But it all began somewhere and Mike Waal from Maryland is the man that has stitched together a written chronology of events and fascinating pictorial documentation of what quickly became an annual event. And the future Corvette would become a player in sports car racing.
by Scott Teeters a written for Vette Vues Timeline Tales: December 1, 1958 – V.P. of Design and Styling, Harley Earl retires from GM. Bill...
On July 3, 1952 Chevrolet management gave the approval to move forward with Harly Earl’s fiberglass sports car concept. Official work orders were issued to build two experimental bodies to be produced using a new material called “fiberglass.”
Delve into the life and legacy of Harley J. Earl, the visionary automotive designer whose innovation and style helped define the earliest Corvettes and shape America’s most iconic sports car.
Dive into Bill Mitchell’s early years as showcased in the Car Classics October 1977 issue, revealing how his vision and design philosophy helped shape Corvette’s iconic curves and GM’s automotive styling legacy. Mitchell’s early innovations laid the groundwork for decades of Corvette evolution and automotive design excellence.
From Harley Earl’s bold vision to today’s sleek emblem, explore how Corvette’s crossed flags became one of America’s most iconic automotive symbols.
My monthly column in VETTE Magazine, “The Illustrated Corvette Series” is now in its 21st year. I’m in the middle of a series I’m calling, “The Corvette’s Founding Fathers” that covers the careers of Harley Earl, Ed Cole, Bill Mitchell, Zora Arkus Duntov, Larry Shinoda, and Peter Brock. Each of these men played a foundational roll in setting the pattern and personality of the Corvette. Without them, the Corvette might not have survived the 1950s.
In the early days of the Corvette’s existence, GM had an odd relationship with the car. Power-players such as Harley Earl, Ed Cole, and Bill Mitchell went to bat for the struggling sports car many times. And then there was the wild Russian engineer with the funny name, Zora Arkus-Duntov that pushed to make the car a successful racecar. But GM is all about sales and Chevy wasn’t selling many Corvettes. By the end of 1957 Chevy sold 14,446 Corvettes in total from 1953. In 1957 alone, Chevrolet sold 254,331 4-door Bel Air Sedans!
