Tag: corvette engines

Chevy’s Secret Duntov Engines Hot Rod Mag E-Book

Published on by Scott

Duntov’s Dec 1967 Hot Rod Magazine Cover Story; Secret Exotic Chevy Engines

You can download your PDF booklet HERE.

Car magazines were my friends when I was a young teenager in the late ’60s. While I was crazy about Corvettes, there were no road racing tracks, only a drag strip close to where I lived in Collingswood, New Jersey. So, if I wanted some racing action, the drags was it; which was fine by me because tire-burning muscle cars regularly roamed the streets of our town, and were SO COOL.

Zora and his brother, Yura were making and selling their Ardun hemi-head conversion kits for flat-head Fords in the early 1950s.

Hi-Performance CARS, Popular Hot Rodding, Car Craft, Car and Driver, Car Life, and Hot Rod Magazine were my favorite flavors for fun reading. But somehow, the December 1967 issue of Hot Rod got past me, as I did not see that issue until way after eBay sellers started selling them 20 years ago. Recently I picked up a copy to add to my Corvette library.

The BIG SPLASH is the cover! There was Zora on the cover of Hot Rod, in a corporate gray suit, white shirt, a narrow black tie, and all smiles; but then again, Zora never knew a camera he didn’t like. And why wouldn’t he have been a happy guy, sitting there with four exotic experimental Chevrolet engines; single-overhead cam heads, and double-overhead cam heads with fuel injection systems of different configurations. Duntov even pushed to offer a SOHC kit for small-block Chevy engines via the Chevrolet Parts Catalog! Imagine that under the hood of your Vette!

Hot Rod’s editor, Jim McFarland got the plum assignment to go to Detroit with a recorder and interview Duntov about “some” of the experimental engines Chevrolet engineers were playing with. After the sixth paragraph, McFarland turns over the mic to Zora to take it from there. Duntov was very exacting and articulate in explaining everything he was allowed to talk about. Zora may have been the ultimate corporate misfit in his time, but he knew when to stop talking.

Here’s Zora and Jim McFarland many years after the famous Hot Rod Magazine “Inside Chevy’s Secret Engines!” December 1967 cover story.

The article is a fascinating peek inside the thinking of Chevrolet performance engineers, circa 1967. Enjoy! – Scott

PS – You can download your PDF booklet HERE.

PSS – You can access the entire collection of Corvette E-Booklets and the Duntov Files HERE.

1967-1969 427/435 L71 & 1990-1995 LT5 Added to the Corvette Engine Blueprint Series

Published on by Scott

Corvette Engine Blueprint Series Salutes the 1967-1969 427/435 L71 and 1990-1995 LT5 Engines

11×17 signed & numbered art prints of this image are available HERE in our safe & secure Amazon.com store.

Dateline: 2.3.17 – ATTENTION CORVETTE MOTORHEADS! We are officially announcing the next two classic Corvette engines in our NEW Corvette Engine Blueprint Series – the 1967-1969 427/435 L71 and the 1990-1995 LT5. We’re releasing these two engines together because they are arguably two of the most awesome-looking engines to ever live under the hood of a Corvette. The sight of that big, triangular air cleaner on top of that gigantic 427 big-block engine engine provides owners with instant bragging rights. Continue reading “

1967-1969 427/435 L71 & 1990-1995 LT5 Added to the Corvette Engine Blueprint Series” →

The Grand Debut of NEW Corvette Engine Blueprint Series

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 1.19.17 – C6 Z06 LS7 and C7 Z06 LT4 Engines Kick off NEW Corvette Art Print Series

The Corvette legend has many aspects. Most obvious is the car’s outstanding good looks. Generally it is good to look at the various styles of Corvettes from the perspective of their day – what did regular cars of the day look like. Only then is it obvious how far advanced Corvette styling has always been.

You can order your print today from our safe and secure Amazon store, HERE.

Equally important within the Corvette mystique is what’s under the hood. Many Corvette engines have become automotive heroes and legends. I am launching a new Corvette art prints series called, “Corvette Engine Blueprint Series.” Continue reading “

The Grand Debut of NEW Corvette Engine Blueprint Series” →

WEAR THE POWER! 1953 to 2012 Corvette Engine Tees & Sweats

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 11.29.11

Proud of your Corvette’s engine? WEAR IT, with one of our Corvette Engine Tees or Sweats!

To visit our Corvette Engine Tees & Sweats Store, click the above image!

Our designs include the following:

Blue Flame Six, 265 V-8, 283 Fuelie, 327 Fuelie, 1965 L78 396, L71 427,
427 ZL-1, 350 LT-1, 454 LS5, 350 L98, ZR-1 350 LT5, C4 LT1,
C5 LS1, C5 LS6, C6 LS2, C6 LS7, C5 LS3, C6 ZR1 LS9

There are many aspects to what makes Corvettes unique. Right from the beginning, Corvettes have been lookers. When Zora Arkus-Duntov saw the Corvette for the first time at the 1953 GM Motorama at the Waldorf Astoria, he was quoted as saying, “It was the most beautiful car I had ever seen!” But good looks will only get you so far. After a challenging start, thanks to Duntov and his team, by ‘57 with the introduction of the 283 Fuel Injection option, Chevy’s little fiberglass sports car finally was getting some respect. Continue reading “WEAR THE POWER! 1953 to 2012 Corvette Engine Tees & Sweats” →

Stunning Die-Cast Corvette Engine Models

Published on by Scott

Corvette Engines As Miniature Automotive “Art”

Note the quarter on the display base for scale.

Modern high-performance engines are just amazing machines. A quick look at the most powerful production engine to ever come out of Detroit is the supercharged LS9 ZR1 Corvette engine. This 376-cubic-inch engine has a Net horsepower rating of 638-HP. Measured in the old “gross” power rating system and the number would be easily be in the low 700-HP range. The ZR1 and it’s little brother the 505-HP Z06 can easily smoke ANYTHING from the old glory days of the stump puller muscle car era and get double the gas mileage to boot!

But this isn’t about numbers, it’s about aesthetics. Take the plastic or carbon fiber covers off on any LS-powered Corvette and you’re greeting with a maze of complicated hardware. I guess I’m “old school,” but I enjoy looking at old, pre-smog control device muscle car and racing engines. The simplicity of those old mills was oftentimes “art.” Continue reading “Stunning Die-Cast Corvette Engine Models” →