Why This Car Is Special

The 1980 Chevrolet Corvette was the last year of the C3 generation to offer the 350 cubic inch High Output V8 in all 50 states — a distinction that matters to buyers who understand what the emissions era cost the Corvette in raw performance terms. By 1980, Chevy had wrestled the L48 350 down to 190 horsepower in most configurations, but this particular car was built up well beyond that baseline. It carries the 5.7 Liter H.O. 350 designation you see on the air cleaner lid, supported by an MSD performance ignition system and chrome valve covers that confirm the engine has had attention paid to it. Dual exhaust exits cleanly out the rear, and the underside of this car — which we have photographed on the lift — shows a well-maintained chassis with no visible rust perforation and a properly coated undercarriage.

What separates this 1980 Chevrolet Corvette from a standard C3 is the Greenwood Daytona Package. John Greenwood was a Corvette racer and customizer who made a name for himself campaigning wide-body Corvettes at Le Mans and Daytona in the early 1970s. His road cars were offered as aftermarket conversions and carried serious credibility in the performance community. The Daytona package adds a full widebody aerodynamic body kit — extended front fascia, flared fenders, and a rear tail treatment — that gives this 1980 Corvette a dramatically different profile than the factory car. These conversions were expensive when new and are not common today. They represent a specific chapter in C3 Corvette customization history that is increasingly recognized by collectors.

The odometer in the photos reads approximately 39,356 miles. That figure is consistent with a car that has been driven and enjoyed rather than stored, but not abused.

Features List

• 5.7 Liter H.O. 350ci V8
• 3-Speed Automatic Transmission
• Greenwood Daytona Widebody Aerodynamic Package
• MSD Performance Ignition System
• Dual Exhaust
• Bilstein Shocks — front and rear, visible on the lift photos
• 4-Wheel Disc Brakes
• BFGoodrich Radial T/A Tires
• Cast Aluminum Wheels
• Chrome Valve Covers
• T-Tops
• Tan Leather Bucket Seats
• Center Console
• Tilt-Telescopic Steering Column
• Tachometer
• Upgraded Stereo (modern head unit, DIN-mounted in factory console location)
• Air Conditioning
• Power Steering
• Power Brakes
• Power Windows
• Crystal Claret Exterior
• Tan Leather Interior

Mechanical

The engine in this 1980 Chevrolet Corvette is the 350 cubic inch small block V8 wearing 5.7 Liter H.O. air cleaner identification. The MSD ignition box is mounted in the engine bay and is clearly visible in the photos — MSD's capacitive discharge systems were a popular and well-regarded upgrade for the C3 Corvette because the factory electronic ignition of the late 1970s left power on the table. Chrome Chevrolet valve covers dress the top end. Dual exhaust runs the full length of the car and exits through the widebody rear fascia. The underside photos show large-diameter exhaust tubing routed cleanly through a blacked-out chassis that shows no significant rust.

The suspension tells a useful story on the lift. Bilstein shocks are fitted at all four corners — identifiable by the yellow bodies visible in the undercarriage photos. Bilstein's monotube gas-pressure design was and remains a significant upgrade over the stock C3 shocks, providing better damping consistency and reduced fade under repeated inputs. The C3 Corvette's independent rear suspension, which uses a transverse leaf spring and U-jointed half-shafts as lateral links, is fully intact and presents well. Four-wheel disc brakes are standard equipment on the 1980 Corvette and are confirmed here. The 3-speed automatic transmission sends power rearward through a conventional driveshaft.

Tires are BFGoodrich Radial T/A, a period-correct and historically appropriate choice for the C3. BFG supplied Radial T/As as factory equipment on C3 Corvettes throughout the late 1970s and into the early 1980s, and they remain a tire that Corvette buyers of this era specifically look for.

Interior

The interior of this 1980 Chevrolet Corvette is finished in tan leather throughout — seats, door panels, and dashboard covering. The leather bucket seats show the characteristic C3 high-bolster design with horizontal pleating across the seat bottoms and vertical pleating on the seatbacks. The photos show the leather is supple and holding its shape without significant cracking or distortion on the seating surfaces, though there is visible wear at the seat base edges consistent with age and use. The door panels are clean and show no tearing.

The dashboard layout is the 1980 update, which moved to a new instrument cluster design featuring a rectangular gauge pod ahead of the driver. The speedometer in the photos reads to 85 mph — a federally mandated limit that went into effect for the 1980 model year and was widely criticized at the time. A separate tachometer sits to the right. The center console houses the automatic gear selector, and a modern aftermarket stereo head unit has been installed in the DIN slot below the factory gauge cluster on the passenger-facing center stack. This is a practical upgrade that maintains the factory appearance while adding modern audio capability.

The tilt-telescopic steering column is present, and the factory-style leather-wrapped steering wheel with the crossed-flags Corvette emblem on the horn button is intact. T-tops are in place, and the headliner panel that runs between the two roof sections is intact and clean. Air conditioning and power windows are functional equipment on this car.

Exterior

This 1980 Chevrolet Corvette wears Crystal Claret — a deep burgundy-red that reads darker and richer in direct sunlight than a standard red, with a wine-like depth to it. The color was available on the 1980 Corvette and suits the widebody Greenwood bodywork well, giving the car a cohesive appearance rather than looking like a modified afterthought.

The Greenwood Daytona body package adds fiberglass widebody fenders front and rear, a reshaped front fascia with an extended lower lip, and a revised rear treatment that integrates the dual exhaust exits. The widened fenders accommodate the BFGoodrich Radial T/A tires without the tucked look of the stock fenders. The front nose shot on the lift shows the aggressive forward rake of the Greenwood front fascia, which bears a resemblance to the racing Corvettes that Greenwood campaigned in period. The rear end on the lift shows the dual exhaust tips exiting symmetrically through cutouts in the Greenwood tail panel.

Cast aluminum wheels are fitted at all four corners and present well with no cracking. The body panels photograph consistently in color with no obvious patchwork or mismatched sections visible. The underside of the front and rear fascias, visible in the lift photos, show the fiberglass construction of the Greenwood components.

Conclusion

The 1980 Chevrolet Corvette Greenwood Daytona is a specific and historically grounded car. John Greenwood's name is not well known outside of serious C3 circles, but within those circles it carries real weight. He built wide-body Corvettes that competed at the highest levels of endurance racing in the early 1970s, and his road conversions brought that aesthetic to buyers who wanted something beyond the standard factory car. This example combines that coachbuilder-era customization with a solid mechanical foundation — Bilstein suspension, MSD ignition, dual exhaust, four-wheel disc brakes, and the 5.7 Liter H.O. 350 — in a color combination that works. The odometer shows just under 40,000 miles, and the undercarriage confirms the car has been kept up.

If you have questions about this 1980 Chevrolet Corvette Greenwood Daytona or would like to arrange an inspection, call Skyway Classics in Sarasota, Florida at 941-254-6608. We are happy to walk you through the car in detail.

Disclaimer

Information found on the website is presented as given to us by the owner of the car, whether on consignment or from the owner we bought it from. Some Photos, materials for videos, descriptions and other information are provided by the consignor/seller and is deemed reliable, but Skyway Classics does not warranty or guarantee this information. Skyway Classics is not responsible for information that may incorrect or a publishing error. The decision to purchase should be based solely on the buyers personal inspection of the vehicle or by a professional inspection service prior to offer or purchase being made.