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Chevrolet Corvette

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The Chevrolet Corvette was designed by Harley J Earl in late 1951. Chevrolet is an American division at General Motors and helped produce six generations of Corvette in coupe, convertible, t-top coupe and targa coupe body styles. The Corvette was originally built in Flint, Michigan and St Louis, Missouri before General Motors moved its assembly plant to Bowling Green, Kentucky. In 2003, the Corvette celebrated its 50 th anniversary and is the only American sports car ever to do so. The first Corvette was displayed at the New York Auto Show in 1953. The name was taken from a type of fast patrol ship used by the British Navy. Ed Cole, the

In 1956, the Corvette had a new design, boasting a chrome grille, new body, scalloped flanks and a rounded trunk. Finally the Corvette style had been born. The Corvette changed a number of times over the years and soon became the leading American sports car. During the 1970s, the oil crisis bought about higher fuel prices and a public desire for more economical cars. Corvette continued to produce their beautifully designed cars but gradually lowered the engine’s power. This was set to continue until early 2000. The modern engines of today allowed engineers to get a great deal more horsepower out of their engines without wasting unnecessary fuel.

chief engineer at Chevrolet, was so enthusiastic about the car that he gave permission to start production even before it had been seen at the Auto Show. In June 1953, the first Corvette was sold. Only 300 were produced that year, all in the colour polo white. In 1954 more colours were made available, but the Corvette did not sell very well as its performance failed to live up to its stylish looks. A new small-block V8 engine was introduced in 1955, which produced 196bhp. Unlike older Corvettes, this model could do 0-60mph in 8.6 seconds. General Motors only produced 700 of these cars, as there were so many left over from previous years.

There is a museum dedicated to the Corvette in Kentucky, USA.