prototypes
What’s a prototype?
1951 How it all began
1952 Corvette EX-122
1954 Corvette Corvair Motorama showcar
1954 Corvette Hardtop Motorama Showcar
1954 Corvette Nomad Motorama Showcar
1955 Corvette Biscayne Show Car
1956 Harlow Curtis SR-2 Lookalike
1956 Corvette Impala Show Car
1956 Corvette SR-2 Sebring Racer
1952 EX-122 Concept Car
1957 Q Corvette
1957 Corvette SS Show Car
1957 Corvette SS XP-64
1958 XP-700
1959 Stingray Racer XP-87
1959 Corvette Stingray
1961 Corvette Mako Shark XP-755
1962 C2 Prototype XP-720
1962 Four Seat Stingray Corvette XP-720 2+2
1963 Corvette Rondine Pininfarina Coupe
1963 Corvette Grand Sport
1963 Wedge Corvette Split Windshield
1964 World’s Fair Styling Study
1964 Clay model for '66 update
1964 Grand Sport GS-II(b)
1964 CERV II
1964 Pontiac Banshee XP-833
1964 Corvette XP-819 Rear Engine
1965 Corvette Mako Shark XP-830
1966 Mid Engine Styling Proposal
1967 Astro I
1968 Corvette Astro-Vette
1968 Astro II-XP-880 mid engine
1969 Astro III
1969 Manta Ray
1969 Mid Engine XP-882
1970 Scirocco Showcar
1970 Corvette XP-882
1973 Corvette 2 rotor XP-897-GT
1973 Reynolds XP-895
1973 Corvette 4 rotor XP-882
Aerovette
1973 Corvette XP-898
1974 Mulsanne Showcar
1976 Corvette XP-882
1979 Turbo Corvette
1978 Corvette Astro-Vette
1980 Turbo Corvette
1982 4th Generation Concepts
1984 Bertone Ramarro
1985 Corvette Indy
1986 GTP Corvette
1987 Corvette Geneve
1989 Corvette DR-1
1989 Corvette ZR-2
1990 Corvette Conan ZR-12 V12
1990 CERV III
1990 Bertone Nivola
1991 ZR-1 Snake Skinner
1992 Stingray III
2001 Corvette Tiger Shark
2003 Corvette Italdesign Moray
2009 Sideswipe

1955 Chevrolet Biscayne Show Car


The Biscayne show car was built for the 1955 Motorama. It employed many Corvette design ideas, and is presented to management as a new direction for the Corvette. The body is a special shell of glass-fiber-reinforced plastic for light weight and impact resistance. The Stratospheric windshield sweeps over the driver’s head to form part of the roof. The new four door design requires no center pillars.

The engines is an experimental high compression Chevrolet V8 of 215 HP with dual exhaust, four barrel carburetor and high lift cam.

This is how the Biscane showcar ended up...

Fortunately, the wreck was rediscovered at Warhoops Junkyard in approximately 1990. The Biscayne had been cut into several large pieces and hidden for almost four decades until the Bortz Auto Collection tracked it down.

Summer of 2005 - the chassis is being hand crafted by Kerry Hopperstad Custom Shop, the number one custom hot rod shop in the Midwest, who performed the time intensive and tedius task of duplicating the original chassis from detailed pictures of the Biscayne that were discovered in 1999 in the General Motors Tech Center. The Biscayne file was discovered buried in a file cabinet at the General Motors Tech Center. This afforded the opportunity to have the chassis and running gear duplicated to its exact original specifications.

Joe Bortz proudly shows off the find of the century in Warhoops Junkyard in approximately 1990. The car had been cut up into eight major pieces and was due to be crushed but Warhoops owner, Harry Sr. managed to hide all of these pieces until around 1990 when he turned over all of the pieces to the car to the Bortz Auto Collection.

Summer 2005 the chassis is being hand crafted by Kerry Hopperstad Custom Shop, the number one custom hot rod shop in the Midwest, who performed the time intensive and tedius task of duplicating the original chassis from detailed pictures of the Biscayne were discovered in 1999 in the General Motors Tech Center. The Biscayne file was discovered buried in a file cabinet at the General Motors Tech Center. This afforded the opportunity to have the chassis and running gear duplicated to its exact original specifications.

October 2005 – the excitement is mounting – the Biscayne chassis is getting extremely close to being brought together with the body!

November 7, 2005 – The Biscayne body is placed on its exact replica chassis, the engine and running gear are in place and the hubcaps have even been placed on the car. It is ready to roll!

Source: Bortz Auto Collection
Thanks to Bob Willis for more extensive information










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