• The first Corvettes were underpowered with the Chevy 235.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Chevy has produced inline six-cylinder engines since 1929. An inline-six engine has all six cylinders in one line or bank. In the common V configuration, the six cylinders are in two banks of three. The first generation inline-six displaced 194 cubic inches and had 50 horsepower. The second generation displaced 216 cubic inches and the 235-cubic-inch engine replaced it in 1949.
  
  

The Base Engine

• The 235 was released in 1949 as a truck engine. In 1950, the engine was released as a car engine. This power plant replaced the 216-cubic-inch engine and by 1954 the 3.9-liter, or 235-cubic-inch engine, was standard on all Chevy cars. The truck engines had mechanical lifters and the car engine had hydraulic lifters. The engine had a horsepower rating of 105 with a torque of 193 foot-pounds 2,000 rpm. The 235 had a bore and stroke of 3 9/16 by 3-15/16 inches with a compression ratio of 6.75:1.
  
  

The Blue Flame

• In 1953, Chevy altered the 235 and placed in the Corvette. The 235 had a pressurized oil system added to accommodate the new power glide automatic transmission. This engine had the 105 horsepower of the original 235. This Corvette had no real speed. At that time, different divisions within in General Motors did not share engines. This engine was known as the Blue Flame. This was the first Corvette and only 225 of these cars remain, as of 2010.
  
  

1954 Corvette

• In 1954, Corvette increased the horsepower of the Blue Flame to make the car a bit sportier. The Corvette engineers made do with the inline-six until another engine could be developed. The engineers modified the camshaft rubbing on solid lifters, changed out the valve springs and adjusted the compression ratio, raising it from 7.5:1 to 8.0:1. They radically changed the induction system by adding three Carter type YH sidedraft carburetors. The modifications to the engine resulted in a 150 horsepower at 4,500 rpm. In 1955, the Corvette changed from the inline-six to a V-8 engine with 195 horsepower.