1957 Chevrolet Corvette 'Fuel Injected' Convertible (LHD)

Description

Though the C1 Corvette was introduced late in the 1953 model year, the fibreglass convertible that carried American sports car dreams was only really taken seriously with 1955's introduction of the 265ci small-block Chevy V8. A few months later, a manual transmission was offered for the first time and, with a wider range of colours available enthusiasts could finally option a Corvette to their liking, with the go to match the styling. 1956 saw some further changes, with refreshed body styling and a redesigned convertible top with power assist. A hardtop was also optional, while the standard transmission was now the 3-speed manual with the 2-speed Powerglide the auto-shift option. The 'Blue Flame' six-cylinder was dropped from the range and wasn't sorely missed.Corvette's performance bent was fully realised in 1957- a near visual twin to the '56 but with the small block out to 283ci and mechanical fuel injection becoming available for the first time. Also introduced was a 4-speed manual. It is said today that the gross output of the top-tuned 283 'Fuelie' was over 290bhp but Chevy advertising suggested 283bhp- a nice tie-in for their '1hp per cubic inch' marketing angle. In addition to the top-performance motor buyers could order wider 15 inch wheels and heavy-duty suspension for an all-round performance star.