1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray
It was better looking than the Ferraris of the time and it inspired a whole new trend of American Pony Cars.
Chevrolet Corvette is one of the most iconic American muscle cars. Built with pride in America the Corvette holds a great history of development behind the wheel that makes it one of the greatest in automobile history. Corvettes are known for their high horses, slick lines, and sporty looks.
In 1963 the new Chevy Corvette Sting Ray was first introduced. The car was distinctive with its split rear window, (which later on changed to a full-view window) and fake hood vents. Due to the poor handling and stiff suspension of the first-generation Corvette, the second-gen Sting Ray Coupe featured independent rear suspension, the first generation inline headlights were replaced by pop-up headlights, and the car was made smaller and more sporty.
Like all Corvettes since 1955, the ’63 was powered by a V8 engine that steadily grew as the years progressed. The 327 was offered in four states of tune including a $480 fuel injected version that offered 360 bhp. These were attached to either a three-speed manual, Powerglide automatic or a Borg-Warner manual four-speed on request. Even the 360 bhp engine was virtually replaced in 1965 by the big block 396 Turbo Jet. Eventually, a 427 was offered, and produced around 600 bhp in 1967 with the potent L88 option.
When the garage door creaked open, the two nearly lost their poker faces. Though faded, the paint checked out; the interior was surprisingly quite nice with only the carpets faded over the years. The headers were rusty, and the side pipes needed attention. But when they unlatched the hood to reveal the twin-line, dual-master cylinder with the copper cover they really celebrated.
Compared with previous Corvettes, the Sting Ray is improved in almost every imaginable respect: performance, handling, ride comfort, habitability and trunk space. The trunk is only accessible from inside the car, however, since the tail is full of fuel tank and spare wheel, but the storage space behind the seats is even larger than outside dimensions indicate. A third person, sitting sideways, may come along for short rides, but will soon feel cramped from lack of headroom. An occasional extra passenger will actually be better off sitting on the console between the seats and sharing legroom with the shotgun rider.
To wrap it up, the release of the 1963 Chevy Corvette was a great success, the long hood and sexy rear-end made the car one of the most exciting vehicles you could see at the time. It was better looking than the Ferraris of the time and it inspired a whole new trend of American Pony cars. Today it remains one of the greatest American cars built in America, for Americans, and it still brings the same excitement it once brought the first day it rolled out of Detroit.
