The Corvette Celebrates 60 Years Since the First Car Rolled Off the Line

The CorvetteChevrolet CorvetteUnited States of America, 1953 > present7 series
137 versions
552 photos
2 videos
is now officially 60 years old. The first car rolled off the assembly line in Flint, Michigan, on June 30, 1953. The cars were first shown publicly at the General MotorsGMUnited States of America, 1998 > present8 models
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Autorama in New York on January 17, 1953. Since then over 1.5 million have been made.

“The very best Corvettes represent the state-of-the-art for their eras in terms of design, technology and performance,” said Chris Perry, Chevrolet’sChevroletUnited States of America, 1911 > present82 models
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7 videos
head of marketing.

It surprises many people today to learn that the first CorvettesChevrolet Corvette Gen.1United States of America, 1953 > 196218 versions
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were a complete failure both technologically and in terms of sales. Only 300 cars were made in 1953, and all of them were basically done by hand. A mass produced completely fiberglass car in 1953 was a huge feat, and the early cars suffered from cracking bodies and poor body fit.

All of the 1953 cars were Polo White with a red interior and sold for $3,498 with no available options. Power came from a 3.9-liter inline six-cylinder engine with 150hp and a two-speed automatic transmission. After the run of 300 cars built in Flint in 1953, production moved to St. Louis, Missouri for 1954 and stayed there until 1981. Since then, all Corvettes have been made in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

The first V8s were not introduced until 1955 and were an immediate success by taking 90% of the orders. Chevrolet promptly dropped the six-cylinder in 1956. Until 1963, all Corvettes were convertibles, but Chevrolet did offer a hardtop to make the Corvette more drivable in the colder months.

If you want to learn more about the Corvette, check out the historical overview that we created last year in preperation for the seventh-generation carChevrolet Chevrolet Corvette Gen.7 [C7]United States of America, 2013 > present13 versions
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.