1958 - 1962
Many articles have been written about the pokey six cylinder engines in the 1953 to 1955 Corvettes. However, those comments did not take into consideration the available American automobiles and our driving habits before expressways. While not the fastest American car in 1953 and 1954, Corvettes held their own and did even better with the introduction of the 265 cid V8 engine in 1955.
The truth is, the 1953 to 1955 Corvette were crude. GM was learning about fiberglass car body construction and the 1956 Corvette, that followed, was greatly improved. The solid axle Corvettes improved in performance and reliability every year. With a favorable power to weight ratio, the 1957 Corvettes were excellent performers. By 1962 body fit was good, as was exterior finish and the mechanical components were refined and dependable. Powered by the new 327 cid V8 engine, the '62 has become a favorite.
1958
- Dual headlight units introduced along with a very busied chrome styling. The top powerplant remained the high-compression, fuel injected, 283cid with 290 horsepower at 6200 rpm.
- Base Price = $3591.00
- 230 HP 283 cu. in. V-8
- 4-speed Manual Transmission
Production: 9168
1959
$2600
- For the 1959 Corvette, the busied '58 chrome styling was cleaned up considerably. the fake hood louvers and decklid chrome bars were removed. Otherwise there were few changes from the previous model year.
- Base Price = $3875.00
- 230 HP 283 cu. in. V-8
Production: 9670
1960
- The 1960 Corvette was almost indistinguishable from the 1959, but power increases were made to the top two engines. Solid lifters and higher 11.0:1 compression boosted the 283cid fuelie to 315 HP at 6200 rpm; a second version with hydraulic lifters pumped out 275 HP at 5200 rpm.
- Base Price = $3872.00
- 230 HP 283 cu. in. V-8
Production: 10,261
1961
- A new rear tail treatment was added, taken from the XP-700 Mako Shark prototype show car built for Bill Mitchell. Up front, headlight bezels were now painted body color, and vertical teeth in the grille were eliminated in favor of a silver horizontal-mesh insert.
- Base Price = $3934.00
- 230 HP 283 cu. in. V-8
Production: 10,939
1962
- 283cid small block engine enlarged to 327cid. The previous silver mesh grille was now finished in black, and the chrome outline around the bodyside coves, two-tone painted coves and triple chrome accent spears were deleted and replaced with ribbed aluminum appliques.
- Base Price = $4038.00
- 327 cu. in. V-8 introduced