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This beautiful car is one of 455 Panama Yellow 1958 Corvettes, with white coves and a white convertible top. It has the 283 cubic inches V8 presented in the 270 hp version with four-barrel carburetors, one of only 970 produced in 1958.
Full description
By 1949, General Motors design director Harley Earl had decided that America needed a sports car of its very own. American drivers were enjoying the MG TCs, Jaguar XK120s, Porsche 356s and other roadsters that were imported from across the Atlantic. Earl saw the opportunity to build an American sports car that would be both low-priced and high-powered.
Earl’s Corvette had classic front-engine, rear-drive, two-seat roadster architecture wrapped by a sleek body with low and smooth contours. GM thought it could sell 10,000 cars a year (it reached 14,500 in 1962, the last model year of the first generation), and set Earl, engineering chief Ed Cole and their staffs to work to get production started as quickly as possible. Earl’s original prospectus for the car called for its engine to provide 150 hp and for the car to be priced at less than $2,000. The power target was achievable, but the pricing target was unrealistic and the first Corvettes was sold for almost double: $3,500. In an attempt to reach the price target, GM had to cut corners, using the 6-cylinder engine, transmission, suspension components and brakes out of the Chevrolet sedan parts bit and using fiberglass instead of steel for the car’s body.
Having made a big splash with the EX-122 pre-production Corvette prototype GM’s 1953 Motorama in New York, the Corvette was rushed into production for its debut model year to capitalize on the enthusiastic public reaction to the concept vehicle, but expectations for the new model were largely unfulfilled. Reviews were mixed and sales fell far short of expectations through the car's early years: Chevy sold only 700 Corvettes in 1955, the first generation's third year on the market. The program was nearly canceled, but Chevrolet would ultimately stay the course.
Arguably, the truly iconic Corvette arrived with the 1956 model, also part of the first generation Corvette C1 (1953-1962). Restyled with a more flowing body, the car was given concave side coves finished in contrasting color. Engines were all V8s, the 265-cubic inch unit from passenger cars making 210 hp in standard trim and 240 with dual carburetors.
Development of the Corvette continued under legendary engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, under whom the 283-cubic inch V8 was adopted in 1957, making 283 hp with optional fuel injection. Actually, the Corvette's engine produced about 290 hp (216 kW). This was underrated by Chevrolet's advertising agency to 283 hp for the "One HP per cubic inch" slogan.
This beautiful car is one of 455 Panama Yellow 1958 Corvettes, with white coves and a white convertible top. It has the 283 cubic inches V8 presented in the 270 hp version with four-barrel carburetors, one of only 970 produced in 1958. It is also equipped with the optional just introduced 4-speed Manual gearbox, a rarity between today's known 1958 C1 Corvettes. It was meticulously restored by National Corvette Restorers Society judge Dennis Gabriel and received its Top Flight Award at the NCRS meet in Minneapolis on August 19, 2006, scoring 95.6 points. The car was acquired by the Karl Blade Collection in January 2008 and has received a complete mechanical servicing and expert tune-up by respected Corvette specialist Jeff Reade of Culver, California. This car’s Top Flight award speaks volumes about the quality of the restoration, as there is simply no honor that is more highly coveted by enthusiasts.
The car has 24,233 miles (approx. 39,000 km) on board.
