CAR LIFE Magazine Profiles the Running 1966 Mako Shark-II
The Mako Shark-II wasn’t just a looker, it was a runner with a 427 under the tilt-forward front end!
To access the PDF version of the Car Life Mako Shark-II article, CLICK HERE.
In the spring of 1965, VP of GM Design, Bill Mitchell, dropped an atomic bomb on GM’s upper management when he debuted his non-running Mako Shark-II concept Corvette. Stop for a moment and think of cars from 1965. Even Ford’s hot little Mustang pales in comparison. There was nothing on the planet that looked like Mitchell’s Mako Shark-II.
Upper management was so excited about the non-running, static Mako Shark-II, the decision was fast and unanimous: the Mako Shark-II MUST be the 1967 Corvette! But, they wanted to see a running version of the Mako Shark. Six months later, the static Mako Shark-II with a 396 big-block was replaced with a running Mako Shark with a 427 big-block.
The car was never performance tested, but those fortunate few reported that the running Mako Shark-II was just as fast and quick as a regular 1966 427 Corvette.
The Mako Shark-II design never made it as a 1967 Corvette. The introduction of what would be called the “C3 Corvette” was delayed for a year and debuted as the 1968 Corvette. Designers had to deal with the unexpected challenge of dealing with the Mako Shark-II’s huge front fender humps, and all-new interior, and compactness of the overall design. Also, the production version featured a totally different roof design.
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The Mako Shark-II is arguably, from a styling perspective, the most radical Corvette concept car ever created. So much so that “Shark” design DNA still lives on, even in the C8. Enjoy the time-travel trip back to January 1966 when cars from the late 1940s were still on the road!
To access the PDF version of the Car Life Mako Shark-II article, CLICK HERE. – Scott
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