The first Corvette engine had a displacement of 235 cubic inches.
That engine was Chevrolet’s Blue-Flame inline-six, used in the inaugural 1953 Corvette and again in 1954. It was related to Chevrolet’s regular 235-cubic-inch six, but Corvette versions received a higher-compression ratio, three Carter side-draft carburetors, mechanical lifters, and a higher-lift camshaft. Output was rated at 150 horsepower.
The 1953 Corvette was built around a modified Chevrolet passenger-car chassis and used a two-speed Powerglide automatic because Chevrolet did not yet have a manual transmission suited to the engine’s output. Its fiberglass body and hand-built construction made it distinctive, but early quality problems and modest performance threatened the model’s future.
A common mix-up is confusing the original six with later Corvette engines. The 265-cubic-inch small-block V8 arrived in 1955, the 283 appeared in 1957, and the 327 followed in 1962.