If You Can't Say Somethin' Nice, Don't Say Nothing at All...
We've all heard this saying before, especially as uttered by Thumper, the rabbit from the Disney movie "Bambi" when he is reminded of the principle of this statement by his mother after he commented that Bambi was "kinda wobbly" when standing for the first time. The inspiration for titling this blog post using Thumper's quote is because of Corvette Online's Editor, Dave Cruikshank's story, "Red Haired Step Child - Why I Bought a C4 Corvette", published April 5, 2017 on the Corvetteonline.com website. As such, I thought that it was very appropriate to the subject matter.
Although I did not grow up knowing anyone who had a Corvette, they held a certain mystique with me that probably reached a pinnacle in 1983 when Chevrolet introduced the C4 Corvette as a 1984 model. I was an avid car enthusiast at that time who experienced cars vicariously through print media (because I could not afford to buy whatever car I lusted over each and every month I received my new Car and Driver magazine in the mail) and I remember when the C4 Corvette came out.
What intrigued me about the C4 introduction, especially since I was a Computer Science Technology major in college at that time, was the technology that it had with its LCD dash, advanced suspension (plastic leaf springs), and what I considered to be extremely wide tires and wheels and modern body style. To really bring back the nostalgia, here is a link to the original print layout of Car and Driver magazine's first look at the 1984 Corvette. http://media.caranddriver.com/files/1984-chevrolet-corvette.pdf Back then, American car manufacturers had difficulty competing with the perceived quality of the import auto manufacturers and, to me, it seemed like technology was a way that the domestic manufacturers could compete. My personal perspective and memories aside, Dave Cruikshank's article struck a cord in me, a fellow car and Corvette enthusiast, regarding the 1995 Torch Red C4 that he bought.
His article is a good read and, not to spoil his story, here are some highlights to pique your interest. As Corvetteonline.com's editor, Dave experienced a little chagrin to admit that he didn't even own a Corvette. He ended up getting an all original 1995 Corvette with only 34K miles. His impressions of his 22 year old Vette were pretty positive despite experiencing some common C4 glitches, notably the shifter/brake interlock issue, after purchasing it. Dave also expressed an interesting suggestion about how to buy an used car that had to do with hand washing it. Dave does not have a long list of extensive modifications and upgrades that he is planning for his C4, but he has carefully thought about and considered the things that would be important to him.
Anyhow, read and enjoy his article here http://www.corvetteonline.com/news/red-haired-step-child-why-i-bought-a-c4-corvette/ and congratulations for becoming a Corvette owner, Dave!
