1985 Chevrolet Corvette GTP Coupe

The original purpose of the Corvette GTP was to create Chevrolet racing prestige and, most importantly, to be an engineering testbed that would force development of Chevy's V-6 Turbo engine technology. The 90-degree stock-block V-6 was a blood relative of the iconic and successful Chevy small-block V-8.

This Chevrolet GTP Corvette was a purpose-built mid-engine racing machine with a clear-cut relationship to street production Corvettes and was designed to compete in IMSA endurance contests around the world. The objectives were two-fold: 1) Further the development of Chevrolet's 90-degree V6 engine technology and 2) Enhance an international performance reputation that extends back to the 1950s.

This Hendrick Motorsports mid-engine Grand Touring Prototype took to the track equipped with a turbocharged Chevrolet V6, GM electronic engine management, Hewland VG 5-Speed Race Spec manual transmission, Lotus Active suspension, Lockheed four-piston brakes all wrapped in a Kevlar fiber epoxy body with carbon fiber wing and rolling on BBS three-piece magnesium alloy wheels mounted with Goodyear Eagle Racing Radials. Hendrick Motorsports chassis 710-01 debuted in 1985 and raced a total of eight times into the next season garnering four pole positions along the way and captured the Chevrolet Corvettte's first ever IMSA GTP win at Road Atlanta in 1986.

Chevrolet's Herb Fishel, Executive Director of General Motors Motorsports, explained the motivation of the Corvette GTP project; 'Our intent was to turn the knowledge gained through on-track experience into viable applications for our production cars and trucks. Thus, the rationale for the GTP Corvette: it was a rolling test bed for grooming our V-6 to carry on the winning tradition of our small block.'

GM did the design work for the GTP's body. Styling cues from the latest Corvette made their way to the front of America's GTP race grids. One look at the Corvette GTP revealed its engineering and styling DNA with or without Chevy's iconic bowtie logo on its aerodynamic nose.

The Corvette GTP ran with both V-6 Turbo and small-block V-8 power. The car most remember is the 800-plus horsepower 230-mph turbo.