Tube framed, restomodded ’59 Corvette – the ‘Raven’ flies!

Imagine you had a 1959 C1 sitting in your garage for 40 years, a present you purchased for your wife. We can only wonder if Deral Knight kept asking her throughout the years if he could modify it, or if the couple was happy with it the way it was. In any event, at some point Mrs. Knight must have given him her blessing, and the result is nothing short of spectacular. 

Tapping SRIII Motorsports for one of their tube-frame chassis with C6 front and C5 rear suspension, custom exhaust and polished modular wheels, the undercarriage was complete. Instead of rebuilding the stock small block V8, Deral had something a little more potent sitting in his shop. If the shop happens to be Houston, Texas’ Knight Performance, with a state-of-the-art machinery and a Mustang chassis dyno, and you specialize in engine building, LS, Chevy, Dodge, Ford and and diesel tuning, the Turn Key Engines-modified, 650 HP LS7 might not seem excessive, and that’s just the way Knight likes it.

Glove soft Italian leather covers the cabin.

Transmitting that power to the ground is a Tremec six-speed, guided by a Hurst shifter. Inside, refurbished gauges keep tabs on the vitals, while the leather wrapped steering wheel and tan custom Italian leather upholstery provides a level of creature comfort, with the same colors and choice of materials extended into the trunk as well.

With a nickname like the Raven, there really is no other color choice other than black that appears a foot deep, and the bodywork below it is no doubt flawless. Debuting at the 2012 Houston Autorama, Knight’s ’59 Corvette was as admired by all the show patrons as it is anywhere he drives it. ‘Fun to drive’ is how Knight describes his ’59 Corvette, so look at four minutes of absolute Corvette heaven and see if you don’t agree!

The SRIII chassis aids the early Corvette’s handling immensely.