P.O. Box 9445, Springfield IL 62791-9445 Sponsored by Friendly Chevrolet, Inc. in Springfield since 1968

History of Corvette Over time, we will try to present an overview of the history of Corvette. This will include pictures, statistics and documents pertaining to the evolution of Corvette since the first car rolled off the assembly line in Flint, Michigan.

Corvette Emblems

1953 Blue Flame 6	The first Corvette, built in Flint, Michigan, rolled off the assembly line with a 150 horsepower in-line six cylinder, driven by a two-speed Powerglide transmission. Only 300 were produced that year and the only color available was white.
1954	In 1954, production was moved to the St. Louis plant. 3,640 cars were built with a base price of $2,774. The engine was a 235 cubic inch "Blue Flame 6" with 155 horsepower. Four colors were available: Polo White, Pennant Blue, Sportsman Red and Black. (Note: Karl Ludvigsen does not mention Sportsman Red in his book)
1955 Blue Red Yellow	The big news in 1955 was the introduction of a V-8 for the Corvette, It came in at 265 cubic inches with an 8.0 compression ratio and produced 195 horsepower at 5000 RPMs. Color choices were increased from three to nine and 3,640 convertibles were produced.
1956	For 1956, a new body was complimented by a 210 horsepower 265 cubic inch V-8. There was also an option 240 horsepower engine available.
1957 1957 SR-2 1957 SS	A closeup of the dash, showing the steering wheel, tach and speedometer. The famous "57 fuelie" engine.
1958 Fuelie Front | Rear	General Motors also built a futuristic show car this year, the XP-700.
1959 Blue White	The 1959 Corvette was the same as the 1958 except for minor chanages. The hood louvers and vertical chrome strips on the trunk were removed. Interior changes included redesigned bucket seats and door panels and a fiberglass package tray under the sissy bar and concave gauge lenses. A tachometer, outside rearview mirror, seat belts, dual exhaust and electric clock were among the standard features. Sunvisors became optional. New concave instrument lenses reduced reflections. The optional four-speed manual transmission had a T-shaped reverse-lockout shifter with a white plastic shifter knob. The top engine was a 290 HP, Rochester fuel-injected 283, with a compression ration of 10.5:1.
1961	The 1961 mode year produced 10,939 Corvettes that had a base price of $3,934.00. The FI engine was rated at 275 and 315 HP and added $484.20 to the sticker price. A closeup of the dash.
1962	The big news for 1962 was the introduction of the 327 cubic inch engine. The top option, the 360-HP fuel-injected engine added $484.20 to the base price of $4,038.00.
1965 Coupe 1965 Roadster Big Block	With the addition of 4-wheel disc brakes and a choice of small or big block engines, the Corvette was becoming a serious sports car. The small block 327 engine was rated up to 375 horsepower with much less weight than the big block 396, although purists believe a big block is the only way to go.
1966 Coupe 1966 Roadster	For 1966, 4-wheel disc brakes were now standard and the car had a base price under $4500!
1967 Roadster	Front view, rear view, L-88 engine. The 427-inch L88 engine, with over 500 actual horsepower debuts on the 1967 Corvette. Only 20 are sold this year; price for the engine alone is almost $1,000.00.
1968 Coupe	The wildest engine was the 427-ci, full-out race-bred RPO (regular production option) L-88. Hugely underrated at 430 horsepower, this engine produced as much as 540 horses on independent dyno tests of the time.
1969 Roadster	The final year for the RPO L88 engine, rated at 430 HP and not recommended for street use. A "milder" RPO L71, the 427 rated at a higher 435 HP with three deuces was also available.
1972	The last year with chrome bumpers front and rear. It was also the last year for the great LT-1 engine, even though the horsepower had been reduced dramatically.
1975-76
1978	Besides the standard model, two two-tone models were introduced. A silver and gray model was designated as the 25th anniversary mode, while a black and silver two-tone became the Indianapolis Pace Car with a new opening hatch glass and special bucket seats.
1980	Minor body changes for the Corvette in the 1980 model, which ran through 1982.
1982	The last year before the C4 was introduced. Horsepower was now anemic and this model was not much of a performance car. Chevrolet issued a Collector's Edition with a special paint scheme and aluminum wheels.
1991-96
1991 ZR-1	The 2nd year 32-valve ZR-1 was rated at 375 horsepower, with a top speed of 175 MPH.
1993 Coupe	A special option was available for the 1993, the Ruby Red 40th Anniversary with special badging and seat stitching. Around one third of the cars produced this year had this option. Base price was $35,600 with a 5.7 300 horsepower engine. 0-60 MPH time was 5.4 seconds.
1994 ZR-1	Reportedly some people were paying more than twice the ZR-1s $60,000 sticker price to own one, but reduced sales were clouding the future of the car, even though the horsepower was boosted to 405 this year.
1996 Roadster	The end of the C4 was near, as the Corvette community was anticipating the arrival of the all-new C5 for 1997.
1997 LS1 engine	The fifth-generation C5 Corvetter was unveiled in a coupe-only platform. With an all-new design, there was an increase in horsepower to 345 and a 0-60 MPH time of 4.9 seconds. Top speed was rated at 172 MPH.
2003 50th Anniversary Roadster	Corvette celebrated their 50th anniversary with special edition package 1SC. This included 50th Anniversary red metallic paint, special trim, shale two-tone leather interior and 50th Anniversary aluminum wheels. A total of 11,632 cars were built, 4.085 coupes and 7,547 roadsters.
2004 Z06	In 2004 the base price Z06-equipped hardtop retailed for $52,385.00..
2005 Roadster	The new-generation C6 arrived. While it didn't appear there was much changed, a closer look revealed the "Corvette guys" were busy making this the best Corvette ever. With a new LS2 engine at 6.0 liters and 400HP, performance is very near the 2004 Z06!