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Here's the story:
Illustrated Corvette Series No. 57 - 1976
Corvette
"And Still More Refinement"
Depending on what department you worked in at GM, it was the best of
times, it was the worst of times. Despite our passions for performance, business
is business, and not turning a profit can turn automotive gold into lead.
(Remember the Fiero?) Fortunately for the Corvette team, the '76 Corvette was
golden in an age of non-performance.
Those pesky bean counters couldn't
have been much happier with the '76 Corvette. Sales of the Corvette hit an
all-time high of 46,558 units. That was up 8,093 units from '75. And considering
the hefty price hike in '76, those sales figures were astounding. The base price
of the '76 Corvette was $7,606, up $794 from '75. Part of the increase came from
inflation and the rest was the fact that the Corvette came with more standard
equipment than ever before.
Design and Engineering knew the possibility
of a new mid-engine performance Corvette was zero, so they set out to make a
better car. Power steering and brakes were now standard equipment. From there,
all other improvements were incremental. The base engine was up 15 hp to 180 hp,
and the optional "performance" L82 was up 5 hp to 210 hp. The power boost came
from allowing the engines to run hotter. To offset the extra heat in the
interior, the '76 Corvette had a partial steel underbelly. And to quiet things
inside, the air intake was forward of the radiator, eliminating the intake howl
from cowl-induction hood.
In the interior, the battery was now a new AC
Delco maintenance-free battery. The $164 custom interior option was very popular
with the Corvette's new buyers. The small-diameter steering wheel was from a
Vega, but had a Corvette horn button.
Like the mid-year C2 Corvettes,
exterior changes were slight. The hood was unique to '76, as it was missing the
cowl induction features. The rear bumper cover sported a new Corvette badge.
There were actually two versions, one with smaller recessed lettering, and the
other with larger lettering that wasn't recessed. Also, the air vents on the top
of the rear deck were gone. The aluminum Kelsey-Hayes wheels first shown in '73
were finally available as a $299 option. The gymkhana suspension option was up
from $7 in '75 to $35 in '76. But for all the add-ons and new parts, the '76
Corvette actually lost weight. Curb weight was down 52 pounds to 3,608. Not a
lot, but better than a weight gain.
Older guys and performance addicts
called the '76 Corvette "soft," while defenders said it was merely evolving into
a Grand Tourer. However, performance was way off. 0-60 time was 7.1 seconds, the
1/4-mile time was 15.3, and top speed was only 124 mph. Considering the times,
that was as good as it got. However, there was a guy named Greenwood with a
wild-looking, 221-mph IMSA racer (Some called it "The Batmobile") that had
everyone's attention. Actually, you couldn't miss it!
Here's the story:
Illustrated Corvette Series No. 58 - John
Greenwood's 1976 IMSA Racing Corvette
"Batmobile IMSA
Racer"
John Greenwood was described as "the perfect Corvette guy." He was well
financed, blue-collar, and liked getting dirty working on his race car. Also, he
was good at building very powerful big-block Chevy engines. In a field of
factory-supported SCCA A/Production and Trans-Am cars, Greenwood was a classic
underdog the Grumpy Jenkins of road racing. John had been beating up Porsches
and BMWs since the early '70s with his homemade, 8,000 rpm ZL-1 Corvettes. His
"Spirit of Sebring '76" Corvette was to be the wildest ride of his
career.
Although the car was called a "tube framed" car, John started
with a stock Corvette steel birdcage frame that was first gusseted for added
strength, with the tube frame then welded on. The front suspension used stock
mounting points, but was lowered using 25 percent stiffer springs, adjustable
Koni shocks, and various size anti-roll bars. The rear suspension used 2.73: 1
gears, coilover shocks, twin A-arms, and anti-rollbars to eliminate squat.
Hurst-Airheart NASCAR disc brakes with dual master cylinders provided excellent
braking. With the huge factory-option pontoon fenders, John was able to use
Sterling alloy wheels 11" x 15" in the front and 17" x 15" in the rear, with
Goodyear Blue Streak tires 24.5 x 10-15 on the front and 28.0 x 17-15 on the
rear.
Greenwood's ZL-1 engine was bored to 467 cid and made over 700 hp
@6,800 rpm and 620 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm. The engine used a stock crank,
Carillo rods, Isky roller rockers, a dry-sump oil system, and a Lucas fuel
injection on a magnesium cross-ram manifold. Transmission was a blueprinted M22
"rock crusher."
John wanted to make a street version of this car. But
federal regulations, safety, and liability concerns of the day prevented him. In
'76, Greenwood and Dick Smothers won Sebring and took the pole position at Le
Mans, but engine trouble took them out of the race. John's Corvette hit 211 mph
on the Mulsanne Straight! Not bad for a street racer from
Detroit.
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