Metro Detroit Man Strikes Gold In Search For Late Father's Corvette Stingray

DETROIT (WWJ) - It's a dream come true for a local autoworker -- and that dream is loud and orange.

After searching high and low, 42-year-old Scott Bachmann found and purchased the actual hot rod that his dad owned back in the 1970s.

"This is a 1973 Stingray Corvette convertible. It's Ontario orange, the original paint," Bachmann told WWJ's Roberta Jasina. "This was my father's car back when I was 3-years-old."

Bachmann said his dad was devoted to the cruiser -- it was his pride and joy. Sadly, he passed away while working on the car in 1977 after suffering a stroke and ingesting carbon monoxide from exhaust fumes.

Trying to find a connection with his father and their past, Bachmann set out to find the one thing he knew would bring back memories of the good ol' times -- he had to find that Corvette.

Bachmann had the car's VIN, so he did a simple search online and wound up striking gold. He found the car and contacted the seller, who was more than willing to entertain an offer.

"It was considerably more than my father paid for it," Bachmann said, adding that it was worth every penny. "There's 80,229 original miles, it has the original engine, original trans, and we're trying to find out about the tires."

As for the car's future, Bachmann said it has finally found its final destination, right back where it belongs.