OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum The Old Soap Box The Corvette story, with Dating and ID guide.

This is the story of the victa corvette, below it is a guide to identifying and dating a full crank corvette.



The Victa Corvette was released in 1963 as the Flagship model for that years Range, this year saw the introduction of the front mounted air filter, a new torpedo muffler, and a host of other features
Through the 60�s the Corvette remained in the premium slot of the line-up, the only greater mowers sold by Victa during this decade were the luxury releases such as the self-propelled and Keylectric. Right through the 60�s, the Corvette was available in both 2-Stroke and 4-Stroke, and labelled simply Corvette 2 and Corvette 4 respectively.
In 1967 there wear 2 Corvettes released, the Corvette 2, as usual, and the new 160cc Corvette 2, the Corvette 4 on sale in 67 was the 66 model, as attention was focused on the 160cc Corvette and its new engine. This engine was so popular, that the following year, when the new range came out, it had only the 2 and 4 as it had in earlier years, however the 2 was now 160cc standard, the 125cc engine being dropped from the corvette range. This was repeated in 1969, however in 1970, the corvette was no longer part of the line up, although it was still available till mid 1971.
This was due to the release of the Victa VC-160, witch, with its brand new look, and high arch base, was set to be the new premium Victa mower, the VC-160 was first released in 1970, and this mower took the flagship position of that years line-up, the Corvette was now in second pace, and the 1970 corvette was not a new release, just the continuation of manufacture of the 1969 model.
In 1971 the VC-160 flagshipped the new Zip-Start system on the series 70 MKII engine, and this focus, along with the introduction of the VC-125, saw the Corvette complexly dropped, and by the end of the year they were no longer on sale.
In 1972, and again in 1973, the Corvette badge was placed on Victa�s �Stencil� mowers; these were destined to become the �By Victa� mowers sold in many department stores. By 1974 the VC-160 had also gone, and was replaced by the Mustang, which still remains in a premier position today.
1978 saw the return of the corvette, however, as the mustang still held the top position in the line-up, the corvette sat below it, in the mid-range section. The following release of the corvette gave it the series 80 engine the mustang was appointed with, placing it in a position somewhere in the middleof the victa range, and over the following decade, it slowly moved back up the ladder, when it was moved to a steel base, it became the premium steel base mower, with practically the same refinements of the mustang, but without the Alloy base.
In recent years the corvette has taken a small step down, still having the vantage and lawn keeper models below it, but needing to make way for the new premium steel based mower, the Tornado. The mustang itself had to run as secondary alloy mower during the run of the Victa Razor.
Currently, the Victa Corvette is available in 16, 18 and 19 inch versions, with both Briggs and Stratton 4-stroke engines, and Victa 2-strokes. However it still remains only a shadow to the Victa Flagship it once was.

Below is a quick guide to identifying the corvettes various models between 1963 and 1983

1963 � 1964 Corvette 2 (513)

Muffler: Torpedo (Large Circular Outlet, Serviceable)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3L
Base: 60�s Straight Ridge
Badge: Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Engine Front Box with Choke

1964 � 1965 Corvette 2 (523)

Muffler: Torpedo (Large Circular Outlet, Serviceable)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3L
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Engine Front Box with Choke

1965 � 1966 Corvette 2 (533)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Round Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3L
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base)

1966 � 1967 Corvette 2 (535)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Flat Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3L
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base)

1967 � 1968 Corvette 2 (545)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Flat Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3Q
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base)

1967 � 1968 160cc Corvette 2 (543)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Flat Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Upper Locks: Quick Release Spring Bar
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: 3S
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: 160cc Corvette 2 Sticker on Chromed Metal Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base)

1968 � 1969 Corvette 2 (563)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Flat Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release pointed tabs
Upper Locks: Single cross-bar lever
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: G2
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: 160cc Corvette 2 Sticker on Angled Plastic Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base, Throttle Control Attached)

1969 � 1971 Corvette 2 (V64)

Muffler: Torpedo (Flat Outlet, Flat Body)
Lower Locks: Quick Release pointed tabs
Upper Locks: Single cross-bar lever
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Trigger Type Impulse
Carby: G3
Base: 60�s Curbed Ridge
Badge: 160cc Corvette 2 Sticker on Angled Plastic Cowl Front Plate
Air Filter: Hi-Zone Snorkel with Long Filter Canister (Opens at base, Throttle Control Attached)

1978 � 1980 Corvette (WW 160 A8)

Muffler: Series 70/80 Box type (Exhaust under Deck)
Lower Locks: Lower Bars bolted to base
Upper Locks: Hollow Round Knobs
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Top Mount series 70 Zip Recoil Starter
Carby: G4
Base: Hi Arch Victa Cast Alloy
Badge: Corvette sticker on Cowl Front (No Separate Plate)
Air Filter: Cylinder Type G4/LM Combined Short Filter & Throttle Control

1980 � 1981 Corvette (WW 156 A0)

Muffler: Series 70/80 Box type (Exhaust under Deck)
Lower Locks: Lower Bars bolted to base
Upper Locks: Hollow Round Knobs
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Side Mounted Gear Starter
Carby: G4
Base: Pressed Steel Rear Grass Catching Deck
Badge: Corvette sticker on Cowl Front (No Separate Plate)
Air Filter: Cylinder Type G4/LM Combined Short Filter & Throttle Control

1982 � 1983 Corvette 2 (513)

Muffler: Series 70/80 Box type (Exhaust under Deck)
Lower Locks: Lower Bars bolted to base
Upper Locks: Hollow Round Knobs
Handle: Comfort Grip
Starter: Side Mounted Gear Starter
Carby: G4
Base: Pressed Steel Rear Grass Catching Deck
Badge: Corvette on chute, Small plain black top
Air Filter: Cylinder Type G4/LM Combined Short Filter & Throttle Control

Thanks Ty, for posting this info, this is great information for the archives, particularly for someone researching information on the Victa Corvette.
I will lock this topic for archival purposes.