The Bid is Right

Guess the final price on this rare Callaway Corvette and win $500 [Guessing Closed]

by Conner Golden
6 October 2022 3 min read
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We’ve got Corvettes on the mind. Between our delicious first taste of the genre-defying 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and our treatise on why you—yes, you—should pay more attention to the underloved C4-generation, we can’t stop thinking about America’s sports car. So, when it came time to pick the subject for this week’s Bid is Right contest, we found a star ‘Vette to get you guessin’.

We know we’re not the only ones with Corvettes cavitating our cortex. Even if you haven’t read our historical breakdown of the Z06 badge, our data dictates that if you’re a Hagerty customer, there’s a significant chance you’ve got a ‘Vette of some varietal in your garage right now. As of this past spring, the Chevrolet Corvette is the most insured vehicle by Hagerty in 45 out of 50 states, beating out other ultra-popular rides like the Ford Mustang and VW Beetle.

Bring a Trailer

Bring a Trailer’s 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Callaway C16 is decidedly not one of the most insured cars on our internal leaderboard. The listing indicates this is one of only 15 such C16s built, making it one of the more exclusive tuner-house ‘Vettes available in the 2000s. What, you though we’d toss you a C5 Convertible softball? Get real. You gotta work for your (free) cash, bub.

So, what is a Callaway C16? Disappointingly, the “16” in the name does not indicate a galactic-sized V-16 thumping under that fiberglass; the C6’s 6.0-liter LS2 V-8 still holds court here, albeit with respiratory assistance via a Magnuson roots-type supercharger. Additional firepower from high-flow injectors, upgraded rocker arms, and beefier pushrods spin the stock 400 hp to a contemporaneously lofty 616 hp.

Bring a Trailer

So, you already know this should go for more than your standard C6 Corvette, or even a C6 Z06 for that matter. Managing this tremendous gumption is a Callaway-Eibach coilover suspension and upgraded brakes, all hiding behind a set of distinctive Callaway magnesium/carbon wheels.

This is all fine and dandy, but it’s nothing you can’t get from the billion or so speed shops dotting the American landscape. It’s the C16’s aesthetics that set it far apart from the Corvette crowd; each C16 wears a distinct bespoke front- and rear facia that appear rather European. Inside, Callaway replaced as much of the Fisher-Price plastics as it could, supplanting the nasty stuff with a full complement of rich leather trim.

Bring a Trailer

So, how much? That’s for you to decide in the comment section. Valuation will be a bit tricky, but this is surprisingly not the first Callaway C16 sold on Bring a Trailer—we’ll leave the more in-depth sleuthing up to you. We don’t track Callaway Corvettes past the C4 generation in the Hagerty Price Guide, but we do chart C6s; a standard 2007 Chevrolet Corvette trades for an average of $20,800 according to our data, so maybe start there.

Or, start anywhere you like. This is your pricing project! You should know the rules by now—drop your guess for the final bid—winning or not—in the comment section below. Closest to the pin without going over takes home the glory and the greenbacks. So, crack a cold one, bring up last month’s livestream of Corvettes at Carlisle, and keep an eye on the bid clock. We’ll see you in the comments.

House rules:

  • The commenter who guesses closest to the hammer price without going over wins. (Hammer price excludes auction house fees).
  • One guess per commenter.
  • If two people guess the same amount (within a dollar) the earlier guess wins.
  • Commenters must provide first and last name in addition to email address.
  • We will close the guessing on Monday, October 10th at 4:10 PM EST.
  • Your privacy is important to us, and we’ll never sell your information. By providing your email you will receive the weekly Insider newsletter, and you can opt out at any time.
  • You can read the full rules here.

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