Legacy Metrics

1953 Chevrolet Corvette

E53F001184roadUnited States
Engine
'Blue Flame' inline-six with Powerglide automatic transmission
Colour
Polo White

The 184th Corvette ever produced, this 1953 example is a historically significant survivor from the inaugural 300-unit model year. Built with the standard Blue Flame six-cylinder engine, Powerglide automatic, Polo White exterior, and Sportsman Red interior, it represents the first-generation design by Harley Earl. Following a frame-off restoration by specialist Irvin Patrick, the car received Bloomington Gold certification in 2017 and has since been kept in climate-controlled storage with negligible mileage added.

Ownership

  1. —Auction sale
    Sold US$250,000

    RM Sotheby's catalogue lot →

  2. 1971 → 2016
    Owner from 1971
    partial documentation

    Held the vehicle for approximately 45 years before selling to the current owner.

  3. 2016-09-01 →Private sale
    Current consignor
    partial documentation

    Commissioned a full frame-off restoration by Kentucky specialist Irvin Patrick; car has been kept in a climate-controlled facility since completion and has covered only two miles post-restoration.

Competition

  1. 2017-06-01
    Bloomington Gold Certification
    Certified for originality

    Vehicle received a Bloomington Gold certificate confirming the car was preserved or restored consistent with original factory assembly methods.

Maintenance & restoration

  1. 2017Restoration
    Irvin Patrick

    Complete frame-off restoration carried out to concours-quality standard, with all work aligned to factory assembly practices. The cylinder head is a correctly date-coded replacement unit.

    Patrick is noted as a respected specialist in 1953 Corvettes; work was done in Paintsville, Kentucky, following the consignor's acquisition in late 2016.

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How this record is sourced

Each chassis record is compiled from public auction archives and links to its source material. Ownership, competition and maintenance entries are extracted from those catalogue listings by an LLM, which can make mistakes — please contact us with any corrections. The summary is Legacy Metrics’ own writing; we do not reproduce catalogue text.

“Full” and “partial” documentation labels indicate how well each entry is corroborated in the underlying sources, not an audit of the car’s physical paperwork. Names of recent or living owners are withheld for privacy.