Meet the Million Dollar Corvette – One of Five ‘57s From GM’s Test Fleet
This million dollar Corvette makes a case for its lofty asking price with some serious historical prominence.
A million dollars may not be what it used to be, but for most, it’s still a hefty amount of money. This is especially true when we’re talking about spending a cool mil on a singular object like a car. But that’s the asking price for this super rare, super special 1957 Corvette up for sale at Sierra Classics & Imports, or $990,000, to be precise. But this million dollar Corvette certainly has the pedigree to back up that lofty asking price, at least.
This million dollar Corvette is one of just five examples produced as part of Zora Arkus-Duntov’s “Field Test Fleet,” a group of cars fitted with fuel injection, heavy-duty brakes and suspension, a T-10 four-speed manual transmission, and special prototype rear leaf springs. The purpose of these cars was to test out some of the go-fast goodies present in GM’s Corvette Super Sport, the automaker’s purpose-built racer, ahead of its debut at Sebring in 1957.
GM’s intentions for these Field Test Fleet Corvettes was to put them in the hands of racers, who could then give the automaker feedback that it could use to hone its special parts for the track. But this particular car – the first of a special group – is a relative mystery. No one knows who originally owned it, though it’s believed that the car was sold at a Southern California dealership.
During the Corvette’s restoration, two repaired cutouts were found in the car that signifies that it once had a roll cage installed, as this C1 was clearly raced in competition. Famed Corvette hunter Mike Pillsbury briefly owned it back in 1968 when it was finished in white with a white interior, as was the case with most of these Field Test Fleet Corvettes.
This special machine was fully restored by Corvette legend Rich Mason back in 1990, but the chassis was purposely left alone and remains in original condition. Outside of a set of Halibrand wheels, it still sports all of the go-fast goodies that made it so special in the first place. But is it worth a million bucks? Well, the market will decide that, but in our minds, this special machine at least has the historical prominence to back up that lofty asking price.
Photos: Sierra Classics & Imports
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