A Wild And Venomous 1968 Pro Touring Chevy Corvette “The Green Mamba”

Bob Bertelsen is becoming something of a legend in the world of home-built hot rods. He builds, owns, and races his cars out of his two-car garage in Ohio.

Bob Bertelsen’s latest creation is this 1968 “Green Mamba” Corvette. It’s the latest in a line of home-built Pro-Touring machines that Bob pilots to the limit at major events around the country.

He has created some of the most iconic and award-winning custom vehicles of the last decade. Bob’s previous cars have garnered plenty of favorable press, so it’s no surprise this new Corvette has captured a lot of attention already. His creations have a very distinctive style, as one look at his “Code Red” ’72 Firebird, “Brute Force” ’71 Camaro, or “Orange Rush” ’69 C10 pickup will show.
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This build took him just over a year to finish in his garage. Instead of building show cars capable of hitting the track, Bob focuses on performance first. His passion and craftsmanship have produced some amazing race cars in the past, and Green Mamba lives up to the high expectations.

With design input and a render by Gary Ragle, Bob modified Green Mamba into a modern, stylish track machine. Much of the customized body was crafted or modified by Bob himself.
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Because Bob intends to race all of his cars, Green Mamba’s design isn’t just aesthetic. With a combination of fiberglass, carbon fiber, and billet aluminum, Bob made the front end, bumper, and lights in his style. He also reshaped the wheel arches to give Green Mamba both good looks and full suspension travel. The hood scoop was taken from a ZL1 and modified. Then, Bob crafted side vents to match.

The 1968 Chevrolet Corvette is powered by a Kurt Urban 427 motor that makes 650 horsepower. It’s controlled by a Holley Dominator ECU and paired with one of Bowler’s Tremec T-56 six-speed transmissions. For Green Mamba, Bob chose a Tremec build that included Bowler’s Stage II Upgrade kit. Bob has used this particular setup in three other cars as well. He notes that it stays reliable and durable, giving him smooth shifting in his race cars!

When Bob reshaped the wheel arches, he created a dramatic flare for a reason. The new wheel arches not only look good, they also give the 1968 Chevrolet Corvette full suspension travel. The wheels themselves are 18×11.5/18×12.5 Forgeline CV3C Concave wheels finished with Black Chrome PVD centers and Transparent Smoke outers. The Green Mamba rides on 315/30ZR18 and 335/30ZR18 BFGoodrich g-Force Rival S tires.

The video below walks you through the fabrication, and is narrated personally by Bob. Enjoy the workmanship that went into this car, and then appreciate the performance it’s capable of.