The 1959 Corvette Stingray
photo by General Motors Heritage Collection
Thanks to the GM Heritage Center in Warren, Mi., the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Ky., and the Revs Institute in Naples, Fl., the Chattanooga MotorCar Festival, presented by DeFoor Brothers, sponsored by Volkswagen of America, will feature a display of vintage and concept Corvettes on Oct. 11-13.
"America's sports car" will be represented at the inaugural Festival on the Tennessee Riverfront by early models from the Corvette's beginning, to the latest mid-engine C8.
The array of the world's most important Corvettes will include a 1953 Corvette, one of just 300 units that were hand-built that first year; the iconic 1963 Corvette Stingray Z06 Split-Window Coupe; the 1972 Chevrolet Reynolds Aluminum Mid-Engine Corvette XP-895; the 1959 Corvette Stingray Prototype that saved the Corvette for all time; and the 1963 Corvette Grand Sport, the fourth of just five built.
Other significant Corvettes to be shown are the 1969 Chevrolet Manta Ray Corvette Concept; the 2009 50th Anniversary "Centennial Corvette" and, of course, the newest car in the fleet, the first production mid-engine Corvette, the 2020 C8.
"I guarantee that visitors to the Festival will be wowed by the stunning collection of historic, and newer, Corvettes on display," said Byron DeFoor, founder of the Chattanooga MotorCar Festival. "To be able to view the history of this great sports car in one venue can only be described as 'amazing.'"
"The Corvette's background is a story worth retelling," said Ken Gross, award-winning automotive journalist, and the Festival's Concourse Committee chairman. "From its inception in 1953, the Corvette was distinctive. Small-block V8 power nailed its status as a competitive sports racer, but it wasn't until the crisply functional 1963 Stingray that the model really achieved a lasting breakthrough as a design icon. With each successive generation, and ever more advanced engineering, the Corvette has outlasted would-be competitors while moving further and further ahead. Rivaling European counterparts, Chevrolet boldly calls the Corvette 'The Ultimate American Sports Car.' Who are we to disagree?"
The 2019 Chattanooga MotorCar Festival is an inaugural multi-day event, incorporating the style of its European counterparts by holding unique classic car events tailored to the vintage/historic car collector and racer, and the welcoming hospitality that is the trademark of the American South. It includes Time Trials, a Concours d'Elegance, a Rallye and family activities. Hosted by Fifty Plus Racing Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, CMCF benefits Chattanooga Erlanger Neuroscience Institute, the region's only certified academic Neuroscience Center.
For more information, go to www.ChattanoogaMotorCar.com or contact the Chattanooga MotorCar Festival at info@ChattanoogaMotorCar.com.
The 2009 Corvette Stingray Concept Car
photo by General Motors Heritage Collection