Jul. 27—Josh Holder grew up around Corvette cars. His father, Ron Holder, a lifelong mechanic and Corvette connoisseur, would always take young Josh to local Corvette club meetups, car shows and his shop to work on various vehicles.
At 10 years old, Josh told his dad that he wanted to work on cars for the rest of his life. Now the chief engineer for Corvette at General Motors, Josh still works on cars with his dad, a feat that won them best in show last year at the Show ‘N Shine car show in Evergreen.
The gray 1965 Corvette Coupe, fully restored with modern features, took home the gold last year, the first time the pair put the car in a show after completing its restoration.
“It was great,” Ron said. “I was tickled to death. I wasn’t expecting to win [Best in Show].”
The win was a testament to the quality of the car’s classic exterior with a fully restored interior. Ron and Josh got the car in the spring of 2022 from an auction in Scottsdale, Arizona. For the next two years, Ron, who owns Ron’s Alignment and Auto Worx, completely gutted the vehicle and worked on it from his Kalispell home.
“Everything underneath it, from the frame to the engine to the transmission, is new,” Ron said.
“The idea is that you can drive an old car without the old issues,” Josh added.
The Corvette for 1965 had slightly different styling on the exterior than previous models, including three functional vents in the fenders and grille bars turned black. There were two body styles offered that year, the coupe and the convertible.
The 1965 Corvette included leather seating and had a power antenna for the first time, power windows, and optional air conditioning. The year was the only model to have a combination of fuel injection and disc brakes.
Corvette produced 8,187 coupes that year, while the convertible was a bit more popular with 15,377 made, according to the National Corvette Owners Association.
Throughout the renovation process, Ron and Josh would collaborate over the phone. Josh, with over two decades of experience at Corvette, was able to send parts to Ron’s workshop. They used a newer model of the same engine to replace the engine, put in a larger transmission, and added Bluetooth.
“This was a major deal,” Ron said, standing near the car. “I stripped it to the frame and started over… I have more than 1,000 hours in this.”
Sitting next to the Coupe is a red 1964 Corvette Convertible, Ron’s next project for fun. He’ll just putter around with it, he said.
The Show ‘N Shine is one of the largest car shows in Montana, taking place the first Saturday of August each year.
The Show N Shine show is open to all classes or cars, motorcycles and off-road vehicles and is free to attend. This year is the 11th annual car show. It takes place on Aug. 2 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Conlin’s Furniture parking lot. To learn more, visit evergreencofc.com/show-n-shine.
Reporter Kate Heston may be reached at 758-4459 or kheston@dailyinterlake.com.
The restored 1965 Corvette Coupe by Josh and Ron Holder. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)
Josh and Ron Holder stand with their best in show 1965 Corvette Coupe in Kalispell. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)
The restored 1965 Corvette Coupe by Josh and Ron Holder. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)