as it should.

Opening either door reveals the C4's high sills and low dash, a combo that demands a bit of dexterity for ingress and egress. The present owner has fitted clear plastic protective covers over the carpet on both sills to prevent wear. Little could have been done to the seats, and the driver's throne shows some leather failure on the outside bolster and an overall appearance of surface staining. That could likely be addressed with a mild cleaner and some elbow grease, however.

Craigslist

The dashboard looks to be in good nick and features a mix of analog dials and digital readouts, something GM was playing with on a number of models at the time. Everything looks to be in good condition, and happily, the car still has its dash-mounted valet key switch for normal or full power output. Show of hands: who would ever drive this ZR1 with that switch in normal?

A slightly worn driver's seat probably won't turn off prospective buyers, given the ZR1's major attractions and this car's otherwise solid presentation. What we'll have to determine, though, is whether its $24,000 price tag sullies its attractiveness.

That's a lot of beans for a C4 Corvette, even the highly desirable ZR1 edition. However, the extra wheels and promised excellent condition may sway opinions in this car's favor. We shall see.

What's your opinion on this ZR1 at that $24,000 asking price? Is that an equitable exchange given the car's presentation and probable future appreciation? Or is that way too much even for a car that, in its day, was way too much?

You decide!

Salem, Oregon, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.

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