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Yes, including General Motors and the Chevrolet Motor Division. I will reserve judgement until definitive proof is produced.
It can never definitely be proved. This body has been around and known by the so called experts for a very long time. This is nothing new. The only thing that changed is that for some reason the word got out that Corey bought the body from Lloyd but that happened a long time ago. This body will eventually show up one day as a built car with NOM of course and questions as to whether it is body # 1. There will be body modifications representing what the 1st body was but who knows when and where they were done. All I am saying is that if this car could be proved as number 1 it would have been built long ago by the many experts it has crossed paths with. It is just another 53 body. This is a lot of hype for nothing.
Jay
Last edited by deejaydu; Feb 14, 2023 at 10:10 AM.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPLNM0JRAFo&t=2328s
forward to 38:48
In my opinon
If it is a body - it will need to be THOROUGHLY inspected by experts
Ken Kayser with GM DOCUMENTATION shows number 1 EX52 Car number 852 was BURNED
Took 4 hours to burn
The chassis and top survived
If Corey has the body - it need to be inspected by experts
Production car 3 was the first car built - the chassis is in the Corvette museum
Chris
Per the 1993 Amgwert article from The Corvette Restorer, it was the body of the Motorama show car that was burned on November 6, 1953:
Kayser has a theory, which you can see on the youtube video, that GM took the existing two show cars and staged them to be 001 and 002 for the June 30, 1953 roll out.
There was an article back in 2006 in the On Solid Ground magazine that discusses a 53 body that was found by Pete Wilzbach (no VIN tag) that could have been #002. I quoted the entire article here:
Just recently read an article, most likely NCRS magazine, about a gentleman who is collating and tracking all of the 1953's (I believe he owns 1 or more). He said #1 and #2 were used for testing and crushed, leaving 298 cars. But a show/concept car currently exists built in 1953, so his article claims 299 1953's. Article also listed VIN's for unaccounted for cars.
Who's to say that some part or parts of #1 or #2 were kept and "morphed" into a complete car. Just like the Grand Sport book I am reading, stating that a 6th chassis/body was produced but not finished before the head office killed the program.
C Ya, JM Rock
Frankenstein 59
Just recently read an article, most likely NCRS magazine, about a gentleman who is collating and tracking all of the 1953's (I believe he owns 1 or more). He said #1 and #2 were used for testing and crushed, leaving 298 cars. But a show/concept car currently exists built in 1953, so his article claims 299 1953's. Article also listed VIN's for unaccounted for cars.
Who's to say that some part or parts of #1 or #2 were kept and "morphed" into a complete car. Just like the Grand Sport book I am reading, stating that a 6th chassis/body was produced but not finished before the head office killed the program.
C Ya, JM Rock
Frankenstein 59
It was not uncommon back in the early days of Corvettes to have bodies shuffled around from frame to frame ESPECIALLY show cars and early race cars. The race cars because there were warring factions amongst the GM executives regarding their feelings on factory sponsoring of factory race cars. They allowed them to be built for research and development purposes and then they were supposed to be destroyed. All of the 1957 factory sponsored race cars they build were “supposed” to be destroyed when the factory racing ban went into effect in 1957. NONE of them were but were instead funneled out the back door to independent racers in a way for the racing supportive people in Chevrolet to secretly sponsor these race car owners. I have heard stories that Chevrolet would sometimes switch V.I.N. plates from car to car in these early days. Many of the original show and experimental cars morphed over several years. This was no problem since the “factory” is in fact the birth parent of the car and not something that is legal for an individual to do.
I believe that the first two 1953 were in fact some of these types of cars as they fit the “pattern” of what GM would typically do and that the third built car is in fact the first factory released car to the public.
Found the article: America's Sports Car- NCM Publication, Jan-Mar 2023. Pg 20 "Class of 1953" by Kevin Brady. Article stated EX-122 experimental concept car for Motorama is included, though not built from 1 of the 300.
C Ya, JM Rock
Frankenstein 59
If one thinks that a lot of the GM show cars were destroyed, one might want to look at the inventory that was sent to the Warhoops' crusher that ended up taking the proverbial "Flight of the Phoenix" to become resurrected cars.
Last edited by Dan Hampton; Mar 7, 2023 at 07:01 PM.
"However, while emptying out the parts stuffed in the Corvette's trunk, he happened to look under one of the flaps on the bottom of one of the cardboard boxes and found a door jamb VIN plate with a serial number ending in 001."
If authenticated, this would be a clincher. But what I don't think is discussed in the recent disclosures is an explanation for the previously discussed engine compartment changes that were reported to be consistent with VIN #002 (3951), from the Fall 2006 On Solid Ground article:
#3951 Work Orders? 10. Right side inner fender reworked with factory type materials to allow fit of 12V battery. 11. Left side inner fender reworked w/ factory type materials to allow steering gear fit with V-8. 12. Wiring harness has crude 12V components - hand-scribed 12V on flasher unit - All wires are yellow-cloth wrapped with no color coding. 13. Odd radiator support. Angle iron fabrication w/ multiple holes. Radiator angle testing? 14. Many sets of holes indicate multiple placements of heater motor and hoses at firewall. 15. Holes present for both vacuum and electric type motors on the upper middle of firewall.
Photo: Right side inner fender showing the change to accomodate the battery. Photo: Left side inner fender showing indent where the steering box was moved over. The cut in it was probably to access the A arm behind it. Note the unusual wiring. Photo: Right side firewall showing multiple heater hose holes. Photo: Upper firewall showing holes for both vacuum and electric wiper motors.
Nope but many suckers will fall for it. Like I mentioned long ago this body being represented as #1 has been around for what seems like forever. It is well known by all of the true experts and believe me if it was the real deal Corey would not own it.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
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begee22
