Photo: RM Sotheby's
All caught up in reporting all about the new mid-engined Corvette, we tend to forget there were models in this family of cars that forever changed the face of American carmaking. Like the fuel-injected variant of 1957 Vette.
Included by CNN not long ago on its list of most valuable Corvettes ever, the Fuelie as it became known among fans, is also one of the rarest sports cars of its breed. That year, in 1957, only 1,040 were made because well, back then fuel injection was not that hot and mostly offered as an option.
Coming on the heels of the rather not impressive early Corvette, the Fuelie quickly became the fastest American car in 1957. It was powered by a 283ci engine (4.6-liters), and developed 283 horsepower. That’s 1 hp per cubic inch, a feat not many other American sports cars were capable of at that time.
Ironically, of the 1,040 fuel-injected Vettes only 716 actually generated 283 hp, and that makes finding one in working order today an improbable task. But not an impossible one, because exactly such a car popped on as available at an auction.
The car you see in the gallery above is a true Fuelie, packing the entire 283 troop. It looks pristine because in 2011 it underwent a restoration process, one that did not require many of the original parts, including the engine, to be replaced.
The car will sell at the beginning of March at Amelia Island, where RM Sotheby’s will try and get the most for it. No estimate of how much it could fetch was made, but usually such cars change hands for over $100,000. Obviously, the seller is expecting more.
“This 1957 Corvette is an exceptional example of America’s fastest and finest sports car of its time. This rare “Fuelie” presents beautifully and offers its next owner a wonderful opportunity for proper Corvette show judging,” the auction house says in a statement.
Coming on the heels of the rather not impressive early Corvette, the Fuelie quickly became the fastest American car in 1957. It was powered by a 283ci engine (4.6-liters), and developed 283 horsepower. That’s 1 hp per cubic inch, a feat not many other American sports cars were capable of at that time.
Ironically, of the 1,040 fuel-injected Vettes only 716 actually generated 283 hp, and that makes finding one in working order today an improbable task. But not an impossible one, because exactly such a car popped on as available at an auction.
The car you see in the gallery above is a true Fuelie, packing the entire 283 troop. It looks pristine because in 2011 it underwent a restoration process, one that did not require many of the original parts, including the engine, to be replaced.
The car will sell at the beginning of March at Amelia Island, where RM Sotheby’s will try and get the most for it. No estimate of how much it could fetch was made, but usually such cars change hands for over $100,000. Obviously, the seller is expecting more.
“This 1957 Corvette is an exceptional example of America’s fastest and finest sports car of its time. This rare “Fuelie” presents beautifully and offers its next owner a wonderful opportunity for proper Corvette show judging,” the auction house says in a statement.
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