Image via National Corvette Museum
Corvette Hall of Fame Inductee Gib Hufstader has been honored by the National Corvette Museum after the man passed away on May 4, 2025. An icon in the Corvette community, his contributions to America’s sports car through highlights like he AeroVette, original Grand Sport, and the Twin Turbo LT5 will be long remembered.
William Porter, who designed many of the iconic classic Pontiac muscle cars, has also died.
Hufstader was hired on as a development engineer for Chevrolet in the early 1950s. He was an amateur racer, using his hobby as a way to build bridges with the enthusiast community. In fact, the man pioneered an internal exchange program where racers could provide insights from their track experience to the Corvette team and collaborate on development projects.
One of Gib’s first big engineering contributions came in 1960 when he worked on the clutch development for the 427 “Mystery Motor” for racing at Daytona. He contributed to other motorsports efforts, like the original C2 Corvette Grand Sport.
In addition, Hufstader was involved in engineering brake packages for Corvette racing. In fact, in 1968 he was involved in building lightweight drag cars for exhibition races held at a long-lead press event. His interest and involvement in motorsports surely informed his work.
While we’re not entirely sure what his contribution was, Hufstader worked on the AeroVette concept back in the late 60s. If you don’t recall, it was a mid-engined example with a transversely mounted V8.
The man worked under Zora Arkus-Duntov, who himself is a legend in Corvette lore. Later, he was part of the team that developed the original ZR-1 engine, working specifically on its packaging.
Among the seven US patents he personally held were some for the cog wheel belt disc drive, electric air pump, and the arrangement for two rotor engines with transaxle and accy drive.
He will forever be remembered as an inductee in the Corvette Hall of Fame.
Image via National Corvette Museum
