1953 Corvette #276
Body - Interior Enhancements
1969 Pic of the Interior of #276
David Elie upgraded #276 on an on-going basis. David was always looking for a better look for the car. David explained all of his upgrades in a July 1969 letter to Corvette News (Corvette News was tracking down all of the 1953 Corvette owners for a feature story.) In an amazing stroke of luck, David's letter survivied 40 years and is readable today. Tattered, but readable. The letter completely documents the changes David made to the car.
1969 Letter to Corvette News
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Page One
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Page Two
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Page Three
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As explained in the Corvette News letter, #276 was very original when David acquired the car in 1957. The car was painted gold, but was pretty much stock otherwise. The 1957 picture below bears that out - note the correct hubcaps, hood emblem. side emblem, side view mirror, steering wheel, etc.
CIRCA 1957 - 1960
1957 Pic
Other 1957 - 1960 Car Views
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Note Change of Hood Emblem
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Original Trunk
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Original Trunk, With Metal Divider, Different Exhaust Tips
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As explained in the Corvette News letter, #276 was very original when David acquired the car in 1957. The car was painted gold, but was pretty much stock otherwise. The 1957 picture above bears that out - note the correct hubcaps, hood emblem. side emblem, side view mirror, steering wheel, etc. The three pictures immediately above start to show some changes. David has changed the hood emblem, and the trunk compartment shows a metal divider. 1953 #276 was a serious ski car, which probably mandated the metal trunk divider.
1963
1963 Pic of Friend with #276
As the above picture shows, David has started making changes to the appearance of #276. Hubcaps and side emblem are still original. But the hood and trunk are 57 Corvette style, as are the hood and trunk emblems. David also changed the steering wheel to a 1957 style wheel. David changed the side view mirror on the dirver's side, and added a side view mirror on the passenger side. The car still has the ski racks shown above. Very cool.
1965
1965 Pic of David Elie's Mom in #276
The original hubcaps and side emblem are gone by 1965. An external antenna appears on the rear passenger side. The brake drums appear to be painted red. The dash is black. The soft top hold downs are now the 1957 style. And check out the license plate holder.
1966
This picture from 1996 shows different wheels than the 1965 picture. I don't see oother external differences, however.
1969
Other 1969 Car Views
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Interior Setup for High Performance
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Note the Racing Style Hood Hold-Downs
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Racing Seat Belt & 4 Track Tape Player
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Corvette News Shot
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Great Trunk Shot - 1969
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Corvette News Shot
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The 1969 pictures show the car as it was when David Elie sent the letter to Corvette News in 1969. David submitted a number of Black & White picttures to Corvette News, including the aobe b&w pic. Here is what CN ultimately published about #276:
1970
1970 Pics - Note C2 Knock Off Wheels
The last major change David Elie made to #276 was to put C2 knock-off wheels on the car in 1970