A cutaway version of the ’65 Corvette built for display at new-car shows of the day will be part of the Al Wiseman auction that RM has scheduled for Nov. 30-Dec. 1, in Tarpon Springs, Fla.
An Oklahoma native, Wiseman studied to be an aeronautical engineer and had great success working in varying roles for a number of airlines. By 1997, Wiseman retired and moved to Florida, where he built a home and started a collector-car business called Classic Corvettes and Collectables.
A serious Corvette collector, when Wiseman had the opportunity to purchase the Cutaway Corvette, he couldn’t resist. Built by General Motors to showcase 1965 Corvette features, it incorporates jack screws to raise and lower the stock-type fiberglass body over the chassis. Different colors are used on different parts of the car to identify important sub-systems The Cutaway Corvette display also incorporated signs pointing out the 1965 models’ advanced features such as low-friction ball-race steering and a four-speed synchro-mesh transmission. The display included electrically-operated rollers that spun the tires, which were mounted on factory-optional knock-off wheels.
The Cutaway Corvette turned heads in 1965 and it also turned heads after Wiseman acquired it. Although the car had been hidden away for 30 years, it was well preserved and needed no major work.