Please reference this site http://www.pilotcarregistry.com/1963-corvette.html Interestingly, the author speculates S/N 001 and 002 did not leave the factory. Well we know at least one of the two did! Another theory stated they were both a result of internal orders by GM executives who just picked them up at the factory?? It would certainly explain why the vehicles did not have shipping records. Other possible fates discussed in the above mentioned (NCRS) record were they may have been sold on a bill of sale to independent racers, destroyed or worse, sold for scrap??
I was approached recently by a neighbor who knows I have ties with the NCRS. He had some pertinent information about the two vehicles mentioned above. He relayed this story to me so that I may forward this on & it is not lost in time.
Several years ago we had a neighbor, Theodore Eldon Melson (Ted Melson) who was also a car enthusiast. While talking about their past "vehicle loves" Ted shared this story. Before retiring he had been a Senior Vice President for Lear. He was in charge of manufacturing plants in the US & Mexico. Lear was a major supplier to the auto industry since 1917, and a major supplier to General Motors for many decades.
He stated one day back in late 1962 he received a call from someone at GM (I believe it was Roger Smith) who told him he had ordered a new '63 Corvette for himself but no longer wanted it. He wanted to know if Ted wanted it. Ted said yes to the almost rhetorical question. Well, that 1963 Corvette was in fact S/N 001 - the first Corvette to roll off the assembly line for the C2 cars.
At the time Ted was living in an apartment building in Detroit with an open parking lot, no garages. After only owning the car for about 6 months, Ted went to get in his car one morning to drive to work, and the car was gone. He reported it stolen to the police. Later that day the police found the remains of the car on FIRE in another parking lot. Weeks later the rest of the story came out. Apparently a Police Sergeant in Detroit or in a surrounding town had a son who led a ring of car thieves who would steal and strip Corvettes' specifically, and leave whatever parts were remaining burning in a pile. Worse yet, the Sergeant would use his "pull" to have the charges against his son dismissed.
So, sad to say, 1963 Corvette S/N 001 perished forever. And sadly, so has Ted as he passed away a few years ago. Ted's wife, Jan is still alive and helped to verify the information contained within.
It would be interesting to know if Police Records from 1963 still exist? It would certainly further authenticate the story.
Comments and questions are welcome.
I was approached recently by a neighbor who knows I have ties with the NCRS. He had some pertinent information about the two vehicles mentioned above. He relayed this story to me so that I may forward this on & it is not lost in time.
Several years ago we had a neighbor, Theodore Eldon Melson (Ted Melson) who was also a car enthusiast. While talking about their past "vehicle loves" Ted shared this story. Before retiring he had been a Senior Vice President for Lear. He was in charge of manufacturing plants in the US & Mexico. Lear was a major supplier to the auto industry since 1917, and a major supplier to General Motors for many decades.
He stated one day back in late 1962 he received a call from someone at GM (I believe it was Roger Smith) who told him he had ordered a new '63 Corvette for himself but no longer wanted it. He wanted to know if Ted wanted it. Ted said yes to the almost rhetorical question. Well, that 1963 Corvette was in fact S/N 001 - the first Corvette to roll off the assembly line for the C2 cars.
At the time Ted was living in an apartment building in Detroit with an open parking lot, no garages. After only owning the car for about 6 months, Ted went to get in his car one morning to drive to work, and the car was gone. He reported it stolen to the police. Later that day the police found the remains of the car on FIRE in another parking lot. Weeks later the rest of the story came out. Apparently a Police Sergeant in Detroit or in a surrounding town had a son who led a ring of car thieves who would steal and strip Corvettes' specifically, and leave whatever parts were remaining burning in a pile. Worse yet, the Sergeant would use his "pull" to have the charges against his son dismissed.
So, sad to say, 1963 Corvette S/N 001 perished forever. And sadly, so has Ted as he passed away a few years ago. Ted's wife, Jan is still alive and helped to verify the information contained within.
It would be interesting to know if Police Records from 1963 still exist? It would certainly further authenticate the story.
Comments and questions are welcome.
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