1955 Chevrolet Corvette Photos, engines & full specs

After the launch of the Corvette, GM noticed that its customers were not very happy with the white roadster that it produced, so it prepared an upgraded version for it for the 1955 model year.

After it hired Zora Arkus-Duntov, Chevrolet's big brass listened to what the race-car driver and engineer had to say and promoted him to work closely on the Corvette project. Even though he wasn't even employed by General Motors when the car was launched in 1953 at Motorama, he became known by many as the father of Corvette. His ideas kept the car on the assembly lines when many others believed that the little white roadster was a failure. He thought differently, and his ideas saved the car that became the most legendary American sports car.

While Duntov wasn't completely satisfied with the car's look, Harley Earl, who led the styling department, was. But still, he understood that it wasn't possible to sell the car in only one combination of white body and red interior. In addition, he added the option for a fiberglass greenhouse, which could be used for the winter season and left on the garage floor when the weather was warm.

Another significant improvement was the retractable fabric roof that could provide some cover during rainy days. Moreover, the 1955 Corvette featured side windows, which were unavailable for the previous model. However, the fiberglass bodywork remained, and GM started to master the art of shaping the body panels. Still, one of the car's aesthetic problems was its rear end. The fin-like rear fenders sported rocket-type round taillights, which Duntov considered to be inappropriate for a sportscar. Unfortunately, he couldn't change that, at least not yet.

The cabin couldn't get bigger since there was not enough room, but the automaker found ways to make its customers' rides more comfortable. Besides the heather and the stereo, the Corvette featured bucket seats separated by the thin transmission tunnel that crossed the vehicle from front to back. On the dash panel, the Corvette had the same shape for the speedometer in front of the driver as the 1953 model year. While that didn't change, the customers were able to choose different upholsteries for the car's interior.

But the most significant change happened under the hood. Duntov understood that the car lacked performance and that the Blue Flame straight-six engine couldn't satisfy sports car enthusiasts. As a result, he urged GM's management to install a V8 under the little roadster's hood. The car became an instant hit. While some customers still bought the six-cylinder unit, most of them opted for the V8. Moreover, besides the two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission, a three-speed manual became an option, and the sales took off.