The Vette’s performance dropped significantly during the early to mid-1970s, at the hands of newly implemented federal emissions standards, yet it remained relevant. At a point in which many iconic American performance cars fell by the wayside, the Corvette soldiered on. This served as a true testament to many of the memorable Corvette powerplants that were developed during the C3 era.
During many production years, consumers were provided with multiple engine options to choose from. This was especially true during the late 1960s. However, by the late 1970s, GM had begun to significantly scale back the number of production engines offered for the Corvette. This trend peaked in 1981, when only one engine, known as the L81, was offered to buyers.