1957 Corvette Fuses Traditional Looks with Cutting-Edge Performance
This immaculate 1957 Corvette C1 is a blend to the car’s classic styling with cutting-edge technology for the ultimate in handling.
It started with brand new chassis from Progressive Automotive of Baltimore, Ohio. It’s a boxed framerails constructed from 10-gauge sheet steel. The new frame follows the original contours, width and shape for a perfect fit, and also features a tubular crossmember for added strength.
In back, a rebuilt original 1957 rearend was packed with 3.36:1 gears and hung in place by
Progressive’s triangulated four-bar suspension combined with Aldan American coilover shocks and heavy-duty sway bar.
Up front is all business with Progressive’s exclusive IFS featuring their very own tubular upper and lower control arms deftly matched to Heidts 2-inch drop spindles, Aldan American adjustable coilover shocks and heavy-duty sway bar.
When you need to cut the speed, a CPP dual master pushes fluid through stainless lines to 11-inch drilled and vented discs with four-piston calipers from ECI anchored at each corner.
To dial in a perfect stance, a set of 18×7 Billet Specialties Legacy wheels capped with BFGoodrich rubber seals the deal.
The engine is full of go-fast goods. The 1971 400ci block was massaged to 406 ci and filled with a forged steel crank linked to Chevy rods and topped with a set of TRW forged aluminum pistons.
For plenty of thump, a stick from COMP Cams sets the beat while plenty of power comes from a pair of World Products Sportsman II cast-iron cylinder heads. Up top, an
Edelbrock dual-quad intake wears a pair of matching 500-cfm carbs that spark to life through an upgraded Hypertech HEI ignition.
Spent gasses dump through a set of ram’s-horn manifolds to a custom-fabricated 2 1/2-inch stainless exhaust with stainless bullet-style mufflers for a mellow tone.
To move the goods, a warmed-over Hughes Performance Powerglide trans meets a custom driveshaft to complete the package.
If you’re going through the trouble of building a top-notch roller, the rest of the car had better be equally impressive. Brian Volker of 5-Star Collision in Medina, New York, sowed his magic. Volker prepped the body and went to work painstakingly preparing it for paint as well as setting all the gaps and making it all perfectly straight.
When everything was blocked to concours standards, he loaded his spray gun with PPG Venetian Red and laid down a decadent coating to bring it all to life. He then followed by adding the finishing touch, classic ivory gloss to the coves. The reassembly process utilizing fresh brightwork from Corvette Central and Trim Parts, Inc. A black Haartz convertible top from Coffman Corvette adds plenty of allure to the exterior. The original and restored hardtop is there too.
Focusing on the final details of the interior, and retain the classic good looks designed by the factory with a few personal touches. The stock dash was retained and once again filled with stock gauges that were painstakingly restored, all new wiring an dor added comfort, the steering column was moved forward 3 inches while a custom Lokar shifter was added to pull the gears.
To complete the interior, Wise Guys of Elkhart, Indiana, supplied the custom 3-inch lowered vivid-red seats with factory-style material while the door and related panels are by Al Knoch Interiors and carpeting is by Corvette Central with custom updates by Rose Spitzer.
This is one fine 1957 Corvette with loads of style and plenty of performance and handling infused into one bitchin package putting down plenty of miles across New York.
Now in our shop with Dutch registration!