Chevrolet to help with sinkhole-damaged Corvettes

Chevrolet will take charge of the restoration of most of the Corvettes damaged. General Motors Design in Warren, Michigan, will lead the project, with Ed Welburn, vice president of GM Global Design, overseeing the restorations.

Eight cars, including rare one-offs, production milestone and concept cars (see the full list here), were damaged to varying degrees when the sinkhole opened up. Two of the damaged cars belong to General Motors, and were on loan to the museum.

"The vehicles at the National Corvette Museum are some of the most significant in automotive history," said Mark Reuss, executive vice president of General Motors Global Product Development - and former head of GM-H here in Australia.

"There can only be one 1-millionth Corvette ever built. We want to ensure as many of the damaged cars are restored as possible, so fans from around the world can enjoy them when the Museum reopens."

When the cars are recovered, they will be shipped to the Mechanical Assembly facility, a small specialty shop within GM Design, where the best restoration approach will be determined. Mechanical Assembly has been part of GM Design since the 1930s, and today maintains and restores many of the vehicles in the GM Heritage Collection and GM's historic concept cars.

Not part of General Motors, the National Corvette Museum is independently owned, and supported solely by charitable donations from enthusiasts. It is currently accepting donations on its website to assist in refurbishing the facility. Donations are tax-deductible.

Images: National Corvette Museum, Chevrolet