1958 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (RHD)

Description

Chevrolet’s Corvette is a true automotive icon, for years America’s only real sport car and remains as popular today, more than 60 years after the first car rolled off the production line in 1953. The Corvette has always remained true to the original concept of providing high performance, stunning looks and plenty of luxury at a reasonable price. 

By the late 1950s Chevrolet and Zora Duntov had turned the Corvette from a boulevard cruiser into a high performance sports roadster, thanks to a recipe that included the legendary small-block V8, fuel injection, hotter cams and bigger brakes. For 1958 the Corvette was mildly restyled, the main difference being the addition of an extra pair of headlights, bonnet louvres and chrome vents inside the coves. Inside the interior was revised with the instruments now grouped together in a binnacle positioned in front of the driver along with a centre console and passenger grab-bar. Powering the 1958 Corvette was Chevrolet’s 283-cid V8, developing 230 horsepower in standard tune and the standard transmission was via a three-speed manual gearbox (though buyers could opt for either a four-speed ‘box or Powerglide automatic at extra cost). Although some pundits refused to concede that the Corvette was a genuine sports car, it certainly managed to take the fight up to the Europeans on the racetracks of America in the late 1950s, with many private owners receiving back door support from Chevrolet Engineering. Chevrolet built 9,168 Corvettes in 1958, an almost 50 per cent increase over the previous year, and each is now regarded as a genuine American classic.