This Corvette may look relatively tame on the outside when parked amongst fellow C7 Stingrays, but the real art lies beneath the signature front-hinging Corvette hood. Various parts of the engine and neighboring parts, caps, and heat shields have been painted in an artful, steampunk style. For those that are unfamiliar with this intriguing subculture we figured an official definition may help clear things up.
Wikipedia defines steampunk as, “a sub-genre of science fiction and sometimes fantasy—also in recent years a fashion and lifestyle movement—that commonly features technology and aesthetic designs based upon antiquated steam-powered machinery, particularly inspired by industrial Western civilization during the 19th century. Although its literary origins are sometimes associated with the cyberpunk genre, steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the 19th century’s British Victorian era or American ‘Wild West’, in a post-apocalyptic future during which steam power has maintained mainstream usage, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.”
Corvette Blogger was fortunate enough to meet up with Steve and Lou Ann Pond at a recent event. Steve built this steampunk inspired C7, while Lou Ann is the proud owner of this 2007 C6 known as the “Tweety.” You can see the two cars on display at a show here, not a bad way for a couple to spend some of their free time together!
The work on Pond’s C7 is far from common, which is precisely what he was going for. As we’ve mentioned before, there are a lot of Corvette purists out there who prefer their Vettes look the way they did when rolling out of the assembly plant. We would never argue with this way of thinking, and there are several similar opinions here at Corvette Online.
That being said, there are those that prefer their car be the only one like it in the world. Appropriately Pond mentioned, “I don’t want a Corvette that has flames, skulls or flags. No disrespect to those that have it, but I just wanted something different.”
The steampunk culture is not all that well known, though it does make sense within the car culture, at least more so then some of the futuristic ideas out there. Pond said, “I wanted to stay away from the Delorean ‘Back to the Future’ look and wanted to do something that was both retro and believable.” Considering a steam powered Corvette is a bit more believable then one running on a flux capacitor, we like the angle.
Chevrolet claims that the Stingray’s LT1 produces 460 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque at the crank. Pond’s C7 now produces nearly the same horsepower at the rear wheels, and even exceeds the factory torque spec at the crank. To attain this increased performance, the Stingray has been equipped with an AFE cold air intake, headers, and a tune. Between his own fabrication, Borla’s exhaust system, and CORSA’s black hexagon tip, Pond was able to achieve his desired look and sound.
What do you think would make for another cool theme? Drop down and leave us with a thought.