National Corvette museum Delivery for the smits
August 3, 2021
If you have never experienced a National Corvette Museum Corvette delivery, this is your chance to live vicariously through Dave & Mary Smits experience. Many thanks to Deanna Janilla, Mary Smits, Brian Pollock, and Dave Dolinger for contributing photos to this effort.
I’ve toured the museum many times, but it was much more informative and educational when John gave our group a VIP tour.
The Smits C8 Corvette Museum Delivery Story
2021-08-03 National Corvette Museum Delivery for the Smits
Dave walking to his car for the first time.
See Dave smile, watch Dave drool
Checking out the passenger side
Mary touching the car (always the rule breaker)
Deanna Janilla, Tim Janilla, Bonnie Taylor, Lee Bates helped Dave & Mary celebrate the big day
John handing Dave his VIP lanyard
Dave sitting in the car for the first time
Gazing at the engine -- or -- evaluating the luggage carrying capacity of the trunk -- hard to tell
Opening the frunk (front trunk)
John explaining to Dave how to properly close the rear hatch
Evaluating the luggage capacity of the frunk
Dave can't stop smiling -- yes it does smell like a new car
Back up for a view of the entire car
Yup, still sitting in it, still smiling
Through the hatch glass you can see Mary getting her VIP badge (Dave forgot to put her name on the list)
Doing paperwork (but Dave is still gazing at his car)
Yup, still doing paperwork
John explaining the R8C Museum Delivery plaque (the engraved tag will come in the mail)
The R8C Museum Delivery certificate
John attaching the New Jersey out of state temporary tag -- there's a long story there
Dave watching the process intently -- will the screw slots be horizontal when John is done?
Notice the perfect form John is using attaching the R8C Museum Delivery license plate frame -- I give him a score of 10 and an olympic gold medal
Dave & John admiring John's work
John discusses a few of the C8 Corvette features - the VIP tour of the museum is next, then back to the car for an in-depth C8 Corvette 101 lesson
John & Dave checking on the status of Dave's window sticker, build sheet order
Museum tour -- Zora & Elfi's ashes reside here -- a funny story explains why Elfi is on top
Here you can plainly see Elfi's ashes box on top of Zora's ashes box
Museum Tour - Corvette, America's Only Sports Car sign
Museum Tour - Cut-a-way of 1953 Corvette chassis #3 -- it's fully functional and drivable
Museum Tour - a camouflaged experimental VIN C8 Corvette
Museum Tour - the C8 Corvette prototype exhaust was NOT a thing of beauty
Museum Tour - The original Motorama Show Car emblem had the American flag in it - Was quickly replaced with a flag acknowledging the Chevrolet brothers French heritage
Museum Tour - C1 Corvette collage comprised of tiny car pictures
Museum Tour - This is a close-up look at the collage in the previous picture
Museum Tour - 1955 Corvette -- yellow with a green convertible top -- be still my heart
Museum Tour - Zora's personal 1974 Corvette - slightly modified from stock - OK, a lot modified
Museum Tour - Clay model used in wind tunnel testing
Museum Tour - The Excalibur - made in Milwaukee, WI - Mary's hometown
Museum Tour - early mid-engine prototypes
Museum Tour - view to the bottom of the sinkhole after it was repaired - it was not really a sinkhole, but a cave ceiling that collapsed
Museum Tour - some of the Corvettes extracted from the sinkhole that have not yet been or cannot be restored
Museum Tour - the only surviving 1983 Corvette - no production cars were built due to a strike by UAW workers - this one escaped the crusher (the reason makes for a very interesting story)
Back to C8 Corvette 101 - John shows Dave how to properly stow the targa top in the trunk
Dave pops the targa top into the retaining pegs after John shows him where to place his hands
Mary's first time sitting in the car
Dave uses John microfiber cloth to clean smudges off the rear view mirror
John showing us the placement of the "escape levers"
The Smits C8 Corvette will now leave Corvette Blvd and head down Victory Ln
Making the turn from Corvette Blvd to Victory Ln
On Victory Ln and headed outside
The Smits C8 Corvette is leaving the Museum
Ditto
Ditto
Dave still smiling and doing the wave - due to insurance regulations, John did the driving out of the building
Still smiling
There she goes
She found daylight
Getting positioned under the outdoor picture background
Looks like a C8 at the end of that tunnel
Parked in front of the picture backdrop
Mary & I hiding behind the C8
There, much better - you can actually see us
Now the whole group is hiding
We've moved to photo op location #2
The Smits prepared for a quick getaway
I guess a getaway was not in the cards
The group again
Dave starting the process of installing the targa top
It's still light and still awkward to handle
Tim Janilla helping Dave check the targa top for proper placement before latching it down
Dave doing the final fastening of the targa top
Everyone did a wine tasting except Dave - he spent the time getting OnStar set up and reviewing / changing all of the setting on the C8
Wine tasting at the Traveler's Cellar Winery
Vineyard
Vineyard
The name says cellar, so this must be the cellar
The flight of wines begging to be tasted
One of many vineyard cats
Later that evening ... Dave & Mary displaying the VIN decoder for their car
Dave explaining the build sheet to Mary
In true Ridge Runner Corvettes fashion, lots of snacks and drinks were available in the evening
One of the first couples to join the club (Janilla's) spends some time getting to know one of the newest (Bates/Taylor), Dave, well he's eating
Parked in front of the hotel ready to start the trip back to Greenville, SC
On the road home to Greenville
On the road home to Greenville
Screen Shots from the NCM Web cameras
Corvette Blvd Cam - the Smits group has not arrived yet
Corvette Blvd Cam - the Smits group is in the house
Corvette Blvd Cam
Delivery Cam 1
Delivery Cam 1 - the Smits group has not yet arrived
Delivery Cam 1 - John is making sure the car is dust and smudge free before the Smits group arrives
Delivery Cam 1
Delivery Cam 1
