Synopses & Reviews
In the immediate post-WWII period, America needed practical transportation, and Chevrolet met that need. General Motor’s entry-level division sold every car it could build and helped make GM one of the most profitable companies in the world. But selling vast numbers of pedestrian entry-level cars gave Chevrolet a reputation as an unexciting, humdrum brand. A few visionaries within the company realized that this image could cause long-term problems and set about injecting some excitement into the bow-tie division. The result was the birth of one of the most illustrious sports cars, not just in America, but in the world. The 1953 Corvette showed the world that GM was serious about building a performance car. Because it sprang from modest origins, the original Corvette was a modest car, with a six-cylinder engine lifted from one of Chevrolet’s sedans, but almost immediately, a team of gifted engineers and designers began to tap into the car’s potential; within a few years, Chevrolet’s little fiberglass car went from being an underpowered poser to a championship-winning racer. The Corvette has never looked back. Through a process of continuous refinement and improvement, the Corvette has remained one of the world’s most capable sports cars decade after decade. Corvette: Sixty Years celebrates the history of this fabled machine, from the initial six-cylinder convertible of 1953 to the mind-boggling 640-horsepower ZR1 of today. Through first-person interviews with all the key players and stunning archival and modern photography, author Randy Leffingwell brings the Corvette story to life.
Review
"This book details well this saga in a lavish presentation, along with an equally well-researched text with all the details that an enthusiast could wish for." - Victory Lane "Place Corvette Sixty Years on your coffee table and it’s bound to be a favorite page turner, but better yet prop it in your lap and turn the pages slowly and learn everything you’ve never known about the legendary two-seater." - Iveho.com
Review
"Mr. Leffingwell’s encyclopedic knowledge of the topic, and of the players, helps immensely here, in separating the seminal from the trivial and in conveying the information concisely.... a worthwhile addition." -
The New York TimesSynopsis
Through hundreds of rare and unpublished photos from GM's media and design archives and in-depth text by renowned Corvette historian Randy Leffingwell, Corvette Sixty Years celebrates the first six decades of America’s sports car, covering the revolution and evolution of America’s longest continuously produced nameplate, from Harley Earl’s initial concept to the latest 60th anniversary edition built to celebrate the Vette’s 60th year. Created in cooperation with General Motors, the book focuses as much on the Corvette’s place in popular culture as it does on the engineering and design history. This book offers something for everyone who has ever lusted after a Vette. From the inaugural 1953 Corvette to today’s stunning sixth-generation car, Corvette Sixty Years touches on all aspects of Chevrolet’s iconic sports car: history, racing, period ads, posters, memorabilia, key designers like Bill Mitchell, engineers like the fabled Zora Arkus-Duntov, celebrity Vette fans, and more. For Corvette fans, it’s an ultimate celebration of America’s most famous car.
About the Author
Randy Leffingwell wrote his first book, American Muscle, in 1989 while still on staff at the Los Angeles Times. Since then, he has authored another 47 titles for Motorbooks and its sister publisher Voyageur Press, including his most recent Complete Book of Porsche 911 and Corvette 60 Years. He has just finished Porsche 911: Fifty Years, a reexamination of the 911 story based on nearly two dozen new interviews. He lives in southern California, about 100 miles north of Los Angeles. Learn more about him on his website: www.rleffingwell.com.
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction
In the Beginnnig - THE BIRTH OF THE CORVETTE
From Domincation to Disco - THE SECOND AND THIRD GENERATION
Reclaiming the Throne - THE FOURTH, FIFTH, AND SIXTH GENERATIONS
Racing - BEATING THE WORLD’S BEST
Community Action - THE PEOPLE AND PLACES
Epilogue
Index