Hendrick Automotive Group chairman and CEO and NASCAR championship-winning team owner Rick Hendrick placed the winning bid of $1.1 million to put the first retail 2024 Corvette E-Ray into his 122-car collection.
The first hybrid Corvette E-Ray carries the 001 VIN.
The proceeds from the April 15 Barrett-Jackson West Palm Beach, Fla. sale will go to DonorsChoose, a national nonprofit that provides assistance for in-need classrooms. An additional $50,000 was donated to the charity from a Barrett-Jackson VIP in attendance.
“The atmosphere in the auction arena was supercharged during the bidding on the first retail production 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray,” says Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. “The Corvette is America’s sports car and the sale of the first electrified version ever produced was an iconic moment as collectors coveted the chance to own a piece of automotive history.
“Barrett-Jackson has a long history of auctioning VIN 001 vehicles from General Motors to benefit deserving charities and we are proud to have had the opportunity today to help raise funds for our nation’s classrooms.”
Chevrolet unveiled the hybrid Corvette E-Ray in January in New York, 70 years after the first Corvette debuted at Motorama in the Big Apple.
“In 1953, the enthusiastic reaction to the Chevrolet Corvette concept kicked off seven decades of passion, performance, and American ingenuity,” said GM President Mark Reuss at the unveiling. “E-Ray, as the first electrified, all-wheel-drive Corvette, takes it a step further and expands the promise of what Corvette can deliver.”
Developed to be the Corvette owners can arrive in anywhere, no matter the season, the new E-Ray — available in removeable roof coupe and hardtop convertible models — uses electrification to enhance the driving experience with intense straight-line performance, all-weather confidence and sure-footed grand touring capabilities that can only be achieved with eAWD.
E-Ray also is the only sports car pairing two separate propulsion systems to provide naturally aspirated V-8 power with electrified responsiveness powered by eAWD.
