The very first Corvette has been rediscovered

VIN 001... that's a number that makes collectors dream. But when it is attached to the Chevrolet Corvette, the imagination runs wild. Nearly 70 years after its construction, the first Corvette to roll off the assembly line, a car thought to have been destroyed, has reappeared.

Harlow Curtice, GM's 1953 president, had promised the press that the Corvette would be in production by June 1953. To fulfill this commitment, the first convertibles were built in a garage in Flint, Michigan, while the plant in St. Louis, Missouri, was not yet operational. The first examples were built on June 30.

Intensive testing

Historians know that of the first 9 Corvettes, only 3 ended up in the hands of the public (either Du Pont executives or Du Pont family members). The other 6 were used by GM for demonstration or technical evaluation purposes. The first three Corvettes, serial numbers E53F001001, 002 and 003, were assigned to the Milford, Michigan test track. There, they were given the code numbers 3950, 3951 and 3952. The cars are being driven throughout the month of July.

On August 6, 1953, a work order was issued by engineering to change 22 components of the 3950, including lowering the seats, replacing the fuel filler hole and adjusting the height of the steering column. These changes would play an crucial role in the rest of the story. In December 1953, it was sent to the design department and that's where we lost track of it. Usually, after long periods of evaluation, the cars are destroyed. In some cases, they were sold to employees (this is the case of Corvette 002 and 008).

One restoration leads to another

In 1987, a few enthusiasts including John Amgwert of the National Corvette Restorers Society discovered the 003 Corvette and brought it to a shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma to begin its restoration. Following this find, another enthusiast came forward with a 53 Corvette to restore. At this point, the specialists believe that it may be the 002 Corvette. The first work was started but was stopped due to the owner having health problems and not being able to pay.

Over the years, John and another enthusiast, Cory Petersen, have watched the car being stored but are not sure what to make of the modifications that have been done to it. It was while analyzing work orders in the GM Heritage Center archives that Cory discovered the list of 22 requested modifications. That's when he realized that he had already seen a Corvette that had them: the one in the Tulsa workshop! He decided to get in touch with the owner to move the restoration forward. The conversation ended with a purchase. While evaluating cardboard boxes that contained parts for his new car, Cory came across a nameplate with the coveted number 001.

Today, Cory Petersen intends to do a complete restoration of the car, which should be fully documented. Of course, rumours are already circulating on the internet that the Corvette is fake news.

You can see the 53 in question on the Corvette Blogger website.

One thing is sure if everything is true, this is an exciting discovery that will be worth following closely.