1957 Chevrolet Corvette ‘Fuel-Injected’ Roadster

Survival for Corvette was touch and go in the early years. 1955 almost saw the end of this wonderful experiment in the making and marketing of a true American Sports Car. Chevrolet had created a new market niche with those first machines, and it took the improvements seen with the 1956 edition that persuaded executives at GM to give the Corvette a new lease on life. Among those improvements were creature comforts such as exterior door handles, roll-up windows, adjustable seats, power steering as an option, a close ratio shifting setup and more powerful engine choices. With superb engineering from Zora Arkus-Duntov, mechanical upgrades promoted by Ed Cole, and eye-catching styling by Harley Earl, these three wise men breathed new life into the Corvette. Customers responded in stronger numbers selling nearly five times as many Corvettes in 1956 with 3,467 produced. Exterior changes for 1957 were pretty much undetectable. The big news was what was happening under the hood with the introduction of the larger 283-cubic-inch V-8. It was available in five flavors starting with 220 HP in base four-barrel form, with dual four-barrel carburetors rated at 245 HP or 270 HP based on hydraulic or solid lifters respectively, and the new Rochester mechanical fuel-injection system in 250 HP or at the very top and most desirable 283 HP. Corvette had accomplished the goal of creating one HP per cubic inch. The end results of these improvements saw nearly an 80 percent jump in sales for the 1957s; it ensured that the breed would survive for generations to come.