People do a lot of crazy things. Some like to jump off cliffs. Some tie bungee cords to their legs and toss themselves off bridges. Others drive drag cars down the quarter-mile at 200 mph, and some sit too close to the TV in the dark. Doctors and statisticians have warned us that these things are bad for our health, and their counsel is rarely heeded.
Terry DeVault, of St. Pauls, North Carolina, paid little attention to the words of his otologist. This deliverer of monster sound was a graduation gift from a proud father who had nobody to blame but his son for the original purchase in 1988. Terry found the car at a local Chevrolet dealership and immediately fell in love. It was out of his price range, but Terry thought if he could talk his father into going in on the convertible, the car would be his. Terry's father ended up buying the car-but for himself to use as a driver and relief for a midlife crisis.
Terry begged for the keys at least 30 times before his dad caved and handed over the car permanently as a graduation gift. Ten years later, Terry began the work that would turn a stock '87 into this Berrywine Red drop-top. The intake manifold was lifted and sent to Street and Performance in Mena, Arkansas. Aside from the eye-blinding chrome coverings the runners, fuel lines, alternator, smog pump, and intake received, the engine was mildly reworked for a slightly warmed-over performance bump. Other customization included the addition of a rear wing and a decklid.
Terry planned a massive amount of interior modifications. He enjoys country music, maybe a little too much. He mapped out a new sound, entertainment, and an electronic system that would be unmatched by any Corvette imaginable.
The original computer display was relocated from the center console to the passenger-side dashpad. The center console and dash received a serious aesthetic makeover-new Plexiglas covers, painted to match the exterior paint scheme, house all new Alpine equipment, starting with a CVA 1005 digital foldout screen, an Alpine DVD player head unit, a sound processor, and an audio control equalizer. Terry ditched the original cup holder and ashtray, which now hold an amp voltage meter and amp temperature gauges. The dashboard became a soundboard of sorts, with new speakers and equipment left, right, and center, completely surrounding the driver and passenger in rich sound. The backs of the seats house dual equalizers.
To make room for the speaker system, Terry had the drop-top removed, and modified an '89 hard-top's latches to match the similar '88 roofline. The decklid houses the massive speakers, as they were mounted into the convertible trunk section. A unique seal was fabricated to protect the speakers and to cover the twin Optima batteries. An amp rack was constructed to house the amplifiers and to mimic the "waterfall" effect of the C5 convertibles, with paint matching the interior. As a finishing touch, Terry had purple neon lights installed throughout the system, seats, and amp rack to give off that nightclub look while driving.
This may not be the wildest performance Corvette we've seen, but with all the updated sound systems, speakers, electronics, and visual additions, we'll admit it's one of the flashiest.