Page 122 - Experience Magazine Winter 2023

LOT #1343 - 1963 CHEVROLET CORVETTE CUSTOM SPLIT-WINDOW COUPE - NO RESERVE

MIRROR

IMAGE

MATCHING LEFT- AND RIGHT-HAND-DRIVE
SPLIT-WINDOWS AT THE SCOTTSDALE AUCTION

A sensation with bold and futuristic – almost
otherworldly – styling, the second-generation Corvette left
the “dream car” styling cliches and occasional excesses of
the 1950s firmly in the rearview mirror upon introduction
in October 1962. Based on early sketches penned in
1957 by a 19-year-old Peter Brock, one of the youngest
designers ever at GM Design, the new-for-1963 Corvette
was also heavily influenced by then GM Design Chief Bill
Mitchell’s personally funded Sting Ray racing car, which
took a 1960 SCCA class championship with famed driver
Dick “The Flying Dentist” Thompson. Having already
helped Mitchell design and build his Sting Ray racer, GM
stylist Larry Shinoda also led the development of the new
Corvette’s stunning body design to production readiness.

For the first time in 1963, two Corvette models were
available – a rakish convertible, supplemented by a
sleek new coupe, featuring a daring split rear-window
treatment. Featuring a broad and growing array of

122 BARRETT-JACKSON EXPERIENCE WINTER 2023