joshtried

i have a quick question in you all can indulge me. what is the difference between the numbers on the speedo and the numbers on the tach (the numbers are in the pics below, though not very visible) they are different. speedo is 7383 and tach is 7174. if someone could help, it owuld be much appreciated! not like i have original engine/trans/half the car , but it would still be nice to know.

Frankie the Fink

The folks that deal with earlier vettes than mine can confirm but I believe one of the numbers (the tach ?) was an 'hours meter'....recording engine running hours quite similar to a boat. If I'm off base on this somebody will correct me... this meter was dropped in C1s produced in later years (like my '61). 7,000+ hours is a LOT of driving - equivalent to driving for 40 hours per week, 50 weeks a year for over 3 years.

However, looking at the mods done to this car -- it could be the number of light years to Alpha Centauri.

Bowtyeguy

Josh, I dont know what the numbers mean but thats one COOL car. Is the back all glass? I would love to see pics of that car done up when you are finished. The 58 Imp Convert is one of my favorite rides.

groovyjay

Pls. tell us more about this car?!

Michaelw

Funny looking ride! what is the history and story on this one????

L78racer

The numbers on the tach recorded thousands of revs. One number for every 1000 revs. 71,743,000 revs (~9700 revs per mile). I believe 1958 was the last year for this feature.

Frankie the Fink

Thought it was something like that -- couldn't find a description quickly in my Noland Adams C1 Resto & Tech guide...

Bluestripe67

Please tell us all about this car. Dennis

C2Driver

Josh, that is one unique ride!

Good luck with the restoration.

- Pat

joshtried

well, as the "story" goes, this was "apparently" a parade car. not so sure i believe that.. on the plus side, i can take my 1yr old AND my wife in this one!! we're gonna do a couple safety mods, like disc brakes and probably a steering upgrade. the rear end may needs to be changed out depending on what engine i decide on throwing in. im trying not to give it toooo much power since its SUPPOSED to be the wife's. we're planning on going with an original '54 front, and fixing all the holes/divots in the back. in the end, it will probably black w/ either white or red interior.
do any of yall know what the biggest engine/tranny combo will fit on a '54 frame with little to know major modification?
the person i bought the car from had a "spare" power glide laying around from who knows what, and i plan on calling him and trying to pick that up.
in the end though, i think i wanna have something carb'd, though not necessarily the blue flame set up. im sure it really is not to complicated, but it sure looks that way. i want something that i know i can work on (engine wise). not something that i have to take to a specialty shop every time i need a tune up. as far as the rest of the drivetrain goes.. turnin a wrench hasnt been a problem so far! minus trannys anyways.. im clueless to those things. unless its an outside component, that will always be going to a shop.
my biggest hope is this car doesnt just turn into one huge bubba fest. i know its not great now... but i wanna try and do it to the best of my ability (read budget). should be fun all around though!

Bluestripe67

My question to you is, where did it come from? Could this be a former GM design/prototype of some sort that got out the back door? Have you looked the body over for any unusual markings, numbers. I saw the vin plate in one shot. Is it a standard plate, i.e., looks just like any other '54. Very interesting! Dennis

corvette67jim

I believe that it would tough for it to be an original design car as the front end of the car is 4yrs older than the rear.

L78racer

Does anyone recognize the rear bumpers on this car? I'm just wondering if they are something off of another car or custom made (which means they would cost alot to make). The outers look similar to '58-'62 Vette fronts. Looks like it was well thought out when made. It appears there was a VIN tag on it. Do you have The VIN tag?
Is that a '53 rear axle? '54? I'm not up on the early ones.

richbopp

ahhh yes, the seldom seen 5458 Corpala. I always loved that car

joshtried

no vin tag... there is the place for it. there is a guy 2 owners back trying to sell the vin and title for 3k. im going to try and figure the legal way to get this back... i guess we'll have to see. if nothing else Hawaii will vin and title it. i do have a bill of sale, and if i find the vin # on the frame, i am going to have a repo vin tag made, then fetch the title that way. slightly less legal, but the stuff should have never left the car

Low Rider

The center part is of a 58 Impala with continental kit....the out side pieces look like a C2 or C3 front bumper modified to fit.....

BlueSkunk952

The numbers on the tach are actually "revs x 1000". The total number of revs the engine has turned.
Love the car!

joshtried

interesting... why would you want to know the total revs any given car has turned? is there a magic number when things break??

BTW, this car is greater than 2x my age... it is about 54 years old, and im 23.

vettes1st

To answer your follow on question, any small block Chevy will fit just fine. If you want to do a little extra work an LS series will work very well too. Very interesting car. Any idea how long it's been on the island? I love the first series Vette. Had several over the years. About finished with an LS1/6-speed 1954, after to many years of working on it.

Frankie the Fink

They don't want to know -- that is why this meter was dropped in later years.

I have read, but not confirmed, that the Corvette instrumentation was designed after fighter aircraft of the era and those machines had stringent requirements for rebuilding/maintenance after a set number of flight hours (as they do today). Maybe it derived from that design criteria somehow.