The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car manufactured in six generations by General Motors (GM) since 1953. The first Corvette was designed by Harley Earl and named by Myron Scott after the ship of the same name. Originally built in Flint, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri, it is currently built at a GM assembly plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The National Corvette Museum and annual National Corvette Homecoming, also located in Bowling Green, celebrate the car's world-wide history.
The generations produced so far, sometimes referred to as C1 (the first) through C6 (the current one), each have multiple versions with differing features; for example, C6 includes the ZR1, which has the most powerful engine used in a production Corvette to date. Over the years, versions of the car have won awards from magazines such as Motor Trend and Car and Driver and from organizations like the Society of Automotive Engineers, and have been used from time to time as pace cars for the long-running Indianapolis 500 race since 1978.
While sold under the Chevrolet marque in the United States and other locations in the world, it is sold under its own Corvette marque in Europe and Japan, where the car is also rather rare. The car has been built in coupé, targa top and convertible versions.
General Motors hired designer Harley Earl in 1927. Earl loved sports cars, and GIs returning after serving overseas in the years following World War II were bringing home MGs, Jaguars, Alfa Romeos, and the like. In 1951, Nash Motors began selling an expensive two-seat sports car, the Nash-Healey, that was made in partnership with the Italian designer Pinin Farina and British auto engineer Donald Healey, but there were few moderate-priced models. Earl convinced GM that they also needed to build a two-seat sports car, and with his Special Projects crew began working on the new car later that year, which was code named "Project Opel." The result was the 1953 Corvette, unveiled to the public at that year's Motorama car show. The original concept for the Corvette emblem incorporated an American flag into the design, but was changed well before production since associating the flag with a product was frowned upon.Myron Scott is credited for naming the car after the corvette, a small, maneuverable fighting frigate. The first Corvettes were virtually hand-built in Flint, Michigan in Chevrolet's Customer Delivery Center, now an academic building at Kettering University. The outer body was made out of then-revolutionary fiberglass, selected in part because of steel quotas left over from the war. Underneath the new body material were standard Chevrolet components, including the "Blue Flame" inline six-cylinder truck engine, two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission, and drum brakes from Chevrolet's regular car line. Though the engine's output was increased somewhat, thanks to a triple-carburetor intake exclusive to the Corvette, performance of the car was decidedly "lackluster". Compared to the British and Italian sports cars of the day, the Corvette was underpowered, required a great deal of effort as well as clear roadway to bring to a stop, and even lacked a "proper" manual transmission. A Paxton centrifugal supercharger became available in 1954 as a dealer-installed option, greatly improving the Corvette's straight-line performance, but sales continued to decline.
The Chevrolet division was GM's entry-level marque. GM was seriously considering shelving the project, leaving the Corvette to be little more than a footnote in automotive history, and would have done so if not for two important events. The first was the introduction in 1955 of Chevrolet's first V8 engine since 1919, and the second was the influence of a Soviet émigré in GM's engineering department, Zora Arkus-Duntov. The new 265 cu in (4.3 L) V8 became available with a three-speed manual transmission late in the model year turning the "rather anemic Corvette into a credible if not outstanding performer". Although not part of the original project, Arkus-Duntov was the architect of the car's performance image and in 1956 he became the director of high-performance vehicle design and development for Chevrolet helping him earn the nickname "Father of the Corvette."
Another key factor in the Corvette's survival was Ford's introduction, in 1955, of the two-seat Thunderbird, which was billed as a "personal luxury car", not a sports car. Even so, the Ford-Chevrolet rivalry in those days demanded that GM not appear to back down from the challenge. The "T-Bird" was changed to a four-seater in 1958.
C1 (1953–1962)
Main article: Chevrolet Corvette C1The first generation is most commonly referred to as a "solid-axle", based on the fact that independent rear suspension (IRS) was not available until 1963. The first generation started in 1953 and ended in 1962.
With limited production due to the fact that they were all hand built and assembled, the 1953 Corvette, with a total of only 300 units produced, is the rarest and one of the most sought after Corvette model years. With few changes except for color choices and production numbers, the 1954 is the last Corvette to have a 6-cylinder engine. 1955 saw the introduction of the V8 engine, replacing the underpowered "Blue Flame" straight-6. The first seven '55's off the production line did however feature the in-line 6. Aside from the engine, the 1955 model can be differentiated by its logo—the "V" in Corvette is enlarged and gold colored, signifying the V8 engine under the hood.
In 1956 a new body was designed for the car which changed it from a country club style sports car. One noteworthy addition of optional fuel injection in mid-1957 (also available on Chevrolet Bel Air). Fuel injection first saw regular use on a gasoline engine two years prior on the Mercedes-Benz 300SL "gullwing" roadster. Although the Corvette's GM-Rochester injection used a constant flow system as opposed to the diesel style nozzle metering system of the Mercedes', it nevertheless produced about 290 hp (216 kW) (gross). The number was listed by Chevrolet's advertising agency for the 283 hp/283 CID (4.6L) "one hp per cubic inch" slogan, making it one of the first mass-produced engines in history to reach 1 hp/CID. Other early options included power windows (1956), hydraulically operated power convertible top (1956), four speed manual transmission (late 1957), and heavy duty brakes and suspension (1957).
The 1958 Corvette saw another body freshening and more options available. This year had the most exterior chrome and was the heaviest of the C-1s. From its quad headlights and hood louvers to its twin trunk spars and bumper exiting exhaust, it was the flashiest Corvette ever built. 1959-60 saw little changes except ever decreasing chrome and increasing HP. For 1961 a complete change to the rear of the car was made, with hints of things to come. It had a "boat tail" rear with the first year to have 4 round tail lights. In 1962, the Chevrolet 283 cu. in. (4.6L) small block was enlarged to 327 cu in (5.4 L) and produced a maximum of 360 hp (268 kW) making it the fastest of the C-1s and by now almost completely devoid of chrome.
1962 was the last year for many things: wrap around windshield, solid rear axle and convertible-only body style. The trunk lid and exposed headlights disappeared for decades, returning in 1998 and 2005, respectively.
Oldest surviving unit
The oldest surviving production Corvette is serial number E53F001003. This historic, one-time GM "test mule" is the third 1953 Corvette to ever come off the Flint assembly line and is known as "double-o-three" to Corvette enthusiasts. It was sold at a Barrett-Jackson auction on January 21, 2006 in Scottsdale, AZ for US$1,000,000.
However, the oldest Corvette in existence is believed to be the EX-122, a pre-production prototype that was hand built and first shown to the public at the 1953 GM Motorama at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City on January 17 , 1953 . That car can now be seen at the Atlantic City Showroom and Museum of Kerbeck Corvette.
Another noteworthy 1953 Corvette belonged to actor John Wayne. Vin #51 was delivered to Wayne on October 7 , 1953 . It is currently on display at the National Automobile Museum (formerly the Harrah's Collection) in Reno, Nevada.
C2 (1963–1967)
Main article: Chevrolet Corvette C2The second generation, or mid-year , was designed by Larry Shinoda with major inspiration from a previous unproduced design called the "Q Corvette" by Peter Brock and Chuck Pohlmann, and under the styling direction of Bill Mitchell. Production started in 1963 and ended in 1967. Introducing a new name, Corvette Sting Ray , the 1963 model year Corvette was the first year for a coupe with its distinctive split rear window and non-functional hood vents as well as an independent rear suspension. Duntov never liked the split rear window because it blocked rear vision. Bill Mitchell however found the split to be a key part of the entire design. Duntov got his way on
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