1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT

Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT (XP-777), 1962 - Illustration from "Chevrolet Idea Cars - Today's ideas for tomorrow's driving" Foldout
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT (XP-777), 1962 - Illustration from "Chevrolet Idea Cars - Today's ideas for tomorrow's driving" Foldout
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Restored 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT Show Car
Restored 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT Show Car
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Bill Mitchell
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Bill Mitchell
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - AC SPARKS Advertising Art
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - AC SPARKS Advertising Art
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT - Sports Car Cover, August 1963
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT - Sports Car Cover, August 1963
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 - Interior
Иллюстрации: General Motors Archive; Andre LE ROUX Site; www.corvaircorsa.com; www.shorey.net; deansgarage.com
Рейтинг:  61    -35    +96
One of the highlights of the 1962 New York Auto Show was GM’s unveiling of the Corvair Monza GT (XP-777) concept car, featuring a fiberglass body, a large Plexiglass windshield, and an air-cooled 6-cylinder engine placed ahead of the rear axle.
Though they bore a hint of Mako-shark-era Corvette styling, the 1962 and 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT and SS concept cars looked like nothing else: smooth, well-formed, and ultra-clean. Shape and detailing were vintage period GM, yet also somewhat Italian.

GM designer L. W. Johnson got a look at Bertone’s two-seat, Corvair-based Testudo as it was nearing completion in 1962-1963 and happily informed the Italians about his own company’s latest Corvair special.

Though built in 1962 and tested informally that year at Elkhart Lake and Watkins Glen, the new Monza GT fastback wasn’t publicly unveiled until April 1963, when it handily stole the limelight at the New York Auto Show along with a racy open sibling called the Chevrolet Monza SS.

Both these experiments were fiberglass-bodied two-seaters with four-wheel disc brakes, magnesium-alloy wheels, hydraulic clutches, stock four-speed-manual Corvair transaxles, fixed seats and adjustable pedals.

Both were also cleanly styled in the billowy idiom then favored by General Motors, with bumperless fronts and oblong headlights concealed behind large "clamshell" lids.

Yet for all their similarities, the Chevrolet Monza GT and SS differed markedly in some ways. The GT coupe, for instance, carried its engine ahead of the rear axleline; the SS roadster put it behind, as in production Corvairs.

Wheelbase was 88 inches on the Monza SS, 20 inches shorter than stock, but 92 inches on the more visually aerodynamic Monza GT.

Like production Chevrolet Corvairs, the roadster offered a small front luggage compartment but the coupe did not. Inside, the Monza SS dash was stark but highly informative, with a large tach and speedometer, plus five auxiliary gauges.

Had a production version materialized, the low, racing windshield and fixed side windows would have been replaced by a conventional screen and roll-up glass.

The Chevrolet Monza SS also had normal doors where the GT used a Testudo-style lift-up cockpit canopy, again front-hinged at the cowl and extending back to the B-pillar region.

Also echoing Bertone’s work was the rear-hinged hatch that swung up to reveal the engine, which was a two-carburetor version for quiet, smooth running. The SS used a four-carburetor setup.

Though often credited solely to GM design chief Bill Mitchell, Corvair Monza GT and SS styling was actually the work of Larry Shinoda, now celebrated for his work on various Corvettes and early-1970s Mustangs, and Anatole "Tony" Lapine, who would go on to design Porsche’s 928. Both the GT and SS were created under project code XP-797.

The Chevrolet Monza SS at least came fairly close to actual production – as close as any Corvair special. Remember that when these Monzas first appeared, Ford hadn’t released the Mustang, and Corvair was still GM’s only low-cost sporty car.

Had the redesigned 1965 Corvair sold better against the Mustang, it’s not inconceivable that a street SS or GT could have appeared by 1967 or 1968 – which means GM might not have needed to create the Camaro, with all the expense that entailed.

But the Mustang sold like nickel hamburgers from day one, and GM quit working on future Corvairs entirely. Which was a shame, because the Mustang wasn’t half the sports car these Monzas might have been.

As Road & Track said at the time: "The enthusiast market sorely needs a boost, and these are two cars that could do it." Come to think of it, they still could.
По материалам: auto.howstuffworks.com
Автомобили марки Chevrolet
1953 Chevrolet Corvette C1, 1954 Chevrolet Corvair, 1954 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible Coupe, 1954 Chevrolet Nomad, 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne, 1956 Chevrolet Impala Show Car, 1956 Chevrolet SR-2, 1957 Chevrolet Corvette Coupé (Ghia Aigle), 1957 Chevrolet Corvette SS, 1957 Chevrolet Q Corvette XP-84, 1958 Chevrolet Corvette XP-700, 1959 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, 1959 Chevrolet Impala, 1960 Chevrolet CERV I, 1960 Chevrolet Corvair, 1960 Chevrolet Corvair Coupe Speciale (Pininfarina), 1961 Chevrolet Corvair Sebring Spyder, 1961 Chevrolet Corvette Kelly (Vignale), 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT, 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza SS, 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Super Spyder, 1962 Chevrolet Corvette C2 Prototype XP-720 , 1962 Chevrolet Mako Shark, 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Testudo (Bertone), 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray, 1963 Chevrolet Rondine (Pininfarina), 1963 Chevrolet Wedge Corvette, 1964 Chevrolet Chevy II Super Nova, 1964 Chevrolet Corvette XP-819 Rear Engine, 1965 Chevrolet Mako Shark II, 1965 Chevrolet Turbo Titan III, 1967 Chevrolet Astro I, 1968 Chevrolet Astro II (XP-880), 1968 Chevrolet AstroVette, 1968 Chevrolet Corvette C3, 1969 Chevrolet Astro III, 1969 Chevrolet Manta Ray, 1969 Chevrolet XP-882, 1970 Chevrolet Scirocco Showcar, 1973 Chevrolet Corvette Four Rotor, 1973 Chevrolet XP-895 Reynolds, 1973 Chevrolet XP-897GT Two-Rotor (Pininfarina), 1973 Chevrolet XP-898, 1974 Chevrolet Mulsanne Showcar, 1976 Chevrolet AeroVette, 1983 Chevrolet Corvette C4, 1984 Chevrolet Citation IV, 1984 Chevrolet Ramarro (Bertone), 1986 Chevrolet Corvette Indy, 1987 Chevrolet Aero 2003A, 1987 Chevrolet Blazer XT-1, 1987 Chevrolet Express, 1988 Chevrolet Venture, 1989 Chevrolet California IROC Camaro, 1989 Chevrolet XT-2, 1990 Chevrolet CERV III, 1990 Chevrolet Corvette Nivola (Bertone), 1992 Chevrolet Concept Monte Carlo, 1992 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray III, 1992 Chevrolet Lumina Sizigi, 1993 Chevrolet Highlander, 1998 Chevrolet Monte-Carlo Intimidator, 1999 Chevrolet Nomad, 1999 Chevrolet Tandem 2000, 1999 Chevrolet Triax, 2000 Chevrolet Avalanche, 2000 Chevrolet SSR, 2000 Chevrolet Traverse, 2001 Chevrolet Borrego, 2001 Chevrolet Sabia, 2002 Chevrolet Bel Air, 2002 Chevrolet Journey, 2003 Chevrolet Cheyenne, 2003 Chevrolet Equinox, 2003 Chevrolet SS, 2004 Chevrolet M3X, 2004 Chevrolet Nomad, 2004 Chevrolet S3X, 2005 Chevrolet T2X, 2006 Chevrolet Camaro, 2006 Chevrolet Prisma Y, 2006 Chevrolet Sequel, 2006 Chevrolet WTCC Ultra, 2007 Chevrolet Beat, 2007 Chevrolet Camaro Convertible, 2007 Chevrolet Groove, 2007 Chevrolet Trax, 2007 Chevrolet Volt, 2008 Chevrolet GPiX, 2008 Chevrolet Orlando, 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, 2010 Chevrolet Aveo RS Concept, 2010 Chevrolet Volt MPV5 Electric, 2011 Chevrolet Colorado, 2011 Chevrolet Colorado Rally, 2011 Chevrolet Mi-ray, 2012 Chevrolet Code 130R, 2012 Chevrolet Tru 140S, 2014 Chevrolet Adra, 2014 Chevrolet Niva, 2015 Chevrolet Bolt EV, 2015 Chevrolet FNR, 2017 Chevrolet FNR-X Concept, 2020 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Stingray, 2022 Chevrolet FNR-XE
Комментарии
charlie
2 января 2008 г.
have factory photos of Monza GT and Monza SS. Was this car produced and how many?
Al G
6 июля 2008 г.
I dont know if this car ever seen the lite of day but...I think it is time to bring it on.
Uncle B
8 февраля 2009 г.
Sure beats the Hell out of the "Volt"
Rod
17 июля 2009 г.
Fellas ,
nither the corvair monza (mid-engine ) not the monza ss consepts ever saw the lighht of day as prodution models
There were prototype vehicles used to test the thesablly of mid-engine design for a possible mid-engine corvette for the later years whitch was later abandoned due to corvette purist wanting to keep the corvette a front engine .
These were the folks with in the GM /chevolot /corvette program the killed John De Loreren's "baby" the Pontiac Banhee bacause that vehicle was cheaper and had the same basic look as the 1968 corvette when the Bashee was a desigh study that car would have killed the corvette had it went into production
Mosley Lucky
22 января 2016 г.
Hi, there were also a Spyder version (without roof indeed) and a Gt called SS Monza.

www.editions-jfa.com
www.pilotage-volant-or.com
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