At some point in our lives, we have all wanted to ride in or drive one of those cherry-red, high-speed sports cars. The ones you see in moves that all the protagonists go around and add to their persona. Among these very luxurious and fast cars are Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Bentleys, and even Mercedes. Of all of these cars, the Corvette has always been one of the top sports cars in the industry. 

Today is National Corvette Day, so I’d like to break down the history of this notorious American vehicle. The Chevrolet Corvette has been in several movies such as Apollo 13, Austin Powers, Star Trek, 2 Fast 2 Furious, and of course Corvette Summer. The Corvette is known as America’s sports car and there is non like it.

Chevrolet first produced the Corvette in the 1950s as a way to mimic British-style vehicles. The big difference between the two was that the Chevrolet Corvette was much more affordable. The car was being designed in secret under the name “Project Opel.” This was a huge development for Chevrolet, so they could not risk any leaks to competitors. 

In 1953, the first generation of Corvettes hit the market, and 183 of 300 were sold. In response, adjustments were made and the 1954 Chevrolet Corvette was offered in four colors and provided five times as much horsepower as the previous model. In 1955-56, the first V8 engine was available in the Corvette and the style changed to resemble a Mercedes look.

The second and third generations of the Chevrolet Corvette were forming years for both the design and motor of the car. The Stingray Mustang was one of the biggest redesigns released in 1963. The corvette stayed in the game even through the muscle car era and adjusted. The downfall of this third generation corvette was that the trunk was taken out for the gas tank, so most of those models had to have a space attachment.

The fourth generation resembled the 80s, especially with the new wedge design that made the corvette 24 percent more aerodynamic than the corvettes that came before. This allowed the car to reach a new high of 150 MPH. This generation brought back the Corvette convertible which was used as the 1985 Indianapolis 500 Pace Car. One of the most impressive things about the later fourth generation corvettes was the 0 to 60 speed of 4.5 seconds which at the time and now is very reputable in the sports car community.

The fifth generation was launched in the late 90s and got away from the sharp edges of the 80s-style cars. The 1997 Chevrolet Corvette was a lot larger and smoother than the generation before. This car also had a six-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. The transmission was also in the back for a better weight balance. This generation brought us the first Corvette convertible in 1998.

The sixth and seventh generations of the Corvette brought many design changes and even faster engines. In 2005, the Corvette got a complete remodel, and one of the biggest changes was the headlights. The new 2005 Corvette had fixed headlights instead of flip-up headlights. This feature had not been on a Corvette since the very first generation. 2009 was a huge year as well with the new ZR-1 Corvette and a top speed of 205 MPH. On to the seventh generation, these corvettes were just an updated version of the sixth generation Corvettes. They were now six-speed automatic transmissions and could go from 0 to 60 MPH in three seconds.

The eighth generation and the last one thus far. The manual transmission was taken out of all these Corvettes and the engine was moved behind the driver. This was highly anticipated in the seventh generation Corvettes, but was finally done to open up more possibilities; one of them being that the Corvette could now go from 0 to 60 MPH even faster with less power. With the engine in the back, this provides eligibility for a hybrid, electric, or all-wheel drive Corvette.

The biggest draw Corvette has is that it is an American world-class sports car. Most cars of this caliber are foreign, with the exception of the Corvette. The Chevrolet Corvette has never backtracked, the Corvettes have always kept up or set the bar even higher. The future of the Corvette is unknown, however, the next generation has been set up for greatness. For more information about the history of the Corvette, visit https://cars.usnews.com