The significantly redesigned 1978 Corvette marked the 25th Anniversary of the Corvette and the first year that a Corvette was used as a pace car at the Indy 500.  Chevrolet built a series of pace car replicas to sell at their dealerships.    The 25th Anniversary Pace Car Edition Corvette models even had their own vehicle identification number ( VIN Number ) to set them apart from other 25th Anniversary Corvette models.  The Pace Car had a 9 in the VIN Number for the 8th digit and the other Corvettes of 1978 had a 4.  The paint scheme for the Pace Car was also unique; it was two-tone paint with a red stripe.  There were a total of 6,502 Pace Cars built in 1978. 

This 1978 25th Anniversary Edition Pace Car Corvette is being returned to its original glory.  In addition to being a VIN Number branded Pace Car this Vette came with the L-82 engine and a 4 speed manual transmission.  The owner of this car ordered and took delivery of it without the “Pace Car” decals on the doors. Our original restoration of this car will also include the door decal delete option. 
 

When we first viewed the ’78 Pace Car, it was obvious that all four corners of the car had bonding strips coming loose.  The cracks in both front fenders and both quarter panels ran the full length of those panels.  Having bonding strips coming loose after 30 years, yea ’78 Vetts are over 30 now, is not uncommon on Corvettes but having all four seemed a little excessive. 

As we stripped the car down and removed the interior and bumpers it became apparent this car had been in a light collision on the left rear corner.  The left quarter panel and the rear surround panel had been replaced.  The repair work performed to repair collision damage was the cause of the two rear quarter panels delaminating from the surround panel. 

Fiberglass body filler, a resin and fiber mix, had been used to install a new quarter panel, to repair the left rear corner of the tub and it was used to install the surround panel. 

Beginning in 1973 Corvettes were made of sheet molded compound or SMC.  1972 was the last year Chevrolet made a Corvette out of actual fiberglass.  Because SMC is more flexible than fiberglass the two compounds move at different rates and typically crack where they are bonded together. 

The good news was we were able to remove the rear surround without damaging it because it just wasn’t bonded like it would have been with the correct panel bond material; which usually bonds so well the surround has to be destroyed to be removed. 

The replacement quarter panel on the drivers side was not bonded to the car very well, and was easily removed.  We replaced the quarter panel, however, because it had been trimmed down excessively in the door jamb area by the previous installer. 

The bonding strips on the front were ground back and repaired and the rest of the body was stripped and massaged for perfect paint.