Corvette History

Ed Cole’s Corvette A-Team 

Corvette corporate angel, Ed Cole pulled it together 

Scott Teeters··
Last updated:
Ed Cole and the Corvette Team

Ed Cole – Chevrolet’s New Chief Engineer

Ed Cole

Ed Cole was the son of a Michigan dairy farmer and grew up in the nineteen-teens and nineteen-twenties. Growing up on a farm you learn a lot about machines and by the time Cole was a teenager, he was a field representative for a tractor manufacturer. After completing his engineering education at General Motors Institute, Cole went to work at Cadillac. Post WW-II, Cole co-headed, with engineer Harry Barr, the successful 1949 Cadillac 331 OHV engine.

Cole’s personal credo was, “Kick the hell out of the establishment!” He loved fast cars and his nick-name was “Fast Eddie Cole”. Within a behemoth company such as GM, projects that went through the usual channels could take years. Mauri Rose explained years later that Cole wanted to build it, then draw it. He was the man Harley Earl needed to engineer his sports car.

Ed Cole

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