When was the L-82 Corvette produced?

Answer 1

The L-82 engine option, a 350-cid small-block V8, was available in Corvettes made from model years 1973-1980. It was an "enhanced" version of the base L-48, and was rated in its first year at 250 hp net (at the rear axle). Horsepower ratings fell through the years to 230 in 1980.

This steady decline in output was a direct result of federal government intervention, primarily by the USEPA, and was caused by several measures adopted by that agency and imposed on carmakers during the 1970s. Specific to the Corvette, dual exhaust was abandoned after the 1974 model year as a cost-saving measure because of the new requirement for (extremely expensive) catalytic converters. Other USEPA-mandated measures, such as the installation of exhaust gas recirculators (EGRs, or "smog pumps") added mechanical loads to the L-82, reducing its net power output. And the imposition of "low-lead" (at first) and then unleaded gasoline required Chevrolet and all the other carmakers to redesign all engines to operate with lower compression ratios to allow for the lower octane ratings, thereby capping potential engine output.

Although I have heard about '81 Corvettes with L-82s in them, I've never seen one. Officially, Chevrolet offered only one engine option that year -- the L-81, a 190-hp mouse distinguished by featuring Corvette's only electronically controlled Quadrajet carburetor.