The 1953 Corvette was built upon the 1952 EX-122 show car. Ironically, this was one of the rare occasions when a dream car went into production with virtually no styling changes.

Originally the Corvette was manufactured as an economical sports car for younger drivers. The body was made of fiberglass, which was lighter than other cars it competed with in the market, and also proved to be practical. Steel bodied Corvettes were planned for later models.

Chevy's early problems were that most people in the 1950's regarded "Chevy" as a car your mom drove. Introducing a sports car proved to be a challenge as most people immediately gave a cold-shoulder to the Corvette. Although, as quoted from Road and Track in 1954, "The outstanding characteristic of the Corvette is probably its deceptive performance".

Sales were so bad initially, in 1954 Chevrolet was going to stop manufacturing the Corvette. The overall opinion was that the car looked great, but had no power under the hood to back up its sporty look. Ford introduced the Thunderbird which forced Chevy to continue production at least for competitive purposes.

Sales skyrocketed in 1956. Finally the 1956 Corvette had the power to match its looks along with a numerous esteemed racing victories.

This is all the history I am going to mention at this point. You can visit each year to find out more about each Corvette.

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