Corvette History on Display at the Chicago Auto Show

Corvette models from all but two generations are on display, as well as an early concept.

The C8 Corvette is the centerpiece of the Chevrolet display at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show. During the media preview, there was a convertible in Sebring Orange on one pedestal and a hardtop in Rapid Blue on the other. Those two Chevys drew a ton of attention during the media preview and they are sure to draw big crowds this week as the public pours into McCorkmick Place.

However, part of what makes the Chicago Auto Show unique from many other major auto shows around the United States is the inclusion of non-new models. The automakers are often joined by other groups and businesses, several of which included at least one Corvette in their display. As a result, those folks who attend the Chicago Auto Show can check out not one, but six generations of the legendary Chevy sports car.

The Lost Corvettes

Back in the summer of 2019, the story of “the lost Corvettes” took the internet by storm. VH1 gave one lucky viewer 36 Corvettes back in 1989 – one from every model year. Before that person took delivery of the unique collection, artist Peter Max purchased them and had them shipped to New York City.

They were tucked storage, where Max planned to use them for a project, but that project never came to fruition. The cars just sat there until they were sold in 2019. The new owner isn’t adding them to a collection. Every one of these cars will be raffled off to benefit the National Guard Educational Foundation.

At the 2020 Chicago Auto Show, six of those 36 Corvettes were on display, offering a quick look at the unique spread of cars included in that sweepstakes. In this group, there are cars from the C1, C2 an C3 eras, including one interesting race car.

Click here for more information on winning one of these Corvettes.

Corvette Nomad

During the 1954 GM Motorama shows, the automaker displayed a Corvette Nomad wagon. It was a static display car, built on the first Corvette chassis, wearing serial number EX-52. That chassis was lengthened and fitted with the one-off fiberglass body to create the Wagon Show Car #857. This car had the front end and the rear clip of the then-new sports car with the mid lines of the Nomad. The result was a two-door wagon based on the hot, new Corvette.

Sadly, that show car mysteriously disappeared after its time with the Motorama shows, presumably having been dissembled. Fortunately, this remarkable replica has been created based on the pictures and information from the 1950s.

This Corvette Nomad looks cool in pictures, but this car is absolutely flawless.

Lingenfelter Corvettes

Tucked along a wall of McCormick Hall is a collection of unique Chevrolet products, sponsored by Chicagoland Chevy dealers. There is a new Blazer decorated in the colors of the Blackhawks with a team-themed backdrop. Nickey has provided a pair of modified Camaros. There are also two unique Corvettes from the folks at Lingenfelter, including a built C7 Z06 with 1,100 horsepower and a C6 with a custom body inspired by the 1963 Split Window Coupe.

The black C7 Z06 is fitted with the Lingenfelter Eliminator Series, which builds the engine and adds an aftermarket supercharger. The result of this package is 1,100 horsepower in a subtle package.

The other car is the most unique of this piece. It is a C6 Corvette with a body designed to look like a Split Window Coupe from the C2 era. Under the custom hood is an LS3 engine fitted with a Edelbrock supercharger, delivering 600 horsepower and 547 lb-ft of torque.

The C8

Finally, as we mentioned above, the C8 Corvette is the focal point of the Chicago Chevy area. You can’t get into them, as they are both on secure pedestals. We are sure that these two gorgeous mid-engine machines will still be popular attractions all week.

Only the C4 and C5 era cars were not represented at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show.

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