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1963 Chevrolet Corvette

1963 Chevrolet Corvette - for sale, auction results and photo gallery

1963 Chevrolet Corvette

1963 Corvette History

The Corvette received a major restyling in 1963. This model is noted as the start of the second generation or C2 Corvettes. The 1963 is also the first Corvette to carry the name "String Ray".

With the exception of the rear deck treatment, the 1963 is totally different from its predecessor. Design highlights include two long "wind split" indentations on the front fenders designed to look like brake cooling ducts. While this feature was non-functional, the twin side-by-side headlights, hidden behind an electronically-operated retractable panel did add to the car's aerodynamic design.

The 63 Corvette was the first to be offered in a coupe version. The new coupe featured a divided rear window which limited rearward vision. The split window proved unpopular with Corvette engineer, Zora Arkus-Duntov, the driving force behind the car's racing program. Duntov campaigned heavily for its elimination resulting in 1963 being the only year of the "split-window coupe", making this model highly desired by Corvette collectors.

Another first for the Corvette in 1963 was the availability of factory-installed air conditioning. Of the 21,468 cars built only 278 carried the comfort-improving but performance-decreasing option.

After a decade of production for the classic but outdated live-axle Corvette model, the factory pulled out all the stops to present the brand new Corvette of 1963. In this case, “new” was not a figment of an advertising copywriter’s imagination, since every aspect of the exciting Corvette was totally redesigned. True, the engines and transmissions were carried over from 1962, but they were already engineered to world class standards, as attested to by all of the magazine reviews of the time.

A beautiful new fiberglass body, for the first time available as both a coupe and a convertible, presented the most obvious improvement. Borrowing nothing from the design of any other car, either foreign or domestic, this unique Stingray show car-inspired design still looks as fresh and exciting today as it did at the time of its introduction 40 years ago.

Underneath, a redesigned and much stiffer chassis with independent rear suspension, by now de rigeur for any automobile of sporting pretensions, offered vastly improved handling over its solid axle predecessor. The engineering of this platform validated itself by the fact that it continued, almost untouched, until the 1983 Corvette model year. Under the direct influence of three General Motors titans – Bill Mitchell and Larry Shinoda in styling and Zora Arkus-Duntov in engineering – it is no wonder that this Corvette came out right.

Before the new Stingray even appeared in showrooms around the nation, enterprising road racers like Dick Guldstrand, Bob Bondurant, Allen Grant and Davy MacDonald had them on the track. Doug Hooper, in the new Corvette’s maiden voyage, won at the Riverside Times Grand Prix. One of the kings of Stingray competition was the sensational Dave MacDonald, whose spectacular sideways driving style in his Z06 Corvette compensated for the car’s inadequate (for racing) drum brakes, which were not upgraded by GM until the 1965 model year.

The Z06 Regular Production Option, also known as “Special Performance Group”, was certainly one of the most desirable specifications for the 1963 Corvette. At $1,818.45 it was also tremendously pricey and cost nearly half as much as the car itself. Early in the 1963 model year it was a coupe-only option, but later could be ordered with convertibles as well for a somewhat reduced option cost of $1,293.95. The lower price reflected the deletion of knock-off wheels (which were temporarily discontinued because they leaked air) and the coupe’s 36-gallon gas tank that would not fit in the convertible’s top storage well. Only 199 cars were assembled with the Z06 option in that year and of these, 63 are known to have had the large 36-gallon tank.

Typically checked off on the order form by buyers who intended to road race their Corvettes in the SCCA’s B-Production class, the Z06 package started off with the L84 fuel-injected solid lifter 360 horsepower V8 and M21 close ratio four-speed transmission. The 1963 L84 had improved fuel injection for faster throttle response and the M21 was the first four-speed built at GM’s Muncie transmission plant rather than the Borg-Warner-built T10 M20. Also included were a Posi-Traction limited slip differential and cast aluminum knock-off wheels, for which Z06 buyers probably received credit since casting porosity prevented them from being delivered. The Z06 also included an impressive list of additional, and very special, parts including the 36.5-gallon fuel tank, bigger brakes and stiffer springs, shocks and front anti-roll bar. The car’s braking system, the Corvettes’ Achilles heel, was state of the art with a dual master cylinder, vacuum brake booster and wider-finned aluminum drums with 334 square inches of swept area and sintered metallic linings.

A one year-only option, the “Special Performance Group” option essentially wrapped up all the things a Corvette road-racer needed in one easily-specified package. Save for perhaps a roll bar and fire extinguisher, a Z06-equipped Corvette could be driven directly to the track and run at the front of the pack all day long.

Weight: 3,150 lbs
Factory Base Price: $4,257
Total Production: 21,468 (10,549 coupes, 10,919 convertibles)

Related Pages

• 1962 Chevrolet Corvette
• 1964 Chevrolet Corvette
• 1963 Chevrolet Cars and Trucks
• Chevrolet Corvette Main Page
• Chevrolet Main Page
• Remarkable Cars Home Page

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Copyright © 2009 Douglas Wilkinson. All rights reserved.