Building the first Corvette

Building the first Corvette. The American auto enthusiast didn’t even know they wanted a sports car; that is until they were introduced to the new Corvette at the GM 1953 Motorama. One look at the new Chevrolet two-seater Corvette was all it took. The Corvette line was here to stay.

Motorama - Photo credit: The Corvette Factories by Mike Mueller

After its introduction, Chevrolet faced the fact that they needed a place to assemble their newest model. A temporary assembly line was set up in Flint, Michigan. A total of 300 Corvettes were built that first year in Flint. All 300 were painted Polo White and featured red interiors. The standard engine was the Blue Flame six-cylinder engine, backed by a Powerglide automatic transmission.

The Flint chassis assembly line was only 6 cars long. Photo credit: The Corvette Factories by Mike Mueller

6-cylinder engine. Photo credit: Legendary Corvettes by Dave Wendt

The total Corvette production figure of 300 units may seem small, but what must be remembered is the fact that working with a fiberglass body was something new for Chevrolet. Much of the body work required hands-on final production. The 1953 Corvette body consisted of 62 fiberglass sections.

Assembly line workers install the front fiberglass section to the 1953 Corvette. Photo credit: Photo collection of Late Great Chevy

In December of 1953, Chevrolet moved its Corvette assembly to St Louis, Missouri. A total production goal of 10,000 units was scheduled for 1954. These new Corvettes would roll off the assembly line at the Fisher Mill facility. Total production for 1954 ended up at 3,640 units of which nearly a third were still sitting around unsold at the end of the year. GM minds thought this might be the end for Chevrolet’s sporting experiment. The Corvette continued to survive and the St Louis facility continued to produce cars until 1987.

St. Louis facility. Photo credit: The Corvette Factories by Mike Mueller

Photo credit: Photo collection of Late Great Chevy

In 1980, the Bowling Green, Kentucky plant was expanded to make way for Corvette assembly. When completed, a total of nearly one million square feet of space was available for production. The first Corvette rolled off the assembly line in June of 1981, and in July of 1992 the one millionth fiberglass two-seater Corvette was produced at this facility. The Bowling Green, Kentucky plant has become the home of the Corvette.

Bowling Green, KY plant. Photo credit: The Corvette Factories by Mike Mueller

Photo credit: The Corvette Factories by Mike Mueller

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