The Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles is putting the pedal to the metal and celebrating a legendary car that’s cool, fast and turning 70 this year with a new year-long exhibition titled “Corvettes in Competition: Racing America’s Sports Car.”
Featuring 11 racing versions of the classic sports car, the exhibition recently opened to the public and will be on display on the second floor of the venue through August 2024.
“We have some very significant cars here,” said Jonathan Eisen, curator of the exhibition.
The Chevrolet Corvette made its debut in 1953 with a two-seater roadster. The brand has grown to become an American icon thanks to racing credentials earned early on in the car’s history.
“It was racing that really put Corvettes on the map,” Eisen said.
Here are five highlights in the new exhibition.
A humble start
With a pair of blue pinstripes running down its pearl-white hood, the 1953 two-seater Corvette on display looks like it could blow any car out of the water. It was the first Corvette ever made and debuted at GM’s 1953 Motorama show in New York City. But with only 150 horsepower and a two-speed transmission, it failed to impress high speed enthusiasts.
“It was meant to be a sports car, but it didn’t have very sporty characteristics,” Eisen said. “Even though it looked like a sports car, it wasn’t a very sporty car to drive.”
The Real McCoy
Parked next to the very first Corvette is the real deal and the car that saved the company: the 1956 Corvette SR dubbed “The Real McCoy.” It looks almost identical to the original 1953 model, but with 255 horsepower, it was very different on the inside.
“This was the first car that had a big win on the racecar,” Eisen said, adding that it set a record for American cars by going 156 miles per hour. “That really is what put the Corvette on the map. GM was ready to drop it, but when that happened GM reversed that decision.”
High dollar vehicle
Modeled…
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