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This feature is a part of Complex's Corvette Week.
Even if the Corvette isn't your thing, you have to respect it: GM has made over a million of them, they've offered world beating performance at attainable prices, race-spec versions have dominated Ferraris and Maseratis on race tracks around the world, and they have a certain gravity of personality to them. Given that a new generation of Corvette is about to show up in showrooms, you need to know what you're looking at, and be armed with some knowledge when the topic at hand drifts to cars. So, here are 25 Things You Didn't Know About the Chevy Corvette.
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The C6 ZR-1 is the only production Corvette to cost over $100,000.
When the pricing and specs for the C6 ZR-1 was announced some were appaled that a Corvette could cost over $100,000, and others were amazed that that level of tech was available for just over $100,000. All in all, we think it was worth it, as it was a car that could annihilate most $250,000 supercars.
There was no 1983 Corvette.
For the C4 Generation of Corvettes, GM was a little too ambitious, using a lot of new and unproven technologies. The C4 ended up being delayed for a year, and production of the C3 wasn't extended. As a result, no 1983 Corvettes were ever sold, even though a few prototypes are floating around out there.
"Corvette" refers to a class of warship from the golden age of sail.
This is the HMS Surprise, an 18th century warship of the Corvette class. Corvettes packed a significant punch, but were still very fast and agile, making it a perfect match for the American car that aimed to exemplify those traits.
The only year a split window was offered was 1963.
Rumor had it that the split window would return for the C7 generation, but we can't imagine the NHTSA being cool with that. Designer Larry Shinoda and project manager Zora Arkus-Duntov argues a lot about the '62 Corvette's split window, and the result was that Shinoda's beloved window only graced the car for a single year.
The magnetic-ride suspension reacts separately to each inch of road at 60 mph.
In 2003 GM's magnetorheological suspension debuted on the Corvette, and it has since spread all the way up to the likes of Ferrari. It reacts so quickly (1,000 times per second) that at 60 mph it's adapting to each inch of road separately.
The Corvette C5-R dominated Ferrari and Maserati in Endurance racing
When the C5 Corvette was new, Ferrari and Maserati were absolutely dominating the GT circuit. But the C5-R managed to win at every turn, even taking both the first and second places at Le Mans in both 2001 and 2002. Even though it has been replaced by the C6.R these days, privateer teams are still successfully racing the C5-R.
The fastest Corvette ever available from a dealer was the Lingenfelter 427 Turbo.
Yup, this is a Lingenfelter 427 Turbo, which can run a quarter mile in a blistering, and record-breaking 10.2 seconds.
The 1990 ZR1 was tuned by Lotus and took four years to make.
The 1990 Corvette ZR1 was an amazing, track-destroying monster of a sportscar that came about when GM bought Lotus. Lotus took four years to perfect the Corvette, and the result was one of the greatest sports cars ever made.
The Corvette was the first American vehicle to offer 1 hp per ci.
The 1957 Corvette's 283ci engine produces 283hp, a first for any American car.
GM made a special edition Corvette for Hertz
Normally, cars that were made especially for rental companies are absolutely terrible. They're made to be durable and easy to clean at any expense. The Corvette ZHZ, made especially for Hertz, on the other hand, is a Corvette, and is easily the coolest rental-only model ever made.
The Corvette was Inspired by the European sports cars that designer Harley Earl saw during WWII.
Harley Earl is certainly one of the most influential figures in American automotive history: He's responsible for both the Corvette and the tailfin. He got the idea for the Corvette while travelling in Europe with the US Army in WWII and working on camoflague patterns. Rumor has it that the Jaguar XK120 was the car that had the most influence on Earl's desire to produce a small, American sports car.
In 1982 there were no manual Corvettes.
That's right, the '80s really were the dark ages. Even the mighty Corvette couldn't be had with a manual transmission.
The logo originally had crossed American and checkered flags, but putting the US flag on a trade mark was found to be illegal.
Yup, this was the first Corvette badge, but it had to be discontinued when GM found out that using the US Flag in a trademark was illegal. That's when the Bowtie/Fluer de Lis Chevrolet flag was used in its stead.
Starting in 1997, Corvette transmissions have had weird limitations in order to avoid the gas guzzler tax.
The 1997 Corvette was rated by the EPA for 18/25 mpg with an automatic transmission or 19/28 with a manual. Why so high? Because of both the light weight and a computer that forced the transmission to shift direct from first to fourth under certain circumstances. Thusly, the dreaded gas guzzler tax was avoided.
GM never approved the Corvette Grand Sport.
The "father of the Corvette" Zora Arkus-Duntov initated a project in 1962 to create a lightweight Corvette that would be able to beat the Shelby Cobra on any given race track. He was going to build 125 of them in order to homologate the car, but he never cleared the project with GM's executives, and the project was shut down after building only five cars. Today, these five are all in private collections and are estimated to be worth $6 to $8 million.
Chevrolet has a penchant for giving Corvettes to Astronauts.
It all started with Alan Shepard, the first American in space, who was given a new Corvette as a token of appreciation of his bravery. Since then, both GM and Chevy dealers have offered free cars, or at least fantastic financing and lease terms to any American who is willing to go into space.
The 1980 Corvette 305 "California" only made 180 hp.
In the '70s and '80s, the auto industry was still adapting to new emissions standards. Of course, California's were even stricter than the rest of the country's, so the 1980 Corvette 305 "California" was made, and it only produces a sad, little 180 hp. People could still remember getting Corvettes that produced power figures north of 400 hp just a little over a decade earlier; it was not a popular car.
Only two '69 ZL-1s were sold.
The 1969 ZL-1 is one of the rarest Corvettes of all time, not because of limited production, but because only two were purchased.
The Corvette was made from fiberglass, because metal was still rare after WW2 rationing.
Fiberglass became an integral part of the Corvette's DNA, but the original reason it was chosen over steel for the body material was simply because steel was still rare after having been rationed during the second world war.
PS: Those tanks are Cadillacs, and are made of the steel that would have been used on the Corvette.
The C2 and C3 Corvettes were inspired by a mako shark that designer Bill Mitchell caught.
Yes, despite the production car being called "Stingray," the concept was called the "Mako Shark," and the sleek designs were inspired by the impressive fish.
The body panels of the '63 Grand Sports are half the thickness of the regular car.
In order to reduce the weight of the Grand Sport, the fiberglass body panels were half the thickness of a regular Corvette's.
The Corvette is the official sports car of the state of Kentucky.
Every state has an official flower, but that's not half as cool as having an official sports car. Given that Kentucky is the home to the production of the Corvette, the state declared it to be the official sports car.
A Corvette has paced the Indy 500 more than any other car.
The official Indy 500 pace car has been a Corvette 12 times. The runner up is the Chevy Camaro at seven times.
The first, 500,000th, and millionth Corvettes were all white.
The first Corvettes were all white, and, as a nod to the great one, the 500,000th, 1,000,000th, and 1,500,000th Corvettes were as well.
The Largest Corvette Engine Ever Was a 7.4L V8.
From 1970 to 1974, Chevy offered a 454 ci (7.4L) V8 in the Corvette. It produced 275 horsepower.
