Corvette History 1997-2004 Corvettes (C5)1998 Chevrolet Corvette
1998 Chevrolet Corvette
Contributed by Mike Antonick, Editor "Corvette Black Book"
A convertible body style was introduced. It had a separate trunk with outside access, the first such body configuration for Corvette since 1962. The convertible top operated manually and had a glass rear window with electric in-glass defogger elements. Corvette paced the Indianapolis 500 in 1998 and Pace Car convertible replicas were available with Radar Blue exterior, black/yellow interior, and special trim including yellow wheels.
Chevrolet announced a factory-sponsored racing program to feature the Corvette C5-R, a purpose-built racer. An Active Handling System option, which countered oversteer or understeer through selective brake application, was an interim addition. Automatic transmissions were revised to permit starting in second gear to limit wheel spin. Torch Red led all exterior colors with 8,767. The rare colors were really rare" Aztec Gold production was just 15 units, followed by Navy Blue Metallic's 14. Overall sales jumped to 31,084, including 11,849 convertibles, of which 1,163 were Pace Car replicas.
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