1972 Daytona Heinz & Johnson Rebel Corvette GT Class Win

Heinz & Johnson Rebel 427 L88 Corvette Wins 1st in GT Class 1972 Daytona: L88 Corvettes continue to dominate the road racing scene

1971 and 1972 saw fierce competition between Toye English’s Goodyear-sponsored Rebel L88 Corvette and John Greenwood’s BF Goodrich ZL-1 Corvette. Since Greenwood was from the North and used the stars-and-stripes livery, Toye decided to use the Confederate flag, since he was from the South. For the ’71 season, the Rebel Corvette won four of five IMSA races. But ’72 turned out even better!

At the 6 Hours of Daytona, Heinz and Johnson drove the Rebel to an 8^th overall and 1^st in the GT class. Goodyear was so happy; they took out a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal! The 12 Hours of Sebring put the Rebel into the record books. After qualifying an unimpressive 13^th, Heinz took the lead on the first lap and never let up for the entire race.

Winning their class at Daytona and Sebring in one year was a Corvette record that stood for 31 years

The Rebel was the only C3 to win both the Daytona and Sebring class events. Then, in June 1972, the Heinz & Johnson L88 Corvette raced at the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans. But when they arrived at the race, they almost weren’t able to race because they did not have an invitation! Luigi Chinetti, an importer of Ferraris, had entered only two cars and agreed to let the team use his third invitation, as long as they repainted the car to look like Chinetti’s Ferraris: red with a blue and white stripe, and wearing the N.A.R.T. decal. A small price to pay after going all the way to Le Mans.

What’s in that dinosaur?

The car is basically a ’68 L88 model. Under the hood, the 427 L88 was balanced and blueprinted. An 850 Holley carb sat on an aluminum high-rise manifold, and header-side exhausts helped crank out over 560 horsepower. The suspension used heavy-duty L88 parts, along with solid suspension bushings, heavy-duty springs, anti-roll bars, and double adjustable Koni shocks. A standard M22 transmission and heavy-duty Posi unit were used as well.

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Additional bodywork included factory fender flares, an L88 hood with cowl induction, plexi headlight covers, and the factory hardtop. A front spoiler helped keep the front end down on the Mulsanne. The interior featured a full complement of gauges, a bolt-on eight-point roll cage, and a Vega steering wheel. American Torque-Thrust aluminum wheels and Goodyear racing tires gave the car a distinctly American musclecar, tough guy look.

This is exactly what Zora had in mind with his “for racing only” parts program

With the right parts, carefully assembled, the average guy had a chance. Completing the 24 Hours of Le Mans is an amazing achievement for any car, let alone a production car with over-the-counter, bolt-on factory parts.

According to Hemmings Motor News, on January 18, 2014, the Rebel Corvette sold for $2.86 million, including buyer’s premium. The buyer is not widely known.

PS – In 1957, Chevrolet debuted “Corvette News” magazine

This is how forward-thinking Chevrolet marketing was. Everyone who bought a new Corvette from Chevrolet got a free bi-monthly “Corvette-only” magazine. I learned about Corvette News in 1965, when I was just 11 years old, when a friend showed me his big brother’s Corvette News magazine. I thought, “This is the coolest car ever! It has its own magazine!”

Corvette News was from the marketing genius of Joe Pike, with help from Betty Skelton, the aviatrix and speed record racer. The June/July issue of Corvette News celebrated the Heinz & Johnson 427 L88 Corvette’s class win at Daytona. The cover art is available as a 24″ x 30″ canvas wrap in our Man Cave Car Art Etsy store. Our Etsy store has over 60 old car magazine covers featuring Corvettes as canvas wraps and posters, HERE.

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