Visually, the 1957 Chevrolet Corvette was largely unchanged from the 1956 model year vehicle, which underwent the most significant styling changes since the vehicle’s inaugural year of 1953. There were some serious changes, but they came under the hood. The small-block Chevrolet V-8 engine’s displacement was increased to 283 cid, up from 265. The base engine made 220 hp, but could also be had in 245-hp and 290-hp variants, depending on carburetor and cam setup.

The biggest new for 1957 was that the Corvette was available with fuel injection, an expensive and cutting edge technology in the 1950s. There were two Corvette “fuelie” variants. One made 250 hp, while the range-topping engine made 290 hp. In promotional materials, this engine was underrated to 283 hp to emphasize the fact that it was one of the first mass-produced engines to achieve “One-horsepower-per-cubic-inch.” It was technically less power, but it made for better marketing. A 4-speed manual gearbox was now available as well, joining the 3-speed manual and 2-speed Powerglide automatic.

Thanks ton insistence and input from engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, the Corvette continued to gain more in the way of outright performance, and 1957 marked the availability of other performance options like heavy duty brakes and racing suspension in addition to the powerful fuel-injected engines.

6,339 Chevrolet Corvettes were produced for the 1957 model year, with 1,040 Corvettes equipped with the additional performance options.