1971 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible â?" Ontario Orange, 350ci V8, Turbo-Hydramatic, Dual Top Why This Car Is Special The 1971 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray sits at an interesting crossroads in Corvette history. It was the fourth year of the C3 body that Chevrolet introduced in 1968, and in many ways 1971 represented the high-water mark before emissions regulations began to seriously chip away at horsepower. Chevrolet lowered compression ratios across the engine lineup that year to run on lower-octane regular fuel, which actually makes 1971 Corvettes more practical to drive today than their 1970 counterparts. Total Corvette production for the 1971 model year came in at 21,801 units, split between coupes and convertibles.
