Don Yenko accomplished many things as a racer and builder of high-performance Chevrolets that would become a high point in the muscle car era. He was also a father who wanted to please his daughter, Lynn.
When not modifying Camaros, Novas, and Vegas with Corvette engines at his dealership, Don was working on a Corvette just for Lynn. The special pedal car was offered as a sales incentive at various dealerships to increase sales of the 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air.
The pedal car was a 53-inch long, 24-inch-wide kiddie-sized Corvette. Styled after the 1956 Corvette, the cars came with a one-piece molded high-impact plastic body, a low and high-speed shift handle on the steering column, a two-speed transmission featuring nylon beveled gears, heavy duty all steel welded frame, and more. During the modification, Don added Gulf Oil and Yenko Chevrolet decals to the hood and decklid.
Lynn, along with her friends, actively played with this first-generation toy. The patina on the car clearly shows it has had hours of fun. For a period, Lynn didn’t know what had happened to her special Corvette, but her father had given the car to one of their neighbors. In December 2002, the neighbor donated the car to the National Corvette Museum. Since then, Lynn has visited Bowling Green, Kentucky to see her childhood toy. She was brought to tears when she saw the pedal car that brought her so many hours of joy. The car is carefully maintained in its “as is” condition as a small part of the Yenko legacy at the National Corvette Museum.
