This is the 133rd issue of Arlington Today.
Since the beginning, Richard Greene has contributed 110 articles spotlighting a wide array of collector cars and interesting stories from their proud owners.
For those new to Arlington, Richard was our 29th mayor, serving 10 years from 1987 through 1997. He worked tirelessly to save the Texas
Rangers for us, made sure the General Motors plant stayed in our city, is a recently retired professor at UTA, has a scholarship program in his name, and is an accomplished photographer, writer, and business executive. He is the CEO of ARLINGTON TODAY, Inc., … and he likes cars!
It is my mission to continue this series of
Behind the Wheels articles.
THANK YOU, Mayor Greene, for your continuing indelibly positive impact on our city, and welcome to the other side of the camera and pen.
The GREENE CORVETTE is the Mayor’s escape vehicle, a 2014, seventh-generation version of America’s sports car … the last of the traditional front-engine/rear-drive configuration of “America’s Sports Car.”
The C1, a first-generation Chevrolet Corvette, was introduced on January 17th, 1953, at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York. During the debut year, only 300 cars were built … all the same … Polo White with red upholstery, an inline 6-cylinder engine with three carburetors and a 2-speed automatic transmission. A beautiful, smooth
fiberglass-bodied two-seater patterned after the European sports cars that our GIs fell in love with during the World War II era. The initial car’s size, overall proportions, and drive line were very similar to the fabulous British Jaguar XK 120 roadster.
In 2020, the C8 was unveiled and it was a revolutionary change from 66 years of tradition.
Corvette engineers moved the engine from the front to behind the passenger compartment. This dramatically altered every aspect of the car, including bringing an end to the beautiful “long hood/short deck” proportions.
Many Corvette enthusiasts consider the C7 as the best of the traditional front engine designs and some argue that it is the best of all Corvettes to date … The Magnificent 7.
Richard reflects on his 10-year relationship with this machine and “blames” his son Brian for helping him justify, at age 70, that it is never too late to have fun. Brian presented the case that the C7 would be the last of the “traditional” Corvette, and it was available in the family color … GREEN.
Richard was convinced it had to be green, and it was too late in the model year for a factory
order. Only 357 were produced in the desired options and color combinations … Lime Rock Green with “Rangers-Baseball-Glove-
A nationwide search ensued.
Lime Rock Park is a major raceway in Connecticut. The local Chevy dealer ordered six of the rare Lime Rock Green cars at the beginning of the model year. He had one left in November, and being year-end, the dealer made Richard an offer he could not refuse, including free transport to
Arlington. With the commitment made and the east coast covered in ice and snow, Richard was worried about the three-day journey halfway across the country. It arrived with no issues just about ten years ago from the time you receive this issue of Arlington Today.
And to quote the mayor, “My experience for the past ten years is to have received more compliments, comments, and questions about the car’s color than anything else about it.”
Brian was right, Richard is still having fun, and the car is truly special…Mayor Greene and his Greene Corvette are perennial favorites!
