2003 Corvette – Vette-net

The arrival of the 2003 Chevrolet Corvette represented the culmination of fifty years of evolution for General Motors flagship automobile. It had been during the spring of 1953 that the first Corvette had been unveiled at GM’s “Motorama”. Since that time, it had transformed into an entirely new vision of Corvette with each evolution.

Now, with fifty years behind it, Chevrolet executives were prepared to commemorate the half-century-old sports car through a series of planned events that included the introduction of a Special Edition 2003 C5 Corvette.

Pricing: $43,895 (Coupe), $50,370 (Convertible), $51,155 (Z06)

Engine options: LS1, 346C.I., 5.7 Litre V8 (Coupe/Convertible) LS6, 346C.I., 5.7Litre V8 (Z06)

Transmission: 4-speed automatic (standard), 6-speed manual (optional)

Top speed: 170mph

Units Produced: 35,469

Available Colors: Quicksilver, Electron Blue, Speedway White, Black, Torch Red, Millenium Yellow, Medium Spiral Gray, Anniversary Red

Highlights of the year:

There was a new luxury in the Corvette. The “50th Anniversary Special Edition” Corvette package, available only on base coupes and convertibles. New Magnetic Selective Ride Control with Real-Time Dampingwas standard on the 50^th Anniversary Special Edition: Two modes, Sport and Tour, provide a new level of ride and control. A special Shale Convertible top provided a beautiful accent to the 50^th Anniversary Red exterior. A glass rear window with an electric defogger was included. Shale floor mats with the exclusive 50^th Anniversary logo were standard on the Anniversary Edition. The 50^th Anniversary Corvette interior with its dramatic Shale duo-tone has been extended to the door panels and instrument panel. Leather-appointed armrests and grips add to the elegant appearance. Sport bucket seats were a new standard feature in every 2003 Coupe and Convertible. The flowing “waterfall” – with its splash of exterior color between the bucket seats – was a colorful mark of distinction on 1953 – 1962 and 1998 – present (as of 2003) convertibles.

The people in charge of planning the Corvette’s 50th-Anniversary Special Edition picked a shade of what was then currently the most oft-selected Corvette color-red. Not just any bright Porsche Guards Red, mind you, and not the purple-red that proved unexpectedly popular on the 40th-anniversary model. No, this new, one-year-only Anniversary Red was a lustrous burgundy with Xirallic aluminum-oxide flakes floating under a special tinted clear-coat and complemented by special Shale interior trim with anniversary badges and cockpit embroidery.

The coupes and convertibles did include a number of equipment options that were now standard when ordering a 2003 Corvette. New Corvette owners could now expect to receive a car that included fog lamps, sports sears, dual-zone auto climate control, and a power passenger seat. The 2003 Corvette coupes also received a standard parcel net and privacy shade for the hatch area.

An interesting addition to the coupe, (given the specific nature of a two-seat sports car) was the introduction of special hooks that were installed on the passenger’s seat to facilitate the connection of a specially equipped child seat (an option that was only recommended when used in conjunction with a passenger-side airbag-cutoff switch).

As the Corvette celebrated its 50th anniversary, it was an interesting point of note that the Corvette was one of the longest-lived sports cars in the world. Yet, despite its many iterations and its incredible complexity, Corvette has remained faithful to the pioneers who designed and built it as well as to the owners who have owned and enjoyed driving it for fifty years.

In fact, at its 50th anniversary, the 2003 Corvette continued to share its GRP (fiberglass) body panels and its front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout of the 1953 model. Without question, at fifty, Corvette continued to be the proud legacy of Harley Earl, who envisioned a two-seat roadster a half-century earlier. Yet, as far as the Corvette had evolved since its earliest ancestor, the best was still to come.

Photos of the 2003 Corvette: