The 1955 brochure was justifiably proud of the exciting new addition to the Corvette:

A cyclone of power

with the new 195-h.p. V8 engine

A breath-stopping surge of power that surpasses anything you have ever imagined--that's the story of the Corvette's new 195-h.p. V8 engine. Here is a "dream" powerplant…ultra-compact, free breathing, super-efficient, the most modern valve-in-head V8 engine in the world…and it can be serviced by any Chevrolet dealer. Dual exhausts, a four-barrel carburetor, 8 to 1 compression ratio, and a high-lift camshaft squeeze latent energy out of every drop of gasoline…and careful counter-balancing of the entire engine after assembly keeps it smooth as a jet of steam.

Thank You, Mr. Ford

With such a disastrous beginning, how did the Corvette survive? After three model years, it did not look good. Chevrolet had a new plant capable of producing 10,000 Corvettes a year, yet only sold 700 in 1955. Customers did not seem interested and dealers, many of whom lost money on 1954 models, less so. Under most circumstances, a car company would just cut their losses.

We still have the Corvette over 50 years later because Ed Cole, the GM executive who believed passionately in the car and Zora Arkos-Duntov, the engineer who would later be instrumental in the direction of the Corvette. There was also the 1955 Ford Thunderbird.

Ford and Chevrolet fans do not normally get along. But this is one instance where Chevrolet followers should be offering to purchase their Ford counterparts a beverage of their choice. In 1955 Ford introduced the two seater Thunderbird which was classified as a "personal luxury car". Ford did not make the same mistakes Chevrolet did with the Corvette and equipped it so that it would have a market. It succeeded, which presented a dilemma for Chevrolet: should they abandon the Corvette, it would appear that they had lost in the two seat category. Corporate egos are powerful things and a new Corvette would be available in 1956.

What happened next is well known. The Thunderbird would cease as a two seater in 1958 and then go in a confused direction, gaining weight and losing performance along the way. It would disappear from the lineup and then reappear as a clone of its old self in 2002, only to disappear again after three model years. The Corvette, despite shaky beginnings, would find its groove, survive and prosper for many more years.