---
title: "The Strange Saga of (Maybe) Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 Continues"
description: "After Earnhardt claimed a listing for a Corvette once owned by him was fraudulent, the internet descended on the dealer."
date: "2017-06-09"
modified: "2017-06-09"
authors:
  - name: "Kyle Cheromcha"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/11351/the-strange-saga-of-dale-earnhardt-jr-s-chevrolet-corvette-zr1-continues"
categories:
  - "Chevrolet News"
  - "Culture"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
  - "People"
tags:
  - "Chevrolet"
  - "Corvette"
  - "Corvette ZR1"
  - "Coupe"
  - "Dale Earnhardt Jr"
  - "dealership"
  - "rick hendrick"
  - "sports car"
  - "Supercar"
---

# The Strange Saga of (Maybe) Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 Continues

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2017/06/corvette.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

On Thursday, we highlighted [an eBay listing from a Pennsylvania dealer](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/11303/dale-earnhardt-jr-s-chevy-corvette-zr1-can-be-yours-for-98000>) selling a 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 that was purportedly once owned by none other than Dale Earnhardt Jr. Shortly after the post was published, Junior himself tweeted at *The Drive* to say that he'd never driven it, throwing in an ominous "*buyer beware."* So case closed, right? Just another dealer trying to make a shady dime? Well, not quite.

We reached out to [Fairfield Auto Group](<https://www.fairfieldautogroup.com/>) yesterday to get to the bottom of the story, and finally heard back from assistant manager Fletcher Quigley earlier this morning. A patient-sounding man, he told *The Drive* that the dealership bought the Corvette from a Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona this January. [Here is the original listing](<https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/2009-CHEVROLET-CORVETTE-ZR1-202183>) from the auction house; you'll see that it describes the car as being "custom-ordered by Rick Hendrick for Dale Earnhardt Jr." and notes it was "used as a demonstrator by the NASCAR driver."

Quigley flew out to the auction with his father Rick Quiqley, the dealership manager, where they met Rick Hendrick and his assistant Dale Ledbetter, who handled the sale. They were told that Hendrick had ordered matching Corvettes for all four of his drivers in 2008 and Earnhardt had driven it for promotional appearances, even if the car never spent time in his driveway.

https://twitter.com/_/status/872884859001348097

When they bought the car, Earnhardt personally gave them the autographed center console, which had been removed for him to sign just before the auction. It also came with a build sheet from the factory with Rick Hendrick's name on it, which Quigley points to as proof of the car's legitimacy.

So why did Earnhardt say it was never his? Quigley said he believes that a member of the [NASCAR](<https://www.thedrive.com/start-finish/7848/nascar-2017-new-season-new-rules>) driver's team wrote the tweet without checking with Earnhardt. He also adds that Ledbetter reached out personally to apologize for the mess yesterday—and reiterate that the car's provenance is correct. We've reached out to Earnhardt's people for clarification, and we'll update when we hear back.

![message-editor%2F1497031932864-dd9f08cbdce74215bac8fffbd72df916.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1497031932864-dd9f08cbdce74215bac8fffbd72df916.jpg>)
*Fairfield Auto Group*

![message-editor%2F1497031942298-f3f994190327484caff42630d627b67a.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1497031942298-f3f994190327484caff42630d627b67a.jpg>)
*Fairfield Auto Group*

![message-editor%2F1497031944985-342a68b62acc42a9b135c218e9b38506.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1497031944985-342a68b62acc42a9b135c218e9b38506.jpg>)
*Fairfield Auto Group*

![message-editor%2F1497031950031-9b779a73b49144498496f9552670b2ab.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1497031950031-9b779a73b49144498496f9552670b2ab.jpg>)
*Fairfield Auto Group*

Either way, Fairfield Auto Group says they've taken a bruising over the ZR1 incident. Quigley described Thursday as "crazy," noting that they were inundated with $1 offers, angry phone calls, and even death threats (people, enough with the death threats). Their eBay account was suspended after thousands of Earnhardt's Twitter followers flagged their listing as false advertising, but they worked with the company to get it restored and [have re-listed the car](<https://www.ebay.com/itm/172722721279?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649>) with its original documents along with language that more closely follows the original Barrett-Jackson text.

So what's the bottom line? The whole thing sounds like one big misunderstanding...but if yesterday's events are any indication, that excuse just doesn't fly on the Internet in 2017.

## Author
Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/kylecheromcha.bsky.social>)  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/kylecheromcha>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-cheromcha-1550248a/>)