Pandem C5 Corvette Widebody Kit Ushers In Retro C3 Look, Set for 2023 Production

Even with all our custom car fetishes, some SEMA 2022 releases almost got away. And we’re not even talking about one-offs here, but rather builds that have an even greater significance to the community, as they portray parts that are or will be available to everybody. Cue to the Pandem/Rocket Bunny C5 Corvette widebody kit, which turned quite a few heads in the Toyo Tire Treadpass last week.

Japanese developer Tra Kyoto is famous for how it gifts rather modern cars with an old-school look, not least thanks to its Pandem Boss kits for the FD Mazda RX-7 and the S14 Nissan Silvia. And the C5 ‘Vette, which Chevy built between 1997 and 2004 now joins the roster by adopting a 1970s C3 Corvette appearance.

The Pandem C5 Corvette kit consists of a front bumper, front lip, front splitter, front grille, turn signals, projectors, front and rear overfenders, side skirts, rear valance, and rear spoiler.

The pricing of the package has yet to be released, but we can use the said pair of retro-inspired packages as references: the Silvia kit costs $5,400, while the RX-7 package will set you back $6,900.

Kei Miura, the man behind Tra Kyoto, took to Instagram to let us know that the Pandem C5 will be fully unveiled at next year’s Tokyo Auto Salon (January 13-15, 2023), so perhaps there’s even more to the development than we can see on the SEMA demo car.

For the record, the images of a blue vehicle accompanying the SEMA build in the gallery below are renderings. And here are some of the most extreme makeovers SEMA had to offer this year.

The Pandem C5 Corvette SEMA car is a tribute to the 1976 Chevrolet Corvette Spirit of Le Mans

Over in Japan, a specialist called J beat Custom shop is preparing a Pandem C5 project for the Tokyo release in January. Meanwhile, the Corvette we saw at SEMA belongs to American enthusiast Robb Ferguson (aka goodshow_aa). And you’ll find both in the Instagram posts below.

The latter machine got an extra dose of bald eagles, with the infamous 1976 Chevrolet Corvette Spirit of Le Mans. Fielded by the late John Greenwood, this grabbed the IMSA class pole position during the ’76 Le Mans 24 Hour race, while showcasing its stars and stripes livery thanks to its Top 5 performance before it was forced to retire. And, despite the extreme widebody of the 2,885 lbs, 725 hp machine generating over 1,000 lbs of downforce, the racer managed to set the fastest trap speed on the Mulsanne straight, being clocked at 215.6 mph.

What does that heritage mean for our C5? A standout red, white and blue livery over the unassuming silver paint, along with independent throttle bodies for its V8, which, unlike in the case of the said race car, protrude through the hood.

As for the cabin, the time machine treatment covers the bucket seats, the dashboard instruments, as well as the steering wheel. And while the latter has lost its airbag, the interior is now adorned by a roll cage.

The Pandem front fascia and the pop-up headlights of the C5 seem to work together quite well, which is mighty impressive given that both the C4 and the C5 were completely new designs rather than evolutionary models. However, now that the Chevy has been taken back two or three decades, the posterior appears a bit incomplete, which seems like a job for some retro-styled taillights.

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