• By 1988, Chevrolet produced approximately 900,000 Corvettes in the 35 years since America's sports car bowed in 1953.
• Little changed in Corvette's appearance this year, except for restyled six-slot wheels.
• Optional 17-inch wheels looked simi­lar to the standard 16-inch wheels, but held massive P275/4OZR-17 Goodyear Eagle GT tires.
• Suspension modifications were intended to improve control during hard braking, while brake components were toughened, including the use of thicker rotors.
• Under the hood, the standard 350-cid (5.7-liter) V-8 could breathe more easily with a pair of modified alu­minum cylinder heads.
• Performance also got a boost via a new camshaft, though horsepower only rose by five.
• Both a convertible and a hatchback coupe were oftered.
• Corvettes colors were
  • Silver Metallic
  • Medium Blue Metallic
  • Dark Blue Metallic
  • Yellow
  • White
  • Black
  • Dark Red Metallic
  • Bright Red
  • Gray Metallic
  • Charcoal Metallic.
• The only standard two-tone combination was White and Black.
• Interior trims came in Blue; Black; Gray; Red; Saddle; and White.
• A removable body-color roof panel for hatchbacks or body-color convertible top was standard, along with cloth-upholstered seats.

I.D. NUMBERS

• The serial number [Vehicle Identification Number -- VIN] was stamped on a plate on the inner vertical surface of the left windshield pillar visible through the windshield.
• The Coupe serial numbers ranged from 1G1YY21*2J5100001 to 1G1YY21*2H5122789
• The Convertible serial numbers ranged from 1G1YY31*2J5100001 to 1G1YY31*2H5122789

  Position	Character	Description
  1	1	US built
  2	G	General Motors product
  3	1	Chevrolet Motor Division vehicle
  4	Y	Type of restraint system
  5	Y	Corvette car line series
  6	2 or 3	Body style number 2 = Two door hatchback style 07, 08, 77, or 87 3 = Two door convertible style 67
  7	1 or 2	1=Manual seat belts 2=Automatic seat belts
  8	8	5.7-liter Tuned-Port-Injection Chevrolet or GM of Canada V8
  9	?	A check digit that calculates the characters in the serial number and gives it a single digit code and can be used to verify that the serial number is legitimate
  10	J	The model year where 1988
  11	5	Bowling Green, KY
  12-17	100001 and up	production sequence for coupes and convertibles

• Corvette engines have the last six digits of the VIN stamped on the block just ahead of the cylinder head on the right-hand side combined with a three-letter engine code suffix
• Also cast into the top rear of the block is a four-symbol code indicating when the engine was built
  • The first letter of the date code shows the month the block was cast
  • The one or two numbers shows the month
  • The last digit shows the year
• Engine suffixes:

  Code	Engine	Horsepower	Compression	Transmission	Fuel Supply	Extra features
  ZMA	L98 350-cid	240/245-hp V-8	9.5:1	THM automatic	tuned port injection
  ZMD	L98 350-cid	240/245-hp V-8	9.5:1	THM automatic	tuned port injection	engine oil cooler
  ZMC	L98 350-cid	240/245-hp V-8	9.5:1	manual	tuned port injection	engine oil cooler

• The 1988 Corvette exterior colors were:
  • 13 = Silver Metallic
  • 20 = Medium Blue Metallic
  • 28 = Dark Blue Metallic
  • 35 = Yellow
  • 40 = White
  • 41 = Black
  • 74 = Dark Red Metallic
  • 81 = Bright Red
  • 90 = Gray Metallic
  • 96 = Charcoal Metallic
  • 40/41 = Black and White
• Upholstery Codes

  Color	Cloth Upholstery	Leather Upholstery
  Black	19C	192
  Saddle	60C	602
  White		113
  Blue		212
  Red		732
  Gray		902

Model	Model No.	Body/Style No.	Body Type	Factory Price	Shipping Weight	Production Total
Coupe	1Y	Y07	2-dr. Hatch Coupe - 2 passenger	$29,480	3229	15,382
Convertible	1Y	Y67	2-dr. Convertible - 2 passenger	$34,820	3299	7,407

TRANSMISSION

• Automatic Transmission
  • Four-speed Turbo Hydra-Matic (TMH 700-R4)
  • floor-mounted gear shifter
  • gear ratios
    • 1st = 3.06:1
    • 2nd = 1.63:1
    • 3rd = 1.00:1
    • 4th = 0.70:1
    • Rev = 2.29:1
  • Final drive ratio: 2.59:1 or 3.07:1
• Manual Transmission
  • Four-speed manual with overdrive
  • floor-mounted gear shifter
  • gear ratios
    • 1st = 2.88:1
    • 2nd = 1.91:1
    • 3rd = 1.33:1
    • 4th = 1.00:1
    • overdrive = 0.67:1
    • Rev = 2.78:1
  • Final drive ratio: 3.07:1

• RPO AC1 Power passenger seat ($240).
• RPO AC3 Power driver seat ($240).
• RPO AQ9 Leather sports seats ($1 ,025).
• RPO AR9 Base leather seats ($400).
• RPO B2K Callaway Twin Turbo installed by Callaway Engineering ($25,895).
• RPO B4P Radiator boost fan ($75).
• RPO C2L Dual remov­able roof panels for coupe ($915).
• RPO 24S Removable roof panels with blue tint for coupe ($615).
• RPO 64S Removable roof panels with bronze tint for coupe ($615).
• RPO C68 Electronic air condi­tioning control ($150).
• RPO DL8 Twin remote heated mirrors for convertible ($35).
• RPO D74 Illuminated driver vanity mirror ($58).
• RPO FG3 Delco-Bilstein shock absorbers ($189).
• RPO G92 Performance axle ratio 3.07:1 ($22).
• RPO KC4 Engine oil cooler ($110).
• RPO MM4 Four-speed manual transmission (no-cost option).
• RPO NNS California emissions requirements ($99).
• RPO UL5 Radio delete ($297 credit).
• RPO UU8 Delco-Bose stereo system ($773).
• RPO V01 Heavy-duty radiator ($40).
• RPO Z01 35th Anniversary Special Edition package for hatchback ($4,795).
• RPO Z51 Performance handling package for hatchback ($1 ,295).
• RPO Z52 Sport handling package ($970).
• RPO Z6A Rear window and side mirror defoggers for coupe ($165).

• Introduced: October 1, 1987.
• Model-year production: 22,789.
• Calendar-year production: 22,878.
• Model-year sales by U.S.
• dealers: 25,425.
• A $25,895 Callaway Twin-Turbo engine package could be ordered through spe­cific Chevrolet dealers as RPO B2K.
• Cars that received this package were sent from Bowling Green, Kentucky, to the Callaway factory in Old Lyme, Connecticut, to receive engine modifications and other upgrades.
• The 1988 Callaways had 382 hp and 562 lbs.-ft. of torque.
• Callaway modified a Chevrolet truck-type Turbo Hydra-Matic transmission as a $6,500 option for Callaways.
• Chevrolet also built 56 Corvette race cars for use in the Sports Car Club of America's (SCCA) Corvette Challenge racing series.
• These "street-legal" track cars alt had stock engines specially built at the Flint, Michigan, engine plant.
• They were matched for power and sealed to insure that all of the cars were as identical as possi­ble in a technical sense.
• Protofab, an aftermarket race-car builder in Wixom, Michigan, installed race-car modifications and roll bars.
• For 1988 Callaway Twin-Turbo Corvettes a different engine-coding system was used.
• Callaway engines were stamped with the first two symbols indicating model year, followed by three symbols indicating order in the Callaway pro­duction sequence, followed by four symbols match­ing the last four digits of the Chevrolet VIN.
• The production figures include a total of 2,050 special 35th Anniversary Edition Corvette hatchback coupes, each with a specific build sequence number and special badges.
• This option listed for $4,795.
• The 35th Anniversary Edition Corvettes featured a custom two-tone paint scheme consisting of a white body color, painted White wheels and Black roof bow with transparent black roof panels.
• The white scheme was carried out through the interior trim, which included 35th Anniversary badges embroidered on the seat backs.

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