Hope Springs Eternal

The 1954 model year actually began production on December 29, 1953 in the new manufacturing facility for Corvettes in St. Louis, Mo.  (Corvettes would continue to be manufactured in St. Louis until 1981 when manufacturing was moved to Bowling Green.) Although only fifteen cars were produced before the New Year, production quickly leaped to 50 daily.  By comparison, in Flint production was 50 per month.

The New Year brought another GM Motorama.  This time "dream cars" included a Chevrolet Nomad and a Chevrolet Corvair...both built on the Corvette chassis. 

In the photo on the right, you'll see not only the Nomad and Corvair but a proposed removable hardtop Corvette...with the standard Corvette in the background.   Unfortunately, only photographs remain of the Corvair which was later destroyed. 

Although St. Louis had a manufacturing capacity of 10,000, only 3,640 Corvettes were produced in 1954.  In June, GM shocked by the low sales figures halted fiberglass body panel construction entirely in Ohio.  The future looked dim.  In the end, only 2,780 were sold in MY 1954.  Serial numbers were:  E54S001001 through E54S004640.   (S for St. Louis.  1953 Corvette serial numbers began with E53F001001...F for Flint.)  

In an attempt to attract more customers, additional exterior colors, Black and Sportsmen Red (both with red interiors), were offered initially.  Pennant Blue with beige interior appeared late in the model year.  The convertible top was offered in beige instead of the black top offered in 1953.   Of the 3,640 Corvettes produced, the overwhelming choice was Polo White (3,230), followed by Pennant Blue (300), Sportsman Red (100) and Black (4).

The base price dropped in 1954 as part of the effort to lure more customers.  (Ford, in early 1954, announced its V-8 Thunderbird with rollup windows selling for $2,695.)  Corvette's base price decrease was partially due to the Powerglide Transmission becoming a separately listed option.  Motor Trend published an article in June 1954 comparing the T-bird and the 'vette.

Options for 1954 included:

Still linked to an automatic transmission, the 235 c.i. six-cylinder engine (265 c.i. V8 would have to wait until next model year...1955) received a mid-year power increase when a camshaft modification provided a 5hp boost to 155 horsepower.  Nevertheless, the 150 horsepower decals continued to be used on the Blue Flame engine.

Dimensions remained the same as the 1953 Corvette.

Late MY Corvettes had a dual air cleaner that replaced the three bullet design.  The 1954 valve cover was fastened with four bolts around the outside lip.   (The 1953 the valve cover was attached with two central studs.)  The valve cover decals had Blue Flame and the 150 reading from the passenger car side.   A few small changes were made to the window storage bar, starter and location of the fuel and brake lines.

Zora Arkus-Duntov's involvement with the Corvette which began in 1953 would last for the rest of his life.  He was responsible for two changes to the '54 model.  One involved extending the exhaust tip to eliminate a staining problem experienced by the "shortie" exhaust tips on the 1953 model.  The majority of 1953 models missed the "fix."  Only models later than #2523 were built with the extended exhaust pipes.

Zora also found that the inefficient aerodynamics of the Corvette were drawing exhaust into the passenger compartment, a potentially dangerous situation.  ZAD's solution was to open a slot in the bottom of the exhaust with a baffle projecting the exhaust downward.

In between GM tasks, Zora returned to Le Mans driving a Porsche to first-place and achieving his most important win in car racing.

Sales continued to be disappointing.  Of the nearly 4,000 Corvettes produced in 1953 and 1954, almost 25% remained unsold by New Year's Day, 1955. While GM corporate executives were disenchanted, as he would do later in the Corvette's history, Arkus-Duntov found himself championing the car. 

In October 1954, Zora pleaded for Corvette's life in a letter to Ed Cole and Maurice Olley. 

"Dropping the car now will have adverse effect internally and externally.   It is admission of failure.   Failure of aggressive thinking in the eyes of the organization, failure to develop a salable product in the eyes of the outside world.  The Corvette failed because it did not meet GM standards of a product.  It did not have the value for the money.  If the value of a car consists of practical values and emotional appeal, the sports car has very little of the first and consequently has to have an exaggerated amount of the second."

Although Motor Trend's 1954 Annual Buyer's Guide, in referring to the 1954 Corvette, describes "...the pleasures of driving a fairly hot car that "goes," stays flat through turns, has a solid ride and has eye-appeal."  Chevrolet had, in fact, failed again.  The car had little, if any, increase in Zora's "emotional appeal" index.   Despite Zora's eloquent plea for more "emotional appeal," the next model year (1955) would also bring disastrous sales.