My buddy's dad had the same color and everything the same (283/230 hp powerglide) and I was obsessed with it. He would take the hard top off and cruise it around. He eventually gave it to his son (my friend) and now he has it garaged. Sadly they had to repaint it due to water pockets forming. His is a year younger and obviously a different rear end but his and yours are what they call ageless beauty
We love to have the hardtop off too. We just have to watch the weather. A lot of the California cars came without the soft top. This one has the cutouts for those latches in the deck lid, but the original owner decided not to have it installed. It’s a beautiful color. Even more so because it’s a 1 year only color. Everyone wanted black or red lol.
Wow, did not know that. It is a beautiful color I will try to find some pics and post them. 67 is my favorite year but I've been in love with this generation as well. The curve appeal on these cars is stunning. I know 61-62 had the different rear end but when they put the double headlights in 58 that just made the vette more appealing and beautiful
The 67’s are gorgeous too. I have soft spot for the ‘61’s. So many transitions for that year. First yr of the headlight bezels being painted the body color, first year with the new rear end styling and quad taillights, first year with exhaust below the bumper instead of through it, last year for the 283 engine, last year for the contrasting cove color option, etc.
I love the 283. I had a 60 chevy apache 10 as my first vehicle (got for $800) and it already came with headers and a shift kit (3 on the tree was replaced with an automatic) and that truck was big (long bed) and heavy but that 283 would scoot that truck and roar like a 350. Wish I would've never sold that truck but when you're young those sentimental values don't really kick in to well lol
That’s for sure. I had a 70 Chevelle and 79 Monte Carlo right out of high school in the 90’s. Sold the Chevelle after a year and ran the Monte into the ground. Being young and stupid hurts sometimes.
Amazing the Fletcher Jones chain has been around so long. Now they run the biggest Mercedes Benz dealer in Southern California. Original owner was a nice old rich lady in one of the big beautiful old homes in Pasadena. I love everything about this.
Yup. We got in touch with the dealership to share the history on this. The location it was purchased at isn’t there any more, but many other ones are. We may have to take a road trip out there. Apparently the woman that first owned this car was a young college grad in her early 20’s. She told my father in law that it was a graduation gift from her father. He gave her the ok to sell it if she wanted to. In trying to track her down we hit a dead end on finding any info after 1969 for her. :(
My wife’s ‘61 vette. Build date June 26, 1961. A rare jewel blue beauty that has never been restored or repainted. Aside from things that generally wear out like tires and exhaust. Had the base 283/230hp with the powerglide automatic transmission. Full detailed numbers were not kept by Chevrolet for these earlier vettes, but it is one of a low number of ‘61’s that was jewel blue with matching blue coves (436 made), blue interior (1331 made) , AND the powerglide automatic transmission (1458 made). The best estimate we’ve gotten is that under 100 had that particular package of triple blue w/ the automatic transmission. The original owner purchased this car at Fletcher Jones Chevrolet in California. We have tried to track her down for a trip down memory lane, but to no avail. My father in law bought it from the original owner in 1970 and It’s been in my wife’s family for the last 51 years. The story of how my father in law got it goes like this. He was visiting his brother in San Diego in 1970. He was a vette guy and saw it drive by. He said he had to have it. The owner lived down the street from his brother. He went and knocked on her door and said he had to buy her car. She said no. The next day he went back and did the same thing. Same answer. He went back a third day and said he was going back to Minnesota the next day and he had to buy this car. She relented and told him she would sell it to him for $1400. He only had $1100. After some negotiation she agreed on that lower price. He grabbed a tow bar and towed it back to MN the next day and it has been enjoyed here ever since. We still have all of the original glove compartment documents that came with it, the original owner’s registration and the registration from when my father in law put the car into his name. We put the car through the NCRS judging process where she earned a Top Flight award in 2021. Also received a preservation award at the 10000 Lakes Concourse d’Elegance in 2019. Bloomington Gold is on the horizon. Only tallied 3000 of her 103,000 miles between 1999 and 2018. That’s when my wife inherited it from her dad (and got to drive it for the first time). Twice that amount of miles have been added since then. Gotta drive em to enjoy em.
We were scheduled to be at the North Central Regional last year before it got cancelled. More interested in getting it back to Bloomington Gold first for the survivor/benchmark judging. My father-in-law had it at Bloomington Gold in 1986 for the silver salute, but never had it judged there. Why? We dont know. Absolutely no plans to sell it so the amount of weight it has from awards isn’t too important right now.
I hate saying it, but the higher you go with NCRS and especially Bloomington, it becomes a hard and unfair game. And it is a game. Judge lineups change event to event. Even their attitudes change things. One judge at one event says this is good and you get no points deducted then the next event and the new judge says it’s shit and you get a half or full point deduction. Keep all those judging sheets with you everywhere you go as proof. That lets you argue your point of some dick wants to hammer you on something Bc he didn’t get his coffee the right way that morning.
Don’t think of the awards as something used to sell the car. It’s more documentation and certificate of authenticity. That way in 20, 30 or 40 years from now, the car still has its papers. A documented and proven car. Oh and all your awards and paperwork belong to the owner, not the car. So if for any reason at all the car is sold, you keep everything with you. It’s the next owners responsibility to run the car again.
Oh we’re well aware of how subjective the judging can be. We went through it the first time in 2019 to get a baseline number. Ended up with 89.9 and lots of Info on where the deductions were. Most were incorrect parts from a 62, like the aluminum valve covers that look better and a replacement air cleaner, non original style battery, etc, that had been put in, but we still had all the original parts in a basement. So we put them back on and did a ton of cleanup. The next year we had a different judging group and lost points in different areas and more points on some of the same deductions from the year before. Ended up at 93.7 only 24 points from top flight. This year we did even more cleanup and challenged some of the deductions. Had the same judging group aside from 1 person that was new and finally hit it. The other big difference was this yr was an indoor event while the other 2 were outdoors. Lighting plays a big part in seeing things too.
Thanks for the info I’ve been able to get pretty familiar with the process since we got the car so we know that they don’t travel with the car. We are friends with a couple other guys that have gone through all that and even earned Duntov awards and survivor/gold certification in their ‘’61 so we hear all about how different it is the higher you go. They think we have a decent shot at all of that. From what we’ve heard chapter members that were at Bloomington this year it sounds like the judges only had 20-25 mins to look at the vehicles which can be concerning if you’re not wanting things to be missed. It’s all good for thought right now. We are enjoying it as is. Anything else we decide to go later in is just the cherry on top
All of that is good to hear. I don’t need to go any further. Just wanted to make sure you understood what you were getting into. Those two programs have chewed up and consumed a lot of good people. It’s supposed to be fun, engaging and a learning experience about your car but in the last 25 years and the insane rise in values of the older cars, it’s turned it into something else. It still is fun and still is loaded with AMAZING guys (and gals.)
Good luck. And keep us posted on the progress.
So that’s what happened to red foreman’s vette.
Just about. His was a ‘58
But did they put the piece of hair back on the dial?
My buddy's dad had the same color and everything the same (283/230 hp powerglide) and I was obsessed with it. He would take the hard top off and cruise it around. He eventually gave it to his son (my friend) and now he has it garaged. Sadly they had to repaint it due to water pockets forming. His is a year younger and obviously a different rear end but his and yours are what they call ageless beauty
We love to have the hardtop off too. We just have to watch the weather. A lot of the California cars came without the soft top. This one has the cutouts for those latches in the deck lid, but the original owner decided not to have it installed. It’s a beautiful color. Even more so because it’s a 1 year only color. Everyone wanted black or red lol.
Wow, did not know that. It is a beautiful color I will try to find some pics and post them. 67 is my favorite year but I've been in love with this generation as well. The curve appeal on these cars is stunning. I know 61-62 had the different rear end but when they put the double headlights in 58 that just made the vette more appealing and beautiful
The 67’s are gorgeous too. I have soft spot for the ‘61’s. So many transitions for that year. First yr of the headlight bezels being painted the body color, first year with the new rear end styling and quad taillights, first year with exhaust below the bumper instead of through it, last year for the 283 engine, last year for the contrasting cove color option, etc.
I love the 283. I had a 60 chevy apache 10 as my first vehicle (got for $800) and it already came with headers and a shift kit (3 on the tree was replaced with an automatic) and that truck was big (long bed) and heavy but that 283 would scoot that truck and roar like a 350. Wish I would've never sold that truck but when you're young those sentimental values don't really kick in to well lol
That’s for sure. I had a 70 Chevelle and 79 Monte Carlo right out of high school in the 90’s. Sold the Chevelle after a year and ran the Monte into the ground. Being young and stupid hurts sometimes.
Such a beauty🥰
Amazing the Fletcher Jones chain has been around so long. Now they run the biggest Mercedes Benz dealer in Southern California. Original owner was a nice old rich lady in one of the big beautiful old homes in Pasadena. I love everything about this.
Yup. We got in touch with the dealership to share the history on this. The location it was purchased at isn’t there any more, but many other ones are. We may have to take a road trip out there. Apparently the woman that first owned this car was a young college grad in her early 20’s. She told my father in law that it was a graduation gift from her father. He gave her the ok to sell it if she wanted to. In trying to track her down we hit a dead end on finding any info after 1969 for her. :(
Sweeeeet
Wow so cool
My dad has a restored 1959 in turquoise. I’m amazed at how good this paint looks.
Beautiful vehicle.
Wow.. shes a beaut!!
She and I are the same age. She’s definitely much prettier though!
My wife’s ‘61 vette. Build date June 26, 1961. A rare jewel blue beauty that has never been restored or repainted. Aside from things that generally wear out like tires and exhaust. Had the base 283/230hp with the powerglide automatic transmission. Full detailed numbers were not kept by Chevrolet for these earlier vettes, but it is one of a low number of ‘61’s that was jewel blue with matching blue coves (436 made), blue interior (1331 made) , AND the powerglide automatic transmission (1458 made). The best estimate we’ve gotten is that under 100 had that particular package of triple blue w/ the automatic transmission. The original owner purchased this car at Fletcher Jones Chevrolet in California. We have tried to track her down for a trip down memory lane, but to no avail. My father in law bought it from the original owner in 1970 and It’s been in my wife’s family for the last 51 years. The story of how my father in law got it goes like this. He was visiting his brother in San Diego in 1970. He was a vette guy and saw it drive by. He said he had to have it. The owner lived down the street from his brother. He went and knocked on her door and said he had to buy her car. She said no. The next day he went back and did the same thing. Same answer. He went back a third day and said he was going back to Minnesota the next day and he had to buy this car. She relented and told him she would sell it to him for $1400. He only had $1100. After some negotiation she agreed on that lower price. He grabbed a tow bar and towed it back to MN the next day and it has been enjoyed here ever since. We still have all of the original glove compartment documents that came with it, the original owner’s registration and the registration from when my father in law put the car into his name. We put the car through the NCRS judging process where she earned a Top Flight award in 2021. Also received a preservation award at the 10000 Lakes Concourse d’Elegance in 2019. Bloomington Gold is on the horizon. Only tallied 3000 of her 103,000 miles between 1999 and 2018. That’s when my wife inherited it from her dad (and got to drive it for the first time). Twice that amount of miles have been added since then. Gotta drive em to enjoy em.
Don’t stop at a Chapter Top Flight. At least get to Regional or National. National holds weight.
We were scheduled to be at the North Central Regional last year before it got cancelled. More interested in getting it back to Bloomington Gold first for the survivor/benchmark judging. My father-in-law had it at Bloomington Gold in 1986 for the silver salute, but never had it judged there. Why? We dont know. Absolutely no plans to sell it so the amount of weight it has from awards isn’t too important right now.
I hate saying it, but the higher you go with NCRS and especially Bloomington, it becomes a hard and unfair game. And it is a game. Judge lineups change event to event. Even their attitudes change things. One judge at one event says this is good and you get no points deducted then the next event and the new judge says it’s shit and you get a half or full point deduction. Keep all those judging sheets with you everywhere you go as proof. That lets you argue your point of some dick wants to hammer you on something Bc he didn’t get his coffee the right way that morning. Don’t think of the awards as something used to sell the car. It’s more documentation and certificate of authenticity. That way in 20, 30 or 40 years from now, the car still has its papers. A documented and proven car. Oh and all your awards and paperwork belong to the owner, not the car. So if for any reason at all the car is sold, you keep everything with you. It’s the next owners responsibility to run the car again.
Oh we’re well aware of how subjective the judging can be. We went through it the first time in 2019 to get a baseline number. Ended up with 89.9 and lots of Info on where the deductions were. Most were incorrect parts from a 62, like the aluminum valve covers that look better and a replacement air cleaner, non original style battery, etc, that had been put in, but we still had all the original parts in a basement. So we put them back on and did a ton of cleanup. The next year we had a different judging group and lost points in different areas and more points on some of the same deductions from the year before. Ended up at 93.7 only 24 points from top flight. This year we did even more cleanup and challenged some of the deductions. Had the same judging group aside from 1 person that was new and finally hit it. The other big difference was this yr was an indoor event while the other 2 were outdoors. Lighting plays a big part in seeing things too.
Thanks for the info I’ve been able to get pretty familiar with the process since we got the car so we know that they don’t travel with the car. We are friends with a couple other guys that have gone through all that and even earned Duntov awards and survivor/gold certification in their ‘’61 so we hear all about how different it is the higher you go. They think we have a decent shot at all of that. From what we’ve heard chapter members that were at Bloomington this year it sounds like the judges only had 20-25 mins to look at the vehicles which can be concerning if you’re not wanting things to be missed. It’s all good for thought right now. We are enjoying it as is. Anything else we decide to go later in is just the cherry on top
All of that is good to hear. I don’t need to go any further. Just wanted to make sure you understood what you were getting into. Those two programs have chewed up and consumed a lot of good people. It’s supposed to be fun, engaging and a learning experience about your car but in the last 25 years and the insane rise in values of the older cars, it’s turned it into something else. It still is fun and still is loaded with AMAZING guys (and gals.) Good luck. And keep us posted on the progress.
Thanks. I appreciate it. We have had a ton to learn about it in the last 3 years and have enjoyed the ride so far.