1953 ~ 2013
Chevrolet
Corvette Roars Into Its 60th Year
DETROIT – On June
30, 1953, the first of a new kind of Chevrolet – indeed, a new kind of American
car – rolled off an assembly line in Flint, Mich.
1953
The
car had only two seats. There were no roll-up windows, or exterior door handles,
for that matter. Its body wasn’t stamped from steel but, rather, molded from
reinforced fiberglass.
1957
1960
While
the postwar Baby Boom was in full swing, this was definitely not a family car.
This was a very personal vehicle, one that promised a driver and a passenger all
of the thrills of the open road.
1963
1965
Skeptics
gave the car little chance of lasting beyond an initial run of a few dozen
units. However, 60 years later the Chevrolet Corvette survives – and thrives – as
an American automotive and cultural icon.
1968
1977
“Through
the years, Corvette certainly offered state-of-the-art features, designs, technologies
and performance,” said Tadge Juechter, vehicle chief engineer for Corvette. “However,
I think what has made the Corvette such an enduring concept is the exciting
experience of driving one.
1979
1984
“No
matter what your station in life, when you’re behind the wheel of a Corvette,
you’re an Olympic athlete – able to go faster, stop quicker, and turn better
than everyone else,” Juechter continued. “Very few cars can match that
experience. And no other car has delivered that experience as well, or to more people,
than the Corvette.”
1990
1997
Barely
five months before Tony Kleiber, a Flint plant body assembler, drove that first
Chevrolet Corvette off the line and into automotive history, the icon in the
making was little more than a designer’s dream.
2005
2011
Corvette
was first created under the code-name XP-122 to provide Americans with a
glimpse of a European-style sports car designed for this side of the Atlantic.
It was one of several concept cars unveiled in January, 1953 at the GM Motorama
show in the ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.
2013 Corvette 60th Anniversary
With
a world war not far behind them, people wanting a glimpse of the automotive
future lined up around the block to view the new concept vehicles. At the Waldorf
Astoria – and at every other Motorama stop across the country -- Chevrolet’s
sporty little roadster ignited many Americans’ imaginations.
In
fact, the Corvette was so popular that Chevrolet executives decided to thrust
the two-seat roadster into production, albeit on a very limited basis.
Initial
plans called for about 150 Corvettes, primarily to help draw potential
customers into Chevrolet dealerships scattered across the U.S.’s then-48
states. Overwhelming demand doubled the first-year production to 300 units. The
following year, the Corvette moved to a GM assembly facility in St. Louis, Mo.,
where 3,640 Corvettes were built for the 1954 model year.
Those
first Corvettes sparked Americans’ 60-year love affair with the Corvette. Since
1953, more than 1.5 million Corvettes have been built. Those cars have become
synonymous with American performance – from cruising down
Americana on Route 66 to taking the checkered flag at the world’s most
prestigious road race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Corvette 427
During
the coming months, Chevrolet will kick some tires, open the hood, and climb
behind the wheel to highlight 60 years of Corvette design, performance and
technology milestones. We hope you enjoy the ride.
Video
Video
Corvette's 60th Anniversary - Corvette Blogger
Chevrolet Corvette - Wikipedia
