Petrol has never been cheap here, and it now costs almost $100 to fill a Corvette tank with 95-octane unleaded. Seventy-five percent of the $5.80 per gallon cost is taken in tax, so at least we can contemplate the schools and hospitals we're helping to pay for while we hold the nozzle.
Conversely, our island is only about as big as Idaho so we don't have to drive far to get anywhere, and fuel isn't the big expense it might otherwise be.
Since 1982, the Corvette has become faster and more economical every year. This was an unintended consequence of emissions and fuel-economy regulations that forced designers to make engines more efficient and bodies more streamlined. The first TPI L98-powered cars of 1985 were economical and showed the Europeans how good an American car could be. With the high-tech, all-aluminum suspension and driveline, and corrosion-proof composite bodies, Corvettes of the last 20 years are much lighter than the European competition, which shows up in performance comparisons.
Uniquely in Europe, the British and Irish drive righthand-drive cars on the left side of the road. The rest of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East drive on the right side. Other countries with righthand drive are Australia, New Zealand, Japan, India, Pakistan, and those in southern Africa. People in Europe used to drive their horse-drawn vehicles on the left, but Napoleon changed the rules as he invaded Europe to emphasize his power. Luckily, he never crossed the English Channel.
In Australia, newer cars are righthand drive by law, so imported Corvettes must be converted before they can be registered. Fortunately, we have no such rules and drive our cars unconverted. It can be tough at toll booths and parking garages, but our cars remain original, which makes it easy to ask directions from other drivers when lost in London.
On The BlockThis month, our travels took us to the Mecum Corvettes at Carlisle Auction at the fairgrounds in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. During the two-day auction, we registered the sale of 114 Corvettes.
The following is a summary of sold Corvettes. Please note, the average price of the '57 Corvettes is skewed by the sale of a special '57 Corvette owned by the late Chip Miller.