Not surprisingly, the 1954 Corvette differed little from the 1953 model, though running refinements occurred throughout the model year. For instance, the 1953 Corvette had two short stainless-steel exhaust outlets protruding inboard of the rear fenders. When it was found that air turbulence tended to suck exhaust gases back against the car, soiling the paint, the outlets were lengthened and routed below the body. But even this alteration didn't entirely solve the problem, which would persist until the 1956 redesign, when the tips were shifted to the rear fender extremities.

In addition, gas and brake lines were better protected by being moved inboard of the right-hand main frame rail, and tops and top irons changed from black to tan. The storage bag for carrying the side curtains in the trunk was mildly reshaped and newly color-keyed to the interior.

The 1954 Corvette had a revised camshaft that boosted the 235.5-cubic-inch six by five bhp to 155, but acceleration remained relatively tepid at about 11 seconds 0-60 mph.

Under the hood, a new camshaft gave the Blue Flame six an extra five horsepower, boosting the total to 155 bhp, though the increase wasn't announced until the following year. Other alterations included a new-style rocker-arm cover (about 20 percent of which were finished in chrome -- serial numbers 1363 through 4381), a tidier wiring harness, and more plastic-insulated wire (replacing fabric). Also, the three bullet-shaped air cleaners were replaced by a two-pot configuration after the first 1900 cars rolled off the line.

The 1954 Corvette featured bucket seats, a sports-car must -- even for one with only an automatic transmission. Note the short floor-mounted shift lever.

For 1954, the Corvette finally came in a choice of colors: Pennant Blue, mated to a tan interior, accounted for about 16 percent of production. Sportsman Red, selling at about four percent, and the original Polo White, at about 80 percent, were teamed with red interiors. A very small number of cars -- as few as six -- were painted black and also carried a red interior. Some 1954 owners claim to have original paint colors other than these four, though they're not shown in factory records. However, pain bulletins are known to have listed a Metallic Green and a Metallic Bronze.