![[VIDEO] 1954 Shop Order #2151 Styling Corvette Revealed After Lengthy Restoration](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2022/040722_3b.jpg)
A rarely seen first generation Corvette gone for many years has recently been revealed after a long, complex restoration. Thanks to renowned automotive author Jerry Heasley and restorer Billy Jay, we get a firsthand look at a very special, freshly restored C1 Corvette.
This 1954 Corvette is known as the S.O. 2151 Corvette. S.O. stands for Shop Order which was a GM term used for engineering or styling cars that were used internally for future product proposals and various development purposes. The cars typically had an S.O. tag located on the cowl or elsewhere on the car indicating their usage.
This Corvette has a very interesting history. It began life as a very early 1953 Corvette. The car was retained by GM, given the internal code name EX-129, and traveled the country as part of the Motorama tour. Later, in 1954, the body of the car was designated for use on Shop Order 2151 where it would be repainted Bermuda Green from its previous yellow and serve as a platform for future Corvette styling proposals. One of the neat features of this car is that it shows different styling features on each side of the car. This gave management 2 different options to choose from.
After its S.O 2151 duties were complete, the car disappeared until 1975 when it showed up on a used car lot and was also listed in Hemmings Motor News. It was subsequently purchased by a gentleman named George Campbell.
Now, you probably don’t recognize this car, but you’ve actually seen it here on CorvetteBlogger previously. As far as we know, Bloomington Gold 2014 was the last time this car has been seen publicly. Back then it was presented as 1953 VIN 009. Turns out, no one is really sure where that designation came from. What we do know is that, upon removing the body from the frame, a 1954 VIN and frame was found lurking under the car. Under S.O. 2151 the body from EX-129 was removed and placed on a 1954 chassis. In the video below, the restorer walks us through many of the interesting features commonly found on very early Corvette bodies like the mesh cloth used and the 1-piece body design. He also points out several clues which indicate that the body was also EX-129.
Jerry’s video presents a comprehensive walk-through of this car’s unique history. We get to see many of the special features unique to this particular Corvette while he and Billy Jay recap the car’s timeline of events including its last known appearance at Bloomington Gold in 2014.
Today the car once again sports its Bermuda Green paint that was first applied under Shop Order 2151. It’s also got a red motor instead of the usual Blue Flame 6. Outside we see big gills on either side of the front fenders with each side being slightly different than the other. There’s also a big chrome hood scoop and a wild“ “hump” on the trunk. The exhaust exits through the rear bumpers which is a feature that didn’t make production until 1956.
We could go on and on about all the unique items on this Corvette, but we’ll let Jerry and restorer Billy Jay tell the rest of the story instead. Go ahead and block out the next 30 minutes and check out the life of a very neat straight-axle Corvette. Then, keep an eye out for more coverage of this car coming up in Hot Rod Magazine.
Source:
Jerry Heasley / YouTube
Related:
[PICS] Bloomington Gold 2014 – 1953 Corvette VIN 009
Mecum Kissimmee Offering the 1968 Corvette Owned by Harley J. Earl
[PICS] 1962 Shop Order Styling Corvette at Amelia Island
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![[VIDEO] Dennis Collins Buys a Trifecta of Collectible Corvettes](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/uploads/2024/04/042724_2-218x150.jpg "[VIDEO] Dennis Collins Buys a Trifecta of Collectible Corvettes")
Cool story. It is so important to keep this history alive. You’d think that GM would keep more of their prototype cars away from the shredder and into museums!
Well done restoration!!
Wow — what a project! Very cool that the car was found, recognized for what it was, and now returned to one form of its past glory. He doesn’t say anything about it in the video, but I wonder if he agonized at all over the decision of whether to return it to its past glory as the EX-129 Motorama car (well known show car viewed by tens if not hundreds of thousands at the time, but styling wise not materially different than production ’53-’55 Corvettes), or as the S.0. 2151 styling car (viewed by virtually no one outside of GM at the time, but striking styling differences from production ’53-’55 Corvettes).
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