| Harley Earl was an automobile design expert at | | | | sports car expected to find. |
| Chevrolet who noticed the influx of small European | | | | Then came Zora Arkus-Duntov, the Russian |
| sports cars into the United States after World War II. | | | | émigré and engineer who found a home at |
| He knew there was a market for a two-seat roadster | | | | Chevrolet, and a project in the Corvette. In 1955, |
| and convinced Chevrolet to introduce their own | | | | Chevrolet introduced its first V8 engine. Arkus-Duntov |
| version: The Chevrolet Corvette. | | | | redesigned the V8 especially for the Corvette and |
| In 1953, the first Corvette's were unveiled. The cars | | | | placed the bigger, more powerful motor into the |
| were unique in their construction. Instead of the steel | | | | small-bodied car. He also replaced the old two-speed |
| bodies common for the time, the Corvette was | | | | "powerglide" automatic with a 3-speed manual |
| actually built from a much lighter material-fiberglass. | | | | transmission. Suddenly the Corvette was no longer just |
| This innovation, combined with its Earl-designed | | | | a pretty face. The Corvette became a legitimate |
| appearance, however, was still not enough to make | | | | competitor for the other major U.S. sports car, Ford's |
| the car an overnight success. | | | | Thunderbird, and its popularity soared dramatically. |
| At the time, Chevrolet was known for producing | | | | Arkus-Duntov is often considered the father of the |
| inexpensive, but unexciting vehicles. The Corvette, | | | | Corvette due to his line-saving alterations. |
| despite its sex styling and innovative construction was | | | | Over fifty years later, Corvette remains a leading |
| "just another Chevy" at heart, and lacked the | | | | name is sports cars and is currently offering its sixth |
| performance sports car enthusiasts craved. The | | | | generation of products, including a rumored high |
| original Corvettes featured a less-that-impressive V6, | | | | performance model known as the Blue Demon. |
| a two-speed automatic transmission, and a brake | | | | The Corvette is now known as the "poor man's super |
| system taken directly from the regular Chevy line. In | | | | car" and is noted for its relative affordability and |
| essence, the original Corvette was a sports car in | | | | impressive reliability records. |
| appearance alone. Sales lagged and there was even | | | | But before there was a Blue Demon, a Z06, or any of |
| talk of discontinuing Earl's pet project after a few | | | | the Corvette C classes that sports car enthusiasts |
| years. | | | | love today, there was Harley Earl and a cute design |
| Sales were simply too low. Although the fiberglass | | | | with a V6 they called the Corvette. Chevrolet |
| design wowed potential buyers and critics within the | | | | embraced the idea of a truly American sports car, and |
| sports car industry and the appearance of the | | | | with the help of a Russian émigré, built one |
| Corvette was beyond reproach, the car simply lacked | | | | of the most popular and lasting sports car labels in the |
| the kind of performance those searching for a true | | | | world. |