1967 CHEVROLET CORVETTE STING RAY CONVERTIBLE

Slow-selling in its painful first year of  1953, the Chevrolet Corvette has never fully been adopted by the American people due to its fiberglass body and underpowered engine, but today it holds the title of true American sports car.

A product of the second, short-lived generation’s last year, this 1967 Corvette Sting Ray, designed by Bill Mitchell, was the most desirable and collectable vehicle in the sports car class. With an engine further strengthened every year, it was the most muscular of earlier Corvettes.

The Corvette’s standard engine in that year was the 327 V8 Turbo-Fire of 327 cu.in. delivering 300 bhp. However, an additional 100 Dollars would purchase a high-performance camshaft and increased compression ratio which raised power to 350 bhp. This “small block” V8 had been fitted as standard in the Corvette in 1962 with 250 bhp.

1963, the first year of the Corvette’s second generation, brought many innovations: this was the first Corvette with wishbone rear suspension and a true trunk, and the first Corvette with a coupe body, the name Sting Ray and retractable headlights (used for the first time since the 1942 De Soto).

Purchased by the personal efforts of our Museum’s founder, Ural Ataman, following an unsuccessful auction in the United States, this Sting Ray with its noisy engine is one of the favorite pieces in our collection.