- The new 1953 Corvette had a fiberglass body, chrome-framed grille with 13 heavy vertical chrome
bars, rounded front fenders with recessed headlights with wire screen covers, no side windows
or outside door handles, a wraparound windshield, and protruding, fender-integrated taillights.
- The interior featured a floor-mounted shifter for the Powerglide two-speed automatic
transmission and oil pressure, battery, water temperature, and fuel gauges, plus a tachometer and clock.
- Each 1953 Corvette was virtually hand-built and a lot of minor changes were made during the production run.
- All of the first-year cars were Polo White with Sportsman Red interiors.
- All had black canvas convertible tops which manually folded into a storage space behind the seats.
- Other 1953-only features included special valve covers, a one-piece carburetor linkage and a small trunk mat.
- Short exhaust extensions were used on all '53s (and early '54s) because they were prone to drawing exhaust fumes into the car through the vent windows.
- A black oilcloth window storage bag was provided to protect the 1953 Corvette's removable plastic side windows when stowed in the trunk.
Corvette used the standard 10 symbol Chevrolet Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) coding
system. The I.D. tag was located on the left-hand front door hinge pillar.
- E = Corvette model
- 53 = 1953
- F = Flint, Michigan assembly plant
- the last six numbers were the sequential production number
- They numbered from E53F001001 to E53F001300.
The engine number was found on the right-hand side of the crankcase behind the distributor.
The engine numbers for 1953 used the prefix "LAY". Since the Corvette bodies were virtually
handmade, they did not carry standard Fisher Body Style Numbers as did other GM cars. The
Corvette model number consisted of the four digits 2934, which also served as the body style
number for the early production years.
The Corvette engine was surprisingly a six-cylinder, inline, overhead valve unit with a cast
iron block. It displaced 235.5 cid (3.9 liters) with a bore of 3.56 in. (90mm) and a stroke
of 3.93 in. (100mm) and a compression of 8.0:1. It produced 150 brake hp @ 4200 rpm. The ignition
had a single breaker point. The carburetor was a three Carter Type YH one-barrel Model 2066S
on the early models and Model 2055S on later models.
| Wheelbase | 102 inches | 2.591 m
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| Overall length | 167 inches | 4.242 m
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| Front tread | 57 inches | 1.448 m
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| Rear tread | 58.8 inches | 1.494 m
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| Wheels | steel disk
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| Tires | 6.70x15
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| Front suspension | coil springs with tukbular shock absorbers and stabilizer bar
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| Rear suspension | Leaf springs, tube shocks and solid rear axle
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| Brakes | Drum on all four wheels
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| Axle ratio | 3.55:1
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- Signal-seeking AM radio ($145.15)
- Heater ($91.40)
- White sidewall tires
The first Corvette was built on June 30, 1953 at the Flint, Michigan assembly plant. These
Corvettes were constructed in an area at the back of Chevy's customer delivery garage on Van
Slyke Ave. They are not only the first, but also the rarest Vettes.
300 cars were produced and about 200 are still in the hands of collectors. The first two
cars are missing. By early 1954, Chev said that 315 Corvettes had been built and that
production had moved to the assembly plant in St. Louis, Missouri. They predicted that 1000
Corvettes per month would be built in St. Louis by June 1954 and that 10,000 per year could be
built and sold.
Zora Arkus-Duntov joined Chevrolet Motor Division in 1953 and would become the chief
engineer of Corvette.
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