Are these seats from the first Corvette prototype—and are they worth $90,000?

[Bryan]

How much would you pay to own the original bucket seats from the very first Corvette prototype? A seller on eBay is hoping the answer is $90,000.

Offered by user “ncrstopflight” in Portage, Indiana, the fiberglass seats and red cushions purportedly come from one of five cars that General Motors built in 1952–53 under the name Project Opel. In fact, the seller claims they come from the very first prototype, EX-52 [#852 in internal Chevrolet documents], which was built in December 1952 and shown in the GM Autorama at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York on January 17, 1953.

The seller claims to have proof of the seats’ authenticity, which he/she will share only with the buyer ... Read the full article on Hagerty.com:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/are-these-seats-from-the-first-corvette-prototype-a...

[55longroof]

This dude has lost his mind...

[JeepDave]

It would be nice if they were donated to the National Corvette Museum as not only the first Corvette seats but as the first Corvette strategically placed soft landing pads for a display Corvette that falls into the next sinkhole.   And if they were actually purchased by the museum, they could be the second National Corvette Museum "SINKHOLE."

[Lightning1]

Is this the starting point to build your very own C1 out of spare parts this winter?

And the proof... Does butt stain carbon date to 1952?

[Bartman442]

I was OK with the story until, "“Most all of the EX-52 and EX-53’s Motorama Corvette Show car removed parts were returned to either engineering and/or the manufacturer for durability and fatigue analysis and these original GM-Styling components have survived the test of time,” the listing reads."  I do not believe that seats from a show car would offer any value for durability and fatigue analysis as the seat use was not controlled or recorded.  Sounds like a scam to me.

[OldSole]

If these seats were removed in 1953, how did they get in the present condition.  Were they installed in some other car, or just left out in the sun to rot?

[drj3127]

The prototype car worth a bundle.  Those seats are really trash.  In horrible condition and the storage environment must have been in some dank cave where bays prevail.  My 67 Firebird has the original seats in it and they stilllook new!  Of course Ive owned it since 1969 and didnt store it in a cave.

[Hymie60]

We all have our dreams!

[Solosolo]

Somebody who is an absolute Corvette fan, with very deep pockets, is the only type of person to put up $90k for this junk. Put them back in the barn.

[jwinn55]

$90.00 That ain't bad..............Wait! What! 

[Hymie60]

Sorry my wife just hid the check and my wallet with credit cards.