2003 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible 50th Anniversary Edition

Designed to provide a more "relaxed" overall feel to the car as well as the driver, MSRC offers both Touring and Sport programs. It also retains the existing Competitive Mode feature that allows a driver to switch off the traction control circuitry without impacting the other elements in the package. Chevrolet says MSRC is the fastest, most powerful and least-complex real-time damping system on the market today. An early-morning high-speed scramble on a favorite twisty canyon road offered eloquent evidence to the truth of that statement. Further benefiting from grippy Goodyear Eagle F1 GS run-flat tires—245/45ZR17s up front and 275/40ZR18s in the rear—mounted on wide, cast-aluminum rims, our test car displayed a near ideal mix of surefooted confidence and balance as it stormed through corners with authority. Tracking cleanly and crisply to an impressively high limit, when tighter radii finally did bring on a bit of push, the tail could be predictably rotated by briskly stepping into or out of the throttle. While this kind of precision does exact an offsetting penalty in ride compliance, it's the kind of tradeoff most Corvette owners have long happily indulged in return for the extra measure of handling prowess.

Delivering accelerative edge is the latest of Chevrolet's legendary small-block V-8's, the LS1.

Delivering accelerative edge that smartly complements its world-class dynamic capability of the 50th Anniversary Vette is the latest of Chevrolet's legendary small-block V-8's, the LS1. This all-aluminum OHV engine makes a solid 350 horsepower and 360 or 375 lb.-ft. of torque, depending on whether it's paired with the 4-speed automatic transaxle or 6-speed manual equivalent. Either way, 90 percent of that latter commodity is on the scene by just 2,000 rpm. Despite lacking the brute strength of the 405-horse/400 lb.-ft. LS6 engine in the top-gun Z06 coupe, this baseline motivator still responds to a max helping of right foot by poking you deeply back into the car's extremely supportive yet very comfortable sport buckets and send even the droptop streaking to 60 mph in about 5.0 seconds.


Save for its color scheme and array of 50th indicia, the interior on this commemorative edition looks exactly like any run-of-the-production-line Corvette fitted with Preferred Equipment Group 1 kit (electrochromic mirrors, twilight sentinel, manual tilt/power telescoping steering column and head-up display). While some may fault a few of the less than artfully crafted plastic trim bits, the car's ultra-stiff understructure that virtually eliminates cowl shake—not to mention the squeaks and creaks that plagued previous-generation Corvettes—is above reproach. Aural excitement levels do rise and permeate the padded soft top in direct proportion to vehicle velocity, but its direct-acting manual latching mechanism makes for quick easy changeovers, and the entire al fresco conversion process can be accomplished in under 15 seconds. Although a few drops of water did manage to slip between the glass and the door seal midway down each side window during the final carwash acid test, wind intrusion was never a problem. Running with the top-up also permits secondary inside access to this rapid roadster's 13.9-cubic-foot formal trunk.


Civilized enough to be used as a daily driver but ready to romp at a moment's notice, the '03 Corvette continues to rank as one of the world's greatest all-around sports cars. The Z06 still rules the roost in terms of absolute performance, but the 50th Anniversary Edition brings its own kind of charm to the mix. It bodes well for the start of a second half-century of distinguished history—as well as the arrival of the all-new C6 for '05. (www.chevrolet.com)