Astronaut Alan Shepard’s 1968 Corvette Once In a Blue Moon Find: (Torque Tuesday Presented by Continental ExtremeContact DWS^{06 Plus})

What else would the first American in space drive? 

The story of Corvette has many fascinating chapters. One defining contribution is the partnership between General Motors and NASA. Astronauts became synonymous with Corvettes; American heroes and American sports cars were an match made in heaven … or slightly more earthbound. Astronaut Alan B. Shepard was an influential driving force in the otherworldly pairing.

Before he took to the skies, Shepard was already mastering mechanical performance on the road with his own Corvettes. His first ‘Vette was a used 1953 and his second was a used 1957; the very car that Shepard brought to Florida while training for the Mercury space program.

On May 5, 1961, Shepard became the first American in outer space. And when he landed, he was given a new, white 1962 Corvette.

General Motors Executive Edward N. Cole and Indy 500 racer and Florida Chevrolet dealer Jim Rathmann partnered up for the Astronaut Courtesy Car Program which allowed the men to lease a brand-new ‘Vette for a $1.00 a year, in any specification they chose.

“Al Shepard was a racer…he was always wanting to be the fastest guy.” Rathmann said, recalling the heated races between Shepard and fellow astronaut Gus Grissom.

Of course, Corvette was the ideal ride for these brave and bold pioneers. Plus, it was a fun ride that the guys would push to its limits. Shepard once told Life the Corvette went “like a bat out of hell,” and the men would race and drive their ‘Vettes full-throttle at Langley Air Force Base.

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Over the course of his life, Shepard remained a passionate Corvette enthusiast owning over ten cars. We recently spotted his 1968 Chevy Corvette L89 up for sale. Note the “1ST UP” license plate!

The 435 hp 1968 Corvette L89 is a beast of big block power. And it was a rare option, with this being one of only 624 produced. Although the ‘Vette runs well, it needs some TLC in the interior. One the plus side it only has 50,000 on the odometer.

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But it has otherwise been well taken care of, and was even on display at the National Corvette Museum in 2019 as part of an exhibit. All documents are included to attest to its historic pedigree.

This was a surprising find, very few “Astronaut Corvettes” remain from the Apollo Space Program era.

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Truly a legendary Corvette, made iconic by its provenance. Currently, the price is listed at $100,000–which is pretty incredible.

Two American icons made all the more potent together.

Photos: General Motors; Chevrolet; ClassicCars

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