The GM Heritage Center is a great resource for finding historical items related to General Motors. Not only do they curate GM’s collection of historic vehicles, but they also provide enthusiasts with Vehicle Information Kits that are an asset to the hobby. However, what caught our eye were photographs of the 1958 Chevrolet XP-700 Corvette.
The XP-700 (above) was developed as a personal car for head of GM Styling, Bill Mitchell. Starting with a 1958 Corvette, the red fiberglass body was redesigned with a low proboscis up front, air scoops, and Grand Prix-inspired wire wheels. Power came from a 283/230 four-speed manual.
After 1958, the XP-700 was modified with a longer and smaller grille, an redesigned tail (which would influence the rear for the 1961 Corvette), Atomic-Age double-bubble plastic canopy, Lucas “Flame Thrower” headlamps, Dayton wire wheels, integrated front brake cooling ducts below the headlights, forward-slanting vertical louvers, sidepipes, rear-brake cooling ducts, and several other mods. Repainted metallic silver, the XP-700 then became part of General Motors’ show car entourage.
According to Mark Jordan, son of GM designer Charles M. Jordan, the XP-755 Mako Shark Corvette (below) was built on the XP-700 chassis, explaining its disappearance. If true, that’s definitely one way to recycle something.
 
Comments
At least show the correct car and not the XP
830.
Thanks for fixing it!
Thanks for noticing!
Many of the Corvette show cars of the late ’50s and ’60s were used by Bill Mitchell as daily driver cars and it was not uncommon for these cars to have been treated to a “refresh.” Mitchell drove his former race car, the Sting Ray Racer (recycled from the Corvette SS mule chassis) on the street for years.
The running 1966 Mako Shark II was refreshed and made into the 1969 Manta Ray show car. Bill Mitchell’s 1970 “Aerocoupe” became the “Scirocco” (not to be confused with the VW Rabbit variant), then in ’75 was refreshed into the “Mulsanne.”
It’s too bad that each iteration wasn’t maintained. But, I guess you can’t keep them all. At least they didn’t go off to the CRUSHER!