Photo: Barret Jackson Auctions
Are you a righteous classic car enthusiast? Would you gladly chop the fingers off anyone who dared so much as remove the air filter on a classic vehicle you've determined to be your favorite? Would you endlessly dote on it and not dare let it leave the garage, let alone see a freeway, if you were lucky enough to own one? Do you feel this way about the 1963 split-window C2 Chevy Corvette? Well, then, Paul Atkins is your worst nightmare.
He's the owner and operator of Paul Atkins Hot Rods and Interiors, an Alabama-based restomod shop and detailer who specializes in taking old icons and giving them new life with modern drivetrains, well-trimmed custom interiors, and all the trappings and refinements that come with modern automobiles, minus airbags of course. Paul's personal ride is one of those sacred cow split-window Corvettes that routinely sell for hundreds of thousands, if not millions, at auction and then spend decades couped up in climate-controlled buildings, never to be driven again.
But not Paul Atkin's split-window C2. What started as a very typical model was stripped down to the bare body shell and chassis. From there, the chassis is replaced with a custom performance chassis from SRIII Motorsports paired with QA1 adjustable coilovers and other various suspension and braking hardware derived from a C6 Corvette at all four corners. It all serves as a fitting foundation for the considerable engine power under the hood. This comes in the form of a 6.2-liter LT4 V8 you'd find in a number of different Chevrolet and Cadillac sports cars, as well as the C8 Corvette Z06 starting in 2017, and still found in the Escalade V.
With 650 horsepower at its disposal and the same number in torque, such an engine is well suited to taking what was already a quick classic and making it modern-day fast. Power is fed through to a Tremec T56 manual transmission with a twin-disk clutch and a fully-built rear end that is far more capable of handling the power of the monstrous engine than the stock unit. But this alone doesn't make for a timeless classic restomod. With a Lipstick Red leather interior trimmed in-house at Paul Atkin's own shop made by the hands of the skilled craftspeople on staff, plus a banging sound system, Dakota Digital gauges, and a Vintage Air AC system for maximum comfort, this is one amazing place to spend a drive.
With a sale price at Barret Jackson from a few years ago of $385,000 some time ago, chances are good the lack of numbers-matching parts brought down the value a bit. But if you care about driving the darn thing once in a while, that's not a bother whatsoever.
But not Paul Atkin's split-window C2. What started as a very typical model was stripped down to the bare body shell and chassis. From there, the chassis is replaced with a custom performance chassis from SRIII Motorsports paired with QA1 adjustable coilovers and other various suspension and braking hardware derived from a C6 Corvette at all four corners. It all serves as a fitting foundation for the considerable engine power under the hood. This comes in the form of a 6.2-liter LT4 V8 you'd find in a number of different Chevrolet and Cadillac sports cars, as well as the C8 Corvette Z06 starting in 2017, and still found in the Escalade V.
With 650 horsepower at its disposal and the same number in torque, such an engine is well suited to taking what was already a quick classic and making it modern-day fast. Power is fed through to a Tremec T56 manual transmission with a twin-disk clutch and a fully-built rear end that is far more capable of handling the power of the monstrous engine than the stock unit. But this alone doesn't make for a timeless classic restomod. With a Lipstick Red leather interior trimmed in-house at Paul Atkin's own shop made by the hands of the skilled craftspeople on staff, plus a banging sound system, Dakota Digital gauges, and a Vintage Air AC system for maximum comfort, this is one amazing place to spend a drive.
With a sale price at Barret Jackson from a few years ago of $385,000 some time ago, chances are good the lack of numbers-matching parts brought down the value a bit. But if you care about driving the darn thing once in a while, that's not a bother whatsoever.
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