Chevrolet Corvette C2 as a coupé of the first year of construction - the most beautiful of all

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Chevrolet Corvette C2 as a coupé of the first year of construction - the most beautiful of all

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Created on October 18, 2017

Text:

Bruno von Rotz

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

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Archiv Reinhard / Max Pichler

2

General Motors

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Rafael Martin, 2013 All Rights Reserved

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Louis Galanos

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Archiv

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - looks inviting from every angle

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the roof cabin tapers sharply towards the rear

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - 1.77 meters wide

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - with folding headlights for the first time

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the bridge reminiscent of the shape of the stingray can be seen from the snout to the tail

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Blue in blue

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - for the first time there was also a coupé with the C2

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Driver and passenger sat far back

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the wheelbase had shrunk by 10 cm compared to the C1

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - what an ass!

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - when the Corvette came roaring along, you made way in the fast lane

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - most road users saw it from this perspective

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the aerodynamics had been significantly improved compared to its predecessor

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - weighing almost 1.4 tons, it was one of the heavier sports cars

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - with independent rear suspension for the first time

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - flat and relatively wide for the time

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the bar in the rear window already reduced the view to the rear a little

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - one of the fastest at the time

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the rear end was based on the design of the C1, everything else was new

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - headroom is tight in the coupé

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the 360 hp version ran over 240 km/h at the time

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - can be driven comfortably and without great effort

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - tastefully designed cockpit

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - cleanly drawn round instruments

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the seats don't provide too much lateral support

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - six round instruments inform the driver

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - clearly labeled buttons

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - narrow center console with clock and radio

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Reverse gear with fuse

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - round gearshift knob like Ferrari

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - round shapes in the interior

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Leatherette seats

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the triangular window is opened with the crank handle

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - "Turbo Fire" - but had nothing to do with a turbocharger

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the 327 V8 with a displacement of 5.7 liters delivers 300 hp

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Carburetor for the V8

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the ventilation openings on the hood are dummies

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - almost look like solar collectors, these indicated ventilation openings also soon disappeared in the following model years

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Flags adorn the Corvette snout

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - even the Chevrolet flag is not missing

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - almost like architecture

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - Racing look for the wheels

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - petite rear-view mirror

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the center bar obstructs the view to the rear, but what can come from there?

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - this window shape was only available in the first model year

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - the gas cap

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - "Sting Ray" was written in two words

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Chevrolet CERV I (1961) - the first variant of Shinoda's bodywork

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Chevrolet CERV I (1961) - elegant rear end

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Chevrolet CERV I (1961) - partially stripped prototype that was important for the development of the Corvette C2

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Chevrolet CERV I (1961) - the internal drum brakes and independent suspension, which the Corvette did not have at the time, are clearly visible

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Chevrolet Corvette Racer (1960) - Bill Mitchell with the racing car, which is also very competitive in motorsport terms

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Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Racer XP-87 (1961) - glamorous presentation

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Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Racer XP-87 (1961) - shortly before the start of a race

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Chevrolet Stingray Concept (1959) - at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance 2013

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - edited picture of a late Corvette

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - the '62-C1 Corvette now has a black radiator grille and adapted flanks, seven colors are available

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - early clay model in the design process of the new sports car - the split rear window was already planned here

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Chevrolet Corvette (1963) - Wind tunnel tests on the model

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - The Stingray was introduced in 1962, with a split rear window

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - peacefully united - Coupé and Convertible of the 1963 vintage

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - the new Corvette as a coupé at the 1962 Turin Motor Show

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - View into the cockpit of the new C2 - Paris Motor Show 1962

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - Seats of the new Corvette - shown here at the Paris Motor Show in 1963

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - Folding headlights on the Corvette presented in 1962

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Chevrolet Corvette (1962) - View under the hood - fuel-injected 327 with 360 hp - Paris Motor Show 1962

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Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (1963) - fully informed

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Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (1963) - the powerful V8 engine

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - available for test drives outside the showroom

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - the Stingray Coupé presented in 1962

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - the Stingray-based show car shown at the 1963 New York Auto Show, built at the General Motors Design Center for Harley Earl

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - the chassis structures, which also extend into the roof area of the Coupé, are clearly visible

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Chevrolet Corvette (1963) - paint job of the Corvette Sting Ray - the vehicle moves on a small vehicle

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - Final inspection at the factory before handover to the customer

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - Assembly (so-called marriage) of chassis and body of the Corvette

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1963) - the stiffness of the frame is tested here

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Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray (1964) - the 1964 sports coupé seen from behind

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Chevrolet Corvette 327 (1962) - bold lettering

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Summary

In the late summer of 1962, General Motors presented the second generation of the Chevrolet Corvette and for the first time it was also available as a coupé. Bill Mitchell had come up with a split rear window as a styling highlight and with this, as well as the implied bar that extended from the roof to the rear, the coupé lived up to its name "Stingray". However, after just one year, the special design solution gave way to a more conventional rear window variant, which is one of the reasons why the coupé from the first year of production is one of today's sought-after rarities. This report portrays one of these rare beauties and tells the brief history of the model, supplemented by original documents, historical pictures and a sound sample.

This article contains the following chapters

The two-part rear window
Modern design
Maintained with a cotton bud
Bellezza
At the steering wheel of the stingray Adonis
Ahead of most
Underestimated rarity
Further information

Estimated reading time: 7min

Preview (beginning of the article)

When Chevrolet unveiled the new Corvette (now known as the C2) in the late summer of 1962, many European sports car manufacturers had to dress warmly. Because the "Sting Ray", as the new generation was called, had a modern, aerodynamically optimized body and independent suspension all round, while Maserati and Ferrari continued to sell cars with rigid rear axles at the time. The big surprise, however, was the appearance of the coupé, which immediately showed why the car was called the Sting Ray. The 1963 Corvette (designated XP-720 during development) was not the first to bear the nickname "Sting Ray". This already existed on the XP-87 prototype, the Stingray racer. This was originally based on an experimental vehicle with the number XP-64 SS, but was continuously modified both technically and visually.

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