Media | Articles
Iron Man’s ’65 Corvette Lays the Marker for EV-Swapped Sting Rays
At this year’s Mecum Glendale auction, a rather unique second-gen Corvette crossed the block. Overused though the u-word might be, this ’65 indeed has a few factors that set it apart. Previously owned by Robert Downey, Jr and subsequently converted to an EV powertrain as part of his show, Downey’s Dream Cars, this is the first EV-swapped C2 (1963-67) Corvette we’ve seen at public auction. It sold for $77,000, which doesn’t sound like a lot given its electrified-by-Iron-Man background, but it does provide a little glimpse of what’s going on with the C2 market, and what might be to come.
Taking a step back, early Corvettes, particularly second-gen cars, are enjoying a moment. Values remain healthy in the soft post-pandemic market, and it’s not just original or concours-quality restorations fetching top dollar. Restomods are raking in the dough, too. Last year at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction, a pristine ’63 Corvette Z06—one of the most sought-after early Vettes—sold for $330,000. The very next car to cross the block, an extensively tweaked ’63 split-window restomod, outdid it with a $412K sale. Rick Carey, our man on the ground, summed it up: “Different versions of the same car for different buyers, then. But the collector car market, which has long favored authentic factory-correct above all else, is now embracing custom creations with open arms.”
That openness to modified early Corvettes, along with their near-universal popularity, means that folks have begun to branch out even beyond the usual restomod builds. Like with many popular collector cars (early Porsches, first-gen Broncos, old Land Rovers) EV conversions are finding their way to the C2 Corvette. Tony Hawk shared his EV-converted Vette with Jay Leno on CNBC a few years ago, and back in 2021 car-design royalty Peter Brock and Ian Callum were reported to be working on a C2-inspired EV with four-digit horsepower. Moment Motor Co., an Austin, Texas shop that carefully restores and converts collector cars of all stripes to EV power, has worked on C2s as well.
The Corvette in question arrived at its converted state by way of actor Robert Downey, Jr and his TV show, Downey’s Dream Cars. The show updated six older vehicles, including some—like this Corvette—from Downey’s own collection in ways that modernize them and make them at least a little friendlier to the environment. Not all of them were EV-swapped—Downey decided to drop a GM-sourced V-8 that runs on biodiesel into his mom’s Mercedes-Benz, and his team modernized an ’81 El Camino by sticking a new 2.7-liter four-cylinder Chevy truck engine under its hood. The builds certainly aren’t lacking in creativity, and after completion they were all subsequently offered up as prizes in a sweepstakes to raise money for Downey’s foundation, the Footprint Coalition.
Originally a 327/300-horse car with an automatic, this Corvette now features two AC motors mounted in parallel driving the rear wheels via a gear reduction unit. At 300 lb-ft of torque, its oomph should feel similar to the 327, albeit without the V-8 soundtrack. Seven Tesla Model S battery modules, mounted in the engine bay and in the rear of the car, provide a total capacity of 37.1 kWh, which reportedly yields about 90-100 miles of range. The suspension, brakes, and steering have been updated. In an interview with Larry Chen, Rob Carlsen, caretaker for the vehicles from Downey’s Dream Cars, shared that the Corvette’s drivetrain uses the factory engine mounts and didn’t cut anything save for some minor bracket work up front, so the car could be completely reverted to ICE power with relative ease.
Marketplace
Buy and sell classics with confidence
Cosmetically, the Vette is swathed in satin blue paint—all the vehicles from the show are satin, which evidently is a thing for Downey—and all the trim has been redone with a brushed look. The interior appears to be handsomely refinished, having used a plant-based leather substitute from a company called Evocative. It will turn heads, though like many modified creations, purists may furrow their brows at the modern look.
The person who won this Corvette from Downey’s Dream Cars offered the car up for auction with Mecum, and the hammer fell on what at first seemed to be a less-than-impressive price. We have to admit that our first reaction to the sale price was, “maybe Iron Man would’ve gotten more money with an iron block,” but that doesn’t paint the whole picture. True, at $77K, it transacted for 22 grand less than it did back in 2014, when it was a very nice, if run-of-the-mill example with single-family history and an 18-year old restoration at the time. But the $99,000 2014 sale was an anomaly—that sale price was a head-scratching 2.3 times the condition-appropriate value at the time—so the comparison doesn’t line up.
Instead, taking a look at the EV-swapped Vette’s sale relative to current values and the rest of the market begins to create some usable context. The Hagerty Price Guide currently values a #2 (excellent) condition 300-horse 327/Powerglide-equipped Corvette at $72,630, or about $4400 less than the Downey Corvette. From the pictures and video, Downey’s build appears to be attractive, if not concours quality, so assigning it a #2 or #2- rating wouldn’t be far off the mark.
Following that line of thinking, this Corvette hasn’t been utterly transformed with the outrageous horsepower or the gleaming show-car finishes that many top-flight restomods receive. Bidders appeared to recognize that, and priced it accordingly. It wouldn’t be a stretch to think that a fully decked-out, EV-swapped C2 that was detailed to the nines like an ICE-powered restomod could have fetched more, but given that this was the first EV-swapped C2 to come to public sale, the market isn’t yet mature enough to say for certain.
So, a Corvette that’s been EV-swapped and has celebrity ties fetches healthy, but not extravagant money. It’s ultimately a rational sale (isn’t it nice to be talking about those again?) that demonstrates the C2’s broad appeal as a canvas for the collector hobby’s many tastes. It also lays the first public-sale marker for EV-swapped C2 Corvettes. With companies like Everrati, Moment, and others continuing to find buyers in the EV-swapped collector-vehicle space, cars like these are not going away. Whether they gain the popularity, and the hefty prices, that restomod Vettes have achieved will be answered with time—but we wouldn’t bet against them.
They killed a good car.
And, for what purpose? The abominations and travesties of classics boggles the mind.
I’m ok with a modified Corvette especially if it is saving a car that is not good for an original restoration. Many bare bodies have been saved this way.
But to put an EV plant in it totally is against everything the Corvette is. The noise, smell and vibration are all a part of the Corvettes appeal and existents’
OH yea
OH YES
BUT… at least they did mention the changes they made are reversible, so they at least left some reasonable bones behind to recover from. Most of these conversions destroy the car.
I like the resto mods but an EV Stingray? Nope.
Butchered. Hopefully someone with some sense will return it to its former glory.
Hopefully, this result will prevent more C2s from being ruined.
I am not crazy about this car but if I were, the 90-100 mile range would do it for me. What can you do with a car you can only drive 100 miles. Not very much. I bet this one will wind up with an LS in it in the future.
It is a “range” I will be willing to bet that many 1965 Corvettes are driven less than 100 miles on an average outing to a Cars and Coffee or the local ice cream shop.
Lets think about this for a second. A desirable1965 Vette with Leading man connections can’t maintain its value? Is it because it’s an EV conversion and a very small market or because it was poorly done. My bet is because it’s a EV.
I like it….and don’t say that as an EV fan. God knows there are plenty of ICE-powered, concours-quality ’65 Roadsters out there, so it’s not like they desecrated the last known example on earth. Also really like the matte-finish paint and brushed “brightwork”…very unusual. It’s one of those “Devil’s in the details” bits that make interesting cars fun to look at.
Ignoring the EV swap for the moment – I don’t think this car has too much of “modern look ” as mentioned. It looks to me to be more of a vintage styled modified. From the steel wheels with reasonable sidewall tires, retaining the trim etc. Even the satin paint has an old worn patina vibe. I like it. I’ve certainly seen more than a few restomod vettes that have been changed to a much greater extent. Mostly taken too far, for the worse and bringing ridiculous prices. I’m sure they would cost much more to bring back to original condition than this cars more sympathetic alterations. It sounds like there’s an immediate gut reaction anti-EV swap concerning this car, rather than seeing the entirety of it.
This is a good take.
I’m ok with a modified Corvette especially if it is saving a car that is not good for an original restoration. Many bare bodies have been saved this way.
But to put an EV plant in it totally is against everything the Corvette is. The noise, smell and vibration are all a part of the Corvettes appeal and existents’
Nothing wrong with the looks. Mods like this are find and save many bare bodies not worth restoring stock. But the EV part is against what the Corvette is. The noise, smell and vibration define the car for what it is.
A whirr with a fake engine sound is worthless.
Read the lyrics to Red Barchetta. They don’t write songs about EV cars.
I have a feeling that these one-off EV conversions will be a lot more expensive – or impossible – to repair in the future when this cobbled together system ultimately fails. Batteries, electronics, inverter, charger – you name it. The life of the vehicle has been dramatically shortened. The most economical future conversion will be to take it back to ICE.
If you want an EV go buy one, stop destroying history by ruining muscle cars.
To do this to America’s Sports Car and not have at least 600 horsepower is blasphemy to the name Corvette. Why have “just 300 horsepower” What a waste of money, No wonder it didn’t bring big bucks.
Well, if you put 600 HP in it, then it would probably have 60 miles of range… I guess you could use it as a very quick golf cart…
The best part of having a performance classic is the power unit, the gear lever in hand, and the clutch pedal to complete the visual response. All of these things make up the experience of driving the thing. .
Electrifying a C2? Then it is just a fake, having nothing left of the original experience of driving it. All this C2 represents is something that looks like a C2, but has little of the actual driving experience. Perfect for a delletante… That person who wants a Corvette, but doesn’t really like cars.
They could have at least fitted it with a mini arc reactor, if taking out the ICE engine. Being reversible is a benefit, but ultimately, the price represents thoroughly average and that star power had little to no market value.
sacrilege!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
When I saw that RDJ was going to do a show and electrify them to make them more friendly to the environment I thought it was a dumb idea. Outside of Marvel movies he isn’t nearly as popular and turning his cars into EV’s seemed more of a “hey look at me thing” than anything else. At least it can be reversed.
What a travesty, and the worst part isn’t the electric motor, but it driving down the road without any exhaust notes. Leave the classics alone!!