John Greenwood’s BF Goodrich ZL-1 Corvette EXPOSED E-Article
To read the CARS Magazine February 1973 article about John Greenwood’s BF Goodrich 427 ZL-1 Corvette race car, CLICK HERE!
This week’s announcement from Chevrolet for the 2026 ZR1X ZORA has stunned the Corvette and exotic sports car world on fire. The ZR1X ZORA has the standard ZR1 LT7 twin-turbocharged 1,064 horsepower engine, PLUS the E-Ray’s front-drive electric motor, for a combined 1,250 horsepower.
That’s INSANE! Chevrolet vaguely claims 0-60 in UNDER 2 seconds and the quarter-mile in UNDER 8 seconds!
Put that in your Corvette pipe, smoke it, and let it sink in…
The Death of Performance Cars? More like the Long Sleep
I couldn’t help but remember the beginning of the doldrums of the 1970s. Things started going downhill in 1971 when, to meet the tighter new emissions regulations, engines across the board of GM vehicles began the process of “detuning” by cutting compression. Things just kept getting worse every year. By 1973, the downward trajectory of performance cars was going down, down, DOWN.
Then a new Corvette hero stepped forward… John Greenwood
John Greenwood’s story is the stuff of Corvette Legends. Greenwood started his racing habit as a Detroit street racer, built by John and his brother, Burt. John tended to build his engines drag racer-style, even when he went into road racing. Consequently, many of the L88 and ZL-1 engines in the Greenwood Corvettes went, BANG!
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After racking up a few Trans-Am Championships, Greenwood inked a deal with BF Goodrich to race his Corvettes with BF Goodrich T/A Radial street tires. Chevrolet stylist, Randy Wittine, designed the red, white, and blue livery, and a legend was born.
The Greenwood BFG Corvette was a full-out race car that looked exotic on the outside, under the hood, and inside the interior. Compared to the modern Pratt & Miller Z06 GT3.R cars, Greenwood’s Corvette looks like an NHRA Super Stocker that could go fast around corners.
Greenwood’s BFG 427 ZL-1 Corvette forced Porsche and BMW to up their game to keep up with the monster Vette. In 1973, the Greenwood BFG Corvette represented what Corvettes “could be” if they weren’t being choked with regulations.
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While John and Burt were raising hell on the track with the BFG car, behind the scenes, they were working on a secret wide-body project with Duntov. Another Corvette legend was in the works.
Now, how about a Reality Check?
As awesome as the Greenwood BFG Corvette was, it would NOT stand a chance against the ZR1X! The Corvette world has gone way beyond anything Zora ever imagined. That’s why the ZR1X is the “ZORA” Corvette. – Scott
To read the CARS Magazine February 1973 article about John Greenwood’s BF Goodrich 427 ZL-1 Corvette race car, CLICK HERE!
Check out our Corvette swag in our Car Guy Merch Etsy Store, HERE.
Check out our Corvette swag in our Car Guy Merch Etsy Store, HERE.
