Ed Hastings’ ’96 Grand Sport

Ed Hastings’ affection for the Grand Sport started soon after he sold his ’91 Corvette. Knowing that the next car he’d own would be a Grand Sport, he began the hunt. Ed purchased every Corvette magazine he could get his hands on and visited all of the Corvette Web sites. On his way home from work one Friday, he picked up a copy of Auto Trader Custom Sportscar Edition. In the “For Sale” section, he spotted it—car number 521. He raced home and called the number listed, only to learn the Corvette in that ad had already been sold to Roger’s Corvette, a local Corvette dealer.

First thing the next morning, Ed called Roger’s Corvette to inquire about the car. Roger told Ed about the car’s options and how nice it was. With only 3,400 miles on the clock and the paint in perfect condition, Ed knew this was the one. His heart was broken when Roger told him the car was promised to a friend who was a collector. But the friend was having some medical problems and might no longer be interested. If that were the case, he said he’d give Ed first choice on the Corvette.

The following Monday, Ed’s beeper went off, and he immediately recognized the number as Roger’s Corvettes. He called and secured the car over the phone without even going to look at it. Next was the hard part—telling his wife, Christi, what he’d done. Christi had never seen a Grand Sport and wasn’t too excited about those white stripes. Plus, as Ed puts it, “I was spending a little (a lot) more money than she expected.”

Once the convincing was done, they committed to doing the necessary paperwork and driving over to look at the car. Ed was pleased to see that it looked even better than he’d been told. It was so perfect, he couldn’t even find a little scratch on it.

By the time they’d returned from the 20-minute testdrive, Christi had all the paperwork completed. She told Ed it was obvious from the look in his eyes that they weren’t leaving without the Corvette, and she was right. Number 521 now has 6,200 miles on it and enjoys a restful life in Ed’s garage, coming out only on sunny weekends. Ed’s dream is to send the car to Doug Rippie or Lingenfelter for a 383 stroker. But, as Christi tells him, “Remember what the lawyers say—the wife gets half of everything!”

Subtle changes will have to do for now.