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Show America's First Sports Car Reaches Market -zl;;:-- - I ',,..y, : ; ; ! r ' ; :? ' - i 1 i ?.';';";; " .? ' V' I 'v ''' . f- y-y ' '''''' y ' " " :v ' f f - ' s-r. . . . .-,;. :, ;y-:J " ' . ' " -m-yy- - : . . .: -: - . . ... iv. .v...-. ..:lv.v.:;:..;v . , , , -i ; V, i- .,,. ilvl-.- " " -'u "ivi viSvo vri , r,i - - i n i iY : . J , One of the most widely discussed automobiles the Chevrolet Corvette has been placed in distribution. dis-tribution. A two-passenger open model (with removable re-movable top), the car is the American auto industry's first sporls car and the first to carry a plaslic body built by mass production methods. The Corvette measures only 33 inches high at the door. Wheelbase is 102 inches. Traditional Chevrolet Chev-rolet features include a special 150-horsepower "ISlue-Flame" engine and a Powerglide automatic transmission. Production followed special showings show-ings of an experimental model in many cities. Chevrolet Motor Division Announces Plans To Put Plastic Bodied Sports Car On Market DETROIT The sports car for- c mally joined the ranks of Ameri- ' can automobiles, today. 1 Before a group of technical writ- ' ers, the Chevrolet Motor division ' put the sleek low-slung Corvette ' through its paces at the General 1 Motors Proving Ground and revealed re-vealed for the first time the com- j pany's facilities for the production , of revolutionary reinforced plastic 1 bodies. The event was a factory-spon- , sored demonstration of the car that appeared as an experimental model at motor shows last Winter, j Corvette manufacturing is now underway un-derway with an announced goal of 1,000 a month early in 19544. In runs at the Grounds, the Corvette Cor-vette displayed a superior ability to move and maneuver. No sway or roll-over was perceptible in cornering. cor-nering. High power to weight rations, ra-tions, low center of gravity and balanced weight distribution combine com-bine to provide an amazingly quick throttle response, and stability. In addition to a pioneering venture ven-ture in the sports car field, Chevrolet Chev-rolet presented the Corvette as the first plastic-bodied automobile ever ev-er built by mass production methods. meth-ods. The process, explained at the showing here, involves the molding of mats of fiber glass with resin- )us compounds. Body parts are 'cured" into panels in 61 separate nolds. The parts are then bonded ind riveted together to form a Dody shell that has the strength of steel at considerable saving in iveight. At the outset of today's program, pro-gram, T. H. Keating, general manager man-ager 'of Chevrolet, analyzed the Corvette by saying that the vehicle "is not a racing car in the accepted sense that a European car is a race car. "Rather we built a sports car in the American tradition," he continued. con-tinued. "It is intended to satisfy the American public's conception of beauty, plus comfort, convenience conven-ience and performance." Inspection of the Corvette supports sup-ports the company's claim that the car combines luxury with sports car design. The roomy two-passenger two-passenger cockpit is- attractively trimmed in Sportsman Red and Polo White, to conform with the exterior finish. The Powerglide automatic transmission is used. Springing was especially designed for comfort. A spacious luggage locker is provided at the rear. The car is equipped for both radio and heater. Windshield washers, turn indicators, electric clock and other oth-er conveniences not commonly as- soiated with vehicles of this type are standard equipment. In appearance the " car is fleet and compact. Chassis ground clearance clear-ance is six inches and the height at the top of the door 33 inches. Along the overall length of 167 inches the chassis has been designed de-signed so that the weight on eaeh wheel is virtually equil. The spec ial Chevrolet Blue Flame engine develops 150 horsepower, providing provid-ing one horsepower for each 19 pounds of car weight. To obtain proper chassis Dalance with the low body design, engineers have incorporated several novelties. novel-ties. The gas tank is located behind be-hind the drivers seat. An auxiliary water tank lies along the hood. Rear springs are mounted outside the box-section frame designed for ruggedness and stability. Other unusual un-usual features include triple car-buretion car-buretion and dual exhaust and manifolding. Although the Corvette will be available only in limited quantities for some time, W. E. Fisher, general gen-eral sales manager, announced an exhibition program that will place the car on view in many smaller communities. He said eight Corvettes Cor-vettes have been assigned to mobile units this Tall on a schedule of dates in all parts of the country. |
