A piece of SCCA history is up for auction at Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale later this month. The Purple People Eater Mk III, named for a 1958 pop song, is a 1959 Corvette previously owned by Nickey Chevrolet of Chicago, Ill. and driven by Jim Jeffords. During the 58 and 59 SCCA National Racing seasons, Jeffords started 42 races in the Purple People Eater Corvettes, winning 29 of them, including back-to-back national point championships (Champions wouldn’t be determined with winner-take-all races until 1965.)
The car was sold several times until being bought in 1985 by Chip Miller and Ken Heckert for $800. The new owners, noticing the racing modifications that had been made, decided to do some research and discovered the heritage of the car. They had it restored to its former glory and in 2003, Corvette specialist Kevin Mackay refurbished the entire chassis. Since, the car has been featured at concours events and historic races.
More information on the car is available at Barrett-Jackson.com.