C2 Sting Ray

Corvette Sting Ray 1963- 1967

1963 Corvette with split rear window

The Corvette Sting Ray evolved from a racing car called the Mitchell Sting Ray. William L. Mitchell had replaced Harley Earl as head of General Motors styling in 1958. Mitchell thought it was important for the Corvette to be associated with racing, so he persuaded Chevrolet general manager Ed Cole to sell him the chassis of the 1957 Corvette SS “mule” for $1 (to get around the corporate racing ban) so he could build a race car. Mitchell had designer Larry Shinoda create a body for the Sting Ray race car inspired by the sea creature of the same name. Shinoda came up with the “split-window” coupe design which Mitchell loved although Zora Arkus-Duntov was against its vision-blocking look.The “split-window” was offered only one year and has become a very collectible item.  The split rear window was discontinued in 1964 due to safety concerns. Because they made the design too busy, the hood vents were also cut.

Corvette “firsts” for 1963 included optional knock-off wheels, air conditioning, and leather upholstery. Air conditioning was a rare option in 1963 because it was introduced late in the year. Only 1.3 percent of the 1963 Corvettes were so equipped.  However 83.5 percent came with four-speed manual transmission. The 184-powered Corvette could go from 0-to-60 mph in 5.9 seconds and from 0-to-100 mph in 16.5 seconds. Five historic Corvette Grand Sports were constructed in 1963 before all GM racing programs were canceled. Grand Sports weighed 1,908 pounds and had a 377-cd version of the small-block Chevy V-8 equipped with an aluminum cylinder block and aluminum hemi-head cylinder heads. They also featured a twin ignition system and port fuel injection.

1967 Corvette

In 2004, Sports Car International named the Sting Ray number five on the list of Top Sports Cars of the 1960s.

1967 Corvette rear