Since the early 1960s, Italian coachbuilders have been retrofitting Corvettes. For example, a 1963 Pininfarina Corvette that first appeared at the 1963 Paris Motor Show recently showed up on the auction block from Barret-Jackson, who branded the car as “an American in an Italian suit.” Things haven’t changed so much since the Chevy Corvette is still a favorite to customize with new sheetmetal, performance tuning and interior modifications.

SV Motor Corporation is the latest to celebrate this time-honored tradition by creating the new 9 Competizione based on the C6 Corvette. A cross between an Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione and a Corvette, the SV 9 C dons some new Italian clothes in the form of carbon-fiber bodywork but is still very recognizable as the American workhorse. The biggest change is a revised front end with a large mesh grill and air vents on the hood. The back of the car also gets reworked as the Corvette’s dual taillights on each side are consolidated down to just one and the exhaust pipes are moved from the center to the far left and right.

Performance mods include a new intake and tuned exhaust system that helps add an additional 14 horsepower, thereby pushing the engine output up to 450 hp with 445 lb-ft of torque. These changes, along with a weight reduction of 132 pounds, give the SV 9 C consistent 0-60 mph times in the 4 second range and a 12 second quarter-mile. A new set of alloy wheels wrapped in Pirelli PZero Rosso tires helps facilitate 1.03g of lateral grip and a braking distance of only 107 feet to drop from 60-0 mph.

The SV 9 C can be customized in any way a buyer sees fit. There are 25 exterior colors available with 4 choices of wheels, five interior trim options and 5 colors for brake calipers. It’s the company’s fondest dream that no two cars from its 1000 unit production run are identical (so we’ll keep it a secret that we plan to order ours in Special Edition green with black wheels and red brake calipers for that in your face, “check me out, dawg!” look). Actually, click on the Your SV 9 option selector to deck out your own ride. It’s not a super comprehensive Aston Martin-style configurator but you don’t need to download 23 browser plugins to make it work either. The SV 9 Competizione has a starting price of $99,995, which includes the donor Chevy Corvette C6.

Source: SV Motor Company